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Central Oregon

DCSO joins US Marshals in ‘Operation Trick or Treat 2’ nationwide sex offender compliance effort, makes 4 arrests

3:46 pm

BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) — The Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) unit recently partnered with the U.S. Marshals Service to conduct Operation Trick or Treat 2 as part of a nationwide sex offender compliance operation. Sgt. Thomas Lilienthal said Thursday that last month’s operation in Deschutes County was a multi-agency effort involving the Deschutes

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No longer seasonal: Alaska Airlines resuming year-round daily Redmond-Portland flights

2:16 pm

REDMOND, Ore. (KTVZ) — Alaska Airlines/Horizon Air has modified its service between Redmond Municipal Airport (RDM) and Portland International Airport (PDX) from seasonal to year-round daily flights, officials announced Thursday.  “This change reflects the strong business demand and airline’s commitment to smaller communities like Redmond, ensuring vital air service for Central Oregon residents and businesses,”

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City of Madras celebrates grand opening of Initiative Brewing, largest redevelopment-funded project to date

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MADRAS, Ore. (KTVZ) – The City of Madras said Thursday it’s proud to announce the grand opening of Initiative Brewing, an exciting addition to our community and the culmination of the largest funded project to date by the Madras Redevelopment Commission (MRC). Initiative Brewing’s opening marks the successful realization of a longstanding goal to bring

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Deschutes National Forest’s four wildlife winter range closures go into effect Dec. 1

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BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) — Starting Sunday, December 1, four winter range closures take effect across the Deschutes National Forest to provide critical habitat for deer and elk. Beginning December 1, 2024, four annual wildlife winter range closure areas including Cabin/Silver Lake, Metolius Winter Range, Opine Travel Management Area and Tumalo Winter Range will begin. Motorized

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Sad Redmond reminder: Downtown ice rink won’t reopen this winter, but efforts continue on a replacement

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REDMOND, Ore. (KTVZ) — The Downtown Redmond Ice Skate Rink will not open for the 2024-25 season, the city reminded Thursday. A series of costly equipment failures led to the decision to not invest more into the current rink, but there are plans afoot for a new, larger one downtown. The temporary rink was first installed in 2010 and has exceeded its useful

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Bend city councilors adopt new development rules that mirror new state laws, encourage more new housing

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Staff, councilors seek to assure the goal is not to put housing on existing parks BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) — After diving deep into complex land-use laws and hearing much impassioned testimony, Bend city councilors voted 5-1 Wednesday night to adopt development code changes to clarify the rules and reflect recent state land-use laws aimed at

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Among Bend City Council Work Session agenda items was the UGB Expansion: Senate Bill 1537

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(update: adding video; Bend City Councilor-Elect Steve Platt says current affordable housing plan won’t cover middle income residents at a 60% AMI level) BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) – The Bend City Council began the phase of site selection for the urban growth boundary expansion under Oregon’s Senate Bill 1537, which is a significant initiative aimed at addressing

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Winds spark NW Prineville fire; chicken coop, storage building burn but home spared, no people or pets hurt

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PRINEVILLE, Ore. (KTVZ) – Strong winds caused a fire early Wednesday that burned a small chicken coop and a nearby storage building in northwest Prineville. But a neighbor alerted the home’s occupants, including several dogs and other pets, and all escaped unharmed – even the chickens. “All the chickens were happily running around the yard

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Bend’s Hiatus Homes introduces ‘Twinhomes’ concept to fill ‘missing middle’ need in era of smaller families

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(Update: Adding video, comments from staff) BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) — A new type of housing development is coming to northeast Bend, employing a design called Twinhomes.  Hiatus Homes, which says it’s “known for its sustainable and innovative housing solutions,” announced upcoming groundbreaking on their latest development – Hiatus Ninth, consisting of nine Twinhomes. They feature a 1 bedroom,

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Washington teen arrested on felony charges of ‘swatting’ calls to police agencies across US, including Prineville

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LEWISTON, Idaho (KTVZ) – A 15-year-old Garfield, Washington boy was arrested last week on a Nez Perce County, Idaho felony arrest warrant, accused of a series of hoax “swatting” calls to law enforcement agencies this year, including to the Prineville Police Department. Here’s the full text of a Nov. 14 news release from the Lewiston

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BLM sets aside more than 4,000 acres south of Redmond during review of proposed solar project

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PRINEVILLE, Ore. (KTVZ) – The Bureau of Land Management announced Wednesday it is temporarily setting aside about 4,037 acres of public lands associated with the proposed Expedition Solar Project south of Redmond. This means that the lands, located about seven miles south of Redmond off Morrill Road, will be withdrawn from the public land laws for two

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Former Deer Ridge prison inmate files federal lawsuit against prison doctor, alleging sexual abuse

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By Ben Botkin, Oregon Capital Chronicle EDITORS NOTE: The Oregon Capital Chronicle has updated their story to include Dr. Leland Beamer’s denial of the allegations. You can read their updated article here. Note: This story contains details of a sexual assault.SALEM, Ore. (KTVZ) — A former Oregon inmate filed a federal lawsuit against the Oregon

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Kids’ lemonade stand sparks a big-time donation to the Deschutes Land Trust – and a big lesson for the grandkids

11:18 am

(Update: Adding video, comments from parent, grandparent, Deschutes Land Trust) BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) — A Bend nonprofit got a generous donation in a novel way – through a lemonade stand. For two girls, Noa and Lila, visiting their grandparents in Central Oregon turned out to have a big impact on the Deschutes Land Trust. The trust received $25,000 from the

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If there’s a power outage in your area of the High Desert, here’s where to look online for the latest updates

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BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) – As a strong storm brings high winds and potential power outages to the High Desert, there are places online to track the latest information from each of the region’s three largest utilities. Here’s that list: Pacific Power: https://www.pacificpower.net/outages-safety.html Central Electric Cooperative: https://www.cec.coop/outage/outage-info-updates/ Midstate Electric Cooperative: https://www.midstateelectric.coop/live-outage-map

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All 3 Central Oregon counties see job growth in October as unemployment rates remain stable

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SALEM, Ore. (KTVZ) — Central Oregon’s total nonfarm employment increased year-over-year across all three Central Oregon counties, while the seasonally adjusted unemployment rates remained stable in October, showing little to no change, the Oregon Employment Department said Tuesday. Crook County: The seasonally adjusted unemployment rate decreased marginally over the month of October and is now

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