Housing affordability is a BIG issue. Prices are rising, homes are in short supply and everyone—the homeless, working families, renters, home buyers, young families, single parents, students, seniors, and the disabled—is feeling the squeeze. How will we meet this challenge? It’s time for a community-wide conversation. Bend 2030 says it is ready to lead it.
Bend 2030 announced the launch of a new endeavor at Bend 2030 that begins with a summit on housing affordability. We’re calling this new project the Bend 2030 Livability Series. According to Bend 2030: If Bend 2030 expects to bring our community’s vision to life, it’s our job to tackle our toughest long-term problems—this series of civic engagement summits is our game plan for bringing in all community voices and for helping our decision-makers make good choices on our most complicated questions.
The Bend 2030 Livability Series: Housing Affordability Forum is their first crack at this new chapter in the organization’s work. It begins with a survey that went live last week, which will take the community’s temperature on housing affordability.
Bend 2030 says: We know it’s a problem, but what critical choices are we willing to make to ensure everyone in our town has a place to live? Are we willing to allow taller buildings? More homes per acre? How about exempting developers who build affordable homes from fees?
To help ask the right survey questions, Bend 2030 talked to two-dozen housing stakeholders, including agencies like Housing Works, Central Oregon Builders Association and the City of Bend. Now they’ll work hard to ensure hundreds of people take the final survey. To encourage participation, they’re giving away dozens of $25 gas cards to those who take the survey by October 26.
That date is important because on Thursday, October 30, they’ll hold a Housing Affordability Forum at the Bend Senior Center from 6-8:30pm. Featuring interactive exercises, survey results and personal housing struggles, this is the public’s chance to learn the truth about housing in Bend. More importantly, participants will make real recommendations on solutions, which Bend 2030 will summarize in a final report presented directly to decision makers and key stakeholders.
Funding for the Bend 2030 Livability Series is provided by the generous support of the Leadership Alliance of Bend 2030, including BendBroadband, Bend Park and Recreation District, Brooks Resources, Central Oregon Community College, the City of Bend, Deschutes Brewery, OSU-Cascades, St. Charles Health System, US Bank, The Garner Group, SunWest Builders and NorthWest Crossing.
For more information about Bend 2030 visit Bend2030.com and Facebook.com/Bend2030. Take the housing affordability survey at www.surveymonkey.com/s/bendhousingsurvey.
Contact: Marika Yuma
Bend 2030 Project Manager
541-390-2832, acceleratebend@gmail.com
