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Carpool or take shuttle to
tonight’s Chamber Holiday Party
If you’re going to tonight’s
Bend Chamber Holiday Party at
The High Desert Museum, save
yourself some parking hassles.
Please consider carpooling, or
take the Chamber’s free shuttle
from the S&S Auto Parts parking
lot to the museum. Green Energy
Transportation will run a
shuttle service continuously
from 5 to 8 p.m. The company
also is offering an on-board
raffle – learn more when you
ride. Please call 610-6103 as
you approach the S&S parking lot
to let the shuttle driver know
you’re coming. Parking at The
High Desert Museum is limited,
and more than 900 people have
sent in RSVPs. We look forward
to seeing you there, and if you
have bought tickets for the car
raffle, good luck!
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Developers question fee
increases; start-up bus service
proving expensive
At Wednesday’s Bend City Council
meeting, developers questioned a
dramatic increase in filing fees
in 2006 as compared to 2005.
Brian Bergler of Pahlisch Homes
said the company this year
submitted two planned unit
developments (PUDs) that each
required city fees in excess of
$300,000. If the same PUDs would
have been filed in 2005, the
fees would have been about
$30,000 for each project,
Bergler said. Other speakers
echoed Bergler’s concerns, and
one cited state law that states
cities can only charge fees that
reflect actual costs. Developers
asked the city to do a formal
review of the fee structure, and
City Manager Andy Anderson said
city staff would investigate. In
a separate matter, City Finance
Director Margaret Echeveste
informed councilors that the
city needed to transfer
approximately $143,000 from
contingency funds to the city’s
transportation budget in the
fiscal year ending June 30,
2007, to pay for unexpected
repairs to the used buses the
city purchased from Salt Lake
City, as well as other projects
such as getting the Hawthorne
Avenue transit station up and
running. Escheveste told the
council that public transit
systems always are going to need
public subsidies. Also
complicating the matter is that
Bend’s transit system only has
been in operation for a couple
of months, so there’s no track
record of what expenses and
revenue will be.
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Long-awaited reopening of
Newport Avenue Bridge will be
Friday
A ribbon-cutting ceremony to
celebrate the reopening of the
Newport Avenue Bridge will be
held at noon on Friday, Dec. 8
on the east end of the bridge.
The bridge will reopen
immediately after the ceremony,
just in time for Saturday’s Bend
Christmas Parade. The reopening
will come just in time for the
Christmas shopping season for
downtown merchants – the bridge
carries more than 15,500 vehicle
trips each day. Work will
continue on final touches such
as sidewalk construction,
painting and landscaping. Final
work on the bridge is expected
to be completed in 2007.
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Survey respondents say they’ll
spend less this Christmas
Speaking of the Christmas
shopping season: Last week’s
survey question was,
“Nationwide, retail sales for
Christmas aren’t meeting
expectations. Are you spending
more, less or the same as last
year? Few people said they’d be
spending more, and most said
they’d be spending less. In a
nationwide survey, BIGresearch
said that Americans celebrating
Christmas will spend $795.86
each, up 5 percent from last
year. Some responses from our
survey:
“We’re spending about 20 percent less in the stores,
and also using what we have
instead of buying new (lights
and decorations), choosing
less-expensive alternatives for
packing and shipping, eating at
home more and doing more
personally instead of using
services or outlets for car
washing, house cleaning,
baking/catering, etc.)
“I’m spending a little more, but I’m now giving to
several charitable organizations
in my friends and families’
names instead of other gifts.
The retailers won’t see much
from me this year.”
“Probably about the same as last year. I just have not
had time yet to start my
shopping. Most will be last
minute.”
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Agenda set for Legislative
Council Breakfasts for 2007
first quarter
Come join us for the revamped
Legislative Council Breakfast
series (formerly the Government
Affairs Council) in 2007. The
first quarter of 2007 will
feature new Deschutes County
Commissioner Tammy Baney and
Bend city councilors Chris
Telfer and Mark Capell in
January, talking about their
visions for 2007; the mayors of
Bend and Redmond in February,
discussing issues common to both
cities; and our state
legislators Rep. Chuck Burley
and Gene Whisnant and Sen. Ben
Westlund (if their schedules
allow, since the Legislature
will be in session. The first
breakfast of the year will be on
Jan. 12. Cost is $187 in advance
for 11 months or $25 for each
individual month. For
information or to register,
contact Lindi at the Bend
Chamber, 382-3221, or
lindi@bendchamber.org.
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Adopt a pet or learn about the
one you have
The third annual pet adoption
and education fair will be held
from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on
Friday, Dec. 9, and from 11 a.m.
to 4 p.m. on Saturday, Dec. 10,
in the downtown conference rooms
in the Deschutes Services
Center, 1300 NW Wall St. “Furry
Friends in Need – A Home for the
Holidays” is sponsored by seven
animal rescue and shelter
organizations. Both days will
feature dozens of small critters
who need loving homes this
holiday season. If you are
willing to adopt a goat, pony,
horse or donkey, they’ll be
there, too. Also included will
be a silent auction and many
other events.
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This week’s survey question
As the Bend City Council works
to put together a road
transportation improvement plan
for the city, what
streets/intersections should be
the highest priority, and why?
Please e-mail your responses to:
jeff@bendchamber.org.
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