Month: September 2018

(Update: Police chief assures ‘no continued danger to any of our children’; adding video, comment) Prineville’s police chief sought to assure the public Thursday that the disappearance of a 10-year-old boy and his later discovery on Highway 26 by a Portland resident doesn’t represent any “continued danger,” though he could reveal little about the specifics.

The City of Sisters is accepting applications for members of the Housing Policy Advisory Board. The board advises the Planning Commission and City Council on matters pertaining to the development of new and the revising of existing policies and regulations related to increasing appropriate levels of affordable and lower cost/work force housing within the city

The Deschutes National Forest will be closing Cinder Hill and Little Crater Campgrounds, including the boat launches, day use areas and trailheads in those recreation sites, next Monday for Shield project operations. Sections of the Newberry Crater Trail (3958 and 3953) and Paulina Lakeshore Loop (3955) adjacent to the campgrounds will also be temporarily closed.

(Update: Area of forest closed during cougar hunt) No cougar scent or sign was detected Thursday by trackers in the field near the site where a cougar is believed to have killed Mt. Hood hiker Diana Bober, the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife said late Thursday afternoon. Meanwhile, AP reported the U.S. Forest Service

A Prineville man already jailed on drug charges and an arrest warrant faces new charges after a raid on three Bend storage units turned up two guns, one of them stolen, as well as prescription drugs and large amounts of marijuana and edibles, Crook County sheriff’s deputies said Thursday. Deputies assisted by the Central Oregon

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) – A grand jury in Portland has found that two campus security officers at Portland State University were acting in self-defense when they fatally shot a black man outside a bar. Multnomah County prosecutors said Thursday that the grand jury found PSU officers James Dewey and Shawn McKenzie should not face criminal

Marking National Suicide Prevention Week, Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., and Rep. Katherine Clark, D-Mass., announced the introduction of the Elementary and Secondary School Counseling Act, new bicameral legislation they said would help fill the critical unmet need for school-based mental health services providers in elementary and secondary schools in America. In addition to Merkley, the

The Family Access Network recently received a $500 grant from the Rotary Club of Crook County. Funds will be used for a laundry program for low-income students attending Crook County schools who don’t have access to laundry facilities. Students who are in need of laundry assistance will receive a pre-loaded laundry card to use at

Oregon Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum on Thursday hailed a federal court ruling that keeps alive a rule providing forgiveness of federal loans to students misled by a for-profit school. Here’s her statement, in full: “We had a very big victory yesterday in federal court–and it’s a crucial one for students who have been defrauded by

Oregon Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum on Thursday sued Purdue Pharma, the maker of OxyContin, claiming it has been falsely and deceptively marketing its opioid drug in Oregon since an earlier agreement not to do so more than a decade ago. The complaint alleges that Purdue deceptively marketed OxyContin to Oregon seniors, misrepresented the risks and

Economic Development for Central Oregon announced Thursday the semi-finalist companies to advance in the Growth and Impact Categories for the 15th Annual Bend Venture Conference, to be held Thursday, October 18 – Friday, October 19. This group of companies is one step closer to presenting on the historic Tower Theatre stage in Downtown Bend. Last

Central Oregon Community College’s nursing program recently attained candidacy status from the Accreditation Commission for Education in Nursing, a national accrediting body, putting the college on the path to take its associate degree in nursing to a new level of recognition. Nationwide, nursing education is undergoing an accreditation shift, moving toward a system that operates

Post-Milli Fire repairs to state Highway 242 (the Old McKenzie Highway) across the Cascades are expected to begin Monday, the Oregon Department of Transportation said Thursday. Oregon Department of Transportation maintenance crews will be stabilizing slopes and improving drainage along the winding, scenic highway, thanks to an $850,000 reimbursement from the Federal Highway Administration after

Exit 139 on U.S. 97 (Bend Parkway) to Reed Market Road will not need to close Thursday night, ODOT officials said. Crews working on pavement testing in the area thought they would have to close the interchange a second night, but they completed their work early. Road and weather conditions, including construction or repair closures,

Deschutes County Commissioner Tammy Baney, who lost her re-election bid in the May primary to Patti Adair, has been named the new executive director of the Central Oregon Intergovernmental Council. Here’s Thursday’s announcement from COIC, in full: On September 11, 2018, the Board of COIC unanimously agreed to the appointment of Tammy Baney to serve

Good Thursday Morning, Everyone…A cold, damp system will continue to rotate cool temps into our region, but it looks as though we will stay dry until we get into the weekend. Today mostly sunny skies will prevail and daytime highs will stay cool with temps in the mid to upper 60’s. NW breezes will stay

Oregon Secretary of State Dennis Richardson released a statement Wednesday documenting approximately $106.2 million in questionable spending by four state agencies from Jan. 2, 2017 through June 30, 2018. One audit that contributed to this result was the Audits Division’s report on improper Medicaid payments. Auditors estimated that the agency unnecessarily paid nearly $74 million,

The SAIF board of directors on Wednesday declared two dividends for customers: a $120 million primary dividend to be paid to SAIF’s policyholders, and a $40 million safety performance dividend to be paid based on each policyholder’s safety results. “We’re a not-for-profit insurance company. That means when we have a good year, we’re able to

More changes could be coming to Highway 20 in Sisters, as discussed in a Sisters City Council meeting Wednesday night. The Oregon Department of Transportation is looking to add another roundabout to Highway 20 on the east side of town. This would be the second roundabout in the city ,after the first one was put

One lucky fourth-grade Oregonian will have the opportunity to fly to Washington, D.C. and join the U.S. Speaker of the House in lighting the 2018 U.S. Capitol Christmas Tree during the official ceremony. We’re launching an essay contest asking 4th-grade students to write letters about what they love about Oregon’s outdoors to coincide with the