Mark Capell announced today that he will run for a third term on the Bend City Council. He was first elected to council in 2006 and made headlines in 2012 when he bucked tradition and publicly declared his interested in serving as mayor. Capell currently serves as chair of the Bend Metropolitan Planning Organization and the Bend Urban Renewal Agency and is […]
City Council
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City Water and Sewer Rates Will Increase in October
City Council voted 4-3 tonight to increase water and sewer rates by 5 and 9 percent effective October 1. The rates were anticipated to increase as of July 1, but Mayor Jim Clinton and Councilors Sally Russell, Doug Knight, and Jodie Barram expressed concerns about hitting ratepayers with the increase before the October 15 end of irrigation […]
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Council Proposes Water and Sewer Rate Increases
Long showers, green lawns, freshly laundered clothes—these are the luxuries that come with affordable water and sewer rates. But what if those rates weren’t so affordable, or if you could save money by using less? In a work session tonight, members of the Budget Committee and City Council discussed possible water and sewer rate increases […]
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City Council Roundup: New Fees, New Jobs
Assistant City Manager Jon Skidmore explains the role of city staff in the planning of OSU-Cascades. The City of Bend is slowly, but surely, rebuilding its staff following the recession of 2008. Last night’s City Council meeting provided a considerable boost to those efforts with the unanimous approval of nearly 21 additional full-time staff positions, […]
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City Council Round-Up
Last evening’s City Council meeting was a relatively sedate affair, despite two significant issues being OK’d by councilors. After a few proclamations were read—everything from commendations for local builders to recognition of Yom HaShoah—they got down to it. — An agreement worth about $1.1 million with Portland’s Angelo Planning Group to work on Bend’s Urban […]
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Vacation Rentals Get Audited (and Other City Council News)
Some vacation rentals aren’t paying into the Transient Room Tax, a city audit reveals. City Council got the results of an audit of vacation rentals during its work session Wednesday and the results were better than anticipated. The audit was sparked by a perceived widespread noncompliance with the transient room tax code and concerns about […]
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Bend City Council Votes to Pursue Preservation of Mirror Pond
Photo by Corbin Gentzler. Mirror Pond—before the leak—at sunset. The Bend City Council added its voice to a growing chorus of support for the preservation of Mirror Pond when it voted at the Dec. 4 council meeting to move forward along a pro-pond path and continue discussions with Pacific Power about the future of the […]
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City Council Roundup—Nov. 20
Water issues were center stage once again at last night’s city council meeting. During the public work session, council made progress on the Sewer Extra Strength Charge Program—a rate program on hold until December that would charge non-residential customers more based on the strength and flow of their contributions to the sewer system. The Extra […]
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City Council Votes 4-3 to Move Forward with Membrane Filtration
This drawing, from a past City Council presentation on water treatment options, accurately portrays the flow of tonight’s meeting. After a lengthy debate on whether to use ultraviolet lights or membranes to filter Bend’s surface water, the City Council voted 4-3 in favor of moving forward with the stalled membrane option, effectively putting to rest […]
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City Approves $190K Contract for Galveston Revitalization Design
Galveston business owners told City Council Oct. 2 they hope the preliminary design for the corridor’s revitalization doesn’t use this concept map as a starting point. It’s only been a month since the City raised the ire of Galveston corridor business and property owners with a bridge closure that limited access to businesses and diverted […]
