Tree Farm land to join Bend park district

A chunk of a future housing development in Deschutes County just west of Bend is set to become part of the Bend Park & Recreation District.

The Deschutes County Commission signed off Wednesday on a request by developers of The Tree Farm, a project of 50 clustered home sites on 533 acres west of Bend, to annex 383 acres into the park district. The remaining 150 acres already lie within the district.

“This was a commitment we made with the park district,” Dale Van Valkenburg, planning and development director for Brook Resources Corp., told county commissioners. “Most of the property or a good portion of the property is already in the park district. This triangular piece to the west (is) surrounded on three sides by the park district boundaries, in fact, surrounded to the north and kind of to the west by Shevlin Park itself. It just makes sense for it to be in there.”

Bringing the 383 acres into the park district jurisdiction allows The Tree Farm trail access to the park, he said. The developers also plan on giving about 400 acres of undeveloped land in The Tree Farm to the park district outright, which effectively would expand 600-acre Shevlin Park.

Brooks Resources is a partner in The Tree Farm, along with the Miller family, the property owners. Once complete, a trail system would link Discovery Park in nearby NorthWest Crossing, through The Tree Farm to the Phil’s Trail network in the Deschutes National Forest, Van Valkenburg said.

The County Commission heard the annexation request to ensure it does not conflict with the county’s zoning regulations or its comprehensive land use plan. Only Van Valkenburg and Michelle Healy, the district planning and park services director, spoke at the brief public hearing.

After the meeting, Healy said the park district acquiring The Tree Farm’s 400 acres could take place within a year. No formal steps have been taken to transfer the property, she said. The area would be left as open space and wildlife habitat in addition to walking trails.

The subdivision site plan shows at least three planned trail connections from The Tree Farm to Shevlin Park.

Van Valkenburg said the open area, trails and proximity to the public park are selling points for the subdivision, which features 2-acre lots in two clusters surrounded by open area. To the south, a piece of the Deschutes National Forest lies between the subdivision property line and Skyliners Road.

The subdivision property touches a stretch of Skyliners Road, which provides access to the building lots. A paved drive connected to Skyliners Road leads to and loops around the lot clusters.

Healy said the Bend Park & Recreation District board agreed in June to accept jurisdiction for the 383 acres of The Tree Farm. The Oregon Department of Revenue and Secretary of State must also approve, she said. Annexing the acreage means the park district will receive a share of property tax from the residential lots, once their value is assessed.

This isn’t the first large-lot residential subdivision built adjacent to Shevlin Park.

Bend started inching toward the park in the early 2000s. In 1999, developer Jim Clabaugh proposed building 164 homes on property bordering the park’s east side. The project was not built; nearby streets could not handle the expected traffic, according to The Bulletin archives. The Bulletin at the time also reported public opposition to the project, which some felt would place a dense housing development too close to the park.

In 2001, developer Andy Crosby proposed building 56 homes on the same 76 acres and selling 48 acres to the park district as a conservation easement. The park board eventually agreed to pay $597,00 for the easement after a year of negotiations, a threatened lawsuit by residents opposed to the deal and the electoral defeat of three park board members.

— Reporter: 541-617-7815, jditzler@bendbulletin.com

Editor’s note: This story has been corrected. No prospective residents have bought property in The Tree Farm yet. In the original version, that status was incorrect.

The Bulletin regrets the error.