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Newport Avenue Bridge on track
to open in November
It
may not look like it, but the new Newport Avenue Bridge
under construction is scheduled to open in mid-to late
November, city officials say. That's good news for
businesses both downtown and west of the Deschutes River
as the Christmas season looms. The area has been closed
since April 1st as crews install the new bridge, which
was scheduled to be completed by Oct. 6. Like many other
complex construction projects, however, unforeseen
glitches have pushed back the opening date. The good
news is, the closure hasn't seemed to affect businesses
nearly as much as was first feared. The biggest concerns
so far have been increased traffic on Portland and Olney
avenues, as well as Franklin and Galveston avenues. The
new, wider bridge will retain the historical
characteristics of the old one, but will have new
amenities such as wider sidewalks and bike lanes.
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Good news: Property taxes
increasing only slightly in Deschutes County
Watch your mailbox for after October 20, when property
tax statements will be mailed out in Deschutes County.
Unlike previous years, property taxes in the Bend urban
growth boundary are rising only an average of 2.6
percent from last year. Redmond is up only an average of
1 percent and Sisters is up 2.2 percent. Ballot Measure
50, passed by citizens in May of 1997, caps property
taxes at 3 percent as long as voters don't approve new
bond issues or new local option taxes. This year, for
most property owners, property taxes will increase by
less than the 3 percent cap. The legal deadline to pay
taxes to avoid any penalty interest is Wednesday, Nov.
15. An information flyer will be included in all tax
bills explaining why some tax rates have changed, where
to pay your taxes and where your tax dollars go. For
more information:
www.deschutes.org, 388-6540 or 388-6508.
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Share your vision for Oregon's
future
Join other Oregonians on Saturday, Nov. 18 at Summit
High School in Bend for a town-hall discussion of what
we care about, our vision for the future and how to help
make Oregon a great place for us and for future
generations. A continental breakfast will be served
beginning at 8:30 a.m. Reservations are not required.
Part of the Envision Oregon Project, the event is
sponsored by a state task force on land-use planning
that has been charged with taking a "big look" at
Oregon's future. To put it in context, Oregon in the
next 30 years is forecast to have 2 million more
residents - the equivalent of the entire population of
New Mexico moving to Oregon by 2040. For more
information: info@envisionoregon.org or 503-497-1000.
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Oregon good for business on
taxes, study says
The non-profit Tax Foundation this week released a study
this week titled the "State Business Tax Climate Index,"
stating that Oregon is among the top 10 states for a
business-friendly tax environment. The index is compiled
by examining five component indexes: corporate tax,
individual income tax, sales tax (which Oregon doesn't
have), unemployment tax and property tax. The state of
course scored well in the sales tax index, but was 34th
in individual income taxes and 29th in unemployment
insurance tax. Wyoming was ranked number one, followed
in the top five by South Dakota, Alaska, Nevada and
Florida.
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Challenge for remainder of
year? Employees, employees, employees
Last week's survey question was, "What's the most
significant challenge your business faces as we enter
the fourth quarter of 2006?" Overwhelmingly, the answer
was "hiring." Some responses:
"You have to ask? Qualified employees. We want to
open a second location for our business, but we haven't
been able to find enough qualified employees for the
store we have now."
"We still are quite busy and always looking for
skilled labor."
"Everyone is getting so busy with Christmas and
holiday events. It is hard to set meetings with people
who are so busy!"
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This
week's survey
question
What's the top issue the Bend City Council needs to
address after the election? Please e-mail your responses
to:
jeff@bendchamber.org.
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