Month: August 2016

As two Bend city councilors have decided to step off the council, there are now two open seats among the four up for grabs this fall. Two more Bend residents took out petitions to run in recent days, so now it’s at least two candidates for each seat, if all gather the required 150 signatures.

Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., hosted a roundtable discussion at MountainStar Family Relief Nursery in Bend, discussing his Families First bill, then stopped by NewsChannel 21 to discuss a range of issues. The bill would help children and reduce the number of foster care placements. Wyden heard from local leaders about what they are doing to

Deschutes County District Attorney John Hummel said Friday he’s determined no crime was committed in last fall’s deadly explosion inside a World War II-era military tank east of Bend that killed two Oregon City men. “I like to wrap up these cases knowing what happened, even if my knowledge leads me to charge someone or

Fire crews worked through the night cooling hot spots and monitoring fire lines on the Redwood Highway Fire in Selma, located on Highway 199 near the California border in southwest Oregon that has destroyed three homes. Cooler nighttime temperatures and calm winds allowed for continued progress to be made on the fire line, which is

Bend 2030, the Bend Chamber of Commerce and City Club of Central Oregon will partner to host two interactive public input forums on charter review on Sept. 20 and Nov. 1 at the Central Oregon Collective on Bend’s Eastside. The two forums will feature educational presentations from the League of Oregon Cities and regional experts,

Starting on Monday, crews from Knife River, under contract to the Oregon Department of Transportation, will begin paving on the Highway 97 Romaine Village-to-Lava Butte median safety project south of Bend. This phase of paving will take place on the new southbound outside lane and shoulder that have been constructed recently, the agency said Friday.

The top of a Ponderosa pine tree fell onto power lines and broke two power poles in northwest Bend Friday afternoon, knocking out power to nearly 3,000 Pacific Power customers, including part of the Central Oregon Community College campus, officials said. Pacific Power repair crews had power restored to all but about 700 customers by

The Prineville City Council cleared the way Thursday for the city to pay $1.2 million to Brooks Resources to buy 460 acres of property in the northern part of its Iron Horse development near Barnes Butte — not only for open space, but to gain valuable surface water rights. The council authorized city staff to

Central Oregon is a hot spot for cyclists, but it’s a hot spot for bike thieves as well. The Bend Police Department has seen a huge influx of found and stolen bicycles across the city. The department has 100 bikes in its storage unit right now. Officials are hoping bike owners who recently had their

Work on the $16 million Wickiup Junction railroad overpass project located at the north end ofLa Pine is progressing ahead of schedule and on track for completion next year, the Oregon Department of Transportation said Thursday. If you live in the area,you have probably noticed a majority of the earthwork required for the new alignment

It was a year ago this weekend when residents scrambled to flee Canyon City, as the Canyon Creek Complex Fire ripped through the town. “I didn’t know, but I accepted the fact that I might lose the house,” said a Canyon City resident. About 100 structures were damaged and 26 families lost their homes as

The Oregon Health Authority said Friday it has lifted the health advisory issued July 28 for Odell Lake, located 75 miles southeast of Eugene off Highway 58 in Klamath County. Water monitoring has confirmed that the level of blue-green algae toxins are below guideline values for human exposure, officials said. However, the Oregon Health Authority

The Maybelle Clark Macdonald Fund has awarded $32,386.50 to The Shepherd’s House to provide 15 new bunks (30 beds), mattresses and storage drawers for the homeless. Curt Floski, executive director, said, “Homelessness, addiction, and mental health are huge issues here in Central Oregon. We are very thankful for this grant as it means that 30

One Bend postal worker is inspiring Central Oregonians by defying her disability. Rebecka Perrine had to have one of her legs amputated last year. After losing her leg, she was told by disability workers she’d never return to her job as a mail carrier. But she said that only fueled her fire to prove them

Discover Your Forest, the Deschutes National Forest’s non-profit partner, wants to remind the public that they are invited to enjoy Volunteer Ranger patio talks every day and Hike with a Ranger programs four days a week at Mt. Bachelor through early September. The talks began in June and will continue until September 4, Volunteer Ranger

The Family Access Network is the recipient of a $3,000 grant from the Pacific Power Foundation to help support a FAN advocate at John Tuck Elementary School; a high needs school in the Redmond community. The FAN advocate will connect over 200 children and family members to basic-needs including food, shelter, clothing, heating and healthcare

A grant from the Central Oregon Health Council will allow Oregon State University – Cascades to promote student health services on its new campus beginning this fall via an innovative partnership model that utilizes existing health resources and clinics within the community. The $373,877 grant provides funding over three years to support the hiring of

St. Charles Health System is planning to issue up to $115 million in bonds to finance upcoming projects and refinance existing debt, and this week two credit rating agencies—S&P Global Ratings and Moody’s Investors Services—gave those bonds A+ and A2 ratings, respectively. The ratings are important, as they reflect St. Charles’ overall financial strength and

The Redmond Police Department conducted three enhanced DUII enforcement patrols in July. During this effort, Redmond police put three additional officers on the road, funded by DUII grant funds. These three officers worked a total of 13 hours resulting in approximately 35 traffic stops being conducted. No DUII arrests were made, and several traffic violation

The Deschutes National Forest will temporarily close the Swampy Lakes Loop trail at Swampy Lakes Trailhead in West Bend. The trail closure, 15 miles west of Bend, will be in place seven days a week until September 5 while contractors remove dead standing trees on both sides of the trail. While the trail is closed,