Oregon agrees to transfer 10 wolves to Colorado after other Western states decline

October 10, 2023

By ALEX BAUMHARDT/Oregon Capital Chronicle SALEM — Oregon agreed to transfer wolves to Colorado after other states declined to participate in the state’s new program. The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife will allow Colorado’s Parks and Wildlife Department to trap and transfer up to 10 gray wolves from northeastern Oregon to Colorado. Oregon officials agreed to the plan after

Court-ordered drawdown of Green Peter and Foster reservoirs leads to widespread kokanee die-off

October 10, 2023

By ZACH URNESS/Salem Statesman Journal Tens of thousands of kokanee salmon have died between Green Peter and Foster reservoirs due to a new extreme water drawdown at the reservoirs intended to help native fish. Over the weekend, masses of dead kokanee were spotted in the Sunnyside Park area of Hughes Creek at Foster Reservoir outside Sweet Home. It alarmed anglers

Port of Alsea board picks replacement for resigning member

October 10, 2023

WALDPORT – The Port of Alsea board has selected George Gray of Waldport to replace longtime board chair Rob Bishop, who is resigning effective Oct. 19. Gray will be sworn in at the board’s Nov. 16 meeting. Gray was selected from five applicants who went through interviews with the Port’s board on Thursday, Oct. 5. Gray owns a tub, shower

OSU now offering Samaritan employees reduced tuition programs

October 10, 2023

Oregon State University is expanding its relationship with Samaritan Health Services to provide thousands of the regional health system’s employees with more affordable access to academic programs and workforce education opportunities online. All 6,000 Samaritan employees on the central Oregon coast and in the mid-Willamette Valley are eligible for reduced tuition scholarships through a collaboration with Oregon State E-campus, the

“Kicker” will return a record 44% to Oregon taxpayers on 2022 state income tax

October 10, 2023

By The Oregonian/OregonLive Oregonians will get an unprecedented 44% of their 2022 Oregon income taxes back through a kicker credit when they file their 2023 taxes next spring, the Oregon Department of Revenue announced Monday. Revenue officials estimated in August that taxpayers would receive the biggest kicker tax rebate in state history – a whopping $5.6 billion. On Monday, they updated and finalized

OSU researchers will lead federal study on coastal residents’ attitudes toward offshore wind farms

October 10, 2023

By ALEX BAUMHARDT/Oregon Capital Chronicle A team of Oregon State University researchers were recently awarded $2.5 million to study the attitudes and feelings coastal residents have about potential offshore wind energy projects. In August, officials from the Federal Bureau of Ocean Energy Management identified two areas off the Oregon coast near Coos Bay and Brookings that they said would

New statewide values survey says homelessness issue is Oregon’s most important

October 9, 2023

The makeshift shelters and possessions of homeless people line a block in downtown Salem in May. Oregonians identified homelessness as the most important issue facing state leaders in a recent survey. By BEN BOTKIN/Oregon Capital Chronicle More than 40% of Oregon adults believe homelessness is the most important issue in the state, according to a recent survey. In August, the

Work from Yachats Arts Guild on display through November in Newport

October 9, 2023

A new exhibition called “Varied Perspectives” featuring the work of Yachats Arts Guild will be on display in the Newport Visual Arts Center’s Runyan Gallery from Friday, Oct. 13 through Nov. 26. The artist members of Yachats Arts Guild work in a wide variety of mediums – and that’s the theme of their new exhibition. Illustration, glass work, collage,

Yikes! A $1,866 water and sewer bill? Yachats resident asks — and gets — some relief from whopping charge

October 9, 2023

By GARRET JAROS/YachatsNews YACHATS – One Yachats man was more than a little surprised when he opened his August water bill expecting the usual $120 to $135 charge but found instead a bill for $1,866. It was not the first anomaly on Stephen Isaac’s combined water and sewer bill. In May he received a bill for $876. That bill

Wildfires force cancellation of Siletz tribe’s “Run to the Rogue”

October 9, 2023

The Siletz Tribe’s annual Run to the Rogue scheduled Friday through Sunday, Oct. 13-15 has been canceled due to wildfires and smoke along the route. This event is a 234-mile relay run/walk in memory of the Siletz tribal ancestors who were forcibly removed from their homeland in Rogue River country in the mid-1800s and marched north to Siletz and the