Month: July 2014

Bend Park & Recreation District is seeking adult volunteers to coach youth soccer for the 2014 Bend Unified Recreation Soccer League, a joint program with Bend FC Timbers. Program participants are boys and girls going in to 1st thru 8th grade. Volunteer coaches are an essential part of the program, providing support with program logistics,

The totals are in, and Dutch Bros. Coffee locations in Bend, Redmond and Sisters used their 10-Year Anniversary to raise $17,434 to support Habitat For Humanity . “The $1 day was the busiest we’ve ever seen,” said Kaelyn Costa, Marketing Director for Dutch Bros . Central Oregon. “The response from the Central Oregon community was

Have you wondered how your county tax dollars are spent? Do you know what services Deschutes County provides to you? For the fifth-consecutive year, County residents have an opportunity to enroll in Deschutes County College, a free and fun program aimed at educating the community about County government. Deschutes County College will be held for

Cyclists from all over the globe have flocked to Bend this week, but one entire team and their staff are all staying on the same street. “We have eight riders, and 4 staff people staying with us,” Lee Lewishusk, also known as “House Mom,” told us Tuesday. But wait, that’s not all. “No, I have

The United Way of Deschutes County announced Tuesday a funding plan for 2014-15 that invests $1,025,918 in a range of essential community services provided by local non-profit agencies. The total fund disposition package includes $619,516 in allocations and donor designations to twenty-seven local social service agencies that partner with United Way of Deschutes County, $103.000

Regional crews are now in Warm Springs taking over management on the fast-growing Shaniko Butte Fire. When regional crews come in, fire camp needs to be set up quickle. “Basically we all sit at home and wait for the big boss man to call us and say we got a fire,” Aaron Campbell of DEZ’s

Construction Contractors Board investigators recently showed up unannounced at more than 200 job sites in Central and Eastern Oregon as part of an ongoing campaign targeting unlicensed contractors. Six investigators visited nearly 40 communities in late June. They turned up 43 potential violations of construction contractor law in communities ranging from Hood River and The

Thousands of taxpayers across Oregon have tax refund money a wa iting them — all they need to do is cash a check. The Oregon Department of Revenue has mailed letters to taxpayers in possession of refund checks that haven’t been cashed as a reminder to redeem these checks prior to October. “Annually, Revenue sends

The American Red Cross encourages all eligible blood donors to make an appointment to donate blood soon to help prevent a shortage. During the summer months, on average, about two fewer donors give blood at each Red Cross blood drive than what is needed to meet the needs of patients. Vacations and summer activities are

Oregon’s timber harvest rose to 4.2 billion board feet last year, marking four straight years of improvement from the recession low of 2.72 billion board feet in 2009, the Oregon Department of Forestry said Tuesday. “This wa s the first harvest above four billion board feet in seven years,” said ODF principal economist Brandon Kaetzel,

Renovations to the Colorado Avenue Dam are rushing forward. On Monday night, the Bend Planning Commission gave approval to Bend Parks and Rec’s Colorado Dam Safe Passage Project, a bid to offer both safe passage and a new whitewater experience. The project will open up the waterway between the Old Mill District and Drake Park,

Senate Finance Committee Chairman Ron Wyden, D-Ore., congratulated the U.S. House Tuesday on passing a permanent extension of the Internet Tax Freedom Act, and pledged to defend the Internet against multiple and discriminatory taxes. The bipartisan Internet Tax Freedom Act (ITFA), which Wyden co-wrote in 1998 and extended three times, is currently scheduled to expire

Crooked River Ranch Fire & Rescue has been awarded a $167,181 grant by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Assistance to Firefighters Grant Program for full replacement of Self-Contained Breathing Apparatus (SCBA). This grant money will allow Crooked River Ranch Fire & Rescue to purchase 26 new SCBAs for the department. SCBAs provide breathable air

A group of lightning-sparked wildfires north and west of Mitchell have burned about 3,000 acres, prompting some home and campsite evacuations and the continued closure Tuesday of U.S. Highway 26 about 16 miles west of that small Wheeler County town, officials said. The Waterman Complex of fires include the Bailey Butte Fire, which has grown

Significant progress was made overnight by crews mopping up the 652-acre White River Fire, located 12 miles west of Tygh Valley, increasing the number of acres inside the fire line that are fully extinguished, officials said Tuesday. Here’s the rest of the Tuesday morning update – you can get a map and more details at

Over 1,000 lightning strikes hit southeast Oregon’s Harney County during Sunday’s thunderstorms, sparking at least a dozen new fires over a wide area. Two groups of fires were being managed under one name — the Buzzard Complex. A Level 1 evacuation alert was issued to residents along a 12-mile stretch of state Highway 78. That’s

The destructive Moccasin Hill Fire near Sprague River in Klamath County, which has claimed about 20 homes and other structures, is now 15 percent contained, officials said early Tuesday. The fire, which destroyed six homes and 14 other buildings on Sunday, did not damage any more structures on Monday. Fire spokeswoman Erica Hupp says accurate

They’re not hard to spot along the streets in Bend: Signs advertising various businesses and services. While they may serve a purpose for businesses, they also can clutter and obstruct the public right-of-way. City staff are now educating business owners and enforcing the sign code in the public right-of-way — and have a couple former

As excitement for one of America’s largest multistage cycling races heats up, so have wildfires burning across Central Oregon. And now their paths have crossed, forcing a late change of venue for the race’s first stage. “Mother Nature always trumps us,” Race Director Chad Sperry said Monday. With a fire burning within two miles of

More firefighters were brought into Central Oregon Monday to help local crews battle about 60 blazes sparked by some of the 3,400 lightning strikes that raked the area during Sunday’s thunderstorms. A Warm Springs fire blew up to 10,000 acres, while three campgrounds and two forest roads were closed near an 80-acre place north of