News

In the interest of cutting down on fossil fuel emissions and encouraging electrification, the Bend City Council approved a policy proposal on Feb. 18 that would add a scaled fee to the installation of natural gas equipment in residential homes. The fee, which the councilors will vote in April whether to implement, would be set […]

If you are looking for a volunteer organization that truly supports women, Soroptimist International of Bend may be the group for you. One of the longest-standing women’s clubs in Bend, the organization has been serving the community since 1943. With a mission of providing women and girls with access to the education and training they […]

Nancy Clark says there’s a picture of her, taken just after she finished her first-ever rock-climbing route, that makes her smile every time she sees it. “I had never rock climbed before because I was told, ‘Don’t do it. It’s not for you.’ You know, that story we get told sometimes as women,” recalls Clark, […]

Bend architect Heidi Slaybaugh was often met with a request. Male colleagues in leadership positions would reach out to ask if she would mentor their female staff. “The male leaders couldn’t address the questions they were hearing from female colleagues,” recalled Slaybaugh, principal at Cole Architects. “Most architecture firms are run by men, and they […]

Redmond Mayor Ed Fitch calls it “vision impossible.” The City of Redmond is looking at potentially expanding its Urban Growth Boundary by 1,270 acres on the east side in the coming years to accommodate future population growth. It’s a project Fitch is passionate about. The city’s population is around 38,000 and growing. Fitch wants the city to get ahead of and plan now for future growth.  “It’s hard to get […]

The Bend City Council is moving forward with an ordinance that would ban all firearms in at least three city-owned buildings, removing an exemption for concealed carry license holders.   In June 2025, an Oregon state law, Senate Bill 243, was passed, banning gun modifications that allow rifles and handguns to be fired at a much […]

“The goal is really to help the larger community to become more aware and educated about what it means to be homeless, what’s being done to help with the problem of homelessness, and so it’s primarily an educational goal,” says Barbara Belzer with the Central Oregon Homelessness Alliance, explaining why the nonprofit is hosting its […]

Gov. Tina Kotek and state lawmakers have tried to solve Oregon’s affordable housing crisis with hundreds of millions of dollars in funding and new programs, including a bill moving through the Legislature that would expand mobile home communities for older residents. “Too many older Oregonians are one emergency away from losing their housing,” Kotek told […]

Most people agree that the restrictions during the Covid-19 pandemic were a drag. Wearing facial coverings, social distancing and not hanging indoors with others were disruptive necessities in curbing the spread of the virus, which ultimately killed about 1.2 million Americans. Like elsewhere in the state, some Central Oregon businesses were slow in adopting then-Gov. […]