Don't Pillory Pronghorn | The Source Weekly - Bend

Don't Pillory Pronghorn

I'm writing in response to the recent article on Destination Resort Reforms. I agree with the tone and direction of the article, however, the oversimplified

I'm writing in response to the recent article on Destination Resort Reforms. I agree with the tone and direction of the article, however, the oversimplified and somewhat negative characterization of Pronghorn was unfortunate. Here's why:

The community has about 350 property owners and more than half of them are Oregonians. Something like 50 homes have either been completed or are under construction and about half of those property owners will live at Pronghorn full time. We'll probably see 20 to 30 new home starts each year for the next several years. We're not talking about trust babies; we're talking about people who have built their own businesses in places like Portland, employed hundreds if not thousands of employees within the state of Oregon and love Central Oregon. If Pronghorn didn't exist, they would probably invest in other similar communities in the West outside the state of Oregon (Suncadia, which is east of Seattle, for example and the Lake Tahoe region in Northern California).

As the community works to comply with its zoning classification with more "keys" for overnight accommodations, it's going to set a great example for Destination Resorts as a whole. People who have had great resort experiences at Sunriver and Black Butte Ranch are going to appreciate the new opportunities that Pronghorn and other developments will provide and that will act as a net positive as far as the Central Oregon economy is concerned.

As the reform process moves forward, someone in the State who understands the long-term supply and demand dynamics for overnight resort accommodations in Central Oregon should step into the process. Given that 2:1 ratio of homesites to keys is somewhat arbitrary; let's make sure that the availability of new resort-style units expands at a pace that reflects the demand for those overnight accommodations. If we end up with a glut of inventory which is forced on the resort developers as a whole, that will be unfortunate for everyone involved.

Sincerely,

An Appreciative Pronghorn Employee