Month: October 2015

Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., joined colleagues Thursday in a letter to Federal Communications Commission Chairman Thomas Wheeler applauding the FCC’s proposal to cap intrastate prison phone rates. Joining Wyden on the letter are Sens. Cory Booker (D-N.J.) Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Ed Markey (D-Mass.), Bob Casey (D-Pa.),

A 22-year-old transient who stole a car from a northeast Redmond driveway Wednesday morning was involved in a hit-and-run crash on Highway 97 in Jefferson County and eventually arrested in a guns-drawn traffic stop south of Madras, Deschutes County sheriff’s deputies said. A Redmond woman contacted police shortly before 9 a.m. to report her Mitsubishi

The Deschutes County Planning Commission will receive public input on proposed changes to the county’s development code next Thursday, Oct. 22, at 5:30 p.m. at the Deschutes Services Building, 1300 NW Wall Street in Bend. The proposed changes would impact how the county processes permits for properties with existing code violations. If the proposed changes

The state Department of Education released annual report cards Thursday for Oregon’s 1,236 schools and 197 school districts — but they lack something from past years: an overall rating. The report cards help local schools and districts tell their story by providing information on student demographics, performance on state assessments, student outcomes, educational programs, and

The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife announced Wednesday they will be focusing on targeted areas around the state to decrease the cougar population, State officials said this will help grow the deer and elk population. According to ODFW, there are more than 6,200 cougars in the state, and with that number they tend to

More than 100 people gathered Wednesday at the Deschutes County Fairgrounds for a regional summit aimed at finding ways to tackle the growing problem of prescription drug abuse. The summit, planned by the Central Oregon Health Council and Lines for Life, a non-profit crisis hotline, also was sponsored by Deschutes County, PacificSource Community Solutions, St.

Experts who analyzed the 46-acre site that Oregon State University-Cascades is considering for its expansion will present their findings and answer questions from the public during a panel discussion later this month. The talk is planned for 11:30 a.m. to 12:45 p.m. on Monday, Oct. 26 in Cascades Hall, room 107, on College Way in

Oregon Employment Department Director Lisa Nisenfeld announced Wednesday the appointment of the first nine industry members of the Oregon Talent Council. established by the Oregon Legislature earlier this year. Lawmakers also established an Oregon Talent Council Fund of $6.1 million to seed investments in talent development programs. The Talent Council will work with industry, workforce

If conditions are favorable, fuels specialists with the Sisters Ranger District on the Deschutes National Forest will use prescribed fire techniques starting Thursday to burn 170 acres in the Metolius Basin. The burn is planned in an area 1 miles northwest of Camp Sherman and mile southwest of the Jack Creek Campground. Smoke will be

Alyson Fazzolari was chosen as Sisters Rodeo Queen in late September after an outstanding display of horsemanship on Zeus, her 13-year-old dark bay horse. Aly Fazz, as she is familiarly known, grew up in Oregon City on acreage where animals have been part of her family her entire life. She began caring for dogs, cats,

The Deschutes County Cultural Coalition is seeking applications for grant funding from all fields within the cultural sector, including the arts, heritage, and the humanities. The application deadline is November 6, 2015. Grant funding is provided by the Oregon Cultural Trust and must support projects and activities that address two of the four priorities outlined

Two companies demonstrated Wednesday for federal officials how the remotely piloted K-MAX helicopter can be used to perform wildland firefighting scenarios, including cargo drops, single-target water drops and progressive line building with a bucket. The demonstration by Lockheed Martin and KAMAN corporations provided officials from the U.S. Department of the Interior and U.S. Forest Service

Oregon State Police said Wednesday they have suspended their investigation into the suspicious deaths of two wolves found in Wallowa County in late August. The wolves were necropsied (examined by a veterinarian) to determine the cause of death). “However, due to the condition of decay, the cause of death has not been determined,” the OSP

Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., released a draft bill Tuesday that he said would boost outdoor recreation in Oregon and across the country by, among other things, streamlining the permit process and prioritizing maintenance work on heavily used public lands. Wyden said the proposal addresses concerns Oregonians raised about government roadblocks to recreation during a series

The former site of the Brooks-Scanlon crane shed building on Bend’s Southwest Industrial Way has sat vacant since the historic structure’s illegal, controversial demolition over a decade ago — but apparently, not for much longer. Last week, Crane Shed, LLC last week submitted site plans to the city to develop Crane Shed Commons, which the

As part of a $2,500 grant from the Home Instead Senior Care Foundation, The Central Oregon Council on Aging will be able to deliver meals to Central Oregon’s most vulnerable seniors. The Central Oregon Council on Aging is one of twelve organizations to be awarded grant funding from Home Instead Senior Care Foundation for the

The summer busy season is long gone, and in many places around the Prineville Reservoir, so is the water. “I’m really shocked — it’s gone down so far,” camper Gretchen Ingram said Tuesday. “It’s really amazing.” Other campers NewsChannel 21 spoke with left their fishing rods at home this trip, and some said they were

Gusting wind may have affected outdoor displays, but it didn’t dampen the spirit of those who participated in and attended the Saturday, Oct. 10 “Press On: Moving Lives Through Cancer” event at Atlas Cider Company in Bend, which raised more than $6,500 for Central Oregon cancer survivorship programs. A Bend-based PT Pub Night event established

On Thursday at 4 p.m., the Redmond Kiwanis Club, Friends of Sam Johnson Park, and the City of Redmond will host a ribbon-cutting ceremony and open Hope Playground in Sam Johnson Park, celebrating 3 1/2 years of grassroots collaboration, design, fund-raising and construction of Oregon’s largest inclusive playground . Inclusive playgrounds are designed to encourage

The Bald Butte Fire southeast of Oakridge grew to 52 acres Monday after crews successfully, lined, plumbed and burned out the late-season fire, Willamette National Forest officials said Tuesday. The fire was ignited Saturday by a burning car in the woods about fourr miles northeast of Oakridge on the slopes above Hills Creek Reservoir. Crews