Proposal for car-poor areas sparks excitement and concern | The Source Weekly

OIn recent years, the City of Bend has worked to improve its transportation systems to make it easier for pedestrians and cyclists to get around the city. The latest project, created through a state grant, will address the implementation of car-poor neighborhoods, or People Streets, by conducting a case study of the Bend core area and downtown Bend.

While there are currently no plans for a street change as part of the study, downtown streets such as Oregon Avenue and Minnesota Avenue are being examined as potential areas for restricting or restricting car use. This sparks controversy among downtown business owners.

The city invited residents at an open house on Nov. 15 to learn about its plans, share photos and ask questions to better understand the community’s interests.

“There is much room for improvement in the transport system to accommodate all users. “So I think People Streets helps set the policy, the direction and the mood for the development of these car-free or car-free areas and streets,” Matt Muchna, executive director of community planning organization Envision Bend, told Source Weekly at the Day of open door.

An Oregon administrative rule requires cities with more than 100,000 residents to allow the development of car-poor districts to create safer pedestrian and bike paths. These neighborhoods, designed for pedestrians, cyclists, and walkers, call for car traffic to be slowed, reduced, or restricted. An example of this in Bend would be downtown Brooks Alley.

According to Allison Platt, the city’s core areas project manager, part of the city’s job is to define what those areas look like and where they might go. This is being examined in a study funded by a $150,000 grant from the Department of Land Conservation and Development. The money goes to engineering and design consultants.

The study, intended to inform future policy recommendations, will examine areas of low car traffic along a route in Bend’s core area and downtown Bend between Juniper and Drake parks, addressing concerns about connections to and from the proposed Hawthorne Clear out bridge.

Since the city began conceptualizing the idea over the summer, members of the Downtown Bend Business Association have felt left out of the discussion due to a lack of communication and involvement in the process. McKenna Mikesell, board president of the Downtown Bend Business Association, said the organization has a number of concerns about this proposal and hopes the city will include it in future planning on the issue.

Business barriers

When the DBBA heard the car-poor neighborhoods pitch in September, which included a concept for a Plaza Street at Minnesota Avenue, concerns grew about parking and access to businesses.

“Parking is an absolute asset in the city center. “When I told downtown that, it immediately triggered everyone,” Mikesell told Source Weekly. “It’s not that we are against bicycles and inhumane streets. The city center is simply not built for that.”

The DBBA is concerned about the elimination of more parking spaces and has taken a formal stance against People Streets. Mikesell said there is already an increase in community members avoiding downtown due to the lack of parking. DBBA leaders worry that problems will be made worse if there is a plaza or car-poor neighborhood on streets like Oregon Avenue or Minnesota Avenue.

“We rely on parking because there is a car company here,” Rick Johns, a downtown business owner, told Source Weekly.

In 2021, the DBBA, under different leadership, proposed a Plaza Street at Minnesota Avenue, but ultimately lost support from other downtown business owners.

Aside from parking, the DBBA is concerned that access to stores on target streets will become inconvenient, particularly in bad weather or for elderly or disabled customers, causing businesses to suffer.

Because the initial concepts received negative feedback from downtown businesses, the City of Bend has scheduled a “reset” meeting with the DBBA for Dec. 9 to have a more in-depth discussion about some of the ideas highlighted in the case study.

A bigger vision

While the DBBA hopes to work with the city, downtown stakeholders contend they should have been included before the city even began developing its case study. Concurrent with the case study, the city formed a steering committee to discuss issues such as design, location and key principles. Platt said while the committee is made up of people from traditionally underserved groups and equity-based organizations, no one owns brick-and-mortar stores in downtown Bend, which is a concern for the DBBA.

Corie Harlan, city and community program director for Central Oregon LandWatch, is a member of the committee. With People Streets, Harlan said, the city would have the opportunity to connect major destinations and improve east-west connectivity via the planned new car-free bridge over Highway 97 and the railroad tracks. The idea that these low-vehicle neighborhoods could provide a viable connection to the proposed Hawthorne Bridge has generated even more momentum and interest.

“Hawthorne Bridge can’t be a bridge to nowhere so we need to find out what that looks like. I think this is the start of this conversation,” said Envision Bend’s Muchna.

Platt said a downtown street isn’t the only option for these districts, indicating some community support for connecting people to and from the Hawthorne intersection on the Bend Central District side – something likely in the case study is investigated.

The city’s case study will continue until May 2025. Policies for these districts will be adopted after the city updates its transportation system plan, expected in 2027.

“I think like everything in Bend, a lot of people are going to hate it just because it’s changing. For places like the Central District, where there is actually a complete redevelopment of the entire area planned, it’s a great opportunity to incorporate some of these pedestrian-friendly design features into that district to make it more walkable and attractive to people,” said David Brandt, Managing Director of Housing Works, during the open day.