BEND, OR -- Bend-La Pine School Board members are upset about the city’s decision to deny a zone change for Troy Field. The school district wants to sell the downtown Bend property for $2 million to fund school maintenance, add classrooms and maintain property.
Monday night, the City Council refused to change the general plan designation from Public Facilities to Commercial Limited. School Board Chair Nori Juba tells KBND News appealing to the Land Use Board of Appeals is an option. “We’re pretty fired up here. We’re passionate about - we, as a school board, feel wronged that another agency would over-reach and tell us that we can’t serve our constituency. We feel strongly that the City Council - certain City Councilors injected their personal interest rather than following the process.”
During a two-hour special City Council meeting Monday night, a majority of Councilors voted to maintain the open space. Juba says, “We’re disappointed in the decision of the City Council. We felt that they missed the boat That they did not consider student interests at all. And they didn’t address the question at hand, which is a land use decision.” He says none of the board’s current options include further communication with the City of Bend.