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A small-town mayor in Oregon found a horrific display at the door of his law office earlier this week: a racist message, taped over the corpse of a raccoon. Ed Fitch, the mayor of Redmond, discovered the twisted tableau on Monday morning, according to The Washington Post. While the exact contents of the threatening letter remain under wraps, local police said it named both Fitch and Clifford Evelyn, the town’s first-ever Black councilman, and they’re investigating it as a potential hate crime. A tourist hub nestled in the shadow of the Cascade Mountains, Redmond, population 36,000, is overwhelmingly white. Evelyn, who became a councilman in 2020, said he has experienced harassment from residents before. “It’s not unexpected for me,” he told The Washington Post.Read it at The Washington Post

Nurses at St. Charles Medical Center in Bend have reached a tentative agreement with the hospital for what the nurses union calls “historic wage increases.” The move ends the threat of a strike that was set to begin Monday morning. St. Charles confirmed it’s a 3 1/2-year contract....

Firefighters and law enforcement responded to a fuel pump fire at Bend Municipal Airport Thursday afternoon. The fire was reported at 1:40 p.m. The Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office initially asked people to evacuate to at least one mile away. That evacuation request has since been lifted. Powell Butte Highway...

As the weather warms, Central Oregon anglers are hitting the lakes and rivers! Send your great catch pics to us from the Share tab at KTVZ.COM!. KTVZ NewsChannel 21 is committed to providing a forum for civil and constructive conversation. Please keep your comments respectful and relevant. You can review...

The Crook County School District hosted a breakfast for this year’s graduating class Thursday morning. The Club Pioneer in Prineville has been hosting the breakfast for high school seniors since 2014. Proprietor Jim Roths says he does it to reward the students for their hard work. “These students, many...

Deschutes County sheriff’s deputies advised the public Wednesday afternoon to avoid the area of Phil’s Trailhead west of Bend due to a “heavy law enforcement presence” and urged anyone in the area already to leave. The post Public urged to avoid, leave Phil’s Trailhead area west of Bend amid ‘heavy law enforcement presence’ appeared first on KTVZ.

Crook County School District Superintendent Dr. Sara Johnson plans to leave her post by July 6. She says it’s because of three newly elected school board members, known as “The Mama Bears,” who she says do not share her vision for leadership of the district. Doug Smith...

Enjoy this week's wonderful pictures of Central Oregon! Send us yours for next week from the Share tab at KTVZ.COM!. KTVZ NewsChannel 21 is committed to providing a forum for civil and constructive conversation. Please keep your comments respectful and relevant. You can review our Community Guidelines by clicking here.

Ask the average person in Central Oregon what the most pressing issues we face here are, and chances are that they'll include housing and homelessness in their answers. With staggering rent increases and plenty of inflation, the number of people who don't have a proper place to live is skyrocketing. It's a problem so great that in 2022, state legislators took action by creating a pilot program aimed at helping local governments collaborate and pool resources on the issue. In Deschutes County, that program is called the Coordinated Houseless Response Office, one of eight such offices created under Rep. Jason Kropf's House Bill 4123.

Some of the proposed fee increases, in the planning and building departments, touch double digits. Liam Gibler breaks them down. The post City fee increases proposed in Bend appeared first on KTVZ.

The Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office (DCSO) is asking for the public’s help to find someone who burglarized Ferguson’s Market in Terrebonne over the weekend. DCSO said deputies responded to an alarm on Sunday at 10:50 p.m. from the market. Investigators determined a male suspect entered through a window, tried to steal alcohol, cigarettes and food. The suspect ran away when deputies arrived and was able to avoid being captured.

A former FBI agent who was arrested in Oregon for allegedly participating in the Jan. 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol has pleaded not guilty to six charges, including assaulting, resisting or impeding a police officer.

It's time for the annual "Biggest Little Show on Earth," the Sisters Rodeo! Carly Keenan has the details. KTVZ NewsChannel 21 is committed to providing a forum for civil and constructive conversation. Please keep your comments respectful and relevant. You can review our Community Guidelines by clicking here. If you...

A two-story structure a homeless man recently built on wheels along a busy northeast Bend street, drawing scrutiny and criticism, was dismantled by city and contracted crews on Tuesday for various code violations, city officials said. The post City of Bend dismantles, removes two-story structure homeless man built on NE Mary Rose Place appeared first on KTVZ.

Prineville will soon transition to a full-blown rodeo town as Crooked River Roundup Week takes over the community beginning June 21. Local events with a cowboy flair will launch on Wednesday and residents and visitors alike can soak up the festive atmosphere through Saturday thanks to a variety of entertaining and iconic activities. The fun starts Wednesday with rodeo slack at the Crook County Fairgrounds’ outdoor arena. Slack, which begins...

There still might be at least a few long-time Bend residents who can remember when you could buy a pretty decent home in town for $76,000. The post Bend’s median home sales price jumped $76,000 — in May (yes, in a single month), report shows appeared first on KTVZ.

The Bend North Little League Softball Jamboree is back for another year at Pine Nursery Park, starting Friday. This edition involves more than 200 girls ages 5 to 14 from around the area. League president Dominic Gatto says this year’s competition will provide a “high-level atmosphere” for players....

BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) -- Deschutes County Commissioners held a meeting at the county department building in Bend Wednesday, and heard from Sheriff Shane Nelson about why he's looking to change ordinances in camping codes in the county. The meeting at times got hectic, as the audience cheered in the sheriff's favor after a couple of The post Deschutes County Commissioners hear county ordinance camping code change from Sheriff Shane Nelson appeared first on KTVZ.

The Venardos Circus and its "Let's Build a Dream" tour has again made its way to Redmond for a nine-day run at the Deschutes County Fairgrounds. The post Venardos Circus rolls back into Redmond for 9 days of ‘Let’s Build a Dream’ shows under a new, larger tent appeared first on KTVZ.

GOOD FRIDAY MORNING, EVERYONE... We'll continue our cooling trend to end the work week. Some of us may not reach 70 degrees, even in the warmest parts of the day. Those of us who do will see temperatures in the low 70s. As we warm up, we'll pick up a 20-40% chance of some more scattered rain showers until we cool off into the evening. Despite the possible rain, we're not likely to see any thunderstorm activity. Winds look to stay mild out of the northwest between 5-10 mph. We'll see mostly cloudy skies throughout the day.