City planners outline how state climate rules will reshape Bend land-use and transportation planning

Growth management staff told the Bend Energy and Climate Committee that recent state rule changes are tightening the links between land use, transportation and climate goals and that the city's upcoming comprehensive-plan update will try to align local policy with those new statewide requirements.

Susanna Jolber, a transportation planner in the growth management division, and Brianne Gail, a senior planner, walked the committee through Oregon's planning framework, the state's Climate Friendly and Equitable Communities (CFEC) rules, recent housing-rule changes and how those translate into the city's transportation system plan (TSP) and the planned growth-plan update.

The presentation said CFEC rules, implemented through the Oregon Administrative Rules and agency guidance, require jurisdictions over 50,000 to identify "climate friendly areas" (CFAs) and set performance measures tying land-use designations to transportation investments and greenhouse-gas targets. Growth management staff told the committee their CFA study (completed in 2023) indicates Bend likely needs about 275'to'350 acres of CFA designation and that the rules require jurisdictions to plan for roughly 30 percent of new and existing housing capacity to be located in those CFAs.

Why it matters: the CFEC framework changes where the city will prioritize capital improvements, parking management and development incentives. Staff said the CFAs and the metrics attached to them will affect which locations receive transportation, pedestrian and transit spending going forward.

Most important details

- State framework and local implementation: Staff summarized how Senate Bill 100 (1973) established Oregon's comprehensive-plan requirement and how those goals are implemented through Oregon Administrative Rules (OAR) and local comp plans, development codes and functional plans such as the TSP.

- Climate-oriented rule changes: The CFEC rules direct cities to identify areas where people can meet daily needs with minimal vehicle trips, adopt related parking reforms (the city has already rescinded parking minimums and will apply parking maximums in designated CFAs) and prioritize multimodal access in those areas.

- Targets and measures: Staff listed several specific performance measures the city must report on, including the share of affordable housing in CFAs, the share of retail/service jobs in CFAs, bicycle and pedestrian facility quality in CFAs, transit stop accessibility and a required reduction in vehicle miles traveled (VMT). Growth management staff said they had just finalized local targets with state agencies.

- Housing and ONA rule changes: Staff explained recent changes to the Oregon housing needs analysis (often called ONA), including a more prescriptive approach from the state that specifies unit counts and affordability mixes for a 20-year planning horizon. Brianne Gail said the state-assigned 20-year unit target the presenters quoted for Bend during the meeting was that the city should plan for roughly 34,000 housing units; staff emphasized that the state now assigns unit totals and affordability breakdowns and that the new rules require more granular analysis (bedroom counts, accessibility, and accounting for underproduction and houseless populations).

- Growth-plan sequencing and schedule: Staff described a multi-year, multi-package update to Bend's comprehensive plan and supporting plans. Unlike past practice, the city plans to coordinate the housing capacity analysis, land-use changes and the TSP concurrently to better test land-use scenarios against transportation outcomes. Staff said a consultant procurement was underway with work expected to start early next year and formal CFA adoption and other UGB-related actions likely in 2027'2028.

- Implementation and enforcement: Staff noted the Department of Land Conservation and Development (DLCD) and other state agencies are developing stronger monitoring and enforcement tools; jurisdictions that do not make measurable progress on adopted targets may be required to change land-use rules or remove barriers to housing production.

Committee questions and staff responses

Committee members asked how the new rules would interact with the city's Climate and Community Action Plan (CCAP), and staff said they intend to align CCAP strategies with the growth-plan update and the TSP where possible. Staff also highlighted Bend's existing data capabilities, including the city's Office of Performance Management, which will help automate reporting on many of the new measures.

Committee members asked about the practicality of some targets and whether statewide rules adequately account for Central Oregon's context; staff acknowledged friction points and said the rules were more geared to denser urban contexts but that Bend's 2016 plan (mixed-use zoning and upzoning) positions the city relatively well compared with many jurisdictions.

Nut graf: The growth-management briefing framed the city's next comprehensive-plan update as more than a zoning exercise: it will test how land-use changes, higher densities and investments in sidewalks, transit and bike facilities can help Bend meet state-mandated climate and housing outcomes. The work is expected to span multiple years and will require new data tracking, public engagement and coordination with state agencies.

What's next

Staff said a consultant should be on board early next year; the city will conduct a suite of community engagement efforts using a "committee of committees" approach (representatives from existing advisory groups rather than creating a large new advisory body). Adoption of specific CFAs and related code changes is likely to occur in 2027'2028 as part of the larger growth-plan package.

Ending note: Staff emphasized that much of the state'level rulemaking is still evolving; they said Bend will continue refining targets, maps and measures with DLCD, ODOT and stakeholders as the growth-plan process proceeds.