That Smoke? It’ll Be Around Til at Least Friday
Take a look at the fire and smoke map from the Environmental Protection Agency and you’ll see that most of the western United States looks like something out of the apocalypse. But it’s 2021 and on top of still being in the midst of a global pandemic, the entire West is in extreme drought, and…
Emerson’s Cleared. Now What?
On June 23 the Bend Police Department, in coordination with social services agencies, closed and cleared Emerson Avenue, where 40 to 50 unhoused people were living on City right of ways, using a City policy uniquely tailored for Emerson that could guide how unhoused encampments are swept in the future. At the Bend City Council meeting approving the policy…
Source Weekly Update podcast 7/29/21
In this week’s podcast, details on how the Bend-La Pine Schools Board of Directors is responding to increased feedback, and more money coming in to address Bend’s housing crisis. Source Weekly – Bend, Oregon · Source Weekly Update podcast 7/29/21
Bend’s Trees
“This is not our world with trees in it. It’s a world of trees, where humans have just arrived.” —Richard Powers, “The Overstory,” winner of the 2019 Pulitzer Prize in Fiction Central Oregonians spend a lot of time talking about housing, about growth, about their latest stoke-fest ski/bike/paddle trip, about equitable government… about a lot…
Survivors of Hiroshima in Bend and Redmond
If you don’t get the good kind of chills from the story of these trees, better check your pulse. In April and May 2020, with the quiet anti-climactic-ness that met everything we pressed on with doing at the start of the pandemic, two trees were planted in Bend and Redmond—trees grown from seeds of trees…
Timber!
Every day arborists perform impressive acts of acrobatics, precise calculations of physics and medical diagnoses of trees as they’re maintaining or removing trees. Central Oregon Tree Experts co-owner Brett Miller said after 27 years in the business there haven’t been two days that were completely alike. “There’s a lot of people that do work in…
Protecting Pines in the Ochocos
A settlement between conservationist groups Oregon Wild and Central Oregon LandWatch and the Ochoco National Forest halted logging in sensitive areas that could have put fisheries and Rocky Mountain Elk in danger. The settlement was reached on June 14, over a year after it was filed. The National Forest Service’s mandate is to manage the land…
Protect Bend Trees
Bendite Karon Johnson and her program, Protect Bend Trees, are seeking to change the developer code for more strict arboreal protection in a town once mainly associated with the lumber industry. Johnson argues that high-density housing alone won’t solve Bend’s housing crisis, and that it shouldn’t come at the cost of its trees. She says…
Letters to the Editor 07/29/21
Editor’s note: In the moments before this issue went to press, the Oregon Health Authority recommended we all go back to indoor mask-wearing once again. Every day for the past week or more, the number of COVID-19 cases in the state has continued to go up, and as of this writing, St. Charles hospital had…
Listen and Learn
After a return to in-person meetings, school board directors from Bend-La Pine Schools will host listening sessions to meet with the community members in a less formal setting than a typical board meeting, where public comment must be directly related to an agenda item. The first will take place on Thursday, July 29 from 5:30-7:30…
Noticias en Español
La ciudad de Bend está adaptando su presupuesto para cumplir los objetivos del ayuntamiento después que se le otorgo $7 millones en fondos del Plan de Ley de Rescate Estadounidense (ARPA por sus siglas en inglés). El presupuesto adicional presentado durante la junta del ayuntamiento el 21 de julio destaco un ajuste presupuestario de $13.1…
For some, new middle housing is an inconvenience. For others, not having it is devastating. Get ready for change.
Over the past several years, the discussion and then eventual passage of Oregon House Bill 2001 has had NIMBYs on hyperdrive. While each city now has the ability to shape some of the particular policies it implements, the basics of the bill mean that cities in Oregon can no longer allow neighborhoods to be built…
Lost Your Marbles?
Be prepared, for in the search you may discover that it’s about much more than just marbles. In April, glass artist Chris Davis hid 10 marbles outdoors around the La Pine area, posted a few picture clues on the What’s Really Happening in La Pine Facebook group page and sat back to see what would…
Serving up the 2021 Northwest Classic Pickleball Tournament
If you’re interested in dinks and triple drop shots or lobs and lets, you’ll want to take in the 2021 Pacific Northwest Classic Pickleball Tournament, set to begin July 28 at Bend’s Pine Nursery Park and the Bend Pickleball Zone. The tournament, which runs through Sunday, Aug. 1, is organized by the Bend Pickleball Club…
A Regal Double Feature
It’s been so long since I’ve seen a double feature in the theater that I just had to go for it. I couldn’t believe how much I missed running from one auditorium to the next with only a few minutes to spare for the bathroom and a refill of root beer. I hungered for filling…
Shireen Amini Breaks Free
Being comfortable in your own skin is often easier said than done. And everyone’s journey to get to that point is different. For Shireen Amini, a Bend-based singer/songwriter, their journey toward that feeling has started to hit its stride—you can tell that much from Amini’s new album, appropriately titled, “Break Myself Free.” Recorded at Plaid…
A New Neighborhood Italian Restaurant
The Italian osteria can be traced as far back as the 14th and 15th centuries. Originally a neighborhood place serving wine and simple food, in more recent times the emphasis has shifted more to the food—typically local specialties such as pasta and grilled meat or fish often served at shared tables. The proprietors of BOSA…
New First Friday & Picnic in Prineville
A new art event is just getting started this summer in Bend’s Central District. The Bend Central District Initiative has been focusing on creating proper infrastructure to help this area thrive. The Bend Central District, known to many as the BCD, encompasses the business, homes and parks nestled between the Orchard District and Larkspur Neighborhood. To…
Hydrology9 NX : Getting High with a Handheld Vaporizer
Getting high is fun, but can also be both messy, and dangerous AF. Messy, because as anyone who has ever tipped over a bong can attest, the rancid stench of the vile water can permeate any absorbent surfaces such as a couch, chair or bed, and linger for weeks. Dangerous, because the venn diagram of…
Self-Managing a Rental Property
Owning investment property is a fantastic way to create passive income and create equity and appreciation growth. That said, being a landlord is not for everyone. Sure, it has its perks with income generation and tax deductions, but prior to making the leap into self-managing rental property, it’s important to consider several things—and that includes…
Gardeners’ Abundance Becomes Food Bank Bounty
Got tons of tomatoes? Gaggles of greens? With a new program offered by the High Desert Food and Farm Alliance, you no longer have to creep onto the porches of your friends and neighbors, attempting to offload all of those zucchinis in the dark of night. HDFFA’s Grow & Give program invites people with extra…
Hollow Sheldon
Hollow Sheldon Call me old-fashioned, but I find humility attractive, and I’m disturbed by the lack of it in a guy I’ve been dating. He seems to need to keep telling me how desirable he is, like by mentioning he dated some Instagram model and saying, “I’m used to being the smartest guy in the…
Free Will Astrology—Week of July 29
LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): Leo poet Renée Ashley articulates a perspective I recommend you adopt. She writes, “I’m drawn to what flutters nebulously at the edges, at the corner of my eye—just outside my certain sight. I want to share in what I am routinely denied, or only suspect exists. I long for a glimpse…
