To be fair, the City tried to "save" the not-quite-an-acre of grass enclosed in chain link across from City Hall. It made an offer on the parcel but Bend-La Pine Schools wanted more. While no one would disclosed what the City offered, it was clearly less than the $1.9 million price tag on the property's recent sale to a company planning to erect high-end condo hotels.
Now, while Bend-La Pine Schools may have missed an opportunity to bring the Heritage Square concept to life, turning the former community sportsfield into vacation spots for the wealthy is not a forgone conclusion. To move forward with development, the City must remove the land's public facilities designation and rezone for commercial use. (ER)
2nd Place: A local pot tax C'mon, who wouldn't support the campaign "Pot for Potholes?" Facts are facts: Bend is broke, and Bendites like to smoke. (Even before legalization it wasn't hard to find a contact high in a town with this many reggae and jam band shows.) We know that any new tax would have to be approved by voters, and that it wasn't clear if the State legislature would amend the measure to allow local taxes. But it could have been more seriously considered.
