By GARRET JAROS/YachatsNews Oregon’s 2024-24 commercial Dungeness crab season is proving quite successful five months into the season. Fishermen have hauled in 23.8 million pounds of crab so far, accounting for a catch valued at $88.9 million during a season that typically runs from December to August. Crabbers were paid $85 million in 2022-23 […]
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Community News
Central Oregon Coast fire board will survey district residents on possible station, equipment bond
By QUINTON SMITH/YachatsNews WALDPORT – The Central Oregon Coast Fire & Rescue board will soon be asking district residents if they would support a bond ranging from $7 million to $10 million to either remodel its downtown Waldport fire station, buy equipment and build a new Five Rivers sub-station or construct a new station […]
Yachats Ridge supporters again lobby Oregon Parks Commission to purchase, preserve its 1,100 acres
By GARRET JAROS/YachatsNews Proponents of the preservation of Yachats Ridge lobbied the Oregon Parks & Recreation Commission on Wednesday to purchase the 1,100-acre property from two forest landowners. The commission met in Cannon Beach where they held an executive (closed) session to discuss real estate and legal issues before continuing with a public meeting […]
Marine mammal groups remind beachgoers to leave baby seals alone
Harbor seal pupping season has started on the Oregon coast and various animal groups are reminding beachgoers that while the seals are adorable or may appear to be abandoned — do not touch them. The baby seals use time on land to regulate body temperature and rest. However, if a young pup is onshore alone […]
If you build it will ospreys come? After erecting platform Monday, Yachats bird group will find out
By GARRET JAROS/YachatsNews YACHATS – With the foundation laid it’s now a game of wait-and-see whether efforts will work to entice ospreys to make a home in the heart of Yachats. A flock of volunteers gathered on the northern fringe of the wetlands west of city hall Monday to attach an upturned pallet atop […]
News Briefs
Nearly 70 vendors prepare for Waldport Wednesday market’s 2024 opening
WALDPORT — Almost six dozen vendors are lined up for the new season of the Waldport Wednesday Market, opening May 1 for its 2024 season. The market takes place from 10 a.m. through 3 p.m. each Wednesday through Sept. 25 in the parking lot of the Waldport Community Center. Admission is free. Some 70 […]
Waldport woman dies Monday after Highway 101 crash in Newport
NEWPORT – A 74-year-old Waldport woman was killed Monday evening when her car went into the opposite lane of U.S. Highway 101 in the South Beach area of Newport and collided with an oncoming car. Oregon State Police says Heidi Fay Rock of Waldport died after being taken to Samaritan Pacific Communities Hospital following the […]
Lincoln County unemployment rate rises slightly in March
Lincoln County’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate has increased slightly, moving to 4.5 percent in March from a 4.3 percent rate in February, according to the Oregon Employment Department. It was 4.2 percent in January. That’s still less than the county’s unemployment rate of 5.4 percent in March 2023. The employment department said in its monthly […]
Newport council picks former Gresham manager to lead city
By KLCC News NEWPORT — The Newport city council has have chosen former Gresham city manager Nina Vetter as the new city manager. In a unanimous decision Friday, councilors voted to start negotiations with Vetter, who resigned in December after 2½ years as the city manager in Gresham. She previously worked as the city administrative […]
County announces low-income program to help spay and neuter pets
Lincoln County has announced it will use some of its federal relief funds for a spay and neuter service to help counter dog and cat overpopulation that was substantially worsened by the Covid-19 pandemic. The program is for local low-income households that cannot afford spay and neuter services for their pets. County staff will work […]
Lincoln County fair board seeks more members to bolster event
Lincoln County commissioners are seeking applications from people interested in serving on an expanded fair board. The board, which has struggled to attract and retain members, oversees the planning, preparation and production of the Lincoln County Fair and associated events and activities. The current three-member board is seeking additional board members to help build capacity […]
Cascade Head collective offering guided tours of Oregon’s only UNESCO biosphere
By Oregon Coast TODAY While coastal outcroppings like Cascade Head will continue to attract locals and visitors to its sweeping views, there is so much more to be found than ocean views at Oregon’s only UNESCO Biosphere Region. The Cascade Head Biosphere Explorience outings, a series of interactive, 90-minute walking tours, will guide people […]
Graamans picking up the baton to continue performing arts group’s annual Shakespeare camp for kids
“All the world’s a stage, And all the men and women merely players; They have their exits and their entrances, And one man in his time plays many parts, His acts being seven ages.” — William Shakespeare, “As You Like It.” By Oregon Coast TODAY Shakespeare’s seven ages had a more lifelong […]
5 Questions and a Secret: Sherri Seaman and Joyce Adams lead Waldport church’s Saturday food program
By KATHLEEN O’CONNOR/YachatsNews Many residents of the central Oregon coast are committed to helping their neighbors and their communities in many arenas -- food, lodging, clothing, … [Read More...] about 5 Questions and a Secret: Sherri Seaman and Joyce Adams lead Waldport church’s Saturday food program
The Condor — a “little underdog of a boat” — finally met its Yaquina Bay demise in 1912
Mariners and historians estimate there have been more than 3,000 shipwrecks along the Oregon coast and in its bays and harbors. The most infamous might be the New Carissa, which ran aground … [Read More...] about The Condor — a “little underdog of a boat” — finally met its Yaquina Bay demise in 1912
Letters from Readers
Benfield can end chaos, dissension in district attorney’s office
To the editor: Newport native Kathryn Benfield should be the voters’ overwhelming choice for Lincoln County District Attorney in the May election. With more than 35 years experience in practice, Benfield has handled both civil and criminal matters and regularly appears before juries. She has compassion and common sense. She has discernment and discretion. She […]
Former colleague supports Benfield for Lincoln County DA
To the editor: I had the distinct pleasure of working for Kathryn Benfield at her law office in Newport, and it was one of the most impactful experiences of my professional career. I first met Benfield in the courtroom, while working for the Lincoln County Circuit Court Judge Paulette Sanders. There I witnessed first-hand Benfield’s […]
Yachats council should raise concerns about Starker forest spraying
To the editor: I am a retired teacher and elementary school principal and I think that if every economic and political decision were made with kids in mind, we’d be living in a better world. I encourage Yachats citizens to be individually and collectively assertive when it comes to preventing further destruction of watersheds in […]
15neighborhoods group supports Hall in commissioner race
To the editor: 15neighborhoods is full-on behind Claire Hall for re-election to Position 2 on the Lincoln County board of commissioners. Read her statement on short-term rentals at https://www.voteclairehall.com/short-term-rentals Yes, Hall voted to license short-term rentals throughout unincorporated Lincoln County, including residential zones in 2016 but advocated a one-year review by the sheriff’s business licensing office […]
Oregon News
OPB may partner with California online news organization to begin operating in Eugene area
By AUSTIN FULLER/The Current A new online news source hopes to to improve local coverage in the Eugene area with a boost from Oregon Public Broadcasting. Oregon Public Broadcasting chief executive officer Steve Bass said he is in “deep collaboration” on the Lookout Eugene-Springfield digital news site with public-benefit, for-profit company Lookout Local and its […]
Southern Oregon activists claim victory after BLM changes road plans in logging area
By JUSTIN HIGGENBOTTOM/Jefferson Public Radio A logging company has canceled a proposed road within a Bureau of Land Management project in Josephine County which activists claimed threatened old-growth trees. Protesters had been staying at the location of a proposed road within the BLM’s Salmon Run timber sale, which they claim threatened old-growth trees, for the […]
Oregonians have until April 30 to register to vote or change party affiliation
Oregonians have about two weeks left to register to vote or change their party affiliation before the May 21 primary. Only registered Republicans or Democrats will be able to vote in most primary elections, including picking nominees for Congress, secretary of state, treasurer, attorney general and legislative districts. Voters have until April 30 to register […]
U.S. Supreme Court justices appear to lean toward city of Grants Pass in complex homelessness case
Homeless rights activists hold a rally outside of the U.S. Supreme Court on Monday in Washington, D.C. The Supreme Court heard oral arguments in City of Grants Pass, Oregon v. Johnson and Smith v. Spizzirri, a dispute over the constitutionality of ordinances that bar people who are homeless from camping on city streets. (Kevin […]
New York legislators approve tax breaks to hire local journalists, a national first
By JOSEPH SPECTOR/Politico ALBANY, New York — The decades long struggle of local media is getting a lifeline in New York. The state budget, set to be finalized Saturday, includes the nation’s first payroll tax credit for local news organizations in a bid to encourage new hiring amid the ongoing struggles of journalism outlets to cover their […]
Oregon GOP woman legislators blast OSAA policy allowing transgender female athletes to compete as girls
By LYNNE TERRY/Oregon Capital Chronicle All 12 women Republican lawmakers in the Oregon Legislature are calling on the head of the Oregon School Activities Association to change its policy allowing transgender girls to compete as females in school sports. The 2016 policy, which allows students to compete in the category of their “consistently asserted gender […]
Oregon’s Department of Environmental Quality is significantly understaffed and underfunded, state auditors find
By ALEX BAUMHARDT/Oregon Capital Chronicle SALEM — Oregon’s environmental regulatory agency needs more staff and funding to keep up with growing demand for its services as climate change escalates, according to a new state analysis. Auditors from the Oregon Secretary of State’s Office, who published their findings Wednesday, said Oregon’s Department of Environmental Quality is understaffed and […]
Oregon’s annual wolf report says population steadied at 178 animals due in part to killings
By ALEX BAUMHARDT/Oregon Capital Chronicle Oregon’s gray wolf population did not increase last year due in part to a large number of wolves killed by people, causing concern among conservationists and Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife officials. The latest Annual Wolf Report found the population remained steady at 178 wolves, marking the first time in eight […]