City of Sisters Becomes Oregon’s Second DarkSky Community
Sisters announced on Jan. 22 that it received certification as an International DarkSky Community. The designation makes it the state’s second DarkSky community, after Antelope was designated in 2024, and the sixth International DarkSky Place.
The certification, according to a press release, follows years of dark sky advocacy, bringing awareness to the importance of preserving nighttime skies and protecting wildlife that depend on darkness.
“We all need to thank the people that have been working on this for years before the city and the rest of the community joined the movement, namely, the Sisters Astronomy Club, who created the momentum to see this through,” said Michael Preedin, mayor of Sisters.
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Housing Lottery for Affordable Redmond Community Opens Soon
RootedHomes, an affordable housing organization, announced that the housing lottery for its upcoming Rooted at 19th community will begin March 31 and conclude on May 15. The housing lottery, according to a press release, provides an opportunity for income-qualified homebuyers to own a home in Redmond at below-market rates.
Rooted at 19th, currently under construction, will offer 22 duplexes and triplexes. There will be 11 two-bedroom homes, priced at $259,000, and 11 three-bedroom homes, offered at $293,000 — all built to net-zero standards. The homes are eligible for homebuyers earning below 80% of the Deschutes County area median income. RootedHomes also announced it will give one preference point to any veteran who applied.
“We at RootedHomes are thrilled to announce our first of four Redmond communities, bringing more permanently affordable homes to Central Oregon families,” said Tess Spellacy, homeownership program pirector at RootedHomes.
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$135,000
The average cost of a manufactured home in Oregon in 2024, from the Feature story, “A Prefabricated Path to Homeownership”
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“I love when people are filled with food — it makes me happy to feed people. My priority isn’t the money; my priority is to serve people through this endeavor.”
—Robert De Los Santos, from the Little Bites story, “Bend’s First Dominican Food Cart Delivers Savory Flavors and Warm Hospitality”
This article appears in The Source Weekly January 30, 2025.
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