(Objectives for Sisters Woodlands, shown in this aerial view, include “creating affordable workforce housing opportunities for the growing population.” | Rendering courtesy of Build LLC)
With housing prices in Sisters reaching an all-time high, two questions arise: who can still afford to buy in this destination community, and how do companies continue to attract those employees who cannot?
According to the most recent monthly report produced by the Beacon Appraisal Group in Redmond, the median sales price of a single-family home in Sisters rose to $699,000 in August, compared to $623k a year ago, and $550k in August 2021.
Answering the first question posed above, EDCO’s Eric Strobel said that “post-COVID, remote work became a huge factor that allowed more people to afford a home in Sisters. We’re seeing a whole new way of working.”
Addressing the second question, he stated what local employers have to deal with: “housing is a huge obstacle,” adding that “of local companies employing 40 people or less, one-third commute from Redmond, and one-third from Bend, while only one-third live in Sisters.”
He and Community Development Director Scott Woodford (himself a commuter from Bend) point to two housing developments intended to ease the lack of local housing options.
Sisters Woodlands
Sisters Woodlands, a development project on the former Forest Service Property located at 201 N Pine Street, is approximately 31.56-acres in size. Its objectives include “creating affordable workforce housing opportunities for the growing population.”
It will consist of approximately 359 residential units in the form of cottages, townhomes, apartments, and mixed-use commercial/industrial and residential buildings, including about 44,000 square feet of commercial/light industrial space. The proposal also includes 4.26 acres of park space.
Now working with the City, County, School District, and Sisters Woodlands is a non-for-profit called Rooted Homes which “provides environmentally sustainable and permanently affordable homeownership opportunities for those who contribute to the fabric of the Central Oregon economy and community.” They have built or announced plans to build around 100 affordable single-family homes in Central Oregon including 23 units in Redmond.
Having identified teachers as one group deserving of subsidized housing, Rooted and its partners will be dedicating two homes in Sisters Woodlands for teachers — homes that will stay within the school district. (It is anticipated that the first two homes could be ready for the start of the 2024 school year.)
Partnership with Habitat for Humanity
In addition, Sisters Woodlands is partnering with Sisters Habitat for Humanity to build ten cottage lots that will be integrated throughout the development, rather than clustered together as is generally the case. As a result, the Habitat homes will not be distinguishable from the others.
(Designating the lots to Habitat was not a requirement for Sisters Woodlands Development (SWD) group, but a voluntary election.)
The developers sold Habitat the first four lots, with funding coming from Deschutes County’s redistribution of funds from ARPA (American Rescue Plan Act). Of the $1.3 million Sisters received, $800,000 goes to purchase the ten single-family units in the Woodlands project. Some $500,000 was reserved to support the expansion of affordable workforce housing in Sisters, with additional funds provided by the City.
(Sunset Meadows will provide 130 new dwelling units on one of the last available large parcels of land in Sisters | Rendering courtesy of Build LLC)
Sunset Meadows
Sunset Meadows consists of a 12.92-acre property, located on the McKenzie Highway between West Hood Avenue and North Brooks Camp Road, that will provide some 130 new dwelling units on one of the last available large parcels of land in Sisters. It includes:
- 36 lots for detached single-family dwellings;
- 24 lots for attached townhome single-family dwellings;
- 1 parcel for approximately 72‐124 multi-family residential units; and
- Approximately 3.15 acres of open space with trees.
“Sunset Meadows will bring a lot of housing, while Sisters Woodlands will offer both townhouses and apartments that are more affordable,” Strobel said. Together, these projects which will result in hundreds of new units — are an important step to “get the workforce into housing.”
