Month: May 2015

Next week’s Oregon High School Equestrian Teams state championships in Redmond have been canceled due to an outbreak of equine herpes virus (EHV-1) affecting four to nine horses in the Willamette Valley, several showing neurological signs of the disease. But organizers will survey the hundreds of would-be participants in hopes of finding an acceptable date

Central Oregon, renowned for its outdoor recreation, is also known for its focus on wellness, with a robust community of massage therapists, acupuncturists, chiropractors, alternative health practitioners and an impressive number of yoga studios. Hawthorn Healing Arts Center in Bend offers a range of services and in spring, a naturopathic doctor offers a three week

On Monday and Tuesday, May 18 and 19, Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railroad is removing and replacing the existing railroad tracks at the China Hat Road railroad crossing east of Highway 97. The city of Bend will coordinate with the railroad to improve the road at the tracks during this time, officials said Friday. Please

A bad turn in the weather Wednesday evening prompted four Bend teens visiting Paulina Lake hot springs to call for help, saying they could not find their way back in the blowing snow, Deschutes County sheriff’s deputies said. Sgt. Ronny Dozier said 911 got a call around 7 p.m. from Joshua Klatt, 18, who said

Stickers from the Bend-based “New Growth Clothing” company are popping up all over Bend. “They’re on the backs of stop signs, they’re on the Hawthorne exit — they’re everywhere around town,” Les Schwab Amphitheater Director Marney Smith said Thursday. New Growth says on its Website that it’s mission is to offer eco-friendly and sustainable clothes.

The past month has continued the trend for record-low snowpack throughout Oregon and well below-normal streamflows forecasted for the summer, the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service reported Friday. “The winter of 2015 will go down in Oregon’s history books as the year that was dominated by bare ground in the mountains,” said Julie Koeberle, NRCS

The Humane Society of Central Oregon volunteers regularly walk shelter dogs on the Oregon State property adjacent to the Bend shelter property. Recently, there has been an increase in littering, and illegal activities on the Stevens Road property that precipitated the Oregon Department of State Lands to limit access to the property. A Bend Eagle

Central Oregon is known for its dramatic landscapes, great beers and boundless ways to play outside, from skiing and cycling to hiking and paddling. A happening theater scene, however, does not typically spring to mind. Yet quietly below the surface, the theater scene is growing, evolving and attracting great talent. Area theater companies are offering

Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., introduced Thursday the Sutton Mountain and Painted Hills Area Preservation and Economic Enhancement Act, to create federal wilderness in the area of Sutton Mountain and the iconic Painted Hills and to promote economic development in the area. The proposal, which was developed in close collaboration with the local community, would create

State Sen. Tim Knopp (R-Bend) testified Thursday in favor of constitutionally viable PERS reform to fix the long-term problem of PERS liability in Oregon. The Joint Committee on Ways & Means Subcommittee on General Government heard HB 2960 in a public hearing and work session. Knopp spoke in support of the -A10 amendment to establish

A Deschutes County sheriff’s deputy’s patrol car rear-ended another car at slow speed in downtown Sisters Thursday morning, and deputies said Oregon State Police were called in to investigate the collision. The crash occurred around 8:50 a.m. as the unidentified deputy was patrolling the downtown Sisters area, said Sgt. William Bailey. The collision caused minor

President Barack Obama arrived in downtown Portland to cheers and jeers Thursday evening as he began a two-day visit to raise funds for Democrats and to promote trade. Obama’s motorcade took him from Portland International Airport to a downtown fundraiser for the Democratic Party on his first visit to Oregon in three years. People lining

An unlucky lightning strike that zapped an Awbrey Butte home Wednesday night has a Bend family feeling very lucky the damage wasn’t worse, and no one was hurt. “Everything went black, and then there were a couple big flashes — and then there was a huge noise,” Lisa Reynolds said Thursday. “The loudest noise we’ve

The Central Oregon Youth Orchestra program is this month’s Pay it Forward recipient. Executive Director and Founder Amy Goeser Kolb, was presented with the $500 award Thursday by sponsors Co Energy Propane and Mid Oregon Credit Union on Thursday to help fund the group’s upcoming trip to New York City. Nearly 70 students get together

Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack has announced the award of over $1.5 million to Oregon and Washington to expand and accelerate wood energy and other wood product markets, the Forest Service said Thursday. The federal funds will leverage an additional $1.5 million in investments from partners, resulting in a total investment of over $3 million in

Oregon Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum announced Thursday an agreement with the nutritional supplement chain Vitamin Shoppe Inc. that permanently bans the sale of products that contain BMPEA, a powerful stimulant and amphetamine-like substance. Products containing BMPEA are sometimes sold as weight loss or performance enhancing nutritional supplements. “The products that Vitamin Shoppe took off its

On behalf of the Bureau of Land Management, BLM Deputy Director Linda Lance today presented awards to agency employees and teams for their exceptional service to the nation as public servants. “Each of these employees has made a genuine difference to our nation through their dedication and hard work for the BLM,” said Lance of

A Bend man lost control of his SUV in a heavy hailstorm on Highway 97 south of Redmond Wednesday afternoon and struck an oncoming SUV, sending two of three occupants to area hospitals and shutting the road for about an hour, Oregon State Police said. The crash occurred shortly before 4 p.m. near milepost 128,

In recognition of the small business community’s contribution to the American economy, the President of the United States designates one week each year as National Small Business Week. Small Business Week is a special opportunity to celebrate local small business owners and entrepreneurs and recognize the outstanding community members and champions that promote, assist, and

Sens. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., and Martin Heinrich, D-N.M., called on the White House Thursday to finally end the mass surveillance of Americans, following a decision by the Second Circuit Court of Appeals that the National Security Agency is violating the law by collecting millions of Americans’ phone records. “This is a huge step for individual