Make the McKenzie Connection!
Make the McKenzie Connection!
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MCKENZIE BRIDGE: Deer Creek could be seen as an example of building back better by moving toward the past. The large McKenzie River tributary is one of three upriver areas where the effects of human activities are being counterbalanced by human interventions that mimic nature Over several decades, logging in the Deer Creek drainage, combined with severe flooding in 1964, scoured out the floodplain, clearing all vegetation. Following the flood, and for years to come, officials say the U.S....
In early September 2020, severe winds, high heat, and prolonged drought conditions led to the explosive growth of wildfires along the western slopes of the Cascades Mountains in the Pacific Northwest. The fires engulfed enormous tracts of forestland, destroyed communities, took dozen of lives, and cost hundreds of millions to fight. In a first-of-its-kind study examining burn patterns from the 2020 Labor Day fires, researchers at Portland State University studied the influence of weather,...
WILSONVILLE: At the Oregon Fire Chief's Association Awards luncheon last week five McKenzie Fire & Rescue volunteers received recognition for their long-term commitment to the community. They were all awarded the OFCA Award of Excellence. The OFCA is the only statewide forum that recognizes individuals for their long-term professionalism acts of courage and heroism. "We were very honored to nominate them and thrilled when we received notification that they were selected for the award," McKenzie...
A serious landslide between milepost 54 and 56 on Forest Service Road 19 (Aufderheide Drive) is likely to continue to limit access to Terwilliger Hot Springs from the McKenzie Valley. Other day-use sites and campgrounds will not be accessible from Highway 126. Affected recreation sites include the Echo Boat Launch; Sunnyside Campground; Slide Creek Campground; Cougar Crossing Campground and Boat Launch; French Pete Campground; Hard Rock Group Campground; Red Diamond Group Campground; Roaring...
Last Wednesday, April 26, a celebration gathering was held on the parcel of land known as the Jones or Seneca property. The 16-acre parcel was generously donated to the Blue River Community by Becky, Jody, and Kathy Jones, owners of The Seneca Family of Companies, and daughters of Aaron and Marie Jones. The Jones sisters donated the land at the end of 2021 with the proposed stipulation that with acceptance of the gift, the Community would collaborate on a plan for revitalization and development...
WALTERVILLE: The number of tradesmen's vehicles in the parking lot of the Walterville Elementary School should be tapering off soon. Brett Yancey, Springfield School District's Chief Operating Officer said the majority of the work is expected to be completed at the end of the summer. Subcontractors from McKenzie Taylor Construction are "putting the finishing touches on and we'll be ready to go well before the Fall," he said. The building suffered extensive damage as an aftermath of the second...
This image from the 3-D "walk through" of plans to rebuild the Blue River Park shows one of three proposed covered picnic areas. During last Saturday's design open house meeting, UO design student Audrey Rycewicz updated people on four changes that were developed since a February public input session. Among the changes was the addition of a 9-hole disc golf area, an extension of the riverfront Historic Trail, a larger off-leash dog park zone, and integrating a "natural play" area with...
McKenzie Valley Wellness (MVW) has canceled its annual membership meeting planned for Tuesday, May 3rd. In a statement, the MVW board said it had learned of some important concerns about past donations that never reached them, and people who wanted to be members never getting on the membership roster. “There has been some confusion around the correct mailing address and name for our nonprofit. We need to make certain that people who want to be members are included,” they noted. “Everyone on our board recognizes the importance of having our a...
LEABURG: Economic, environmental, and societal impacts were all on the minds of people who filled McKenzie Fire & Rescue’s Leaburg Training Center last Tuesday. During an hour and a half of audience questions, the Eugene Water & Electric Board’s commissioners and staff heard from local residents worried about the fate of Leaburg Lake and its dam and powerhouse. Two outcomes are up for review. The first would involve ways to bring the project back online to generate electricity. The second option...
McKenzie Valley Wellness (MVW) has canceled the upcoming annual membership meeting that was planned for Tuesday, May 3rd. MVW president Vall Rapp said, "the board has learned of some important concerns about past donations that never reached us, and people who wanted to be members never getting on the membership roster. There has been some confusion around the correct mailing address and name for our nonprofit. We need to make certain that people who want to be members are included." McKenzie Valley Wellness will reschedule the annual...
RAINBOW: Interest in a new clinic should help boost participation in this year’s election of board members for McKenzie Valley Wellness (MVW). Part of that interest relates to plans for a $1.8 million grant the local nonprofit has received to replace a building that burned in 2020. Four incumbents are on the ballot: Jane Wilson, Val Rapp, Kelly Shaw, and Josh Cloke. Two people have announced they’re running as write-in candidates. Tony Casad is asking people to vote for him for Position 3, cur...
PORTLAND: Despite substantial help from recent rain and snow events, Army water managers are bracing for another challenging year as they work to refill 13 Willamette Valley reservoirs for the upcoming conservation season. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) officials report the system is 53% full, which is 33% below the rule curve, as of April 21. “Extended drought conditions, variability of snowpack in the Cascades, and modified dam operations to support downstream passage of juvenile salmon are impacting refill of the system,” said Eri...
FINN ROCK: "It was a super cool experience," was the way McKenzie High junior Anna Reidmann reacted after seeing the Manzanita sculpture and the student artists who delivered it. "That branch represents standing through the fire - just keeping on. We lost a lot and they had similar stuff going on." Phoenix-Talent School District Superintendent Brent Barry said the idea developed from a realization that their area wasn't alone in being impacted by the wildfires of 2020. "We lost 2,400 homes and...
MCKENZIE BRIDGE: Over two inches of rain was recorded at the weather station at Cougar Dam last week, and residents of the far eastern sections of the McKenzie Valley report they encountered measurable snow on a daily basis. Besides being unusual, those conditions were also challenging to some motorists. Three motor vehicle accidents were reported on April 12th, all on the Clear Lake Cutoff. The first occurred around 10:30 a,m. when a caller reported a blue vehicle had gone off the roadway into...
In the early morning hours of January 9, 2018, intense rainfall loosened debris and mud in the Santa Ynez mountains, in Santa Barbara County, that had been torched by the Thomas Fire just months before. The resulting debris flow killed 23 people, injured another 167 and damaged at least 400 homes. UCLA climate scientist Daniel Swain witnessed the aftermath in person. "It gives you a sense of the physical forces involved," he said. "You see cars up in trees and boulders the size of trucks strewn...
LEABURG: The Eugene Water & Electric Board is reviewing four options dealing with the Leaburg Canal - ranging from full decommissioning to complete restoration. Officials say changes are needed on the 1920s era canal because of seepage and internal erosion of the canal levees. EWEB has not generated electricity since 2018. Today the canal barely flows as water from tributary streams is channeled to the McKenzie River. During the entire process, safety has been EWEB's top priority, for both the c...
BLUE RIVER: Candidates for Oregon's governorship and State Senate District 6 were in Blue River recently for a meet and greet with local residents. Both say they would like to avoid partisan issues and help rural communities have a stronger voice. Patrick Starnes, who'd like to become the state's top official, said he was drawn to the idea of "working on the bigger picture, which means the whole state." A Democrat, one of his key issues is campaign finance reform, which he's put into practice...
RAINBOW: People interested in local medical care can learn more when McKenzie Valley Wellness (MVW) holds its 2022 annual meeting next month. From its start in 1977, the McKenzie River Clinic provided primary health care to the upper McKenzie River Valley. But in 2019 the organization's annual report explained that increased administrative costs, computer expenses, and equipment purchases - as well as changes to insurance reimbursements - had resulted in withdrawals of funds from the clinic's...
RAINBOW: Candidates out to challenge political incumbents made their case last week at Takoda’s Restaurant. Seeking a post at the national level is Darin Harbick, who would like to replace Ron Wyden as one of Oregon’s two U.S. Senators. Seeking the Eastern Lane seat on the five-member county board of commissioners, Kyle Blain is facing off against Heather Buch, who has filed for re-election. Harbick, a local resident who owns a number of businesses, would first have to beat six other Rep...
The Willamette National Forest will close part of Forest Service Road 19, also known as Aufderheide Drive for fire recovery and safety mitigation. The closure order went into effect on April 4th and will continue until June 3rd. The work will take place between milepost 54.32 and milepost 56.32 near Cougar Reservoir, and a gate will be installed south of Forest Road 1900-408. Access to several popular recreational day-use sites and campgrounds, including Terwilliger "Cougar" Hot Springs, will...
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11-year-old Blue River man who has been missing for almost five months still remains a mystery. His sister, Stacy Sprenger, says the family hopes that as the weather improves and snow melts people will help look in areas where he could possibly be found. Shane Sprenger's abandoned silver 2009 GMC Sierra was found near U.S. Forest Service Rd. 15 east of Blue River Reservoir last November 4th. Cellphone pings seemed to show Sprenger had been near the reservoir, but his phone had been turned off....
7-year-old Eric Ray Brazil was reported missing to the Springfield Police Department by a friend earlier this month after last being seen on March 14th. Yesterday Lane County Sheriff's deputies responded to a wooded area near the end of Goodpasture Road in Vida after a passerby reported finding Brazil's car unoccupied. Personnel fromLane County Sheriff's Search and Rescue responded and have been searching the area for him. Brazil is described as a Latino male adult approximately 5'11" and...
McKenzie Locals Helping Locals vice president Cliff Richardson recalls that Joel Zeni, Project Manager for Suulutaaq, approached him last year with a novel idea. That proposal focused on what to do with hazard trees that were being removed from private properties. "A lot of those folks that did not want to market their logs, didn't have enough to market," Richardson says, or they didn't have marketable logs. Instead, under the plan, people could donate their resources to one of three...
