Bend
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Turnkey Funding Awarded In Bend

After the purchase of the Old Mill & Suites was rescinded, Bend finds a new shelter for the unhoused
Avatar photo by Jack Harvel

Bend Value Inn will be converted into a transitional shelter for the homeless thanks to a $2.9 million grant through Project Turnkey, a state program that funds the purchase and renovation of motels into shelters for people who are experiencing houselessness or at risk of becoming unhoused. The City of Bend originally sought to acquire […]

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Fireworks Banned Through August

The City extended the ban due to continued fire risk in the area
Avatar photo by Jack Harvel

The City of Bend is extending the state of emergency that banned non-professional firework use and provided services to unhoused communities until August 31. The emergency order went into effect on June 28 and was originally set to expire on July 9, but was extended due to continued fire risk. “We appreciate the community’s assistance […]

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Now Hiring, All Positions, All Shifts

Why are businesses having such a tough time filling open positions?
Avatar photo by Jack Harvel

When the pandemic started and non-essential businesses closed, the essential workers were hailed as heroes across the country. The people whose work was necessary during the pandemic—health care workers, food supply chain workers and first responders, to name a few—kept working tirelessly. Now, as vaccinations become widely available and COVID restrictions ease while jobs return […]

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(Illegal) Fireworks

All fireworks were banned in Bend due to the extreme heat, but they can still be bought and they can still be shot
Avatar photo by Jack Harvel

The City of Bend declared an emergency due to the extreme heat that mobilized services to unhoused communities and banned all non-professional firework use until July 9. Fireworks remained for sale in stands across the city, but under the emergency order the use of them is a class A civil infraction that can be fined […]

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Beating The Heat

Cooling centers in Bend, Redmond and Madras provide a place for unhoused people to escape the blistering heat
Avatar photo by Jack Harvel

On June 25 Deschutes County encouraged locals to take precautions against the extreme wave of heat cooking the Pacific Northwest. Temperatures reached as high as 108 degrees on Sunday and forecasts predict daytime highs over 100 until Wednesday. The county asked people to avoid the outdoors between 3-7pm, the hottest part of the day, something […]

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Two Dead at Hunnell Campsite

Two people died, presumably from the extreme heat, in the area popular for houseless campers Sunday
Avatar photo by Jack Harvel

Update, 7/2/21: The Oregon State Medical Examiner confirmed that two people died from the extreme heat wave. Both were male, one was 64 and the other was 60. Two men died on Sunday at the camp on Hunnell Road as Bend surpassed its highest June temperature in recorded history, and on Tuesday its highest temperature […]

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Pedestrian Avenue

A proposal from Downtown Bend Business Association could change Minnesota Avenue into a walkable plaza
Avatar photo by Jack Harvel

The 300-foot-long stretch of Minnesota Avenue between Bond and Wall Street is host to about a dozen businesses at the center of Bend’s historic downtown. A proposal could transform it from a through street to a walkable community gathering space. The Downtown Bend Business Association was commissioned by the City to create plans for the […]

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Can’t Camp Here

Bend City Council adopts a policy for the removal of houseless camps on public right of ways. With shelters at capacity, where will they go?
Avatar photo by Jack Harvel

The Bend City Council unanimously approved a new policy on campsite removals for camps in City right of ways at its meeting June 2. The Council tailored the conversation to one of the City’s most visible camps, on Emerson Avenue. On Monday social service providers received the notice to engage with camp residents to prepare […]

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Protected Bike Paths Proposed

City leaders propose two bike paths, one running north to south and the other east to west, to the Transportation Oversight Committee
Avatar photo by Jack Harvel

Momentum for more protected active transportation is building in Bend, with City Councilor Anthony Broadman and Bend Park and Recreation Board Member Ariel Méndez submitting a proposal for the prioritization and augmentation of 17 miles of new bike paths in Bend. The routes would run 7 miles in a north-south corridor and 11 miles east-west, both sharing […]

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High Risk Returns

Just a few days after being moved to Extreme Risk, Deschutes, Crook and 13 other counties will move back to high risk.
Avatar photo by Jack Harvel

The Bend-La Pine Schools district will move to a modified schedule as cases among young people rise, even as Deschutes County is lowered from Extreme Risk to High Risk in the governor’s risk-protection framework. In the High-Risk category, people will be able to eat at restaurants, exercise at gyms and go to indoor entertainment establishments […]

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