The North Bend City Council voted to approve a development agreement allowing Middle Fork Property Development LLC to purchase, own and control a 35-acre lot at SE 140th Street and 468th Avenue SE.

“The property is considered to be a prime development opportunity for the City of North Bend that would generate good jobs, opportunity, and amenities for North Bend residents,” the Sept. 17 council agenda packet reads. “[The] development of the property would assist North Bend’s economic development goals by supporting fiscal sustainability to meet existing and future financial obligations and provide essential services to current and future residents as well as strengthening and diversifying the economic base.”

According to the packet, the agreement will last through Dec. 2044, which is consistent with the estimated completion date for the development.

As previously reported by the Valley Record, the development agreement was framed as a partial fix for North Bend’s impending budget issues resulting from the rise of emergency service costs. The city faces an estimated budget gap of $26 million.

While the development agreement does not mention the developers’ specific intentions for the land, its EP-2 zoning allows commercial and industrial land use. AB24-100 states that the development would increase the property value from $6 million to $74 million and create approximately 600 jobs.

Several community members opposed the development at the Sept. 3 and Sept. 10 council meetings. They urged the council to learn more about the developer’s plan for the land before moving forward.

“I would just like to say that I would be disappointed to learn that my representatives would vote for something they know so little about, unless you know more than I do, because the good jobs and amenities and social services that might come our way [are unknown],” said Jodi Laakso, a 30-year resident of North Bend. “To agree to sell this land seems premature and rushed.”

Now that the agreement has been approved, the developers are required to submit a master plan for the property. The plan will be reviewed extensively by city staff, said North Bend Economic Development Manager James Henderson during the council’s special meeting on Sept. 10.