Big stink in Bend

Irresponsibility.

That's the word of the day because Bend has been irresponsible in managing its growth. It's allowed developers to rule the city by adding thousands of homes, but claiming no responsibility for the bigger picture.

A case in point is the sewer system. A story in today's daily newspaper quotes the city manager Eric King as saying the sewer system in northeast Bend is experiencing overflows near the interchange of Highways 20 and 97. This can now result in big fines for the city because there are new tougher reporting rules.

The city approved subdivision after subdivision that met all city guidelines on sewer requirements within each development. But then, the city was surprised to learn that all these new subdivisions overtaxed the main line.

Here's a choice quote from King:

"I don't think it was intentional. I think what happed was that nobody understood how this system would work dynamically. So a small pipe might serve a specific subdivision, but they didn't look at how that would affect the system overall."

Let's look at this quote. "Nobody understood how this system would work" underscores how incompetent city staff and its paid consultants have been. "Nobody?" My god, what the hell is going on?

Yes, developers pay their consultants to write up reports saying how their development will have minimal affect on the system, be it sewers or roads. The city, under state laws written by the builders' lobby, must accept these findings.

So, what do we get? We get exactly what any untrained, casual observer can see: an overtaxed sewer system and dysfunctional road system.

Which leads to the last part of King's quote: "... they didn't look at how that would affect the system overall."

Who in the hell is "they?" Is it the developers? The city? Hearings officers?

Hearings officers are generally the last resort for development oversight. Yet, a variety of hearings officers have failed to look at the big picture of Bend. They look narrowly at each "raindrop" and conclude, "oh, the system can handle that."

We have a city staff and a city council that are incapable of looking at the big picture. Just exactly why do we have a city staff and a city council? Isn't it their job to look at the bigger picture of how Bend develops and whether or not it can sustain that growth? "Sustain" meaning having adequate roads, sewers, water capacity, flood control, etc.

The city knows they need at least $25 million for minor upgrades on Bend's northeast side, but they claim work wouldn't start until 2015. That's ridiculous because the city has no money to fix the system and doesn't know how to apply for grants to fix the system.

Just as there is no timeline to fix the traffic problems such as Reed Market Road. The city claimed work would begin three years ago. And voila! In 2010, nothing has been done to fix the worst road in Bend.

Simply, there is no timeline or money to repair or improve any of Bend's infrastructure.

So, what is the city's solution. It couldn't possibly limit growth. That would take away someone's freedom.

No, the city intends to expand its urban growth boundary to add more subdivisions so that the system gets worse, not better. In a sense, they keep adding spades, diamonds, hearts and clubs to the "house of cards."

They're just watching to see if it collapses. And for that, city staff are paid well to do so.

How about this solution. No more development until all the various developers agree to pay half the costs of fixing our roads and sewer problems and existing city residents pay the rest. Until such an agreement is in place within a realistic timeline, no development should be allowed to proceed.

And yet, developers want all city residents to pay all the hundreds of millions needed to fix sewers and roads through skyrocketing property taxes. In essence they want to be subsidized to develop their properties.

No wonder we needed the state to come in and say, "Bend, you don't know what the hell you're doing. Your proposal, to expand, sucks."

What are we left with? Irresponsible developers, city staff and city council.

In the meantime, the so-called "quality of life," that supposedly attracted everyone to Bend in the first place, continues to decline.

It's called killing the goose that laid the golden eggs.

Now that stinks.