Month: July 2015

Senator Ron Wyden (D-OR), the top Democrat on the Senate Finance Committee, and Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), the top Democrat on the Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee, applauded the Obama Administration’s announcement to develop a regulation this year to support states trying to promote broader access to workplace retirement saving opportunities for workers.

Since Discovery Park in northwest Bend opened to the public in early June, people have been drawn to the park’s irrigation lake for water play. That prompted a Bend Park and Rec District warning Monday that it’s really an irrigation pond and could pose health issues. “When the lake was first filled, it was clear

Oregon State University researchers have patented a new strain of a succulent red marine algae called dulse that grows extraordinarily quickly, is packed full of protein and has an unusual trait when it is cooked. This seaweed tastes like bacon. Dulse (Palmaria sp.) grows in the wild along the Pacific and Atlantic coastlines. It is

A 100-year-old hay barn quickly went up in flames just west of Redmond Monday morning, leaving firefighters only able to mount a defensive attack and keep it from reaching nearby structures. The fire was reported around 11:13 a.m. at a barn off Southwest Wickup Avenue, which was shut near Helmholtz Way and 53rd Court for

Deschutes County District Attorney John Hummel said Monday that four teens charged with arson and other crimes in a July 1 blaze the damaged the La Pine Middle School gym’s roof were not trying to destroy the school. “These kids did not set out to burn down the school,” Hummel told NewsChannel 21. “They were

Robberson Ford, in conjunction with Ford Focus on Child Hunger, held a Peanut Butter Drive at Newport Avenue Market in Bend and Erickson’s Thriftway in Prineville during a week-long campaign in June – and it was a big success. In fact, the dealer was proud to announce Monday a huge success in the campaign, as

ATLAS Cider in Bend opened just over two years ago. The cider company is up to six different flavors, and now all are available on tap in its new Old Mill District location. “The one thing we really wanted to bring to Bend was a place where people could come and have a couple pints

A group of eight Democratic U.S. senators, including Oregon’s Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley, on Monday asked federal researchers what they are doing to help scientific studies of medical marijuana happen. The eight lawmakers sent a letter to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the Office of National Drug Control Policy and the

Two abandoned homesteads that are now part of the Crooked River National Grassland in Jefferson County are among Oregon’s latest entries in the National Register of Historic Places. The two locations the Julius and Sarah McCoin homestead and the Enoch and Mary Cyrus homestead sites. The sites in the Culver area typify the settlement and

In preparation for the fall term application deadline, Oregon State University – Cascades invites adults with some college experience to meet with admissions specialists each Tuesday from 12:00 p.m. to 1:00 p.m. in Cascades Hall on College Way in Bend. No appointment is necessary. Transfer Tuesdays occur year-round and enable individuals interested in completing a

The Bloom Project, nonprofit providing fresh floral bouquets to hospice and palliative care patients, announces it has hired Julie McClay as volunteer coordinator for the Central Oregon project. In her role, McClay will lead and grow the team of volunteers and ensure the location is working to its highest potential. “We’re incredibly thrilled to have

Veterans and community members in the Bend area are meeting this week to make plans for a sustainable farming operation as part of the Central Oregon Veterans Ranch. Since 2013, the nonprofit group has worked to create a combination farm and ranch on land purchased outside of Bend, and a four-bedroom home on the property

Deschutes County sheriff’s deputies are looking for the owner of three calves found by a homeowner on her property east of Bend on Saturday evening. Deputies responded around 7:30 p.m. to the area of Highway 20 East and Gosney Road, where a homeowner found three calves on her property that did not belong to her

A Jefferson County sheriff’s deputy tried to pull over a car in Culver Friday night, but the driver instead led deputies on a six-mile, 10-minute chase at speeds to over 100 mph. It ended in a crash that killed the driver, a Culver man wanted on several felony charges, and seriously injured his passenger, authorities

Rain and cooler temperatures have quieted wildfire activity across Central Oregon over the weekend, also giving crews who have battled larger fires for days or weeks a better chance to move toward containment of the blazes. The Geneva 15 Fire south of Lake Billy Chinook near the Three Rivers subdivision is now being managed by

Bend city councilors found ways to squeeze an additional $1.8 million out of the budget for road maintenance. “It is because I voted no on the budget that forced my colleagues to go and find this money,” City Councilor Victor Chudoswky said Friday. “We’ve pretty much almost fully funded street maintenance until 2017.” Maintenance might

What do Lava Lanes, Abby’s Pizza and The Riverhouse Hotel in Bend have in common? The businesses are all advertising jobs on reader-boards — call it a sign of the times — and they’re certainly not alone. “We’re seeing record numbers of job vacancies,” Oregon Employment Department Regional Economist Damon Runberg said Friday. The Oregon

A lightning-sparked brushfire that broke out south of the Three Rivers subdivision near Lake Billy Chinook late Friday afternoon was 80 percent contained 24 hours later, having burned 875 acres, largely through burnout operations, officials said Saturday. Resources on the Geneva 15 Fire on Saturday included 10 engines, three water tenders, a 20-person crew and

Two Bend residents were hailed by police Friday after they heard cries for help, called 911 and helped an officer rescue a woman who fell into a northeast Bend irrigation canal and was swept about 200 yards downstream Thursday night. Michelle Howard, 57, was pulled from the Central Oregon Irrigation District canal near Northeast Purcell

Deschutes County sheriff’s detectives followed up this week’s arrest of a Bend construction company worker on numerous forgery and theft charges with a search of the suspect’s home Thursday and Friday. The sheriff’s office was contacted Tuesday by Jack Robinson and Sons Construction regarding a large amount of money that had been stolen by an