2
Wednesday, July 29, 2015 The Nugget Newspaper, Sisters, Oregon
O
P
I N I O
N
Discernment
and thanks
By Bruce rognlien
Guest Columnist
Letters to the Editor…
The Nugget welcomes contributions from its readers, which must include the writer’s name, address and phone number. Let-
ters to the Editor is an open forum for the community and contains unsolicited opinions not necessarily shared by the Editor.
The Nugget reserves the right to edit, omit, respond or ask for a response to letters submitted to the Editor. Letters should be
no longer than 300 words. Unpublished items are not acknowledged or returned. The deadline for all letters is noon Monday.
To the Editor:
Recently local TV Channel 11 re-aired
their coverage of the May 2015 meeting of
the Bend City Club. A standing-room-only
crowd of citizens heard a panel of wildland
fire experts and local land managers discuss
the role of planning in protecting our forest
residential communities from forest fires
The primary presenter was a resource
economist with a background in forestry and
wildlife. He discussed results of collaborative
efforts of a group in Summit County, Colorado,
west of Denver, incorporating planning as a
tool to alleviate fire susceptibility of new and
existing forest residential communities. As in
Deschutes County, new housing areas are rap-
idly being planned and built in dry pine forests
that are prone to disastrous fires.
After examining many of these communi-
ties, several common problems were found,
which have led to recommendations that can
be applied here as well as there. First: areas
of young, closely growing trees/thickets are
often maintained for privacy and need to be
thinned for safety. I do not know what spac-
ings of trees local foresters now recommend;
however, during my long career in forest ecol-
ogy research, pine-thinning studies conducted
in eastern Oregon and Washington determined
that trees spaced 20 to 30 feet apart, on the
average, maintain a healthy, fast-growing for-
est while reducing the danger of rapidly mov-
ing fire.
When the crowns are not allowed to inter-
mingle, the result is an effective shaded
fuel-break.
Second: enclosed communities should have
at least two usable exits bordered by shaded
fuel-breaks. I expect it would be very danger-
ous to try to leave Tollgate by the one paved
exit to Highway 20 while a fast-moving fire
roared through the dog-hair thickets less than
100 yards away. It might not be possible to get
out the locked, gated fire exits at a moment’s
notice.
Third: forest residential communities are
safer if encircled by a widely shaded fuel-
break, that includes a hard surface path. In the
communities they studied, the path served not
only for recreation, but as a critical fire-break
See leTTerS on page 19
Sisters Weather Forecast
Courtesy of the National Weather Service, Pendleton, Oregon
Wednesday
Thursday
Friday
Saturday
Sunday
monday
Sunny
Sunny
Sunny
Mostly sunny
Mostly sunny
Mostly sunny
91/49
94/54
92/53
92/54
91/54
90/na
The Nugget Newspaper, Inc.
Website: www.nuggetnews.com
442 E. Main Ave., P.O. Box 698, Sisters, Oregon 97759
Tel: 541-549-9941 | Fax: 541-549-9940 | editor@nuggetnews.com
Postmaster: Send address changes to
The Nugget Newspaper,
P.O. Box 698, Sisters, OR 97759.
Third Class Postage Paid at Sisters, Oregon.
Publisher - Editor: Kiki Dolson
News Editor: Jim Cornelius
Production Manager: Leith Williver
Classifieds & Circulation: Teresa Mahnken
Advertising: Lisa Buckley
Graphic Design: Jess Draper
Proofreader: Pete Rathbun
Accounting: Erin Bordonaro
The Nugget is mailed to residents within the Sisters School District; subscriptions are available outside delivery area.
Third-class postage: one year, $40; six months (or less), $25. First-class postage: one year, $85; six months, $55.
Published Weekly. ©2014 The Nugget Newspaper, Inc. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without written permission is prohibited. All advertising which
appears in The Nugget is the property of The Nugget and may not be used without explicit permission. The Nugget Newspaper, Inc. assumes no liability or responsibility for
information contained in advertisements, articles, stories, lists, calendar etc. within this publication. All submissions to The Nugget Newspaper will be treated as uncondition-
ally assigned for publication and copyrighting purposes and subject to The Nugget Newspaper’s unrestricted right to edit and comment editorially, that all rights are currently
available, and that the material in no way infringes upon the rights of any person. The publisher assumes no responsibility for return or safety of artwork, photos, or manuscripts.
Discernment: the ability
to judge well.
Thanks: an expression
of gratitude.
We all need to be ques-
tioning what we read in The
Nugget and The Bulletin.
Is it factual? Does it make
sense? Do I agree or dis-
agree with the writer or
article?
For example, in the
July 1 Nugget Letter to the
Editor,” a visitor, Mr. Chris
Schaffner (Tangent, OR),
says regarding the trail
system: “so the proposed
path would benefit the
same ‘wouldn’t it be great
minority’ (my italics) at the
expense of all of you.”
According to what I
have read in The Nugget,
Black Butte Ranch (twice)
has voted in favor of the
trail and Tollgate took a
survey and two-thirds of
those responding were
in favor (183). So, if the
majority has voted for the
trail, why and where does
the writer get away with
saying the minority want
the path, while the majority
does not?
Additionally, Steven
Madsen writes in The
Nugget (July 8) that only
41.5 percent (183) of 440
Tollgate homeowners sur-
veyed were in favor of the
trail. Another source says
67 percent were in favor,
183 out of 275 respon-
dents... I have no idea what
the actual numbers were,
but I would discern that 100
percent of the homeowners
(440) wouldn’t reply to any
survey.
Another example, is one
of Mike Morgan’s quotes
in The Bulletin on July 7
(“Sisters councilor resigns
after less than a month”).
He is quoted saying, “But
there have been pretty seri-
ous missteps over there”
(i.e. City Hall)...and also
notes, “City Hall’s focus on
‘big projects’ over day-to-
day operations.” Ok, spe-
cifically, what day-to-day
operations are deficient?
The city never looked bet-
ter. I’m told by several
merchants that business is
strong. The city’s recent
survey of businesses con-
firms that they are very sat-
isfied with the city’s work.
I understand the budget
is balanced, no phantom
employees are on the pay-
roll, that I have heard of or
read about... So, what are
the specific problems?
And what should we
consider serious? A one-
man hot dog stand at the
corner of Boyd’s bike shop
property, plus three other
one-person food stands (i.e.
“food cart controversy”)?
Every merchant in town
that can figure out how to
add food services is doing
so. That includes art gal-
leries, the coffee company,
two bike shops, an in-
town market and a cloth-
ing store — and good for
them!
The article in The
Bulletin of July 7 also
paints Sisters as a “prob-
lem city” that “no one will
touch with a 10-foot pole.”
I disagree! I think we have
a wonderful community
and I want to thank the staff
at City Hall and the city
counselors for their work
on behalf of all of us.
In my opinion, the
city employees do a great
job for us. Lets start with
Kathy Nelson, the “guard-
ian” of city hall. Every
good organization I have
ever known has someone
like Kathy; they care, they
own the joint. Thank you,
Kathy. Paul Bertagna, pub-
lic works director, treats the
city property like it’s his
backyard. The city never
looked better. Thanks, Paul.
Andrew Gorayab does a
great job as city manager
and “gets things done.”
Carol Jenkins in planning,
with her great smile, has
been with the city since
there was a city (seems to
me). Finally, the reception-
ists are always friendly and
helpful.
Thanks to all of you
for your hard work and
dedication.
Things can always
improve. We all need to
advocate for our commu-
nity while always doing
our individual part to make
it better, not tear it down.
Opinions expressed in this column are solely those of the writer and
are not necessarily shared by the Editor or The Nugget Newspaper.