News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
Sorted by date Results 1 - 25 of 57
Middle-income workers in Sisters will get rental housing relief by the fall of 2002, according to the project's future manager. Cyndy Cook, executive director of CORHA the Central Oregon Regional Housing Authority, announced that the purchase of the project's land is pending. "We expect to close on the 1.2-acre property Monday, January 22," she said. According to Cook, the site is situated behind Weitech Inc., off Larch Street and Adams Avenue. Bob Grooney, local businessman, is head of the Community Action Team of Sisters... Full story
The Sisters School Board this week was to interview representatives from the four architectural firms that are the finalists to become the district "Architect of Record." According to School Superintendent Steve Swisher, a contractual relationship with an architectural firm is necessary for several reasons. An architect of record will assess and supervise repairs at the three current schools. Moreover, according to Swisher, the selected firm would "in all likelihood" be the designer of a new Sisters high school, should the... Full story
The Sisters School Board was to interview this week representatives from the four architectural firms that are the finalists to become the district "Architect of Record." According to Schools Superintendent Steve Swisher, a contractual relationship with an architectural firm is necessary for several reasons. An architect of record will assess and supervise repairs at the three current schools. Moreover, according to Swisher, the selected firm would "in all likelihood" be the designer of a new Sisters high school, should the... Full story
Sisters Mayor Steve Wilson said the city soon will hire a consulting firm to give advice on whether it must approve the siting of cell towers within the city and, if so, how best to minimize the visual impact. "Ninety percent of my motivation is to protect the view corridor -- the natural skyline -- for the general population of residents," Wilson told The Nugget. "Towers are clearly not compatible with the character of our community." Wilson said the city will not be pressured. "We will not be signing any leases (with cell... Full story
Sisters School Superintendent Steve Swisher resumed regular work hours at the district office on January 8. Swisher, who had been recuperating and working from home since a devastating vehicular collision this fall, was warmly greeted by his staff as he walked through the door. Though the many injuries to his hip, leg, and knee made his progress deliberate, the noticeably slimmer superintendent moved independently of any aid except a cane. Swisher said that the accident may have been a blessing in disguise. "It may have... Full story
Sisters Mayor Steve Wilson said the city soon will hire a consulting firm to give advice on whether it must approve the siting of cell towers within the city and, if so, how best to minimize the visual impact. "Ninety percent of my motivation is to protect the view corridor -- the natural skyline -- for the general population of residents," Wilson told The Nugget. "Towers are clearly not compatible with the character of our community." Wilson said the city will not be pressured. "We will not be signing any leases (with cell... Full story
The Sisters School District has begun the process of selecting an architect of record. Acting School Superintendent Gene Carlson said that it was necessary for the district because of needed repairs at both the high and middle schools. Carlson also said that, in the event the board decides to try for another school bond -- and succeeds -- the architect of record would design the school. At the December 11 school board meeting, member Steve Keeton gave an additional reason for hiring an architect. Referring to the November 7... Full story
Engineers evaluating structural deterioration at the 10-year old Sisters High School have identified water-related damage that may cost the district as much as $500,000 to repair, according to Sisters School Superintendent Steve Swisher. "We are in the process of getting the problems clearly identified so that we can get our arms around them and begin corrective action," he said. "But," he said, "let's reserve judgment until we have all the information." Swisher said the Bend engineering firm of Kleinfelder, Inc. has been... Full story
Time may be running out on a microwave communications corporation seeking to erect a 150-foot tall cell tower in Sisters. Acting on the Mericom Corporation proposal, the Sisters Planning Commission on November 15 recommended setting a lower -- but unspecified -- height for the proposed tower. On December 6, the Deschutes County Board of Commissioners indicated it would amend the county ordinance and drastically lower the maximum allowable height for cell towers. The city planning commission decided to ask the city council to... Full story
The Sisters School District has begun the process of selecting an architect of record. Acting School Superintendent Gene Carlson said that it was necessary for the district because of needed repairs at both the high and middle schools. Carlson also said that, in the event the board decides to try for another school bond -- and succeeds -- the architect of record would design the school. At the December 11 school board meeting, member Steve Keeton gave an additional reason for hiring an architect. Referring to the November 7,... Full story
The Sisters School District will be approximately $56,000 richer come December of next year. Acting Superintendent Gene Carlson advised the five-member Sisters School Board that, with President Clinton's signing of HR 2389, timber revenue monies will flow from Washington, D.C. to Salem and on to Deschutes County -- and finally to the 1,100-student Sisters School District. However, the program isn't without detractors. Carlson said that there has been some opposition to the legislation from a "variety of Oregon... Full story
The Sisters School Board has decided to aggressively reach out to voters before making any firm decisions on when to once again seek a bond for a new high school. Foremost in the members' minds was the recent defeat, on November 7, of the district's $22 million bond. The passage of the four-year local option levy, however, coupled to the fact that the bond was defeated by a slender margin, clearly invigorated the five-members to consider trying again. At a four-hour, November 27 workshop, consensus was reached that two-way... Full story
Despite disagreements among its members, and strong opposition from two local residents, the Sisters Urban Area Planning Commission recommended on November 15 that the city council approve the construction of a wireless communications tower -- or towers -- within the Sisters Urban Growth Boundary. At the marathon, three-hour public hearing, the dispute among the commissioners centered on one issue: the height of the tower. Citizen speakers, however, objected to both the proposed height and the tower's location. Spectrasite... Full story
Sisters area residents on November 7 rejected by a 50-47 percent vote-tally the $22 million bond for the construction of a new high school. Less than a week later, the five-member District 6 Sisters School Board began brainstorming about whether to ask voters to reconsider. The construction of a new high school would allow middle school students to move from an aging downtown facility to the current high school. Discussions at the November 13 meeting focused on how best to go back to voters, but left details of any new bond,... Full story
The middle school sports program run by SOAR (Sisters Organization for Activities and Recreation) is in financial trouble. The five-members of the Sisters School Board were jolted at their November 13 meeting by a report from middle school principal Lora Nordquist. "The participation of students in our sports programs, and their options, are a success this year," she said. "However, the program is losing money and could finish the school year running a deficit anywhere from $8,000 to $13,000." The looming deficit puts next... Full story
The passage of the measure requiring reimbursement to landowners if government zoning regulation reduces their property value has officials shaking their heads. "Measure 7 is very vague and unclear about how it would work," said Deschutes County planning chief George Read. "For instance, in 1979, the county changed zoning (in some areas) permitting the lowering of lot sizes from 10 to a five-acre minimum." According to Read, the county could hear from landowners who feel the lower lot size injured their property value. He... Full story
Early election results indicate voters were willing to grant a temporary levy to operate Sisters Schools, but opposed a $20 million bond to build a new high school. Elections results are available here. As of 11 p.m. on Tuesday, November 7, the four-year school option levy was passing 51 percent in favor, 46 percent opposed. The school bond was failing, with 45 percent in favor and nearly 52 percent opposed. Superintendent Steve Swisher, in a wheelchair (resulting from his recent serious car accident) attending the school... Full story
The City of Sisters has decided where it wants to put wireless communications towers and at least one local land doesn't like the spot. The city council has preliminarily approved erecting a Mericom communication tower on the site currently under development to house the city's new sewer treatment facility. The councilors spent several hours driving to various vantage points to see if a trial blimp flown at various heights was visible and found a suitable height that was not visible. But David Herman, an attorney whose... Full story
The three work crews putting in the pipes for the new Sisters sewer system are struggling against the ticking clock as freezing weather approaches. According to project foreman Ron Welsh of Jack Robinson & Sons excavation, the cold weather of the past 10 days has made it difficult. "But we're on schedule, thanks to hard work, to complete our entire part of the project -- the dream's to finish by Thanksgiving," he said. Welsh said that freezing weather could affect the final stages of the project by making it impossible to... Full story
Downtown businesses and motorists soon will begin to experience inconveniences due to construction on the Sisters sewer project. On October 13, Jack Robinson & Sons project foreman Ron Welsh said that some of the four-person crews currently working north and east of downtown are scheduled to cross into the core business area within two weeks. Excavation and the laying of pipe are planned within and along the alley between Hood and Cascade Avenues that extends from Elm to Oak Streets. The crews will work west from Elm Street,... Full story
Coordinators for the campaign to pass the two Sisters School District tax measures continue to be guarded about chances for victory in the November 7 election. Bill Willitts, chair of the Committee for Sisters School Children, spoke out less than one week before October 20, the day ballots are scheduled to be mailed. "I think the outcome for either the local option levy or the school bond is too close to call at this time," he said. Willitts characterized the people he has spoken with as falling into one of two categories:... Full story
Motorists in a hurry would do well to relax their accelerator feet when driving in the Sisters area. At its October 12 meeting, the five-member Sisters City Council approved an intergovernmental agreement with Deschutes County that will bring a Justice of the Peace to town at least one day a month. The circuit adjudicator will decide municipal code violations, predominantly traffic related. The judge should be busy. According to Deschutes County Sheriff's Office Patrol Sergeant Rich Shawver, the lowered speed limits... Full story
The recent approval by the state of a proposed city road project could spell relief for local drivers frustrated by traffic congestion on Cascade Avenue. It may also help the area's largest employer with its expansion plans. On September 20, the Oregon Department of Transportation awarded $700,000 to the city for the Barclay Road Extension project. According to the plan, the new road will cut through the 80-acre tract of US Forest Service land within the city's Urban Growth Boundary. It is projected to connect Pine Street to... Full story
Statewide standardized academic tests administered in May show that last year's Sisters High School 10th graders are regional champions in math problem-solving, and close runners-up in English writing. In both tested subjects, local sophomores handily bested state averages. Oregon Department of Education results released last week show that 49 percent of Sisters' 10th graders met or exceeded the math standard, compared to 42 percent statewide. Regionally, only Redmond, scoring at 44 percent, was competitive with Sisters.... Full story
The Sisters City Council has begun to flesh out what it envisions could be its role in helping Multnomah Publishers acquire one of the few large tracts of land left within the city's UGB (Urban Growth Boundary). The Thursday, September 28, meeting was the first of several proposed public hearings the council is holding to take the community's pulse as to whether the city should actively help Multnomah Publishers acquire a 20-acre parcel of U.S. Forest Service land. Responding to a question from citizen Cheryl Rutgers, Mayor... Full story
