Hearing on Coos Bay Estuary Plan

Railroad bridge crossing into North Bend.\Photo by Mike Graybill.

Note: The meeting described below is still on the schedule. However, the Coos County Planning Commission postponed its hearing on the Coos Bay Estuary Management Plan, putting the city of North Bend in an awkward position, as its planners will want to respond to what the county does. The city's planner intends to recommend that the hearing be continued until October 16, although at last report testimony will be taken at the meeting on July 17, and there is no certainty that the hearing will in fact be continued. When there is more information available, it will be posted here.

The update of the Coos Bay Estuary Management Plan CBEMP has now entered the phase of review by local governments, before the final step of adoption. There will be hearings before the planning commissions of Coos County and the cities of Coos Bay and North Bend. All three local governments must adopt the same EMP elements for inclusion in their respective comprehensive plans.

The City of North Bend’s planning commission will hold a hearing on the update draft on Monday, July 17, 7 p.m. in the council chambers at North Bend City Hall (835 California Avenue). The meeting is hybrid, and can be attended remotely. If you attend in person, and wish to speak, you will be able to sign in to do this when you arrive. If you prefer the virtual option, the meeting will be livestreamed on Facebook.

This amendment will adopt the Coos Bay Estuary Management Plan (Part 1 & 2) into the North Bend Comprehensive Plan. Public comments and objections may be submitted in writing. Written comments must be submitted no later than the Friday before the scheduled public hearing to dpayne@northbendcity.org. Oral public comment requests must be submitted by 1 p.m. on the day of the hearing. The Planning Commission will make a recommendation to North Bend City Council on this matter.

Further information, including how to participate in the meeting, may be obtained by contacting Derek Payne, City Planner, dpayne@northbendcity.org, (541) 756-8535 or by visiting the City website. Contact him if you wish to comment during the meeting, and he will sign you up and provide a special Zoom link. A copy of the staff report should be available for inspection at least seven days prior to the scheduled public hearing.

See our website article for more background information on the CBEMP, and a link to our comment guide.