MAY IS WILDFIRE AWARENESS MONTH!

Living with wildfire means every person needs to take personal responsibility and actions to protect their home from the threat of wildfire.

Did you know at least 50% of home ignitions from wildfire are caused by burning embers?

Bend Fire & Rescue’s “Own Your Zone” campaign helps provide easy tips to protect your home! In last month’s Bend Current we highlighted Zone 1 with five things to do within five feet of your home.

So, here’s a reminder about Zone 2, the space from five feet to 30 feet around your home.

Here are three things you can do within 30 feet:

• Prune limbs and trees.
• Cut dead grass and weeds.
• Remove vegetation under trees.

Learn more at ownyourzonebend.org

Make sure to catch Fire Chief Todd Riley on this month’s episode of Inside Bend!

He explains what Bend Fire & Rescue is doing to help mitigate the risk of wildfire and explains how everyone can do their part to help protect our community. 

You can listen at bendoregon.gov/inside-bend or on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts or Spotify!

FIREWORKS REMINDER

With summer right around the corner, we want to remind you that the use and sale of fireworks are prohibited in Bend. This permanent prohibition on the sale and use of fireworks in Bend is new as of 2021. There is an exception for certain permitted public displays such as the annual show at Pilot Butte. 

The City is asking for the community’s support in keeping Bend safe by complying with the ban on fireworks.  

Violations are subject to a maximum $750 fine and anyone whose fireworks causes property damage or injury could be subject to criminal or civil penalties.

CITY COUNCIL UPDATE

Council Returns to In-person Meetings

It was great to see you! In case you missed it, for the first time since COVID-19 shut down public gatherings, the City Council welcomed the public – in-person – to its May 4 meeting.

In-person City Council meetings will continue in a hybrid format with a virtual option.  

Watch bendoregon.gov/councilagenda for meeting information.

Council Vacancies

Councilors declared two Council vacancies at their May 18 meeting, triggering a selection process that is open to community members interested in being appointed to the Bend City Council for the remainder of this year. In separate announcements, Mayor Sally Russell and Councilor Rita Schenkelberg publicized that they both were resigning and that the May 18 Council meeting would be their final meeting.

During the May 18 meeting, Councilors appointed Mayor Pro-Tem Gena Goodman-Campbell as the new Mayor. Goodman-Campbell will complete Russell’s Mayoral term which expires at the end of 2022.

The move into the seat of Mayor created one vacancy for Goodman-Campbell’s seat, which also expires in 2022. The other vacancy is for Schenkelberg’s seat. 

Both appointees will serve on the Council for the rest of 2022. Both Council positions will be on the ballot for the general election in November, at which time both seats need to be filled by election. The appointees will serve on the Council until the newly elected Councilors take office on January 4, 2023.

The person elected by voters into Schenkelberg’s seat will serve out the remaining two years of Schenkelberg’s term instead of a typical four-year term.

Community members interested in being appointed can apply at bendoregon.gov/council-application between May 19 and June 1. Appointees must be registered to vote in Oregon and must have resided in the City continuously during the twelve months immediately preceding the appointment.

Read the press release about vacancies.

Houselessness Update

Councilors made the first of two votes needed to approve development code changes that would provide options for various types of shelters to be built in most zoning districts in Bend.

Shelters can provide a bridge for houseless community members until they can get into more stable or permanent housing. Shelters are part of the City Council’s comprehensive strategy to provide safe housing options for people.

Here are Councilor Megan Perkins comments summarizing the shelter code update, prior to the vote: Bend City Council Update 5/18/22. Or watch the update from Councilor Megan Perkins.

Here is the Bend City Council Houselessness Update 5/4/22 which focuses on the City’s purchase of the Rainbow Motel and the commitment to revitalizing the Core Area of Bend.

State of the City

If you missed the State of the City event earlier this week, no need to worry!

We have a great video that dives into some of the topics discussed at the event including housing, transportation and the Core Area development.

Watch the State of the City video.

LET’S PULL TOGETHER

Join us for the return of Let’s Pull Together after a two-year hiatus due to the pandemic!

On Saturday, May 21, from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m., the City of Bend, local partners and dedicated volunteers will join together for an annual community effort to clean up debris, remove non-native invasive plants from locations all over Bend and plant native pollinators.

Let’s Pull Together is a family-friendly event for adults and children of all ages and for all physical ability levels.

We invite you to learn more about this year’s event and how to sign up to volunteer at letspulltogether.org.

SIGN GUIDELINES

With signs for yard sales, elections and other springtime events popping up, we wanted to make sure you know where you can post temporary signs.  

The City of Bend has a Sign Code that regulates signs that are visible from the street. It helps protect the safety and cleanliness of our community. 

The main points:

• Don’t put signs on existing traffic signs, utility poles, mailboxes or other locations in the public right-of-way. If people put signs in the right-of-way, they may block traffic control signs like stop signs, yield signs, and speed limit signs. They could also block the view of people walking or biking and make medians or sidewalks hard to see.
• Install signs firmly in the ground or on a fence on private property. This helps prevent temporary signs from blowing away and becoming litter. It also keeps the public right-of-ways open and accessible for safety. 

Learn more about the City of Bend Sign Code.

BIKE SAFETY MONTH

May is bike safety month! And with nicer weather, more people are outside riding bikes.  

People who ride bikes and people who drive cars need to share our roadways by obeying the traffic laws, respecting each other’s rights, and being courteous to all people using the roads. We are all people getting to the places we want to go. 

In Oregon traffic law, bicycles are considered “vehicles” and need to abide by the same rules as a vehicle would. However, there is one newer law that came into effect January 2020 that is different. Under the law, people on bicycles can roll through stop sign intersections if they slow the bicycle to a safe speed. People on bicycles can also make a right or left turn into a two-way street or make a turn into a one-way street in the direction of traffic without stopping first. This law also applies to red flashing light intersections. It does not apply to intersections controlled by traffic lights. 

Oregon law requires anyone under 16 riding a bicycle or being carried on a bicycle to wear approved protective headgear. The parent or person with legal responsibility for the safety and welfare of a child is held responsible. Take the Oregon Friendly Driver online course today to learn more about the safest way to use the roads around people biking, people walking, and people driving.  

People on bikes are subject to the same rights and responsibilities as people driving cars when on the road, and they can be expected to use the same infrastructure.  

Tips for vehicle drivers:

• Open your car door with the hand that is farthest away from the door. This will prompt you to turn more and see anyone riding alongside you, to avoid hitting a person on a bike with your door.
• Where speeds are more than 35 miles per hour, you may only pass a person riding a bicycle traveling in your lane when it is safe to do so and if you leave enough distance to prevent contact with the person riding a bicycle if they were to fall. 
• The faster you drive the more likely you are to kill a person on a bike. If there is a crash:
  • 20 MPH = 10% chance of death.
  • 30 MPH = 40% chance of death.
  • 40 MPH = 80% chance of death. 

Tips for people on bicycles:

• Ride a bike that fits you. If it’s too big, it’s harder to control the bike. 
• Ride a bike that works. It really doesn’t matter how well you ride if the brakes don’t work. 
• Wear equipment to protect you and make you more visible to others, like a bike helmet, bright clothing (during the day), reflective gear, and a white front light and red rear light and reflectors on your bike (at night, or when visibility is poor). 
• Ride one person per seat, with both hands on the handlebars, unless signaling a turn.
• Carry all items in a backpack or strapped to the back of the bike. 
• Tuck and tie your shoe laces and pant legs so they don’t get caught in your bike chain.

Plan your route. If you’re driving as a vehicle on the road, choose routes with less traffic and slower speeds. Your safest route may be away from traffic altogether, in a bike lane, on a bike path or along a greenway.