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Oregon State University-Cascades has agreed to purchase 46 acres in Bend to expand its campus.

The property, a former pumice mine, is adjacent to the university’s existing 10-acre site, which is expected to open in September.

The university agreed to pay just under $8 million. OSU will also pay $11,931 in closing costs and $131,500 in fees for security services and for extending the due diligence period, the university said in a news release.

For years, state leaders have recognized a need to extend the reach of Oregon’s flagship universities beyond the Willamette Valley and Portland. Deschutes County has grown to more than 170,000 residents, up nearly 8 percent in the past five years, according to Census data. OSU-Cascades officials expect the expanded campus to serve 3,000 to 5,000 students by 2025.

Purchase of the pumice mine property was approved by the former State Board of Higher Education in 2013.

OSU’s pending purchase, along Southwest Chandler Avenue, follows the completion of a due diligence period that included title, environmental, geotechnical and engineering reviews.

It comes after legal challenges by Truth in Site, a citizens group in Bend that voiced concerns regarding the planned land use and parking and anticipated traffic.

Becky Johnson, vice president of OSU-Cascades, said in a statement that the campus location will increase density and avoid sprawl. She said OSU-Cascades is 鈥渃ommitted to extending transit to other Central Oregon communities so that they can easily access the new campus.鈥�

The university also is weighing whether to add to its campus a 76-acre Deschutes County landfill nearby.聽A nonbinding letter of intent between the county and university provides a two-year framework for assessing the possibility.