Residents of Petrosa, Easton Developments in Bend Say Key Promises Still Not Kept

View Central Oregon Daily’s news story on this here.  Below is the text excerpt.  The link has two videos, including interviews.

BEND, Ore. — Both the Petrosa and Easton neighborhoods in Bend were marketed as “complete communities,” built around walkability and anchored by commercial districts.

Years later, those commercial centers still haven’t been built. And in Easton, half of the planned commercial land has already been rezoned for affordable housing.

Neighbors say they don’t understand why those promised amenities haven’t materialized, and they want answers.

“Shortly after we moved here, the ‘Markets at Petrosa’ signs came down and for-sale signs went up,” said resident Shawn Raley. “At that point, the residents were really concerned.”

Raley and his wife bought their home in northeast Bend in 2023 after seeing renderings of “The Markets at Petrosa,” a walkable shopping center advertised in Pahlisch Homes’ marketing.

“A great reason to buy here was what they were presenting,” Raley said. “It was everywhere. It was in their marketing. It was on their website.”

Roxie Supple moved to Petrosa for the same reasons. She even dreamed of opening a business in the promised development.

“Pahlisch sold this neighborhood in a way that they were going to develop it themselves,” Supple said. “And now they’ve gone back on that promise.”

And now, for the first time, Pahlisch is responding on camera.

“Our plans were always to partner with somebody to build that commercial space,” said Jason Myhre, chief communications officer at Pahlisch Homes. “That’s not something in our expertise.”

When asked how it was ethical to sell homes using renderings that suggested the commercial center was a done deal, Myhre said economic headwinds changed the plan.

“Things happen, the economy happens,” he said. “COVID hit. A lot of things changed the landscape. Everything on the front end had 100% intentions of doing that, but things we can’t control end up coming into play.”

But many of the homes were purchased in 2023, long after the height of the pandemic. When pressed on whether COVID truly changed the feasibility of the plan since those sales, Myhre said “You go through the feasibility process, and then whatever happens in that process, you make decisions based on what’s best for the property and the investors.”

Across town in Easton, near Caldera High School, neighbors are facing the same lack of commercial development and unique complications of their own. Half of their commercial land was recently rezoned into affordable housing after a state bill allowed the shift.

“I would almost say false advertising. False marketing,” said Old Farm District Neighborhood Association Chair James Dorofi. “As part of the southeast area plan, those eight acres were designated years ago. When suddenly half of it disappears, it undoes years of work.”

Dorofi says southeast Bend desperately needs commercial services.

“The southeast area of town is a commercial desert,” he said. “There’s essentially none. And there’s a strong possibility the rest of the commercial land could disappear.”

Bend Mayor Melanie Kebler says the city shares residents’ desire for true walkable communities. She says the rezoning was an unforeseen outcome of new state law.

“I don’t think anyone at the time these plans were approved imagined the state would later allow affordable housing on that land,” Kebler said. “If it were commercially viable to build something that could make money, they would have done it.”

But if Pahlisch chooses to sell commercial parcels or partners with a different developer for affordable housing, the city doesn’t have a say.

“We set the table,” Kebler said. “Then they build out from that.”

Residents say what’s being built doesn’t match what they were sold.

“It’s happened in Petrosa to northeast Bend and the exact same thing in Easton,” Supple said. “I feel taken advantage of. I believed in a company I thought I could trust.”

“A complete community would help solve traffic issues,” Raley added. “Instead, we’re going to keep driving across town.”

Right now, Petrosa residents must drive 2.6 miles to the nearest grocery store. Easton residents drive 2.5 miles.

When pressed on why those renderings were shown if the plans could be derailed by market shifts, Myhre said “We felt safe that the experience people wanted, having amenities nearby, was still going to come to fruition.”

As frustration grows, the city is preparing for its next ten-year growth review, a chance to evaluate whether master-planned communities are delivering what developers promise.

“Are we getting what we want out of these?” Kebler said. “Are the expectations clear? Or is there a more flexible way to reach these goals?”

For now, neighbors wait, still hopeful their communities will someday look like the ones they were shown.

“People made life-changing decisions to move here based on those promises,” Raley said. “They can still make this right.”

“Buy the property back and finish the dream,” Supple said. “Live up to the reputation you used to have.”

Myhre says any concerned homeowners can contact him directly at jasonm@pahlisch.com.

You can view our full interview with Pahlisch Homes below.