Should we even consider Bend??? (Ashland, Redmond: property taxes, transplants, insurance)

[ScranBarre]

I'm sorry to hear that Bend has managed its growth so poorly. I'm currently envisioning a quaint rural town with the Cheers atmosphere of "everybody knows your name" being paved over for endless tract housing, big-box stores, freeways, etc. Isn't Oregon supposed to be "progressive" in terms of public land usage policy? Aren't there growth boundaries enabled to prevent urban sprawl from becoming such an epidemic? If so, then why on Earth did Bend slip through the cracks? It's more cost-effective to build cities vertically---not horizontally, is it not?

[Bendite]

Originally Posted by SWB

I'm sorry to hear that Bend has managed its growth so poorly. I'm currently envisioning a quaint rural town with the Cheers atmosphere of "everybody knows your name" being paved over for endless tract housing, big-box stores, freeways, etc. Isn't Oregon supposed to be "progressive" in terms of public land usage policy? Aren't there growth boundaries enabled to prevent urban sprawl from becoming such an epidemic? If so, then why on Earth did Bend slip through the cracks? It's more cost-effective to build cities vertically---not horizontally, is it not?

You are right - Oregon has some of the most restrictive land use laws but they have been subject to revision over the past few years after the efforts of developers and large land owners to put revisions to the land use laws succeeded. The revisions allowed people who owned property before the land use laws went into effect to not have to comply with laws that went in effect later (this is a very simplified descrption - it's complicated). Those revisions recently went under additional revisions that will stop some of that development. A second contributor is the notion of Destination Resorts where counties with lower populations are permitted to set aside land for the developmet of very large "resorts" that have to have a certain number of rental/vacation units among regular housing units. Typically, these resorts will have at least one golf course and very high end housing. Deschutes County, where Bend is, has now got several of these Destination Resorts built or in the process of being built. Surrounding counties have several in the planning/works stages. It has truly gotten out of hand IMHO. Meanwhile Bend has had a planning department that was very willing to cooperate with the many developers in the area - everyone in the housing industry, from realtors to developers to roofers, was caught up in eeh excitement of money money money in spite of a lot of residents attending meetings stating their concern with the growth and permitting therse large traks of development. Bend didn't slip through the cracks - but people sure didn't do anything to slow the pace. Thankfully, we now have revised building codes and the frantic pace of building is just a trickle compared to two years ago. Hopefully our planning ddept. has learned to listen to those of us that live here and aren't in that industry

[MackMichaels]

Originally Posted by timber mt

I love Bend. But I don't go there for diversity of culture , to garden , or try to make any money there. Forget those 3 things...Bend isn't the place for that. Bend is an awesome place for outdoor fun! Ski, mountain bike in the mountains or ride dirt bikes (yes, the kind with a motor) out in the high desert. Thats why I go there, when I'm done having fun and spending money I go back home. I woudn't move there without plenty of money or a for sure great paying job waiting.

There you go! You go there for certain things but not expecting the entire "paradise" package. That's exactly right--but not just about Bend. With tools like the Internet these days, there is no reason why people should, for example, travel across the country for a new job in SoCal and then complain that they want out after a year or two due to the location. I lived there many years ago, but I don't have to have lived there to know what it's like. I can get info from places like the Internet to tell me crime rates, schools, etc and even get particulars about if people there are "neighborly" or not. I go to SoCal for fun, but not living. This doesn't just apply to Bend or SoCal. It applies to most places and the way America enjoys "spreading out" and having their own house and land, it's unrealistic to expect a "Cheers" or "Mayberry" community unless you live in the boonies because people will keep migrating to the nice spots. A person might get lucky and find that kind of town without being in the boonies, but a person shouldn't expect it and then complain about how disappointing it is. In addition, Bend's growth has been happening for over a decade plus from what I understand. There wasn't a gold rush and in a year the population doubled. One thing I wonder is if the townsfolk resented the people moving in so much that they kept voting down money for building additional roads and whatnot that could handle the growth? Don't jump on me now, Bendonians/Bendites. I'm just asking if that's the case or not.

[Steve97415]

Originally Posted by mncamper

Well, as it stands I really appreciate all the responce to my questions about Bend. But it looks like were heading to Salem, or at least around that area. It seems that is better for my husband's possible new job. So are there any comments or thoughts about that area??? Better parts of town than others??? Schools are very important also. Any help would be great. Hope you all who ended up in Bend enjoy it. So let's talk Salem!!!

In view of your emphasis on good schools, I would look at West Linn. It's a bit more expensive, but if you were considering Bend, you should be able to afford West Linn. McMinnville and Newberg are also areas worth considering if you prefer smaller cities (these are both in the wine country of Yamhill County and are "up-and-coming" areas in the popular area between Salem and Portland). They are also more likely to appeal to someone with upper midwestern sensibilities...yah, they even got a lake in West Linn...you betcha. Corvallis has some of the best schools in the Willamette Valley, but that would be too far south for you. Here's a link to the state school report cards so you can do some investigation of schools and districts on your own. There are some good schools in mediocre districts and some lousy schools in good districts, so in some cases it will depend on exactly where in a particular city you find a home.

AYP and Report Card Download - Oregon Department of Education

[Silverfall]

Originally Posted by mncamper

Well, as it stands I really appreciate all the responce to my questions about Bend. But it looks like were heading to Salem, or at least around that area. It seems that is better for my husband's possible new job. So are there any comments or thoughts about that area??? Better parts of town than others??? Schools are very important also. Any help would be great. Hope you all who ended up in Bend enjoy it. So let's talk Salem!!!

You'll want to stick to south salem for really good schools. There are a lot of average schools here in Salem, but the ones that the state gives strong and exceptional ratings to are down south. You'd want to be in Schirle, Sumpter (although they are having some overcrowding problems due to new construction), Pringle, or Wright elementary districts. They feed into Judson and Crossler Middle schools, and Sprague high school.

There are a lot of neigborhoods depending on what you like and affordability. We are much less expensive than Bend.

[MIKE FROM PAGE, AZ.]

Kosmo65, you stated that there are four seasons in Bend. I lived there from 1969 thru 1989 and I can tell you that there are TWO very distinct seasons, winter from October thru June, six weeks of summer and maybe a fall or maybe not and sometimes there might only be two weeks of summer and summer nights will be half of the daytime high. Yes if it is 80 then the next morning at 7:00 the temp will be 40-45. Just try to grow a veggie garden if you think I am kidding. We had five acres out on Erickson road with mountain views and sold it with a home in 1980 for only 90K ! Man, if I sold it today I could probably afford to live on the lower west side in some pos shack that nobody would have even considered to buy in the 70's but last year would have commanded 500K. If you buy east of town, you can plan on almost nonstop wind, but less snow. The west side gets the most snow and the least wind but has the high fire danger. Some of you remember the Aubrey hall fire getting a little too close. Bend is a tough place to live if you do not have an income. Remember if you have a job it is an ifcome and I suppose that there is enough bucks there now to sustain creative ifcomers compared to the 70's when the mill was where the "big money" people received paychecks. This housing deal reminds me of the crash of 1979-1981 where the specs lost so many homes and now all you need to do is graph the rental listings as they go up by the week. For all of you prospective new Bendites you need to have the Bend Bulletin sent each week to wherever you live now to stay informed. Fuel costs have tanked the private aircraft use and its related business in Redmond and as fuel goes up watch what happens to visitation at the high lakes and the skiing people from the valley will have to settle for ugh, Mt Hood, but that will leave the runs at Bachelor wide open ! Good luck to all of you people wanting to live there unless you come to town with a lot of cash and move there in March thru May so you can be well prepared for a possible nasty winter. I lived there during the winter of the "big snow" when we had four feet in 36 hours and subsequent temps of 20 below for two weeks with daytime highs of 0-10 above. Everything stops when these polar troughs come down south for a two to three week blast.

[mddd]

The statement that there are only two seasons is as extreme as some of the weather right now in the midwest.

I have lived in Colorado and Montana. Bend is a very mild four seasons. This past winter had more winter than many of the more recent winters. That said-- we have been golfing since mid April in town and since March if you drive to crooked river.

Have had temperatures in the 80s for a number of days. And its still May. Yes the high 80's -low 90s was unusual but highs in the 60-70 range for April and May is not bad. You are right-- not a place to excel in veggie gardens unless you get your starts inside for early spring. Thats because it does get cool at night. And it doesn't rain near as much as the westside of Oregon. Lived there and enjoy a good rain but it got to be too much.

There are many sites that give tools to compare weather averages from one city to another.

While it may not be Mayberry-- I usually see and talk with about 3-4 people anytime I go to the stores or out to an event. It is still a place where you will see and know your neighbors and will run into folks you know everywhere.

[Smiled]

One place you might look is at BendBubble2.

[eynewman]

Buzzkirk said: "Bend's original inhabitants, very nice and real people, have been squeezed out by astronomical property taxes due to hyper-escalated property values driven by Californians, who are generally an uncouth lot."

Wow...How many Californians do you actually know out of the 38,000,000 or so of us? I guess as soon as you cross the border into this state, which is HUGE, your personality and decorum change in kind. The majority of people in California migrated here from elsewhere. There are very few natives, especially second and third generation, like I am. Funny and sad how some Americans can be so bigoted and hateful toward others of their own nation.

People in surrounding states need to understand what has happened to our once beautiful, incredibly scenic state. People having been moving here in droves since the end of WWII, not only from other states, but from all over the world. Excellent weather and low unemployment rates drew people in and the housing prices increased. Now-a-days, the border to the south of us, thanks to the lack of response from the Feds, is essentially wide open. This onslaught over such a short period has made portions of our state miserable places to live. So, people are taking their equity and running elsewhere. Escalating home prices and growth is something we know only too well. Remember that home prices are not set by the buyer, but by the seller. Could it be that the inhabitants of Bend are a little too greedy for the good of the community? It seems like there, just as everywhere, people are looking out for their own best interest. This will never change.

[mummstheword]

We are new to Bend, from a well-known big city in a state to the north. However both spouse and I attended school here as kids...I in Sisters, he in Bend. He graduated a Bend Lava Bear. We love the clean desert air and the volcanic moonscape look of things coupled with the gorgeous tall ponderosas, junipers with worled limbs, and the long-needled jack pines. It's dusty, and sometimes smoky in the summer. But that's all as we remember from childhood here. It feels like home.

One great thing about being back in Bend is that we are moving here during the big real estate freefall. Bad news for many here, and we are cognizant that our gain is their loss. However, 3 years ago we were sure we could never live here again which had been a fond hope of ours for many years as we vacationed here and visited old friends, came for class reunions, etc. Home prices were surpassing those of our northern state's largest city, meaning Bend's were unimaginable for a region such as this. People who worked here couldn't live here. People who WANTED to live here...and work, (like us) couldn't afford to move here.

Now, in another 6-18 months, (NOT yet) prices will likely return to a level where people who make their living here can afford to live where they work. We're renting until then. Rents are cheap, homes are cheapening...but bottom is yet to be reached. Thoughtless, short-term land-use decisions coupled with a lot of people panicking to think they'd NEVER own a home here if they didn't BUY NOW...and speculators, trying to make a quick killing, brought about prices that neither they nor the market could bear in the end.

We love Bend...with all the changes, flaws, Californians, sprawling developments, and all. It is 12 minutes or less to work...or virtually anywhere we need to go. It was 90 minutes by bus, and at least that by car to work in the unnamed northern city. That's 156 minutes a day we've reclaimed.

We're glad to be back w/ all of the changes. We like the access to culture/entertainment/shopping, etc that's moved in since we were kids. Seems a reasonable tradeoff. We've grown and changed...so has Bend. If you love things exactly as they are where you are...then stay. You're just where you ought to be.

If you've hankering for something new, are adaptable and love beautiful scenery, distinct seasons, dry, clear, air redolent of pines, junipers... dusty sagebrush-scapes populated by deer, pin-nose chipmunks, rock chucks, and lizards...and access to stunning golf courses, river bike trails, white water rafting, sheer cliffs, rocks and rimrock to scale, and world-class skiing 20 minutes away...well, you might like to be a Bendite.