Any large employer is quick to tell it like it is—the region’s workforce housing crisis is a major barrier to recruitment and retention of a stable workforce.
High prices and a lack of availability are doubling up to prevent potential hires from making the move to one of the nation’s fastest growing regions, hampering the plans of both public and private employers.
But there are real solutions for spurring the kinds of middle housing we need to accommodate young professionals, outdoor and tech industry workers, teachers, nurses, firefighters and the rest of the workforce that keeps our economy humming.
Tangible tools such as restructuring SDCs, encouraging new housing types such as courtyard apartments and cottage housing, prioritizing transportation spending that leads to housing development and more are all real answers to Bend’s missing middle housing crisis.
Hear the breakdown of the problem from moderator Roger Lee, executive director of Economic Development for Central Oregon. Get the latest research from Lorelei Juntunen of ECONorthwest. And join us for a lively panel discussion on solutions with St. Charles, Hayden Homes and Bend 2030. Together our speakers bring decades worth of experience and varying perspectives in the sectors of economics, land development, employment, and community collaboration leading to solid answers for solving our missing middle housing puzzle.
Moderator:
Roger Lee, Executive Director of Economic Development for Central Oregon
Speaker:
Lorelei Juntunen, Project Director with ECONorthwest
Response Panel:
- Rebecca Berry, Vice President of Human Resources at St. Charles Bend
- Geoff Harris, Hayden Homes
- Erin Foote Morgan, Executive Director of Bend 2030
