Think Out Loud

Oregon’s land use and water laws suppress housing and jobs, developer says

By Rolando Hernandez (OPB)
March 26, 2026 3:50 p.m.

Broadcast: Thursday, March 26

FILE - A truck loaded with construction materials leaves the Thornburgh destination resort site in Deschutes County, Ore., June 22, 2022.

FILE - A truck loaded with construction materials leaves the Thornburgh destination resort site in Deschutes County, Ore., June 22, 2022.

Emily Cureton Cook / OPB

The Thornburgh Resort planned in Deschutes County would provide 950 residential units, 380 overnight lodging units, two golf courses and a luxury hotel, among other offerings. For more than two decades, the resort has faced continued challenges with the state’s regulatory laws, delaying its progress. A new report from the developer says the continued delays have cost the state and county hundreds of millions of dollars in potential public revenue. Thornburgh Resort founder Kameron Delashmutt joins us to share more on where things stand with the project.

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