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Bend council holds public hearing, approves first readings to create three site‑specific tax‑increment areas for housing
Summary
After a public hearing and planning‑commission recommendation, council approved first readings to create three tax‑increment finance (TIF) areas — Bridal Ridge, Century and Viridian — tied to four housing projects that include rent‑restricted units.
City of Bend planners and the Urban Renewal Agency on Tuesday described three proposed site‑specific tax‑increment finance areas (TIF) designed to help unlock infill housing projects that have repeatedly stalled. The planning commission found the plans consistent with the comprehensive plan and recommended adoption; council approved first readings on the three ordinances.
City Attorney Elizabeth Oshal and Urban Renewal staff outlined how TIF works in Oregon and why it can be targeted to areas the law defines as blighted. “The TIF mechanism freezes a frozen base, the existing tax levels, in an area,” Oshal said, and the increment — the growth in property tax revenue above that base — is captured by the urban renewal agency for projects specified in the plan.
The three proposed plan areas and associated projects were: Bridal Ridge (about 6.16 acres; proposed maximum indebtedness $14.6 million; a proposed 78‑unit housing development), a Century Avenue area (9.2 acres with two developments: Century West at 297 units and Century Bluff at 52 units; total planned assistance $49.6 million) and Viridian (about 2.8 acres; proposed indebtedness $8.7 million; a 69‑unit development on formerly tax‑exempt college property). Staff said the plans are narrow, infill‑oriented and aimed at sites surrounded by developed parcels that have remained vacant or underused for years.
Staff and agency representatives said the plans conform to ORS 457 urban‑renewal law and the city’s adopted TIF policy; the policy requires a minimum share of units to be rent‑restricted under the proposal (staff cited a project‑set minimum of 15% at or below 90% AMI for some projects) and other community benefits. Planning commission members earlier recommended adoption, and Burra (the urban renewal board) had previously reviewed and recommended the areas.
Public comment was largely supportive: representatives of realtors, builders, the Bend Chamber and Central Oregon Builders Association urged the council to adopt the plans and emphasized the financing gap facing projects in the current market. Developers and housing advocates argued that the site‑specific TIFs could unlock projects that would otherwise not proceed. A resident raised concerns about flooding at a site near the community college.
Council action: On motions read into the record, council approved the first readings of the three TIF ordinances by voice vote and directed that the items return for second readings as required by law. Councilors also discussed the taxing districts’ requests that plan durations be shortened; staff recommended retaining the durations assumed in the financial plans and promised to consider district suggestions during a policy review later this year.
Ending: The ordinances proceed to second readings; if adopted the plans will create limited, site‑specific TIF areas to pay specified project costs and expire at the end of each plan’s term. If projects receive final permits and are built, the agency will capture the increment generated by those new parcels — not base taxes — to repay TIF assistance.
