Editor鈥檚 note: This story is part of a series looking at efforts that communities in Grant County, like other parts of rural Oregon, are taking to attempt to attract and retain workers.
Contractor Josh Walker jumps out of his rig to survey a hilly and steep 81-acre parcel of land he recently bought in John Day for $140,000, a quarter of the price it sold for 15 years ago.
鈥淭here are some flat spots that are tucked in throughout the acreage that have lot sites that won鈥檛 take incredible excavation on a steep incline,鈥� he said.
The incline isn鈥檛 the only reason the land was cheap. Many builders don鈥檛 want to take on construction projects in a small high-desert town like John Day because, for similar effort, they can build homes in Bend or Portland that sell for two or three times the price.
But after eight years in the military, Walker wanted to return to his hometown, raise a family and run a construction business.
Initially, he planned to build traditional wood-framed homes on his new land. But then he talked to city leaders, who suggested trying something different 鈥� using 3D technology to print homes using a computer, a high-tech pump and quick-setting concrete.
鈥淭he thought is that you can come in a single day and get a structure completely printed,鈥� Walker said.
So two construction workers might be able to do in one day what it takes a team of four a whole week to accomplish with traditional methods 鈥� and for a much lower price.
So far, builders trying to use the technology have found problems printing things like corners and roofs. The 3D-printed structures that have been built tend to be whimsical demonstration projects 鈥�&苍产蝉辫;great for Instagram, but not so good as functional homes.
Indeed, getting planning permission for such unproven technology is expensive, in the range of $60,000. That鈥檚 another reason 3D-printed homes aren鈥檛 popping up everywhere.
To mitigate the logistical challenges, the applied for and won a grant from the. Now Walker and the City of John Day have $60,000 to develop plans for a practical 3D-printed home.
鈥淚 mean it鈥檚 really a partnership between us and the city and the state to try and figure all of this out,鈥� Walker said.
He hopes to print four separate structures on his land with three living units in each. He鈥檒l then rent them out. The average rent in John Day is about $700 a month, and Walker is not worried about finding tenants.
鈥淧eople are always looking for rentals,鈥� he said. 鈥淲hen rentals get posted, they鈥檙e usually gone in a day or two.鈥�
The $60,000 will be used up by engineers, architects and the like to develop an acceptable design. The rest of the work is financed with a construction loan, just like any other development.
This is very much an experiment, and 3D printing may turn out to be much more expensive, or ugly, or just plain impractical given John Day鈥檚 weather and the state鈥檚 seismic requirements.
But it鈥檚 worth the risk, Walker said. He鈥檚 going to build the first four homes no matter what.
鈥淭here鈥檒l still be buildings standing there that鈥檒l last for 50 to 100 years or whatever it is. And people will live in them and 鈥� It鈥檚 not for naught.鈥�
If the 3D homes do work out, John Day city manager Nick Green said the state can use the plans to print inexpensive 3D homes across small-town Oregon, boosting the housing supply. They could even be used to quickly replace homes burned in something like a catastrophic wildfire.
Green鈥檚 big hope, of course, is that John Day will become a center for 3D home printing 鈥� attracting high-paying jobs and boosting the population.
鈥淲e鈥檙e looking to leapfrog technologies,鈥� Green said. 鈥淕o from being the last people to adopt a new innovation, to the ones that are actually the innovation that everyone is parroting.鈥�
3D printing homes might seem like a stretch for a small city. But authorities here are desperate. Over the last two decades, four out of the five timber mills that used to operate in Grant County have closed. That has resulted in a 9% loss in population. And the people who stayed are getting older. More than half of Grant County residents are 55 or older.
鈥淲e鈥檝e left half measures behind,鈥� said Green. 鈥淲hen you鈥檙e in last place and winning the race to the bottom in every socio-economic category. It鈥檚 time to think bold and to go big.鈥�
But how big and bold is the idea?
Chris Rich, the regional economist for Eastern Oregon, said printing 3D houses is an interesting concept and he hopes it works out.
鈥淚f we want to try to develop ourselves economically after seeing this decline in the economy and the population over the last couple of decades, then that might need some out-of-the-box thinking,鈥� Rich said.
Not everyone in John Day supports the idea. Some critics say local government shouldn鈥檛 be in the business of building homes, even with grant money. Others worry that if 3D printing becomes successful, John Day might suddenly boom like Bend 鈥� bringing along the same kind of housing, traffic and homelessness challenges Central Oregon now faces.
Walker rolls his eyes at the idea John Day is about to boom.
鈥淲hat would it hurt if we gained 1,000 people right now?鈥� he said. 鈥淲e wouldn鈥檛 look like Bend if we gained 1,000 people. But we鈥檝e bled 1,000 people over the last three decades.鈥�
Walker plans to start pumping cement later this year, after which he鈥檒l go over the numbers with the city to see if his 3D home project is an economic success.
Copyright 2022
