Negative Effects of the SilverStar Zone Change and related Proposal:

0. High-rise & high density
   0. The current new zoning proposal will convert the mall into a high-rise, high-density condo and hotel complex. Allowing over 350 units in buildings from 45 feet up to 85 feet tall replacing the current 30 foot high limit.

   0. Traffic congestion of all types: auto, pedestrian and bicycle.

   0. Overutilization of the already overcrowded South pool complex and bike paths. The North end facilities will also be negatively affected as people seeking more space will travel north to find less crowded amenities.

   0. Auto-emissions “hot-spot”. A multi-story parking structure (that can be as high as 45 feet) is proposed at the entrance to the mall. Vehicular emissions from cold starts in a parking structure of this size can become trapped in the cold, still air of Central Oregon creating an auto-emissions hot spot. The effects of the hot-spot encompass an area ¼ of a mile from its center. This is a significant threat to the health of any person who suffers from respiratory disease or illness such as asthma, emphysema or COPD and is dangerous for those with delicate or compromised breathing such as the elderly or young children.  No study on this possible health risk has been conducted.

   0. Loss of income for homeowners who rent their homes. If you rent your home or condo imagine how over 350 new condos and a hotel will affect your ability to rent your home. More competition in the rental pool doesn’t make sense for those who rely on rental income.

0.   Safety
   0. Fire Suppression: The problems of fire prevention have not yet been resolved.  SilverStar has met with the Sunriver Fire Department and has agreed to either upgrade one existing truck with a longer ladder or obtain one new truck with a longer ladder. How will one truck be able to fight multiple structural fires in an area that has proposed over 30 buildings from 45 up to 85 feet in height that are within 22 feet of each other? The potential for a devastating crown fire, where the flames move from one tree top to another and are the most dangerous and destructive class of wildland fire will be directly affected by this development. Is one truck enough?

   0. Evacuation: The SROA Board has proposed the relocation of Beaver Drive to “give our residents a quick and easy way out of Sunriver”. This proposal has no evidence nor was any study done to support that it is a valid safety measure. It was decided upon by SROA Board members in an executive session meeting (a meeting that is closed to the public, no minutes are taken for public review). It would appear that the relocation is being done merely to facilitate the proposed redevelopment design by SilverStar.  No revised evacuation plan has been prepared taking into account the new residences.

   0. Pedestrian access in the proposed mall area: Access to retail will be on sidewalks next to roads. This is much different that the current pedestrian friendly central square area where children can roam freely without the threat of vehicles.

   0. The relocated grocery store will have almost no parking next to it. Parking will be across a street in a multi-story parking structure.  It will be very inconvenient, let alone dangerous, for residents and visitors to negotiate their groceries across a busy street, snowy and icy surfaces, and multiple stories of a parking structure to reach their vehicle.

0.  Loss of Natural Environment
   0. Loss of tranquility: The current mall proposal touts a “vibrant” experience. Vibrant may really translate to overcrowded and congested. Vehicles will be traveling through the residential mall/hotel area at all hours. Restaurants and bars will have their very own CC&Rs; separate from the rest of Sunriver. The current mall closes at 10 PM – will the new mall be an all night affair? 

   0. Noise: The construction will go on for many years with the first phase not complete until at least 2010.

   0. Loss of trees: The proposed land sale will mean that virtually every tree in the mall area will be cut down.  Nothing can replace a tree that has grown for decades – certainly not the multi-story parking structure that will occupy part of the common area that is proposed for sale.  SilverStar’s proposed landscaping is ordinary and simply a token offering.  Like the song goes “They paved paradise and put up a parking lot.”.

   0. Loss of Open Space:  Curent building coverage within the mall area is approximately 20%.  The zoning proposal allows up to 50% coverage – 2.5 times more than at present.

   0. Loss of Common Areas that serve as a buffer between Abbot Drive and the Mall area.  The current SilverStar proposal reduces setbacks to as little as 10 feet.  The proposed multi-story parking structure will be at the entrance to the mall.  Is this the first impression of Sunriver that we want to give ourselves and our visitors?
   0. Inconsistent: The proposal is completely inconsistent with the views expressed by owners in the Long Range Plan adopted by the SROA in 2000.  The owners’ surveys listed the top two threats to Sunriver as: “Overuse of the outdoor facilities, natural and man made”, and “Overbuilding and loss of peaceful atmosphere.”  Clearly the current mall proposal has a direct impact on both of these threats.