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Bend featured on CMT
Web site
Bend was
recently featured in the Lifestyles
Section of Country Music Television’s (CMT)
Web site. The piece entiled “The Beaten
Path Turns Off Into Bend, Oregon,”
features Bend as a place that offers so
much more than just lying on a beach.
The article goes onto describe all the
activities tourists can do while in the
area including skiing, hiking, mountain
biking, fishing, rock climbing, and
golfing.
Bend is described as a “progressive town” which values
its natural resources and promotes a
healthy and green living lifestyle.
Deschutes Brewery is also mentioned as a
place to go for a great meal in the
“revitalized downtown” area. Overall,
Bend is portrayed as a town that’s
“close to heaven.”
If you are interested in reading the brief article go
to
http://lifestyles.cmt.com.
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The climb
continues on gas prices
Not surprising for many consumers, oil
has again reached a new high. The price
for a barrel of light, sweet crude oil
reached $115 today.
Many experts attribute the rising of oil
prices to the depreciation of U.S.
currency.
The worry now is how much gasoline will be available
during summer months and how high will
the price go. According to AAA, the new
national record average as of April 17
is $3.418 a gallon which is up 55 cents
from last year at this time. In Oregon,
the current average is $3.520, which is
up 44 cents from last year.
The price of diesel has increased dramatically as well.
AAA reports the national average is
$4.416 per gallon. Only one year ago,
diesel was $2.942 per gallon. Oregon’s
current average for diesel is actually
higher than the national average at
$4.248. Last year, Oregon’s diesel
average was $2.926.
To help stimulate the economy, Republican presidential
nominee John McCain called for the
suspension of the federal gas tax on
Tuesday to help stimulate the economy.
The suspension would only take place
from Memorial Day until Labor Day due to
the fact this is the time most Americans
spend vacationing on the road.
McCain’s plan met much criticism in all sectors. In an
interview with CNN, Tom Kloza, chief oil
analyst at the Oil Price Information
service called McCain’s plan an
imprudent thing to do. He said the money
saved by consumers would hardly do
anything to stimulate economic growth.
Many critics cited McCain’s plan couldn’t take place
until 2009 anyway because he is
currently not in a position to lift the
gas tax.
Consumers will continue to keep a watchful eye on gas
prices as the summer vacation season
nears. The question now is whether gas
prices will hit $4 a gallon before
Memorial Day Weekend.
To get the latest fuel prices visit AAA’s Daily Fuel
Gauge at
www.fuelgaugereport.com
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New Poll
suggests McCain More Business Friendly
In a recent
poll completed by
www.infoUSAPoll.com, 45% of
respondents felt Republican Presidential
nominee John McCain will be more
friendly to businesses.
The question, “Who do you think will be more business
friendly as a President?” was presented
to U.S. Businesses. The results were as
follows:
-
736 respondents, or 45%,
said John McCain
-
615 respondents, or 35%,
said Barack Obama
-
336 respondents, or 19%,
said Hilary Clinton
Survey
questions are sent out weekly to
businesses and executives with topics
ranging from the economy to headaches of
running a business to political issues.
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FireFree Spring
Clean
FireFree Clean Up Days in Central Oregon
will begin this weekend. FireFree
encourages residents to prepare
themselves for the upcoming wildfire
season by gathering up yard debris and
creating defensible space around their
homes.
Residents are also encouraged to prune trees and clear
flammable vegetation that encroaches on
the minimum 30-foot buffer zone around
homes and other structures.
FireFree allows residents of Central
Oregon the opportunity to recycle yard
waste and debris at no charge at area
landfills and transfer stations.
The Knott Landfill in Bend will accept yard waste from
April 19 through April 27. The Deschutes
County Transfer sites will take yard
debris on May 3 and May 4 from the Negus
Transfer Station, Fryrear Transfer
Station and the La Pine Transfer
Station. In Sunriver, residents can
bring their debris to the Sunriver Compost
Site on May 3 and May 4.
Visit
www.FireFree.org for
more information.
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Pre-season boat
inspections
With the weather
beginning to change, you might be looking
at taking your boat out for a cruise.
The Marine Division of the Deschutes
County Sheriff’s Office will be
conducting “parking lot” boat
inspections on April 19 from 9 a.m. to 3
p.m. around Deschutes County.
Boat owners can have a safety inspection free of charge
before the start of fishing season.
Opening day for most of the area water
bodies (excluding the Big Deschutes
River) is the weekend of April 26.
Those boats which pass the safety inspection will be
given a “2008” decal to be applied to
the back of the boat. This sticker is
good throughout the remainder of the
2008 season in Oregon and helps to
reduce the chances of being stopped on
the water for a safety inspection.
To find the sites for the inspections or for additional
information go to
www.deschutes.org or call 388-6503.
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Upcoming
Chamber
events .
April 18:
Community Affairs Council Town Hall
Luncheon-Bend Metro Park and Recreation-
Don Horton, Executive Director of Bend
Metro Parks & Recreation, Ruth
Williamson, Board Chair, will discuss
the new community park and district
office building. They will talk about
SDCs and how they work, the pursuit of
their new building, the Bend Pine
Nursery Project and how they plan to
operate the new ball fields. The CAC
Town Hall luncheons are held at
Touchmark at Mount Bachelor Village in
the Terrace Lodge Forum Theater from
noon to 1:30 p.m. To attend the CAC Town
Hall luncheon series, register online at
www.bendchamber.org
or call Lindi to reserve your spot at
382-3221.
April 22:
County Forecast Breakfast- Please join
us as Deschutes County Commissioner
Dennis Luke and Sheriff Larry Blanton
look at several issues facing Deschutes
County. The topics of discussion will
include: the South County groundwater
quality, the North County campus, the
jail remodel and expansion, road
maintenance and construction funding
source options, the 911 levy, building
permit activity, and highlights of the
Deschutes County budget. The price is
$29.50 per member and $49.50 per
non-member. If you are interested in
attending the event, please register by
April 21 at noon online or contact Lindi
at
lindi@bendchamber.org or 382-3221.
The event will take place from 7:30 to
9:30 a.m. at the Bend Golf
and Country Club located at 61045
Country Club Drive.
April 23:
Business After Hours- Join us as Hospice
House’s 5 year anniversary. Help us
celebrate by tasting award winning
wines, hors d'oeuvres, and throw your
card into the hat to win baskets of
wine. Hospice House is one of only two
in-patient facilities in the state and
was an additional service piece added by
HospiceCenter 5 years ago. Tour the
building if you wish, and learn about
our plans for the next five years. You
may be surprised at all the services we
can offer for businesses as well as
individuals. If you are interested in
attending please RVSP by noon on
Tuesday, April 22 at
www.bendchamber.org or call
382-3221. The event will take place from
5 to 7 p.m. at Hospice House located at
2075 NE Wyatt Court.
April 24, 2008: Community First Bank proudly
presents the tenth annual Central Oregon
Business Expo. The Business Expo is
Central Oregon’s premiere
business-to-business networking event of
the year; featuring an informative
kick-off luncheon, free business
workshops, and the opportunity to
discover the region’s growing business
community all under one roof in one day.
The event will take place at the
Deschutes County Expo Center from 1
to 6 p.m. with a Kick-off Luncheon from
11:45 a.m. to 1 p.m. This event is free
to attend. Booth space is still
available. For more information go to
www.visitredmondoregon.com.
April 25:
Elk Lake will host its last big party
for the Winter 08 season. Chamber
members will receive a 25% off discount
on cabins and a 25% off snowcat
transportation. The event will take
place from April 24 to April 27. If you
are interested or have any questions,
please call Jay Walsh at 480-7228.
May
6: Green Dividend for Companies and
Cities: Seeing Green for Going Green
- How does investing in sustainability
affect a company's bottom line? How do
investments in environmental and social
initiatives impact competitiveness,
market share, profitability and share
price performance? Hear from experts
about how companies and cities are
reaping a "green dividend" from their
sustainability investments. Pierre
Trivet from Innovest Strategic Value
Advisors will discuss the financial
performance of sustainable businesses.
Economist Joe Cortwright will describe
his recent study that calculates the
returns accrued when cities invest in
green infrastructure, land use planning,
and related policies. Register online at
www.oeconline.org or contact Cheryl
at 503-222-1963 x100. The event will
take place at the St. Charles Learning
Center from 7:30 to 9:30 a.m. Breakfast
will be included.
Sponsored by Oregon Environmental
Council, reSource, and the Bend
Chamber.
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Survey Question
From time to time, the Chamber will
attach a survey question to the Weekly
E-News to see what makes the membership
tick. We encourage responses from
members so we can better focus on their
needs or ideas.
How are increasing gasoline costs
affecting your business?
Please email your response to Courtney
Linville at
courtney@bendchamber.org.
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