Canal MHLD
An eight-unit MHLD feasibility study on a canal-adjacent site in Bend, where a disciplined due diligence process proved the City would allow the project but site-specific infrastructure costs made it a clear no-go.
Location
Bend, OR
Category
MHLD
Year
2025
ROLE
Architect, Hiatus Homes
The site sits between a busy arterial road to the north and a large open-air irrigation canal to the south, with public walking and cycling paths running alongside the water. I led the feasibility process during the Hiatus purchase due diligence period: mobile site survey, site plan options, a Pre-Application meeting with the City of Bend, and preliminary horizontal cost estimates from ROW contractors. The design placed five smaller single-level units along the canal's north edge to capture daylight and trail views, with three taller lofted units fronting the street to satisfy frontage requirements and buffer traffic noise from the rest of the site. A single shared driveway off the arterial kept vehicle access simple. Two parent lots, each subdivided into four, satisfied the MHLD code path for eight individually-owned homes.
The city confirmed the project was approvable. But the ROW utility work told a different story. The arterial's concrete roadway and associated traffic control requirements pushed horizontal infrastructure costs well past what the pro forma could absorb. The feasibility delivered exactly what it was supposed to: a well-informed "no" before any outside partners were brought on or debt was taken on. A few thousand dollars in study cost against a six-figure infrastructure surprise is the math that makes feasibility work worth doing.
IMAGE CREDIT:
Hiatus Homes
