Local News

Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek this week nominated two people from Central Oregon to serve on the state’s top education policy board.   Amanda Page, a Redmond School Board member and recent candidate for Deschutes County Board of County Commissioners, and Sonya Littledeer-Evans, a juvenile justice leader who lives in Jefferson County, were nominated for the […]

New York copywriter Jack McNamara likes a challenge — the more oddball, the better. And the proof of his scrappiness is now showcased among the shelves of the world’s last standing Blockbuster Video, right here in Bend. Sometime in March, the freelance advertising copy director and marathon runner learned that popular retro sunglass company Pit […]

Deschutes County this month adopted new hiring practice rules aimed at eliminating pay differences between men and women, but it still has not released results of an ongoing organization-wide study into wage gaps amid County employees more than a year after its expected completion date.  In March 2024, an internal audit found wage gaps existed […]

A $47 million construction project that roughly doubled the size of the Deschutes County Courthouse is officially complete.   The project added about 51,000 square feet, two new courtrooms, jury deliberation rooms, judge’s chambers, public service counters, a more accessible entrance and a new lobby — transforming the corner of Greenwood Avenue and Bond Street […]

A Bend resident threatened to shoot and kill a man and the dog he was walking in northeast Bend on Wednesday evening. The suspect, arraigned this afternoon, is 50-year-old Joshua Lee Russell, who allegedly also swore to kill all the dogs in the neighborhood. He’s accused of shouting this threat numerous times before opening fire. […]

The City of Bend later this month plans to remove part of a center median on Greenwood Avenue between the U.S. Highway 97 underpass and 3rd Street, aiming to reduce vehicle backups on one of the City’s busiest east-west thoroughfares.   Construction will take place between Aug. 24 and Labor Day, the City announced Monday. The […]