NEWS
Protected Bike Paths Proposed WWW.BENDSOURCE.COM / JUNE 3, 2021 / BEND’S INDEPENDENT VOICE
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City leaders propose two bike paths, one running north to south and the other east to west, to the Transportation Oversight Committee By Jack Harvel Courtesy ArielMendez
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omentum for more protected active transportation is building in Bend, with City Councilor Anthony Broadman and Bend Park and Recreation Board Member Ariel Méndez submitting a proposal for the prioritization and augmentation of 17 miles of new bike paths in Bend. The routes would run 7 miles in a north-south corridor and 11 miles eastwest, both sharing a 1-mile segment around Pilot Butte. The paths will prioritize a separation from cars through “modal filters” and diverters. “A modal filter is something that blocks cars, but allows people walking, biking or in wheelchairs, or using scooters to get through, and a diverter is something that allows people to drive through, but requires that they change directions. So it could be a forced right turn. It’s just it’s a mechanism of preventing cutthrough traffic,” Méndez said. The paths would connect Shevlin Park in the west to Big Sky Park in the east and Rockridge Park in the north to Alpenglow in the south. “The approach up to this point has been more or less piecemeal,” Méndez said. “The two parts that have been missing are this higher standard of not sharing space with cars, and a contiguous
A map from Bend Parks and Recreation Board Member Ariel Méndez shows the two proposed paths. The seventeen miles of trails were designed to be low stress routes for pedestrians and cyclists.
network so that people feel like they can get somewhere safely and conveniently.” Méndez said he’s already heard complaints that the new proposed routes wouldn’t connect some areas, like southwest Bend. “I think that’s a totally legitimate criticism, and I had said, ‘this is a start.’ I think the concept is the most important
part to provide this kind of protected connectivity across town,” Méndez said. The other two factors in deciding routes: catering to historically underserved neighborhoods and areas that will grow residentially in the next several years. Getting the paths approved will require the input of both the Transportation Bond Oversight Committee and
City Council before approval or denial by the Bend City Council. “The Transportation Bond Oversight Committee—one of the question before them is prioritizing which projects should be funded first,” Méndez said. “And in this case, what I’m suggesting is that they approve of a minor amendment and some realignments in some cases to fulfill some of Council’s goals for eastwest and north-south connectivity.” The next phase of planning for the proposal will be evaluating which routes can be done quickly and cheaply, and which will require more planning and investment before proceeding. “There’s that that trifecta of fast, good and cheap, pick any two, and I think that applies here, as well,” Méndez said. “But I think there’s a lot of mileage that we’ll be able to get right off the bat because it was specifically designed to take advantage of existing conditions.” The oversight committee held their first meeting on May 18 and will be meeting continuously to evaluate and prioritize projects that voters approved in the General Obligation Bond in November 2020. They will meet on at least a quarterly basis until they have satisfied the goals outlined in the Transportation Systems Plan.
Tumalo Fails
Vandals target a portion of Tumalo Irrigation District pipe amid piping resentment by local landowners By Jack Harvel
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andals targeted a segment of pipe belonging to the Tumalo Irrigation District near Pinehurst Road, causing around $78,000 in damages for heavy construction company Taylor Northwest and more than $15,000 to the irrigation district. Seven holes were drilled into a pipethat was to be used in the irrigation district's project to replace open-air canals with underground piping. TID is offering a $2,500 reward for information that leads to an arrest and $10,000 if it leads to a conviction. “During final inspections and testing of the new pipeline, it was discovered that multiple holes were intentionally and unlawfully drilled into the pipeline. It is believed that between January 6th and 13th the vandal climbed into the then open trench and drilled multiple holes in the 36” polyethylene pipeline,” wrote Sergeant Jayson Janes of the Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office in a press release. The total estimated repair costs range from $125,000 to $250,000, after which
engineers will determine if the repairs were sufficient or if the 450-foot-long section will need to be replaced entirely. TID says the pipeline is meant to increase flow in streams and provide farmers with pressurized, reliable water for crops. Some landowners who rely on the district oppose the project and have filed a class action lawsuit to recoup the costs they say the project is pushing onto them. “Tumalo Irrigation District describes itself as quasi-governmental entity and that is exactly how it is behaving— pressing ahead with its $42 million big government handout with no accountability, no concern for the millions of dollars of destruction, and little regard for the rule of law or the legal rights of the individual citizen,” said Matt Smith on behalf of the homeowners' group. The group alleges the district neglected to factor in costs for patron hookups, destruction of trees and property devaluation when making their decision. They also argue that the canals provide a
Patron Group in Tumalo lawsuit
Paths cleared through the forest is one of the homeowner group’s biggest complaints with Tumalo Irrigation Ditrict’s pipeline.
reliable source of water for area wildlife, and that drying the 100-year-old canals could put local wildlife at risk. A judge rejected a temporary restraining order halting the project in October, and the project was
allowed to continue, before the lawsuit was finalized. The landowners asked for $250,000 in financial damages per property if the project wasn’t stopped, which would result in a multi-million-dollar payout for the district.
