Deschutes County Stalls on Sanctioned Camp at Juniper Ridge

A joint decision between the City of Bend and Deschutes County in September, planning to establish a semi-managed camp in Juniper Ridge, promised to address ongoing safety concerns on land north of Bend, populated by hundreds of encampments.

The outlined plan to create a “temporary safe stay area” on 170 acres of County and City land at Juniper Ridge sparked some hesitancy from two county commissioners on Oct. 16, leading them to reject a resolution authorizing the area as an government-sanctioned encampment. Public officials including Bend’s mayor worry that the delay could cause the entire plan to fall apart.

The TSSA would restrict camping in all areas of Juniper Ridge, except for the 170-acre parcel of land, which would offer case management services and hygiene stations with drinking water, porta-potties and dumpsters. Local officials planned to initiate the closure at the end of May 2025.

County commissioners voted 2-1 to reject the resolution, which is likely to slow down the process of establishing the TSSA.

The resolution, if passed, would have paved the way for the two local governments to begin looking into funding it. Despite knowing about the tight funding deadlines and the City’s plans to vote on the resolution later that evening, Commissioners Phil Chang and Patti Adair had additional questions.

“We were threatened by wildfires in multiple areas. We had multiple starts around Juniper Ridge, China Hat and the east side of Redmond this year. And, for whatever reason, we just can’t seem to work.” —Tony DeBone

Chang, who had come to the Oct. 16 meeting with a newly drafted resolution, had reservations about specific parameters described in the document, and worried that making a formal designation in the area could generate land use problems for the County.

A series of recommended changes to the resolution prompted Adair to question some of the proposed rules and request amendments to certain items outlined in the resolution.

During the public comment period, service providers shared their recommendations, which included allowing people from China Hat to move to the TSSA – an item currently not allowed in the proposed plans – and allowing a variety of housing options for those in the area.

Jessica Gamble, executive director of the nonprofit Home More Network, who was previously unhoused and living at China Hat, criticized the current proposal for allowing people to camp only in vehicles within the TSSA, calling for the addition of tents and other structures.

“We cannot ignore the needs of those who are currently camping on the east side of the railroad tracks. Many of these individuals live in immoveable structures. These structures are often their homes, holding their belongings and lives together,” said Gamble at the meeting. “It is unreasonable and frankly inhumane to ask them to pack up and leave without providing viable alternative.”

The disagreements between County Commissioners prompted Bend Mayor Melanie Kebler, who was in attendance, to plead for a resolution, worrying the decision would slow down attempts for funding the project.

Commissioner Tony DeBone was clear about supporting the initial resolution throughout the discussion, emphasizing the need to get this project done. “We’ve been talking about this for years,” he said, referencing the number of plans for Juniper Ridge that had fallen through due to disagreements.

“We were threatened by wildfires in multiple areas. We had multiple starts around Juniper Ridge, China Hat and the east side of Redmond this year. And, for whatever reason, we just can’t seem to work,” DeBone told the Source Weekly. “We can’t come to clarity as a bunch of elected officials. We haven’t done it yet, we’re gonna have to at some point.”

DeBone said communication with the City of Bend is continuing and he’s hopeful that the Board will negotiate so the plans can move forward.

Later in the evening of Oct. 16, nearly all members of the Bend City Council expressed their disappointment in the County’s decision. Because of the tight timeline and work that goes into obtaining funds from the American Rescue Plan Act, councilors wanted to get the ball rolling. According to Bend City Manager Erik King, the ARPA funds would be used to deliver case management services.

The procurement process for the funds needs to be completed by Dec. 31, and the funds need to be spent by December 2026. With a looming deadline, and the Council’s next meeting set for November, Kebler discussed the possibility of using the funds for another project, like bolstering the City’s Safe Parking options, if this agreement is not resolved in the next week.

In a letter to Commissioner Adair on Oct. 16, Kebler set a strict deadline, requesting the board approve the joint resolution by Oct. 23.

“Your inaction has undermined our unanimous agreement and hurt public trust in our bodies,” Kebler wrote in the letter. “We urge you to work with us to move forward with the agreed-upon Juniper Ridge Management plan. Our joint City and County constituents are demanding action. We must now follow through with the agreements we discussed and made on September 5 at our joint meeting.”

This article appears in Source Weekly October 17, 2024.