The new and lone volunteer overseeing Yachats’ only cemetery now seeking help from the community

October 19, 2023

By CHERYL ROMANO/YachatsNews YACHATS — It’s enough to make a property developer drool — 14 acres of land with a commanding ocean view sloping east from U.S. Highway 101, backed by towering trees and just a stroll from downtown. But the low sign near the corner of Highway 101 and King Street just across from the Adobe Resort identifies

Your Lincoln County property tax bills have arrived — so be prepared (again) for some sticker shock

October 19, 2023

By QUINTON SMITH/YachatsNews Property values In Lincoln County increased by 16 percent in the past year – down from a record spike in 2022 but still the second highest increase in the past six years. The increase is reflected in property tax statements — but not necessarily bills — from the Lincoln County assessor’s office being mailed Friday. The

Yachats council debates where to find another interim manager — and then how to attract a permanent one

October 19, 2023

By GARRET JAROS/YachatsNews YACHATS – The race to find someone to fill the shoes of the soon-to-be vacant Yachats’ city manager position is in its final stretch, but with less than two weeks to go to fulfill the mandate in the city charter requiring a manager – there is not a candidate in sight. “Our very generous and talented

Oregon students won’t have to show added proficiency in basic skills through 2028 to graduate

October 19, 2023

The Oregon Board of Education suspended the essential skills requirement for five more years, because it was being misapplied, members said. Instead of using projects and essays and other methods of measuring students’ ability to apply classroom skills out in the world, many districts relied on state standardized tests to measure student ability. (Getty Images) By ALEX BAUMHARDT/Oregon Capital Chronicle

Oregon lawmakers start trying to tackle state’s addiction crisis — by hearing more about it

October 19, 2023

Oregon lawmakers are looking for ways to address the state’s fentanyl crisis. (Jeff J. Mitchell/Getty Images) By JULIA SHUMWAY/Oregon Capital Chronicle SALEM — Oregon lawmakers heard from state behavioral health officials and local addiction treatment providers during a four-hour meeting on Wednesday that confirmed that the drug epidemic is one of the most intractable problems Oregon faces and touches every

Cascade Head biosphere in north Lincoln County is a place unlike any other

October 19, 2023

By MICHAEL EDWARDS/Oregon Coast TODAY The Cascade Head Biosphere Reserve, located toward the north end of Lincoln City, is a place quite unlike any other. In addition to an old-growth Sitka spruce and western hemlock forest, the reserve is home to the endangered Oregon silverspot butterfly; tide pools and rock islands teaming with brown pelicans, rockfish and ochre stars;

Lincoln County goes to court to remove Yachats businesswoman’s employee compound in “timber conservation” zone

October 18, 2023

By QUINTON SMITH/YachatsNews Lincoln County officials have gone to court seeking a judge’s order to force the removal of four yurts and a travel trailer from a 20-acre property that a Yachats businesswoman is using to house employees and their families. The request for an injunction comes after seven months of back-and-forth between Drift Inn owner Linda Hetzler and

Fondness for fungi drives Yachats’ big mushroom festival — and one local family’s 32-year-old business

October 17, 2023

By CHERYL ROMANO/YachatsNews Yachats is in for three days of mushroom mania this weekend as its namesake Mushroom Festival pops up all over town. And while the mix of speakers, food, workshops and walks is once a year, it also includes a family business that’s a permanent part of the local landscape. “This year’s festival is bigger and more

Former Pelican Brewing employee arrested in stolen deposit case

October 16, 2023

On July 31, 2023 at about 9:00 AM, Lincoln City Police responded to the Pelican Brewing restaurant after receiving a report from an employee, Denali Cox, stating she was robbed outside the restaurant. Officers responded to the area and began an extensive area search for the described suspect, but no suspect was located. The employee reported she was taking a

After two decades, Lincoln County is looking for a new medical examiner

October 16, 2023

NEWPORT – For the first time in 20 years, Lincoln County is seeking a new medical examiner. Dr. Marilyn Fraser of Lincoln City has notified the county that she is giving up her medical examiner duties as of Nov. 1. Fraser is maintaining her family medicine practice based at Samaritan Lincoln City Medical Center. The end of her county service