Press Release: Recommended approval to limit new destination resort development
Deschutes County Planning Commission recommends approval of LandWatch’s application to limit new destination resort development
March 24, 2023
On March 23, the Deschutes County Planning Commission voted 3 to 1 in favor of recommending approval of Central Oregon LandWatch’s application to amend the county’s zoning code to limit new destination resort development. LandWatch celebrates this recommendation as it illustrates the county’s responsibility to conform its zoning code to state law, and reflects a commitment to protecting rural lands and shared community values for wildlife, water, agricultural livelihoods, and more.
Our application asks Deschutes County to conform its zoning code to longstanding state law that limits the scope of new destination resorts when a nearby city exceeds a population of 100,000.
Over the past decade, there has been mounting frustration over proposed, and new destination resort developments across Central Oregon; concern over groundwater, wildlife habitat, and rural sprawl persist with increasing urgency. Recognizing that enough is enough and that Bend’s population now exceeds 100,000, LandWatch submitted an application to Deschutes County last fall, requesting that the county update its zoning code to limit new destination resort development.
Deschutes County currently has several destination resorts and more than any other Oregon county. The county has approved four large destination resorts in the rural county outside of city limits over the past 20 years. These resorts came in addition to four historic resorts that existed prior. The four new resorts were permitted under Oregon’s land use law, Statewide Planning Goal 8 Recreation, which provides a path for resort development in certain instances meant to promote tourism in rural areas.
However, Goal 8 also includes an important limitation on destination resorts. Because Oregon’s land use laws generally protect rural land for farms, forests, open space, and wildlife habitat, destination resorts are only permitted to a point. According to Goal 8 and Oregon statute (ORS 197.455), “The county may not allow destination resorts [...] Within 24 air miles of an urban growth boundary with an existing population of 100,000 or more unless residential uses are limited to those necessary for the staff and management of the resort.”
With Bend’s population now exceeding 100,000 due to exceptional growth over the last 30 years, Deschutes County’s zoning code needs to be updated to reflect this limitation on destination resort development. Central Oregon LandWatch’s application requests that the county amend its zoning code to limit new destination resort development within 24 miles of Bend.
From heightened wildfire risk to stressors on available water, continued large-scale luxury development puts the region and its ecosystems at risk. In planning ahead for a sustainable future for Central Oregon, LandWatch is proud to have submitted this application on behalf of our supporters. We look forward to presenting our application to the Board of County Commissioners in light of the Planning Commission’s recommendation to approve.
Ryder Redfield
A community-supported organization
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