A new 400-home subdivision in the works for Oregon鈥檚 south coast city of Coos Bay could ease the area鈥檚 housing crunch and support an era of economic growth for the former timber stronghold. At least that鈥檚 the hope of its developer, Greg Drobot.
It鈥檚 the latest project for the Face Rock Creamery co-founder who has mainly focused on commercial developments in the area for more than a decade.
鈥淚 talked to so many tenants that said they would hire more people, lease more space if they just had more places for their employees to live,鈥� Drobot said. 鈥淚 talked to the hospital, I talked to many other groups 鈥� and they would have a job opening, they would be so excited, and a great candidate would come to the area, and they鈥檇 say, 鈥榳ell, there鈥檚 nowhere for me to live. I can鈥檛 take this position.鈥� So it really was a headwind to economic growth.鈥�
The Coos Bay area has had it tough economically since the timber industry mostly fled in the 1990s. No economic driver of the same caliber has emerged. Large projects have been proposed 鈥� such as a controversial liquefied natural gas export terminal 鈥� and then failed to come to fruition. Industries like tourism and fishing are important to the area, but their growth is moderate at best.
Some of the south coast鈥檚 economic development challenges relate to its remote location. But one thing hampering economic growth in Coos Bay is a familiar problem across the country: not enough housing.
This fall Drobot took over as developer of record for Timber Cove, a proposed housing subdivision on the west side of Coos Bay. Drobot鈥檚 team expects to build a total of 400 three- and four-bedroom houses between 1,500 and 1,800 square feet, with prices starting around $400,000. The goal is to begin construction early next year and complete the first set of homes by spring 2026.
While 400 homes may be a modest addition in cities like Portland or even Eugene, Drobot said in Coos Bay, it鈥檚 among the city鈥檚 largest housing developments in history.
It comes as communities across Oregon are hungry for more housing. The dearth of affordable homes in the state is driving the state鈥檚 . Statewide officials and local leaders throughout Oregon are pushing for more construction, and Gov. Tink Kotek wants the state to build more than 35,000 new homes a year.
Economic development advocates in Coos Bay say the lack of housing is hurting growth and opportunity on the south coast. In a report for the Coos Bay city council, researchers found that the area would by 2040 to accommodate the expected population growth of around 1,300 people.
While the homes at Timber Cove could help meet some of the need, the project alone isn鈥檛 enough to solve the city鈥檚 housing crisis. The study points out a need for homes priced around $280,000 for them to be affordable for families making the median income of around $70,000 per year. The recent report also echoed past studies that said the area . But developers are hesitant to build or invest in rentals because their return on investment is virtually unproven along the south coast.
Overall, building more homes has its challenges in any city: lingering from the pandemic can make it hard to get some materials, rising demand for electricity means to hook homes into the grid, and overall building costs have crept up in recent years. In remote areas like Coos Bay, there鈥檚 an added challenge of getting building materials from major commerce hubs.
Drobot said even though Coos Bay is the biggest city on the Oregon coast, it is hours from the I-5 corridor. Instead, Coos Bay is accessible by the less major 鈥� and less semi-truck-friendly 鈥� Highway 101, making it hard to get materials to the site.
鈥淎nd the labor, there鈥檚 not a massive workforce, especially when you鈥檙e talking about things of this size,鈥� Drobot said. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 one reason I was kind of confident to move forward was my partner and his team 鈥� we got the horsepower that we could do this locally here.鈥�
Even so, Drobot said they will still need to pull in some workers from various trades from Roseburg, Eugene or other cities to get the project over the finish line.
Drobot said the project has private financing from a Pacific Northwest firm that specializes in funding residential homes. He鈥檚 currently working with the City of Coos Bay in hopes it will help fund a needed pump station for the subdivision鈥檚 wastewater.
Drobot, who lives part-time just south of Coos Bay in Bandon, says he鈥檚 starting to see more commercial developers like him interested in the south coast region. But he laughs while saying that so far, he鈥檚 the only one crazy enough to do some of the projects he鈥檚 completed, like redeveloping abandoned industrial sites.
That doesn鈥檛 mean he鈥檚 the only one doing large projects in Coos Bay, though. Drobot points to the Coquille Tribe and economic development arms of the south coast cities as drivers of major projects in the area.
In Coos Bay, the Coquille Tribe is planning to build Oregon鈥檚 first tribal-run distillery at The Mill Casino, which is expected to create 30 new permanent jobs. Meanwhile, the Port of Coos Bay is soliciting federal funding for a that could create 2,500 permanent positions in addition to 2,500 construction jobs.
鈥淨uality, accessible housing is directly linked to workforce stability,鈥� Lexie Woodward, executive director for the South Coast Development Council, said in a statement about the project.
Woodward said the project could help meet the future needs of employers looking to retain current employees and attract skilled workers to the area.
鈥淣ot only will Timber Cove provide families and workers a place to call home,鈥� she said, 鈥淚t will stimulate economic growth from increased job opportunities during construction to the boost in business for shops and services once residents move in.鈥�
This story comes from the Northwest News Network, a collaboration between public media organizations in Oregon and Washington.
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