In terms of water, it’s going to be a good year. Just look outside. According to the U.S.D.A. Natural Resources Conservation Service, all basins in Oregon have normal to above-normal snowpack, with the Deschutes and Crooked River basin at 126 percent of the median. “That was not the case last year, when we observed rapid, […]
Editorial
Posted inOpinion
What Does Central Oregon Do Best?
It’s hard to open a travel, lifestyle, or outdoor magazine lately without seeing Bend on a “Best” list. This year alone, the accolades for Bend include USA Today’s list of the nation’s top 10 ski towns, Men’s Health’s suggestions for “6 Unforgettable Adventure Vacations to Take in 2016,” Travel + Leisure’s roundup of “Best Winter […]
Posted inOpinion
High Satisfaction in Parks, Despite Setbacks
On June 9, the Bend Park & Recreation District was forced to close its new Whitewater Park due to safety concerns. The park, meant to offer a safe passage for recreational floaters as well as a fun zone for more advanced whitewater enthusiasts, was expected to be a huge draw for the area—so a rapid […]
Posted inOpinion
Funding for Affordable Housing: A Step in the Right Direction
One sunny summer morning not long ago, I marched across a dusty front yard in midtown Bend with a $45 rental application fee in hand. This wasn’t exactly the house I’d dreamed of living in when I knew I was moving to Bend, but it was adequate—and available, and I was going to lay down […]
Posted inOpinion
Channeling White Guilt
This week saw two black men killed by police officers in two days, under questionable circumstances. During a #BlackLivesMatter protest in Dallas – a city that has embraced and implemented police reforms more than most – five police officers were killed by a sniper who said he wanted to kill white people and, in particular, […]
Posted inOpinion
Mirror Pond Dam
Now that PacificPower has announced it's planning to keep the Mirror Pond dam after all, we can all breath a temporary sigh of relief. While in some quarters this decision by the energy company has upended the apple cart of “progress” on Mirror Pond, for those who share the sentiment that the best solution for […]
Posted inOpinion
Oregon’s Education Crisis
Five high schools in Bend will celebrate graduation in June, with Mountain View first on June 9, followed by La Pine High on June 10, Summit and Bend Senior High on June 11, and Marshall on June 13. For many, it will be one of life’s happiest days, but nearly one in four students won’t […]
Posted inOpinion
Rethinking City Council
Though City Council duties, meetings, committees, and hearings require 45 to 55 hours per week to fulfill, Bend City Councilors are considered volunteers, have no administrative support staff and receive no benefits. The archaic notion of an unpaid mayor and city council is not in step with the times within the paradigm of the exponential […]
Posted inOpinion
Teens Need Our Help to Stay Healthy
They don’t always ask, but teens need our help with so many things: homework, learning to drive, dating—and, yes, avoiding unintended pregnancy. While the teen pregnancy rate has declined significantly over the past two decades, it’s still a serious issue in Central Oregon. May is National Teen Pregnancy Prevention Month, and it’s a good reminder […]
Posted inOpinion
Democratic Primary Endorsement for Governor
Kate Brown
“We will protect what makes Oregon great,” said Gov. Kate Brown in her 2016 State of the State Address. That promise is gaining momentum. This year, she signed into law Oregon’s historic clean energy bill, the first of its kind in the nation. She also proposed sweeping minimum wage increases, tiered regionally, passed by the […]