Bend growth-plan team hears commission concerns on trust, access and outreach

City planning staff presented the draft growth plan to the Bend Human Rights and Equity Commission on Jan. 29, 2025, outlining a years-long project to shape housing, transportation and other land-use choices. Commissioners pressed staff to tailor outreach to people who may be reluctant or fearful to engage and to explain clearly how feedback will be used in council decisions.

Elise (city planner) and Brian Rankin, planning staff, told commissioners the growth plan will run over several years and combine education with outreach to gather community views on housing types, transportation changes and other growth-related choices. Elise said the project will emphasize multiple engagement approaches, not only surveys and open houses.

“Make it clear how feedback will be used,” Elise told commissioners, summarizing changes staff have proposed since the commission last met. The presenters also said engagement materials should explain state land-use requirements and exactly which decisions are made by city staff, and which are decided by the City Council.

Commissioners raised several barriers to equitable engagement. Commissioner Ruth Bernadico said the current political atmosphere has made some community members — including Latinx and Indigenous residents — less comfortable participating in public processes. “I don’t know what true multifaceted nature we’re gonna be able to derive from any of this work, given the current political landscape,” Bernadico said.

Andres Portela, the city’s equity and inclusion director, and the planning presenters acknowledged the concern and described steps to reduce barriers, including partnering with community organizations, creating translated materials and holding events outside city facilities. Portela said staff want to build tailored outreach and promised to work with the commission on specific community connections.

Commissioners suggested concrete outreach tactics: Cameron Fisher recommended partnering with non-city events and institutions such as schools, parks and local colleges to reach people who don’t attend city open houses. Scott Jones described building trust by attending meetings organized by community leaders and letting those leaders shape engagement.

Commissioners and staff also discussed tactical ideas: comment cards or staffed community booths at events, kinesthetic or visual displays to help people understand abstract planning choices, targeted pop-up events in neighborhoods, and working with COCC and OSU to reach students and other constituencies. Adrienne McDougall urged methods that do not privilege extroverted participants and suggested low-barrier ways to submit comments.

Staff told the commission they will continue to refine engagement plans and welcomed HREC members’ advice and introductions to community groups. “We want to hear what is needed and where to go,” Brian Rankin said.

The growth plan presenters invited commissioners to continue advising staff as the project develops and to suggest specific outreach partners and formats. Commissioners urged transparency about what input the City Council will see and how it will factor into eventual policy or land-use decisions.