Lincoln County and seven cities begin to split on tighter coronavirus limits on social gatherings, 24-hour holds on motel rooms

June 20, 2020

By QUINTON SMITH/YachatsNews.com Lincoln County and some of its cities are going separate ways on how or if to continue regulating residents and visitors amid the increasing number of local COVID-19 cases. The result is a growing mish-mash of restrictions depending on where people live or visit. County commissioners and councils or representatives of six of seven cities

Oregon Democrats look to build on supermajorities in Legislature while GOP hopes voter discontent focuses on Salem

June 20, 2020

By GARY A. WARNER/Oregon Capital Bureau Coronavirus pandemic, record unemployment, shuttered businesses, massive street demonstrations, armed militias on the streets — with the wildfire season still just starting. It’s still 19 weeks until the Nov. 3 election, and the run-up to the 2020 vote is playing out against one of the most bizarre backgrounds in Oregon history. President Donald Trump

Oregon Health Authority’s coronavirus report for Friday, June 19

June 19, 2020

County-specific face covering guidance issued Today Governor Kate Brown issued official guidance regarding the use of face coverings in indoor public spaces for Multnomah, Clackamas, Washington, Marion, Polk, Hood River and Lincoln counties, effective Wednesday, June 24. The guidance applies to businesses and members of the public visiting those businesses. The guidance applies to businesses including grocery stores, gyms and fitness studios,

Commission cool to renting vacated Yachats city offices in Commons building, says wider community discussion needed

June 18, 2020

By QUINTON SMITH/YachatsNews.com Members of the city’s Parks and Commons Commission on Thursday gave a cool reception to an idea to rent out much of the city’s offices to a Florence dentist when staff move to the 501 Building late this year. Mayor John Moore said he wanted to “take the temperature” of renting out the vacated offices to

Yachats church’s “Pastor Bob” pushed by faith and family activism, rises to new challenges during pandemic and troubled times

June 18, 2020

By CHERYL ROMANO/YachatsNews.com A homeless man approaches Bob Barrett one misty May morning as he goes to work at Yachats Community Presbyterian Church. The man is there to see if Barrett – known throughout Yachats as “Pastor Bob” — has a line on an apartment. Barrett is friendly, open, welcoming. Moments later someone from Oregon Gov. Kate Brown’s office

Oregon Health Authority’s coronavirus report for Thursday, June 18

June 18, 2020

Governor Brown shares additional details on face covering requirements Starting June 24, face coverings will be required in Multnomah, Washington, Clackamas, Hood River, Marion, Polk and Lincoln counties in indoor public spaces. The below graphic shares who is exempt from face covering requirements. As Governor Brown shared, we’re going to have to get used to face coverings being part of

Yachats’ library “re-opens” (sort of) with reservations, kids’ book giveaways

June 18, 2020

The city’s all-volunteer, public library has found two innovative ways to serve book-lovers while still observing pandemic restrictions — an online or phone reservation system, and free, weekly children’s book giveaways. Whether you’re looking for books, videos or books on tape, you can reserve any title in the library’s collection, and visit the library the next Wednesday to pick up

More federal and state campgrounds open this week, but Cape Perpetua Visitor Center remains closed indefinitely

June 18, 2020

By DANA TIMS/YachatsNews.com Camping at the coast is back. Sort of. State and federal campgrounds, along with much of the rest of the coastal economy, have been shut down for the past three months due to coronavirus concerns. Now, on a rolling basis governed both by budgetary realities and lingering worries about the global pandemic, campgrounds and recreation areas

Oregon Health Authority’s coronavirus report for Wednesday, June 17

June 17, 2020

Oregon reports 122 new confirmed and presumptive COVID-19 cases, 1 new death PORTLAND — COVID-19 has claimed one more life in Oregon, raising the state’s death toll to 183, the Oregon Health Authority reported at 12:01 a.m. Wednesday. Oregon Health Authority reported 122 new confirmed and presumptive cases of COVID-19 as of 12:01 a.m. Wednesday bringing the state total to

State of Oregon still has 70,000 unemployment claims to process

June 17, 2020

By PETER WONG/Oregon Capital Bureau About 70,000 Oregonians newly eligible for unemployment benefits — the self-employed, independent contractors, gig and temporary workers — await state processing of their claims. Having virtually eliminated a backlog of 38,000 claims for regular benefits by a self-imposed deadline of June 12, Employment Department officials have turned their full attention to the new batch of