An Imminent Relocation at Juniper Ridge

Residents and service providers poured into seats to witness a joint meeting with Deschutes County Commissioners and the Bend City Council on Sept. 5. Joint meetings are fairly rare, and a decision about conditions at Juniper Ridge hinged on the gathering, prompting an increased interest from the public.

County and City leaders planned this meeting in response to a fire that broke out in August at Juniper Ridge. Also known as “Dirt World,” the area north of Bend is a populated area where many unsheltered individuals reside.

After the Mile Marker 132 Fire, which was traced to a cooking fire in Juniper Ridge and burned 78 acres before firefighters stopped its progression, many residents urged the City of Bend and Deschutes County to discuss options on how to mitigate the risk of fire for neighbors and residents.

After nearly two hours, officials approved a plan to establish a temporary “safe stay” area, where those living at Juniper Ridge would be able to camp. This will include a full closure of areas outside of the safe stay area after May 31, forcing those outside of the bounds to move to the area.

The safe stay area, a 170-acre area encompassing both County and City land in Juniper Ridge, will offer hygiene services while increasing outreach services, like case management and security presence. The area will serve as a “semi-managed” camp, as it does not have the full spectrum of services and management.

Officials will continue to assess safety in the area and the progress of case management to see if these services are helping move people toward housing. The County and City of Bend will coordinate to work out potential legal and land use issues that could come with providing services in the area and to create a communication and outreach plan.

In the County and City’s efforts to increase and continue services, including outreach and case management, the two agencies will develop and release a Request for Qualification for increased services, or augment existing service providers.

To date, the County has spent a total of $229,000 since summer 2023 on services in the area, such as trash, portable toilets, water, security and fire extinguishers.

Those helping to relocate people come spring will start notifying individuals about the changes before winter to give them enough time to prepare to move to the new safe stay area. Then, officials will give 60-day, 30-day and 72-hour notices for individuals staying in the areas that will become off limits.

The plan includes clearing the surrounding, future closed areas of abandoned camps and property and continuing fuel reduction. A site south of the temporary safe area will be used for property storage.

Along with these efforts, officials directed the Coordinated Houseless Response Office to help assist in finding case-management and operations services for the temporary safe stay area. The office will also continue its efforts to support more permanent housing solutions.

Evan Hendrix, the director of navigation services with Shepherd’s House Ministries, said he’s grateful that the organization has the resources and tools to provide for people in difficult situations but noted that these types of decisions impact the outreach providers that help those at Juniper Ridge.

“I would say the most challenging obstacle they face in the midst of decisions like this is the reality that the people that they’re well connected to, that they’ve built a lot of trust and rapport with, get displaced often to places that that our team isn’t aware of,” said Hendrix. “The gap in between the displacement and when we’re able to reestablish contact, if we’re able to reestablish contact, can oftentimes be significant.”