Letters to the Editor 06/11/2014

To the Editor:

I was recently in Rocklin, California, a small town that just put two roundabouts in their main thoroughfare. It seemed every time I went through them, there was a semi ahead of me, slowing to almost nothing, blocking both lanes at two intersects, and going over curbs.

I realize at some point, some sort of survey or study was done, but times and circumstances change quickly; maybe we should reconsider now, before we get stuck with something that will just make our traffic problems worse.

The light we had during construction worked! At least it kept traffic regulated, somewhat fair and even.

I, like Nancy Kelm, wrote to our government officials. If you have an opinion, let them know!

Sue Durbin

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To the Editor:

I am writing this letter on behalf of SPRD and the children we serve, to thank Kathy Deggendorfer and The Roundhouse Foundation for their generous grant to SPRD.

The grant was awarded in three areas: Summer art and adventure camps, community schools program, and scholarships. Our summer adventure camps provide fun, structured activity for kids all day during summer, and we have a variety of specialized art and science camps that provide fun and education to kids of various ages. Because of grants like this, we can keep our camps very affordable while still providing high-quality activities and field trips for the kids.

Many of the children in our summer program come from hard-working families who struggle to make ends meet financially. Therefore, they rely on our scholarship program to provide financial assistance. Grants like this and the many private donations we have received this year will help us to continue our policy that no child will be turned away because of an inability to pay.

Last year SPRD gave out around $38,000 in scholarships to low-income families. All of this money was raised from grants, donations, and fundraisers.

Thank you once again to The Roundhouse Foundation, and all the other donors who support the activities at SPRD and the youth of Sisters Country.

Liam Hughes

SPRD Executive Director

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To the Editor:

In a previous letter to the editor I complained about the City spending taxpayer dollars to advertise in The Nugget their version of goings-on in the Sisters City Hall. A perfect example of their duplicity is on display in the latest issue.

The "Letter From Sisters City Hall" advertisement on page 18 discusses road construction, parks, volunteers needed and elections. On page 27, "under notice of public hearings," is an application by the City requesting approval of a minor text amendment. The significance of this "minor text amendment" is anything but minor. If approved, ponderosa pines will be the only trees deemed significant by the City. Juniper, birch, aspen, lodgepole? Insignificant.... subject to cutting by City employees at the direction of the city manager with no regulatory oversight!

Let's put this in context. Since the cutting of 28 trees in Clearcut, excuse me, Creekside Campground several months ago, Sisters residents have voiced their displeasure loud and clear. They've asked that the moribund Urban Forestry Board be activated; they've asked that a temporary moratorium on all tree-cutting be established; they've asked for transparency and accountability.

And how has the City responded? Emails are neither acknowledged nor responded to. The city manager has hired a professional forester to advise the City - a forester who conveniently approves of that campground tree-cutting and who, again conveniently, was hired on an hourly, as-needed basis; no contract means no city-council oversight.

I'd like to recommend two sources of information for other Sisters residents seeking to stay on top of the machinations of our City's government: the Sisters Political Forum on Facebook and the newsletter emails of [email protected] I believe informed citizen activists can still make a difference.

Ray Kenny