News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
Sorted by date Results 476 - 500 of 29577
Local youth have an opportunity to give back to their community while working outdoors in local forests - and earning school credit and scholarship opportunities. The deadline to apply to participate in the Central Oregon Youth Conservation Corps (COYCC) on the Sisters Ranger District is May 1. The application is located online at www.heartoforegon.org. A variety of conservation work on public lands will be done, including fire fuel reduction, trail maintenance, invasive speci... Full story
We're in the midst of International Dark Skies Week - April 15-22 - celebrating the star-spangled beauty of the night sky that is dear to the hearts of many folks in Sisters. It's also something that is in danger of fading away, as increased growth and more aggressive use of lighting threatens to turn Sisters from a rural outpost of nightly wonder to just another semi-urban area. We don't have to lose our starry, starry nights. According to the McDonald Observatory's Dark... Full story
People interested in returning Oregon habitat to a more wild state will rendezvous in Camp Sherman next month. The Re-Wilding Oregon Conference, set for May 13 at Lake Creek Lodge, is a public conference focused on conservation initiatives across Oregon. Sponsors include the Western Watersheds Project, Wolf Welcome Committee, and Lake Creek Lodge. Two of the organizers, Adam Bronstein and Susan Prince, hope the sold-out event will bond groups together and begin inclusive and... Full story
Keith and Connie Cyrus of Cloverdale and Connie Hatfield of Sisters were made permanent members of the Diamond Pioneer Registry at Oregon State University. The College of Agricultural Sciences annually honors people whose lifetime contributions to agriculture, natural resources, and the people of Oregon and/or Oregon State University have been significant. The award publicly recognizes their accomplishments as individuals who have contributed to the well-being of their... Full story
The local option levy (Measure 9-161) is coming on the ballot in this year’s May 16 election. The local option accounts for 10 percent of Sisters School District’s annual budget and the equivalent of 16 teacher salaries. The local option levy allows special programs and small classroom sizes to stick around in Sisters schools. The levy has seen ongoing renewal every five years, for 24 years. The local option is a considerable portion of the District budget, contributing to all... Full story
Camp Sunrise is returning in its traditional three-day free event format after a three-year hiatus. The free camp is designed to allow children to experience a traditional camp focusing on nurturing and healing from loss. The event will occur at Suttle Lake June 16-18. For more than 25 years, Camp Sunrise has provided compassionate support to children in Central Oregon. Considered one of the finest grief camps for children in the country, Camp Sunrise is offered to children ages 7-14 who reside in Central Oregon and have... Full story
A local option levy that supports programing of Sisters Park & Recreation District (SPRD) is before voters for renewal. Measure 9-160 will appear on the May 16 election ballot in the amount of 15 cents per $1,000 of assessed property valuation. This is the same amount voters approved in 2018. According to SPRD Executive Director Jennifer Holland, the funds will support programming in three areas: child care; seniors; and youth athletics/recreation. The funds will also support District operations generally, and ongoing... Full story
The 2023 annual Point-in-Time Survey shows the number of persons living in non-traditional housing in Sisters increased from 55 to 64. In all of the tri-county region of Deschutes, Jefferson, and Crook counties the number increased more dramatically, from 785 to 1,012. The survey is conducted annually in January by the Homeless Leadership Coalition (HLC). Coalition membership includes nonprofit homeless assistance providers, victim service providers, faith-based... Full story
Claims of wolf packs 13 and 14 strong are circulating in Sisters Country. The Deschutes County Farm Bureau lit up Facebook with its post on March 24 that has garnered over 450 comments and more than 800 shares. Similar social media posts on the Next Door app are being widely shared. In boldface type the post says: "Heads up. A pack of 14 wolves has been spotted in Lower Bridge. They've already killed livestock." The Farm Bureau post has generated grainy user photos. In any... Full story
Jordan Wheeler, the current city manager in Sandy was unanimously selected by City Council to become Sisters' new city manager, pending negotiations. After making the announcement last Wednesday, Mayor Michael Preedin told The Nugget, "We didn't make this choice by ourselves. There were hundreds of people involved providing input." A community meeting on Monday, March 27 saw about 50 people attend to meet the four candidates. Several different panels, plus the City staff and... Full story
Every year, members, staff, and partners of the Sisters-Camp Sherman Rural Fire Protection District (SCSFD) spend an evening gathered together at FivePine Lodge and Conference Center for an awards banquet honoring those who serve others. From recognizing board members to presenting lifesaving awards, the evening gives the SCSFD an opportunity to honor their own in service to our community. Fire Chief Roger Johnson hosted the event from the podium with guest speaker, new Board... Full story
Mule deer populations, their habitat, and how to handle them is a big question in Sisters Country. The Deschutes County Community Development Department held an informational meeting last Wednesday at Sisters High School. They were pleased - and surprised - at the turnout. "Over 100," according to Department Head Peter Gutowsky, who along with two department staff and ODFW (Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife) Biologist Andrew Walsh made a formal presentation aided by slide... Full story
April 6 was a historic day for the Sisters-Camp Sherman Fire District (SCSFD). The District welcomed its first female firefighter to the full-time staff in nearly 17 years, and only the second woman to hold the position in the District's history. Firefighter/Paramedic Rachel Ulm joins the ranks of career firefighters with SCSFD after serving for three-and-a-half years as a resident volunteer with the District. Ulm started her journey in Sisters while a freshman in college at... Full story
As temperatures in Sisters Country rise, folks are trying to put snow in the rearview mirror. "I'm tired of it and the cold," said Miles Horton of Sisters, as he considered putting his snowblower away for the season. Horton is a newcomer from Sacramento. Old-timers tell The Nugget that this winter is still nothing like "the old days." No matter if you love or hate the snow, it's unavoidable, living as we do in the High Desert. The last three to four years have been harsh on... Full story
A sighting of a wolverine east of Santiam Pass on April 6 was confirmed by the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife (ODFW). Video of the wolverine crossing the highway can be viewed at https://www.youtube.com/shorts/Q0kSPFqiiww. ODFW Deschutes District staff confirmed tracks near the video location on the day of the sighting. Over the past month, there have been several wolverine sighting reports submitted to ODFW and Cascadia Wild, a local nonprofit organization conducting... Full story
Discover Your Forest and the Deschutes National Forest are hosting a public screening of a Landmark Stories documentary “The West Is Burning,” followed by a facilitated panel discussion with local fire, land management, and forestry experts. This free community event will be held at the Sisters Movie House on Thursday, April 20, at 6:30 p.m.; doors open at 6 p.m. “The West Is Burning” examines the history of forest management and social conflict that has contributed to current forest conditions, causing longer fire seasons an... Full story
Why is the former U.S. Forest Service East Portal called the East Portal when it is located on the west side of Sisters? That location between Highway 20, Cascade Avenue, and Highway 242 is on the east end of Highway 242 and the starting/ending point for the scenic McKenzie Pass Highway, thus it is called the East Portal. Planning for development of a multi-modal transportation hub at the portal, which began in July 2022, is moving ahead. At their April 12 workshop, Sisters... Full story
Sisters is a beautiful — and vulnerable — place. Our forested landscape leaves the community under the constant threat of wildfire — but there are other threats, too: severe weather; power outages; the potential fallout from a major earthquake along the coast. To help raise awareness and the preparedness level of Sisters’ citizenry, Citizens4Community (C4C) will host a forum on May 11 at Sisters Fire Hall titled “Emergencies in Sisters Country: Be Prepared.” This will be the fourth forum hosted by C4C and sponsored b... Full story
Sisters Community Garden is beginning the 2023 gardening season by celebrating its final year as guests of Benny and Julie Benson, owners of the Sisters Eagle Air property on East Barclay Drive. The Benson family has hosted gardeners using a half-acre of property since 2012. Garden leadership recently learned that this year is to be the last season as guests of the Bensons, who now need to use this property for other purposes. “We are grateful to the Benson family for their generous use of their property,” said Nancy Bri... Full story
In what appears as a classic case of scientific quarrel, a new study is cited by local environmentalists arguing that certain studies funded by the Forest Service contain a pattern of “falsification.” That was a word used several times by one of the study’s authors, Chad T. Hanson, PhD, of Earth Island Institute in Berkeley, California, who spoke with The Nugget at length. The Nugget asked District Ranger Ian Reid to comment on the study titled “Countering Omitted Evidenc... Full story
The City of Sisters is continuing forward on several highway improvement projects as Sisters moves into the spring and summer months. In last week’s Sisters City Council workshop, Public Works Director Paul Bertagna and Tony Roos from Kittelson and Associates presented to the Council the initial design mock-up for the Barclay Drive Improvement Project. The Barclay Drive Improvement Project originated many months ago after Barclay Drive was identified as the alternate route a... Full story
Six Central Oregon fire departments are receiving new fire apparatus as a result of the Office of State Fire Marshal’s Response Ready Oregon Initiative. Two of those districts serve Sisters Country. Funding for the program was a result of the passage of Senate Bill 762 in the 2021 legislative session. The program was funded with $25 million to support capacity enhancements across the state. Statewide, 76 local agencies were awarded new apparatus through the program. Central Oregon agencies receiving new apparatus include: C... Full story
The Deschutes and Willamette National Forests kicked off sales of overnight permit reservations for the Central Cascades Wilderness Permit System this week. Central Cascades Wilderness Permits are required for all overnight use within the Mt. Jefferson, Mt. Washington, and Three Sisters wilderness areas June 15 through October 15. As of Tuesday, April 4, 40 percent of Central Cascades Wilderness Overnight Permit reservations will be available for advanced reservation on Recreation.gov. The remaining 60 percent of overnight... Full story
The Board of Directors of Sisters Park & Recreation District (SPRD) will seek renewal of the local option levy originally approved by the voters in 2018. The measure, 9-160, will appear on the May 16 special election ballot. The measure will renew a levy in the amount of 15 cents per $1,000 dollars of assessed property valuation. This is the same amount voters approved in 2018. According to SPRD Executive Director Jennifer Holland, the funds will support programming in three areas: child care; seniors; and youth... Full story
The Sisters City Council voted unanimously on Thursday to offer the City Manager position to Jordan Wheeler, pending contract negotiations. The rigorous interview process occurred over four days, including staff, community receptions, and panel interviews by community leaders, peer public administrators, City department heads, and the City Council. Mayor Michael Preedin said, “The City is excited for Jordan’s future here with us and appreciate him going through the process. He is eminently qualified!” Wheeler also expre... Full story
