ODOT begins $4.6 million guardrail project on Highway 34 east of Waldport

June 2, 2025

WALDPORT – Drivers on Oregon Highway 34 should expect delays and one-lane traffic beginning in early June as the Oregon Department of Transportation works to remove and replace outdated guardrails. The $4.6 million project will span from milepost 2.3 just east of Waldport to milepost 54.5 northeast of Alsea. Crews will work 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. Monday through

Florence teenager wins 4th Congressional art competition with lighthouse painting

June 2, 2025

A 16-year-old artist from Florence has been selected by Rep. Val Hoyle, D-Ore. as the 4th Congressional District’s 2025 Congressional Art Competition. Teakki Legg is a student at Siuslaw High School. He credited his art teacher, Lauren Suveges, and John Leasure at the Florence Regional Arts Alliance for helping him and encouraging him to enter the competition. Teakki is

Port of Newport OKs $28.7 million budget but says grants uncertain

June 1, 2025

NEWPORT — The Port of Newport commission approved a $28.7 million budget for the 2025-26 fiscal year at its meeting last week, which included a review of capital improvement needs, project priorities, and discussing possible grants for major infrastructure projects. Most of the Port’s budget comes from user fees, leases and grants. It has a permanent tax rate of six

State will monitor 7 ocean beaches in Lincoln County this summer

June 1, 2025

Seven ocean beaches in Lincoln County are among the two dozen that will be monitored for fecal bacteria this summer by the Oregon Health Authority. The beaches will be monitored from June to September. The monitoring entails collecting water quality samples at the most frequently visited beaches on the coast as well as beaches where state regulators have found bacteria in the

Lincoln County judge sentences man to 12 years in prison for sex crimes

June 1, 2025

NEWPORT – Danny Hicks, 59, of Dallas, Ore. was sentenced to 12½ years in prison by Lincoln County Circuit senior judge Thomas Branford last week after a jury found him guilty of 11 counts of child-related felony sex crimes. Lincoln County Sheriff’s deputies and Lincoln City police arrested Hicks last November after he five times responded to undercover officers using

Conference on Alzheimer’s, brain health offered Thursday in Newport

June 1, 2025

NEWPORT – A variety of health care organizations are teaming up to offer a four-hour brain health and Alzheimer’s disease seminar from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Thursday, June 5. The conference will cover several topics including the latest in Alzheimer’s and dementia research, 10 warning signs of Alzheimer’s, practices for maintaining brain health at all ages, and learning about

After 15 years, popular Underground Pub in Yachats changes ownership

May 29, 2025

YACHATS – The Yachats Underground Pub & Grub is under new ownership. Dennis and Jody Griffin of La Pine purchased the bar May 20 from David Lothrop who had owned it since 2010. The couple, who also own a home in Yachats, will not take an active role in the pub’s day-to-day operations and plan to keep it more or

Suspect in fatal Lincoln City shooting apparently knew his victim

May 28, 2025

LINCOLN CITY – A transient who shot and fatally injured 52-year-old Scott E. Church on May 19 apparently knew him and told police he was driving by, was “tired of seeing people get destroyed by meth,” rolled down his window and shot Church twice. Church, who was living on Southwest 51st Street in the Taft area of Lincoln City, was

Oregon Coast CC wins approval to offer bachelor’s degree in nursing

May 28, 2025

Oregon Coast Community College has been approved to offer its own four-year degree in nursing at a time when demand for nurses in rural areas is high. The approval for a baccalaureate nursing program was granted by the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities. It followed the Oregon Higher Education Coordinating Commission’s endorsement of the program earlier this year. The

Waldport man arrested for manslaughter after forest road crash Monday

May 27, 2025

WALDPORT – A Waldport man was arrested on manslaughter charges Monday night after his Jeep ran off a Forest Service road deep in the Coast Range and killed his friend. David Vargues, 45, of Waldport died at Samaritan Pacific Communities Hospital in Newport after fire department crews from Waldport and Seal Rock hauled him up 100 feet from a ravine