Years in the making, the Rhododendron Community Planning Organization
(CPO) has moved forward to the final process of a boundary expansion effort.
A public meeting is set for 1 p.m., Jan. 21, at the Hoodland Fire Station,
69634 Hwy. 26, where public testimony will be heard regarding the boundary
expansion after which the Board of County Commissioners (BCC) will take up
the issue and make a final determination.

The expansion is not modest in nature.

The current CPO boundary is a 1-square-mile section, which extends at the
west end of Rhododendron, from approximately the Zigzag River bridge on
Hwy. 26 east to about Belle Lake Road, according the Rhody CPO President
Steve Graeper. The north-south boundary extends about 1⁄2 mile on either side
of Hwy. 26.

“The current boundary excludes most of the Forest Service cabins to the east,
and along Road 19, and excludes the Woodlands and Faubion neighborhoods,”
Graeper added.

The new boundary would extend from the eastern edge of Lolo Pass Road up
to Kiwanis Camp Road (FS 29) with the northern border being approximately
the summit of Zigzag Mountain and the southern border the summit of
Hunchback Mountain.

“The purpose of the boundary expansion is to unify the represented area and
allow for greater participation in the CPO process,” Graeper said.

The CPO, which formed in the 1970s as the Rhododendron Neighborhood
Association, has offered input on land use issues within its boundaries to
county officials. Since 2006, when the organization revamped its bylaws and
changed its name to the current moniker, the CPO has also served as a
communication outlet between the county and residents and been involved
with a variety of community-sponsored programs (for an in-depth look at the
history of the CPO and its presence in the community, please read Graeper’s
commentary on page 7 of this month’s paper).

The expansion comes at a time when the BCC has dissolved the Villages at Mt.
Hood – and refusing to recognize its elected directors – and the Mt. Hood
Corridor CPO has been idle since 2011 when its directors were hit with a
SLAPP suit.