Month: June 2017

Crook County firefighters stopped a wind-fanned grass fire on a southeast Prineville hill that threatened several homes Wednesday evening, an official said. Crook County Fire and Rescue was dispatched shortly before 5 p.m. to the fire on a hill behind Southeast Willowdale Drive, said Fire Chief Matt Smith, Engine crews arrived to find the flames

Crook County officials said Wednesday they have received $ 25,000 from the Knight Cancer Institute Community Partnership Program at Oregon Health & Science University (OHSU) to help reduce the burden of tobacco use in our community. The project will work with healthcare providers to assess current and recent adult tobacco users in Crook County to

Here are the results of Tuesday’s KTVZ.COM Poll, asking if all Central Oregon irrigation canals should be piped to save water: Do you think all Central Oregon irrigation canals should be piped to save water? Yes – 50% (306 votes) No – 50% (301 votes) Total Votes: 607

SALEM, Ore. (AP) – A $670 million health care tax package has officially passed the Oregon Legislature and now heads to Gov. Kate Brown. Lawmakers in the Oregon Senate gave final approval on Wednesday in a 20-10 bipartisan vote. The package raises tax revenue from hospitals and insurers over the next two years so that

Mosaic Medical announced Tuesday it has received a $250,000 grant from the M. J. Murdock Charitable Trust, a $138,500 grant from The Ford Family Foundation and a $75,000 grant from The Collins Foundation, making possible the construction of its new Redmond clinic. A $20,000 grant from the Oregon Community Foundation, $2,500 from The Roundhouse Foundation

The Tumalo, Central Oregon and Swalley irrigation districts are working with the federal Natural Resources Conservation Service to create a plan for water conservation in Central Oregon, with one major, controversial aspect: to pipe more irrigation canals, with the possible help of federal funding. The idea is to create a plan that will work for

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) – The state Justice Department says a former Oregon Department of Energy official has pleaded guilty to accepting over $291,000 in kickbacks in connection with the sale of state energy tax credits. The Oregonian/OregonLive reports (https://goo.gl/sDXt7j ) that Joe Colello, who managed tax credit sales for the department, pleaded guilty Tuesday to

A neighborhood many Redmond residents rarely if ever see is a homeless community on public land just east of town. Redmond city councilors and Deschutes County commissioners discussed the future of the lane near East Antler Avenue at a joint meeting Tuesday night. Residents of the homeless community in that area also spoke up at

Driving along Highway 97 on Bend’s north side, you can now see the shell of what will be Ulta, a beauty store. It’ll be the first Ulta in Central Oregon — the only other ones in the state are in the Willamette Valley. Also coming to a retail complex to be known as Robal Road

The Redmond Police Department had an interesting Tuesday morning, when calls of horses on the loose in a quiet neighborhood started rolling in. “They were just right in the court,” Donna Viola said. “Some people in the 2000 block of Northwest Nickernut Court woke up to some horses in their front yard,” said police Lt.

High snowpack levels are having a ripple effect across our state. In Central Oregon, it means later controlled burns, higher grass levels, a longer ski season and longer trail access. But mostly, it means more water. According to Brett Hodgson, the acting manager for the Deschutes Watershed, more water is typically a good sign for

A Saturday afternoon trip to the store to buy milk turned into a $7 million jackpot for a Springfield couple. Michelle Sutherland, a retired U.S. Postal Service worker, went to the store to get groceries and stopped at a Dari-Mart in Springfield, to pick up an Oregon’s Game Megabucks ticket. “We play very casually, and

(Update: One man freed from jail, says he fired shot to protect assault victim) An altercation involving two brothers in which a family member was injured led to a man trying to intervene by firing a gun in southeast Prineville late Monday afternoon, landing all three men in jail, police said. The man who acknowledged

SALEM, Ore. (AP) – As new developments this week continue shrouding the 2017 legislative session in uncertainty, local leaders and special interest groups are trying to put pressure on Oregon lawmakers to pass a transportation measure. On Tuesday, more than two dozen mayors, county leaders and mass transit officials from the metro Portland area signed

In the wake of federal prosecutors’ decision not to file criminal charges against former Gov. John Kitzhaber and fiancee Cylvia Hayes, the Oregon Government Ethics Commission will resume its investigation, which was suspended for more than two years while the federal probe was underway. In a brief news release Tuesday, ethics panel Executive Director Ron

Here are the results of Monday’s KTVZ.COM Poll about whether offensive trademarks should be protected as freedom of speech: Do you agree that offensive trademarks should be protected as freedom of speech? Yes – 70% (347 votes) No – 30% (146 votes) Total Votes: 493

(Update: Correcting number of Avion customers, roughly 13,000) Avion Water Co., based in Bend, wants a 12.8 percent increase in revenue that would bring in around $1 million. To do so, the company submitted a request to state regulators for a rate hike of that amount to its roughly 13,000 customers. Typically, the Oregon Public

The Les Schwab Amphitheater enters its second year of the Take Note Initiative, a program designed to reduce waste and make the amphitheater a more environmentally friendly venue. Take Note accomplishes this goal through the implementation of reusable and compostable cups, elimination of single-use plastic bottles, a water filtration station, and recycling, waste and compost

SALEM, Ore. (AP) – Oregon’s Legislature has taken a step closer to defying a federal government crackdown on illegal immigration, with the House passing a bill that seeks to restrict the ability of state and local agencies, including law enforcement, to inquire about a person’s immigration status and prohibiting public agencies from disclosing information to

Governor Kate Brown announced Tuesday she will appoint Crook County District Attorney Daina Vitolins as a judge to Oregon’s 22nd Judicial District Circuit Court, which encompasses Crook and Jefferson counties. Vitolins will fill the vacancy created by the retirement of Judge Gary Lee Williams. Her appointment will be effective immediately upon Judge Williams’ retirement, on