🐴 Neglect Investigation Leads to Rescue of 15 Horses in Bend, Oregon

Issue #115

18 Apr

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In this Issue of C.O. Local BUZZ…

🤔 Local Trivia

🌄 Bend, OR Weather

📰 Local News - What’s a Happening?

🐴Neglect Investigation Leads to Rescue of 15 Horses in Bend, Oregon

📰 Museum Receives $500,000 National Endowment for the Humanities Awar

🚨 Crime News

🚨Deschutes County Sheriff's Office Cracks Down on Illegal Marijuana Operation in Bend

🚨Prineville Man Killed By Deputies In Washington State

📰Regional News

⚕️ More people in Oregon buy private health insurance plans as thousands lose Medicaid coverage

 📰 Community News

🦌🦌Captured on Video: Elk herd crosses road in Sunriver, Oregon 🎦

📰Business News

🍽️ Dogwood Cocktail Cabin targets near Labor Day open for new 2nd Street location

🍺 Initiative Brewing Madras now plans for August opening

🍷🚫Dispute over proposed tasting room, wine-making at small vineyard divides neighborhood north of Bend

😁 MEME of the Day - provided by WagBend

📅 Lots of Events

 

The Beaver shows up on how many official entities in Oregon?

A) 1

B) 5

C) 3

D) 5

👉Find the Answer in Tomorrows Newsletter👉

BEND

Neglect Investigation Leads to Rescue of 15 Horses in Bend, Oregon

In a recent animal neglect investigation in rural Bend, Oregon, 15 horses were seized from the property of 66-year-old Jean Poirier. The investigation, led by the Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office, began on March 6th, 2024, after receiving reports of potential neglect on Poirier's ranch.

Deputies and Animal Control Technicians conducted thorough examinations on the 15 horses and 17 dogs on the property. It was determined that the horses were in urgent need of veterinary care, hoof care, and proper nutrition. As a result, Poirier voluntarily surrendered ownership of the horses on March 14th, 2024.

With the assistance of the Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office Posse members, deputies and technicians removed the horses from Poirier's property and relocated them to the Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office Rescue Ranch. The horses, ranging in age from 13 to 29 years old and consisting of stallions, geldings, and mares, are now under the care of veterinarians and farriers at the facility.

Despite the cooperation shown by Poirier in the investigation, she was cited for multiple counts of Animal Neglect in the Second Degree. The case was reviewed by the Deschutes County District Attorney’s Office, resulting in an additional felony charge being added. The Grand Jury signed off on all charges on April 15th, 2024.

The Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office Rescue Ranch is a 23-acre rehabilitation center for neglected and abused livestock. The seized horses are already showing signs of improvement under the dedicated care provided at the facility.

The Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office is a comprehensive law enforcement agency that serves over 200,000 residents in Deschutes County. With various units specializing in patrol, investigations, search and rescue, and more, the agency has been providing essential services since its establishment in 1916 under the leadership of Sheriff L. Shane Nelson.

The successful rescue operation highlights the importance of addressing animal neglect issues and ensuring the well-being of all creatures in our communities.

 

 Museum Receives $500,000 National Endowment for the Humanities Award

 The High Desert Museum will receive $500,000 from the National Endowment for the Humanities, one of 10 in the nation selected for funding in the exceedingly competitive Public Humanities Projects: Exhibitions category, the agency announced Tuesday.

The funding will support the Museum’s revitalization of its permanent exhibition dedicated to the Indigenous cultures of the region. By Hand Through Memory opened in 1999, supported in part by NEH funding. Hand in hand with Native partners, the Museum has been working on a new version of the exhibition for several years.

This award is the second grant for the project: In 2019, NEH awarded the Museum $45,000 to support the planning of the renovation. The agency also awarded the Museum $500,000 in 2023 to support an associated expansion of the Museum, bringing the total commitment to the Museum’s future to $1,045,000.

“For more than four decades, the High Desert Museum has set the gold standard for showing and telling both Oregonians and visitors our state’s history,” U.S. Senator Ron Wyden said. “Indigenous history is essential to that mission, and I’m gratified this Central Oregon treasure has secured such a significant federal investment to enable it to update and expand the permanent exhibition devoted to Native perspectives and experiences.”

“We’re immensely grateful to NEH and Senators Wyden and Merkley for this transformational investment,” said High Desert Museum Executive Director Dana Whitelaw, Ph.D. “The revitalized exhibition will be centered in Native voices and knowledge, sharing the rich stories of Indigenous communities throughout the Plateau region. The NEH funding is vital for realizing our vision.”

The Museum is presently working on exhibition design with Ralph Appelbaum Associates, a firm that has handled museum projects ranging from the Smithsonian’s National Museum of African American History in Washington, D.C. to the First Americans Museum in Oklahoma City, an effort sharing the stories of the 39 Tribes in Oklahoma that opened in 2021.

The exhibition renovation is part of the long-term vision for the future of the Museum, which includes more capacity for educational programming, immersive experiences to bring visitors into the forest canopy, a permanent art exhibition space and a gathering space for Museum events. The Sisters-based Roundhouse Foundation helped launch work on this vision with a $6 million gift in 2021.

The Museum opened in 1982. Founder Donald M. Kerr envisioned the space as an immersive experience that highlights the wonder of the High Desert, often saying that its mission is to “wildly excite and responsibly teach.” He also intended for the Museum and its programs to spark dialogue and bring people together in conversations about what they want for the region’s future.

Today, the Museum shares up to nine rotating temporary exhibitions, serves more than 8,600 participants with school field trips, and provides free and reduced-price admissions to more than 25,000 visitors. It welcomed more than 216,000 visitors in 2023.

The National Endowment for the Humanities is an independent federal agency that supports cultural institutions in their efforts to facilitate research and original scholarship, provides opportunities for lifelong learning, preserves and provides access to cultural and educational resources, and strengthens the institutional base of the humanities throughout the nation.

 

 

Deschutes County Sheriff's Office Cracks Down on Illegal Marijuana Operation in Bend

In a targeted effort to combat illegal marijuana cultivation and distribution, the Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office Illegal Marijuana Market Enforcement Team (DCIMME) collaborated with the Central Oregon Drug Enforcement Team in executing a search warrant at a residence on the 19000 block of Manzanita Lane, Bend, Oregon. The operation, conducted on April 17, 2024, resulted in the arrest of Michael A Bradford and Automne Glasow, both residents of Bend, Oregon.

The investigation, which involved the US Postal Inspection Service, uncovered alleged illegal activities involving possession, manufacturing, and distribution of marijuana. Following the interception of a package containing an excessive amount of marijuana destined for Virginia, a federal search warrant was secured and executed at the targeted residence.

In a coordinated effort, DCSO patrol deputies detained Ms. Glasow during a traffic stop while the DCSO SWAT Team and detectives carried out the search warrant at the couple's residence, where Mr. Bradford was located and detained. The search led to the confiscation of approximately 69 pounds of processed marijuana, 160 marijuana plants, packaging materials, and cash, all believed to be intended for distribution on the black market within the United States.

Both Mr. Bradford and Ms. Glasow were taken into custody and booked into the Deschutes County Sheriff's Jail on charges related to possession and attempted delivery of marijuana exceeding legal limits.

The Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office emphasizes its commitment to addressing illegal marijuana activities in the region and encourages community members to report any suspicious activities related to marijuana cultivation to the DCIMME team. Agencies involved in this successful operation include the Central Oregon Drug Enforcement Team, US Drug Enforcement Administration, US Postal Inspection Service, Deschutes County District Attorney’s Office, Oregon Army National Guard Counterdrug Task Force, and Deschutes County Code Enforcement.

The operation underscores the agency's dedication to ensuring public safety and combatting illegal narcotics activities within Deschutes County. With a full range of services and specialized units in place, including SWAT, Street Crimes, Marine Patrol, ATV Patrol, Forest Patrol, and K9 teams, the Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office continues its mission to serve and protect over 200,000 residents across 3,055 square miles in the region under the leadership of Sheriff L. Shane Nelson.

Prineville Man Killed By Deputies In Washington State

VANCOUVER, WA -- The Clark County Medical Examiner released the identity Wednesday of a man shot and killed during an April 13th confrontation with deputies. Benjamin Woods, a 41-year-old Prineville man, died of multiple gunshot wounds. 

Authorities say Woods and a female accomplice stole a van in Hazel Dell, Washington on the morning of April 13th.

Witnesses reported the male suspect had a handgun. The pair was spotted about 15 minutes later in Salmon Creek; they were reportedly involved in an attempted carjacking. 

When deputies responded, they contacted Woods inside an American Legion. Woods was shot and killed at about 11:30 a.m. during that interaction, although few details of the shooting have been released. The female suspect, later identified as 42-year-old Lyndsey Jones, was arrested several hours later on burglary charges. Her city of residence is unknown. 

The Southwest Washington Independent Investigative Response Team (SWIIRT), led by Vancouver Police, is conducting the investigation into the officer-involved use of force. 

More people in Oregon buy private health insurance plans as thousands lose Medicaid coverage

Lynne Terry, Oregon Capital Chronicle Apr 17, 2024

The number of people buying private health insurance policies on the federal marketplace rose slightly this year in Oregon as thousands lost Medicaid coverage.

The Oregon Health Authority said in its annual marketplace report published Tuesday, April 16, that nearly 146,000 people bought a private plan for 2024, marking an increase of more than 2% over last year when nearly 142,000 people bought their health insurance through the marketplace.

Some of those new enrollees likely are people who have lost Medicaid coverage, officials said. Last April, the health authority began unwinding the enhanced Medicaid coverage provided by the federal government during the pandemic. It stepped up the federal match rate by 6%, and in exchange, states agreed not to boot anyone off the free health insurance for low-income residents regardless of their income.

 But that benefit ended last spring, and since last April, health officials have been unwinding coverage for people who no longer qualify. Medicaid, which provides free health care, mental health care and dental coverage, is generally available to those up to 65 years old with a household income up to 138% of the federal poverty level — nearly $21,000 per year for an individual or about $43,000 per year for a family of four.

Oregon Health Authority figures show that among the 1.5 million on Medicaid during the pandemic, nearly 109,000 who no longer qualified were referred to the marketplace. Health authority officials tried to steer them toward buying a plan by sending tens of thousands of notices in 14 languages, sending tens of thousands of emails and text messages and making tens of thousands of calls.

Amy Coven, a health authority spokeswoman, said the agency doesn’t know how many of those people actually bought insurance on the marketplace because the federal government hasn’t released those figures.

The marketplace offers the only opportunity to obtain federal subsidies toward premium payments. The annual report said that just over 80% of those who signed up received a federal subsidy, with the average person receiving about $525 in federal tax credits. The average net premium was about $164 per month.

Still, only a small fraction of those who have lost their Medicaid coverage appear to have bought private health insurance: The number of people buying plans on the marketplace through mid-January, when open enrollment ended, only increased by about 3,550 people compared to the year before.

Coven said that small increase does not mean that tens of thousands who lost Medicaid are now uninsured. She said that results from an email and text survey to those no longer on Medicaid indicated that 70% found other health insurance.

“Only a small portion of respondents reported that they felt coverage was too expensive,” Coven wrote in an email.

Six companies offered plans on the marketplace this year — BridgeSpan, Kaiser Permanente, Moda, PacificSource, Providence and Regence — and everyone, regardless of where they live, had at least 26 plans to choose from, the report said.

Most people in Oregon receive health insurance through their job, Medicaid, Medicare and Veterans Affairs.

Before the pandemic, 6% of Oregonians had no health insurance but that decreased to 4.6% in 2021, according to the latest survey.

Health authority officials are gearing up to expand Medicaid benefits this summer to people who make between 138% and 200% of the federal poverty level — just over $30,000 per year for individuals and $62,400 for a family of four — under a federal waiver. The so-called Bridge Plan will offer the same free health and dental benefits as regular Medicaid, but recipients will not qualify for long-term services or the new climate and housing benefits that are being rolled out.

Residents can sign up through the ONE system.

Oregon Capital Chronicle is part of States Newsroom, a network of news bureaus supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Oregon Capital Chronicle maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Lynne Terry for questions: [email protected]. Follow Oregon Capital Chronicle on Facebook and X, formerly known as Twitter.

 

Captured on Video: Elk herd crosses road in Sunriver, Oregon

 

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Dogwood Cocktail Cabin targets near Labor Day open for new 2nd Street location

Dogwood Cocktail Cabin has set a tentative opening around Labor Day for its new location on 2nd Street. The new location is opening in the spot where the former Spoken Moto moved its building. After negotiations fell through with the coffee shop, developers approached Dogwood as an option.

Initative Brewing Madras now plans for August opening

 As boards go up outside and construction continues to transform the old public health building on Fourth and I streets, the August planned opening date for Initiative Brewing’s new location in Madras draws closer.

“Construction always takes longer than you plan for, but we’re aiming for August of this year, so we get to enjoy the fall weather and sunshine for a while still,” said co-owner Chris Churchill.

The Madras location, named The Basin, will join two other locations in Central Oregon, their original location in Redmond, The Hub, opened in 2019, and a recently acquired beer garden in Prineville they’re calling The Station.

 “We want to bring something unique to all of the locations,” said Churchill. “Madras is going to have fast casual and quality service. We want people to feel like they can take their food to go out on the lake or sit and play board games at the tables for a few hours.”

The Madras location plans to have indoor and outdoor seating, along with a large community room that could be rented for events. There won’t be traditional servers, but kiosks and QR codes will take orders, with plenty of staff still around to refill beverages and check-in with patrons.

“We want people to be able to stop by on their way to enjoy the area or on their drive to Bend or Portland, and for the locals to have a spot to sit and enjoy their food.”

The restaurant plans to have seating for about 125 people including the multiple outdoor patios planned for what was the large public health building parking lot.

Construction started in late 2023, after months of planning, re-planning, and funding requests to the Madras Redevelopment Commission, which has loaned the project $900,000 and given $200,000 in grants, representing about 48% of the total cost of phase one of the project.

Initiative is funding the other parts with their own capital and private investors. It’s the largest project the Madras Redevelopment Commission has ever funded, but adding a brewery to Madras was a high priority in the Madras development plan.

Phase two of the project planned for about five years down the road, which will involve moving the entire brewing operation to the Madras location. “That’s a ways off, but it will be nice when we get there,” said co-owner Chris Brumley. “It will expand what we can do in house and let us keep everything at one location.” They currently rent warehouse space in Redmond to support storing some of their operation.

The brewery is hoping to add over 40 jobs when it opens, and plans a similar menu to their Redmond location, with the potential to add and change if they get staff to support it. The planned addition to the menu in Madras now is fish and chips, as they’ll have more fryers than in their other locations.

“We’re excited to keep expanding across Central Oregon and bringing the quality of our brand and beer to all these communities,” said Churchill. “We hope people get to enjoy all the different things each location has to offer and that they visit all three when they’re open to enjoy the unique experience of each one.”

This story first appeared in Madras Pioneer

Dispute over proposed tasting room, wine-making at small vineyard divides neighborhood north of Bend

BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) -- "That's the bottom line: It's not safe on our single-lane road, and a lot of the neighbors oppose it." said Toby Bayard, an upset neighbor of Lava Terrace Cellars, which grows grapes for wins on about five acres off Bowery Lane but hopes to open a small "boutique winery," if Deschutes County commissioners say yes.

Bayard and husband Michel are the leaders of the Rock O' The Range Homeowners Association. They say the neighborhood voted to have no commercial activity in the area. Of the 15 neighbors, on the single street nine oppose a planned winery. Traffic, noise, and the environmental impact on wastewater are their main concerns.

"To have a winery in Oregon, you have to have 15 acres and be zoned exclusive farm use," Bayard said. "You can't just up and put a winery someplace where it's not permitted."

The Bayards say they are concerned the only way to access the winery would be Highway 97 onto a one-lane road.

The proposed winery would be on land owned by Dina and Duane Barker. Their property is just over 400 feet from Hunnell Road, which they say offers a safer route and with proper signage wouldn't disturb neighbors.

Dina Barker said, "We waited to actually know when Hunnell Road was going in before we did anything forward, doing the land-use application for the tasting room, because we didn't want this to be impactful to the neighbors. We really wanted to be mindful of what would be going on in the neighborhood and how this would affect everybody."

Dina Barker says the winery would only see patrons from June to September. She points to growth in the area already underway, saying the winery wouldn't bring as much change as current projects.

"Putting it in perspective, we have Costco going in less than a half-mile away. We also have the proposal for the Caraway project." Once that gets back on track, that you're going to have 701 homes that are literally just on the other side of this property here next to us."

The Barkers say they've met with the county, the roads department, the department of environmental quality and others to ensure they're following the rules.

The Bayards believe the winery got permits because the owners have a friendly relationship with Commissioner Tony DeBone. But they too have been connected to a county commissioner.

Phil Chang recused himself from a recent hearing on the Bayards' appeal after the appellants' attorney said they could challenge his involvement, as he received $7,000 in campaign contributions from the Bayards, who don't mind the vineyard but don't want a winery.

Toby Bayard said, "I think the vineyard is great, but I want our neighborhood to go back to where it was, where everybody got along."

Barker said, "We're also using a more natural approach to making our wines as well. And so I think that those are things that we're doing to actually, you know, improve the quality of the wine. But also things that we've done to support the concerns of neighbors."

The Bayards said they are considering legal action if the tasting room is approved by the two county commissioners who heard the matter. Both sides can submit written testimony for a few more weeks, and a decision isn't likely until after Memorial Day.

 

 

Today’s Meme by North Empire Storage Center

 

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