Photo Steve Tague
As Bend’s population booms and the housing market becomes more competitive, residents are increasingly turning to areas that may have been a little bit below the Central Oregon neighborhood radar. “Southeast Bend is the next area to appreciate in Bend” said Stephanie Ruiz, a broker with Cascade Sotheby’s International Realty.
Roughly bordered by Murphy Road to the north, Knott Road to the east and south, and Third Street/U.S. Highway 97 to the west, the area has long offered convenient shopping along Third Street and has been home to established neighborhoods and small ranches. The anchor of the area has been the oldest existing golf course in Central Oregon, the Bend Golf Club. Built in 1925, the club has since expanded to offer tennis, swimming, pickleball and other activities plus a modern clubhouse. In a juxtaposition of old and new, at the 10th Fairway the course also abuts the new 1925 Townhomes neighborhood.
Built by Arrowood Development, the townhomes are described as “luxury homes in a resort setting” by Femke Van Velzen, the firm’s brand and design director. They are an example of both southeast Bend’s growing popularity and Central Oregon’s popular golf scene. Once completed, 1925 will have thirty-four single-level homes, two two-story townhomes and two stand-alone single homes circling a green common area. While floor plans are established, buyers are encouraged to choose flooring, cabinets, finishes and colors to reflect their personal style. Arrowood will also contribute to a buyer’s golf or social membership initiation fee at Bend Golf Club. While several of the development’s homes have already gone under contract, remaining townhomes are priced in the high $700,000s to low $900,000s.
August 2020 saw the arrival of the community’s first residents, Tom Walklet and Cheryl Johnson, who moved from Triple Knot, an Arrowood development at Tetherow in west Bend. Both avid golfers, they liked the Bend course, were looking for a change and wanted to downsize in preparation for their eventual retirement. Once unpacked, they were quick to realize other benefits besides golfing to southeast Bend. “We are as close to shopping and healthcare as we were at Triple Knot and, with quick access to 97, it’s faster to get to Sunriver and even up to Highway 20 to get to the coast,” explained Johnson.
Also close by is Vince Genna Stadium, where a summer highlight is watching the Bend Elks baseball team take on all comers. (At press time, the team had planned a full summer season for 2021. Visit bendelks.com for information.) Other quickly reached amenities and activities are the High Desert Museum to the south and the newly expanded Larkspur Community Center to the north. Scattered throughout the area are many parks offering youth and adult softball games, basketball, playgrounds, picnic shelters, pickle ball, skate parks, walking trails, off-leash dog areas, small bike pump tracks, and natural play areas.
Ruiz believes southeast Bend is an area worth examining, particularly if home buyers are looking at new construction rather than trying to buy an existing home. “People are willing to wait for new construction so it is not as competitive,” she explained. The 1925 Townhomes development sits south of the Stonehaven neighborhood, a fairly new development of single-family homes built beginning in the mid-2000s, and east of more new developments closer to U.S. Highway 97 built in the past two decades.
Back at 1925, the Walklet/Johnson household is well pleased with their new home. “We have met a lot of people here, and from all over,” Walklet said.
“People really use the club: it has very easy access, and it is much easier to get to play here than on the west side,” continued Johnson. “It’s a very active group, and it’s very easy to get assimilated.”
Noting the welcoming attitude, Walklet added that the couple had hosted a COVID-correct Kentucky Derby Party. “Everyone dressed up a little bit, and we hope to make it an annual event,” he said.
