Stevens Ranch Development Targets 382 Acres Sold by State

BEND, OR—The Stevens Road Tract of approximately 382 acres is unentitled. However, it is designated for development to a mix of residential, commercial and industrial land uses within the City of Bend Comprehensive Plan.

The Oregon Department of State Lands, on behalf of the Common School Fund, recently disposed of the acreage. The transaction closed as scheduled despite the disruption of the pandemic.

The buyer, Lands Bend Corp, is processing a master plan consistent with the City of Bend Comprehensive Plan.

“Stevens Ranch will provide, in addition to parks and schools, much needed housing, commercial centers and industrial opportunities,” says Gary Miller, president of Lands Bend Corp. “Bend is undoubtedly the finest city in the state, and Stevens Ranch, one of the largest master plan communities in the Pacific Northwest, will strive to meet the expectations of the community.”

Located at 21425 Stevens Rd., the site is located adjacent to 27th Street and Reed Market Road, major arterial streets serving this part of Bend. Highways 20 and 97 are both conveniently located within a few miles, with downtown Bend also closely proximate. The tract is currently surrounded by residential land uses to the north and west, rural undeveloped land to the east and Deschutes County Road Department facilities to the south.

“Sale of these school lands benefits Oregon tremendously,” says Vicki Walker, director of the Oregon Department of State Lands. “Sale proceeds are going to the Common School Fund, which sends millions to Oregon’s public school districts every year. Development of the property also helps meet Bend’s growing housing needs.”

Cushman & Wakefield advised Oregon Department of State Lands in the transaction.

“The Stevens Road Tract is situated in a highly desired central Oregon location and at just over 382 acres, this expansive site created the opportunity for the development of a substantial residential community with supporting commercial uses,” said Matt Johnson, executive director with Cushman & Wakefield. “The local area boasts an attractive place to live and work, with many public parks and trails, and that infrastructure will be further enhanced to include new schools and public parks by the buyer’s plans for the site.”

Approximately 369.9 acres of the site offering are zoned urbanizable area and will need to be annexed into the city as part of the project. Meanwhile, 12.15 acres are already within the city boundary and designated as standard density residential.

“The exciting master plan for this site looks to fulfill the city’s vision for this portion of Southeast Bend and include much needed attainably priced housing, which we believe will be a welcome use to help demand for new housing in the area,” says Matt Davis, director at Cushman & Wakefield. “In-migration has been the primary factor in the area’s growth with thousands of people moving to the region every year.”

With a population of more than 100,000 people, Bend is the largest urban area in Oregon east of the Cascade Mountains and the state’s sixth largest city. Bend ranked as the second fastest growing US city in a recent 2020 report from WalletHub which analyze a variety of data points between 2013 to 2019. Bend also tied for first for the highest job growth during the same period. Bend serves as a regional service and trade center for Central Oregon. More than two-thirds of all the jobs in the county are in Bend, and many companies are continuing to relocate businesses to the area.

“Bend is an incredibly desirable community for those seeking an active lifestyle and great connection to the outdoors and, given its positive population growth trends for the last several years, we anticipated strong interest in the offering,” Davis tells GlobeSt.com. “Our team’s expansive marketing effort resulted in numerous offers from local, regional and national developers and builders, and we were able to move forward with an experienced West Coast-based developer/builder who also has substantial experience in the Bend community. The pandemic has resulted in even greater demand for housing in the Bend region which will further drive demand for the much-needed housing this project will deliver.”