Booming housing prices. Taller buildings. Three homes in a space where there used to be just one.

We don’t have to tell you all the ways that Bend has changed or is changing.

The nearby map is another way of looking at that change. Basically, the darker the color is on the map with the blue, the more demographic change in the last 10 years.

The details may be difficult to see. You can see a bigger version at tinyurl.com/Bendchanges, and go to page 79.

The map is part of the city of Bend’s reporting to the state to determine areas of town that are at risk of housing displacement. The state has imposed growth goals on Oregon cities. It wants more concentrated development in what it calls “climate friendly areas.” Climate friendly areas may also be, unfortunately, gentrification friendly areas. Housing costs will rise and people will be displaced.

This map pulls together data including:

• Race: The percentage of residents who identify as white.
• Education: The percentage of residents with a bachelor’s degree.
• Homeownership: The percentage of residents that own a home.
• Income: Median household income adjusted for inflation rising.

The map doesn’t show which parts of the city have more white people, more homeowners or more higher incomes. It shows where there has been more change in those factors compared to the median change across the city in the last 10 years. The area with the most change is shaded the darkest, that area northeast of Pilot Butte along 27th Street.

What does the map mean?

It’s just one way of looking at change in Bend.

The second map with the cross-hatched area is the area of Bend the city believes is at most risk for housing displacement. That map may also be easier to view online at tinyurl.com/Bendchanges, on page 86.

With the state’s new rules for growth — or without them — demographic changes are likely to accelerate in Bend, despite any efforts to mitigate displacement. More families will find housing prices far too high or won’t be able to find the kind of home they would like. Not everybody has to live in Bend, of course. Teachers, police officers and firefighters already find it challenging. When it gets worse, what kind of town will Bend become?