City snapshot

• On February 1, the selection committee for the public art to be installed in the Highway 20/Barclay roundabout will hear presentations from the three artists selected as finalists for the project. Their scale models will be on display in the City Hall lobby during February for the public to view and provide feedback. The project selected for the installation will be presented to the Sisters City Council at their February 28 meeting for approval.

• The City of Sisters and the Oregon Department of Transportation recently received the Transportation Project of the Year Award from the Association of Civil and Traffic Engineers for the Highway 20/Barclay roundabout project. Kittelson and Associates, Inc., traffic and civil engineers with an office in Bend, made the nomination for the award.

• Mosaic Medical is offering their mobile Community Clinic in Sisters on Thursdays, 8 a.m. to noon, at the Sisters Kiwanis Food Bank, 392 W. Main Ave. The mobile clinic offers full-service primary healthcare to the homeless in the community. They offer reduced rates based on a sliding scale to all patients. Program participation is income-dependent and an application is required to determine eligibility. They accept most private or commercial insurance, all local OHP (Medicaid) and most Medicare. Call 541-383-3005 for more information.

• The mild winter is definitely benefitting all the new development currently underway in Sisters. Work has begun on Phase 1 of Grand Peaks, the housing development across Camp Polk Road from Sisters Eagle Air. Advertising bills it as a lock-and-leave pickleball community. Infrastructure is going in on Phase 3 of Clear Pine, the subdivision in the northwest corner of Sisters. Site preparation is underway for the 62-unit Lodge in Sisters assisted-living facility.

• A site plan has been approved for the Grandstay Hotel, a new lodging facility to be located across Railway Avenue from the Chevron station on the west end of town. Work continues on the Hayden Homes development off of West McKinney Butte Road, near the high school. The affordable housing townhouse project, slated to be built by HousingWorks along Brooks Camp Road, is also in the pipeline.

• Deschutes County Sheriff's Deputy Garrison reported to City Council that an individual who had been identified as a possible suspect in a string of vehicle break-ins had left town before they could apprehend him. Since his departure, there has been a decline in the number of break-ins.

• The City of Sisters will be engaging in a city-wide study on how best to prepare for and prevent damage or loss within the city limits from the destructive force of wildland fire. The city was chosen to receive a services grant from Community Planning and Assistance for Wildfire (CPAW), consisting of expertise in the field that will help assess local danger and suggest preventative measures to make the community more resistant to fires.

Community Development Director Patrick Davenport and Sisters Camp Sherman Rural Fire District Fire Safety Manager Gary Marshall attended a CPAW training last week in Colorado in preparation for the local study. Personnel will be in town in February and there are a number of activities planned, including informational forums for the

public.

• The next joint meeting of the Sisters City Council and the Deschutes County Commissioners will be in Council chambers on Wednesday, April 25, 5 p.m. The workshop is open to the public.

• Sisters Park & Recreation District is offering opportunities for "Senior Activities, Gatherings and Experiences" (SAGE) five days a week, Monday-Friday, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Scheduled activities include table tennis (ping pong) on Tuesdays and Thursdays, 1 to 4 p.m. Mexican Train (domino game) is played every Wednesday, 1 to 4 p.m. Any senior can call and schedule time with other seniors for reading or book clubs, arts and crafts, card groups, and get-togethers. For more information contact Shannon Rackowski, SPRD adult/senior program coordinator at 541-549-2091.