Oregon contractors group objecting to union-backed order by Gov. Tina Kotek on state projects

January 5, 2025

By NIGEL JAQUISS/Willamette Week Associated General Contractors, the trade group that represents more than 800 Oregon construction firms, is pushing back hard on an executive order Gov. Tina Kotek issued just before the holidays. That order requires that construction projects that receive state funding and for which labor costs are more than 15 percent of total costs include labor agreements. Such

Yachats fire district’s assistant administrator leaving for county job

January 5, 2025

YACHATS – The Yachats Rural Fire Protection District is losing its longtime assistant administrator to a job in the Lincoln County health department. Shelby Knife, who has been the district’s assistant administrator for 12 years and a volunteer firefighter for 16, is leaving Jan. 24 to take a job as manager of the county’s communicable disease and harm reduction program.

Tickets for third annual Big Blue Film Festival Jan. 24-25 are on sale

January 5, 2025

NEWPORT – The Big Blue Film Festival, which showcases ocean-themed films that connect science and the arts, returns for its third year on Jan. 24-25 with 34 offerings by local and international filmmakers selected from over 200 entries from 55 countries. The festival’s films are grouped into seven two-hour blocks and can be viewed at the Hatfield Marine Science

Highway 101 repairs north of Newport will snarl traffic Jan. 7-8

January 4, 2025

NEWPORT – Expect long delays on U.S. Highway 101 in the Beverly Beach area north of Newport on Tuesday and Wednesday, Jan. 7-8 as the highway is reduced to a single lane to make more repairs. The Oregon Department of Transportation announced Monday afternoon that motorists driving between Newport and Depoe Bay should expect long delays as flaggers limit traffic

Newport says leaking Yaquina Bay pipe may take a month to fix

January 4, 2025

Newport officials say they’re working as fast as they can but it may be a month before a leak that’s diverting treated wastewater into Yaquina Bay can be fixed. Nearly 1,500 gallons of effluent wastewater a minute has been pouring into the bay since Dec. 28. The pipe runs between the East Science Drive area near the Hatfield Marine Science

Landslide and flooding close two popular state parks near Coos Bay

January 3, 2025

A landslide undercut a portion of Cape Arago Highway just south of the Sunset Bay State Park on Friday, Jan. 3. By RACHAEL McDONALD/KLCC News COOS BAY — Cape Arago and Shore Acres state parks near Coos Bay are closed to vehicle traffic after a landslide undercut a portion of Cape Arago Highway just south of the Sunset

Newport studies major changes to Highway 101 to revitalize city center for businesses, residents and tourists

January 2, 2025

By REBECCA HANSEN-WHITE/KLCC News The city of Newport is hoping to revitalize its city center over the next several years. “Newport’s city center needs help,” says a consultant’s report about the project on the city’s website. “Many storefronts are vacant, and buildings are aging or in poor condition. Plus, summer traffic on U.S. 101 and U.S. 20 makes it

5 Questions and a Secret: Chainsaw carver (and poet) Brian McEneny of Seal Rock

January 2, 2025

By KATHLEEN O’CONNOR/YachatsNews A tough guy. A softie. The personality of Brian McEneny, owner of Brian McEneny Woodcarving Gallery in Seal Rock, is a combination of sensitive and rough-and-tumble. His two passions in life — skiing and chainsaw carving — are both definitely on the rugged side. But his poetry and his completed chainsaw sculptures are clearly creative and

Innovative seafood lab, tourist association and Siletz tribe return salmon to Food Share of Lincoln County

January 2, 2025

By LORI TOBIAS/For YachatsNews For 10 years, Food Share of Lincoln County processed and distributed hatchery salmon to community food pantries all along the coast, sharing about 2,000 pounds of the protein-rich fish a year. Then in 2018, the nonprofit learned it would no longer be permitted to process the fish due to new food handling regulations and the salmon

Samaritan opening pharmacy on Lincoln City hospital campus

January 2, 2025

LINCOLN CITY — Samaritan Health Services is trying to buck the trend of pharmacy closures by opening one on its North Lincoln Hospital campus on Monday, Jan. 6. The pharmacy’s hours are 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. weekdays, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturdays, and closed daily for lunch from 1 to 2 p.m. “After one local pharmacy closed in