Depoe Bay approves three‑year extension for WhaleWatch Phase 2; limits approval to revised grading plan

The Depoe Bay Planning Commission voted on Oct. 8 to grant a three‑year extension for the WhaleWatch planned development’s Phase 2, moving the substantial‑completion deadline from December 2025 to December 2028.

Staff introduced the owner’s written request and supplemental materials showing a 2025 layout update that reconfigures streets and lots to avoid newly delineated wetlands and cultural resource areas. Staff noted the applicant provided a chronology of agency coordination and that the revised design replaces a large detention pond with a bioretention swale to reduce wetland impacts. The staff memo and attachments recommended the commission consider the extension request and, if approved, limit activity to the revised Phase 2 grading plan.

Applicant Chris Vanderbil described the redesign and agency interactions with DEQ, the State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO) and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Vanderbil said the Army Corps determined the wetland area was outside Corps jurisdiction, and that the applicant has completed extensive archaeological testing (about 500 test pits) to map cultural resources; those resources will remain as preserved open space. Vanderbil also said Phase 2 would include roughly 47 workforce units with target rents in the $1,500–$2,000 range and that permits from regulatory agencies are expected in early 2026.

Commission discussion focused on whether the extension should be limited to Phase 2 and whether further work may occur only after a master plan amendment. A motion passed on a roll‑call vote (Moreland, Whitmire, Sherman, Greeley, Watkins) to approve a three‑year extension for Phase 2 only, with the condition that no other grading or development outside the approved Phase 2 grading plan occur until the commission approves any modified master plan. The motion passed unanimously.