Month: February 2013

Construction is set to begin this spring in downtown Bend to add bike lanes and make a stretch of road more safe for pedestrians, cyclists and drivers. The city has received a grant worth nearly $650,000 from the state. It has also matched about $300,000 to make the project possible. Tuesday night, the group known

Illegal immigrants are one step closer to paying in-state tuition at Oregon colleges. A controversial “tuition equality” bill cleared a major hurdle Monday in the Legislature. The bill would grant in-state tuition for undocumented students. But even if it passes and is signed into law in current form, many illegal immigrants might not be able

Leave a gas station these days, and with your fuller tank comes a lighter wallet. Gas prices on the High Desert have climbed steadily the last 32 days — and Central Oregonians say they’ve noticed. “It makes me mad — it’s upsetting,” Bend resident Leonard Mead said while filling up his tank on Tuesday. And

At The Growler Guys Fill Station on Bend’s east side, beer is not all that’s on tap. “We never intended to sell ciders or wine,” owner Kent Couch said Tuesday “We never even thought about it when we started this program.” But now, hard cider and sangria sit side by side with craft beers. One

If you’re looking for a job, the city of Bend may be hiring. It plans to add a handful of people to deal with rising demand in building permits. Bend city councilors will talk about adding six new employees at their meeting on Wednesday. Three of the new hires will help in the permit processing.

Two Warm Springs residents were taken to a Madras hospital, then to one in Bend Tuesday after their car left Highway 26 and crashed about eight miles west of Madras, Oregon State Police said. The crash occurred in one of the locations announced last week where OSP received an ODOT grant to provide overtime enforcement

Central Oregon’s economy is on the rebound after being hit hard by the 2008 housing bubble burst, which spawned economic hardship for people all across the region. Local economists say the High Desert is making a comeback with new jobs, and new businesses moving into the area. “When you look over the year from December

Based on the latest surveillance and tracking data of influenza cases in Central Oregon and the state, St. Charles Health System said Tuesday it has decided to lift the visitor restrictions at St. Charles hospitals and clinics, effective immediately. “We greatly appreciate our community’s help and understanding as we worked to reduce the spread of

The Prineville Bureau of Land Management is currently developing an Environmental Assessment to analyze requests to renew grazing permits and leases on 39 allotments throughout Central Oregon. The EA will consider existing allotments, changing season of use, constructing new or maintaining existing infrastructure such as fences, cattle guards and water sources, as well as adjusting

Any given map of Oregon is dotted with places that tell stories of the past. Places that continue to live on, not only in memory but in reality, can include the most strikingly ornate house in town, a bridge that has crossed your favorite stretch of river for a century, the oldest grocery store in

New life could be coming to the Madras Airport, as a Hillsboro company says they want to bring seven more big air tankers to Central Oregon, to fight wildfires across the West. Erickson Aero Tanker bought the three-air tanker fleet from Butler Aviation last year. and now they are seeking a contract with the Forest

The filibuster — it’s a strategy used in Washington to prevent a vote, and Oregon Senator Jeff Merkley said in Bend Monday he wants to change the rules, stopping a filibuster before it starts. Just recently, Senate Republicans did their first-ever filibuster for a presidential Cabinet choice: Secretary of Defense nominee Chuck Hagel. Merkely visited

A traffic stop in southeast Bend Sunday evening led to the arrest of the driver and passenger on drug charges and a search that found a large, sealed package holding over five pounds of marijuana, ready for mailing to another state, officers said. An officer stopped a black Audi at SE Fifth Street and Wilson

A local nonprofit teamed up with Bend firefighters on Monday to stress the importance of life-saving training and technology — and their message was driven home by a long-time volunteer whose life was saved by that crucial combination just last month. Healing Reins Therapeutic Riding Center, which teaches people with special needs to learn to

OSU-Cascades Vice President Becky Johnson said Monday the college is right on track to expanding into a full, four-year university. Before a meeting of the OSU-Cascades board Monday, Johnson told NewsChannel 21 the university expects to unveil the campus size before April. Next is deciding the final location. Johnson said she hopes university officials will

Virginia Reddick, longtime United Senior Citizens of Bend leader, passed away on Thursday, February 14 at St. Charles-Bend. Her son, March Reddick of Bend, said she suffered a sudden, major stroke. Reddick, 81, was president of USCB for over a dozen years and led the major fund-raising effort that led to construction of the Bend

The Humane Society of Central Oregon’s Pup Crawl has been a howling good time for all participants. The Pup Crawl continues this week at three more local brewpubs, Cascade Lake Brewing Company on Tuesday, 10 Barrel Brewing on Wednesday and Worthy Brewing on Thursday. Join us from 4:00 to 8:00 pm each night, and raise

After wrestling with some big controversies recently, Bend city councilors take up a couple of upbeat matters this week – a generally positive community survey and the proposed addition of six employees, half in Community Development due to a recent sharp uptick in building activity. The phone (both landline and cell phones) survey last month

Calling for stricter standards and greater oversight, Reps. Gene Whisnant (R – Sunriver) and Vic Gilliam (R-Silverton) voted no Monday on HB 2787, which would allow some undocumented Oregon residents to qualify for in-state tuition rates. “While the concept has improved, issues still remain which we need to address in the legislation,” said Whisnant. “Those

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — A man shot by police in a parking lot at a Portland hospital after he wouldn’t put down his gun may have been a patient at that facility, police said Monday. The adult man, whose name has not been released, died after being shot at by three police officers in the