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About The nugget. (Sisters, Or.) 1994-current | View Entire Issue (April 11, 2018)
The Nugget Vol. XLI No. 15 P OSTAL CUSTOMER News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon www.NuggetNews.com Sisters weighs in on national politics… Wednesday, April 11, 2018 Wildhaven Preserve may become public land By Jim Cornelius Editor in Chief PHOTO BY JERRY BALDOCK Senator Jeff Merkley held a Town Hall at Sisters High School auditorium on Wednesday, April 4. The Senator addressed issues ranging from gun control to national monuments to the extreme level of partisanship in the nation’s capital, which he likened to a “dysfunctional marriage where you continue to reach out” but nothing ever changes. See story, page 8. City park will feature natural habitat By Sue Stafford Correspondent Sisters’ next park will not contain play equipment or pic- nic tables. It will be a natural- habitat environment, featuring native plants, mountain views and, hopefully, butterflies. At their April 4 meeting, members of the City Parks Advisory Board (CPAB) voted unanimously to approve the development of the newest city park as a restoration garden. The plot will serve as a demonstra- tion garden for native plants and xeric (low-water) landscap- ing, while providing nectar-rich plants to attract pollinators. The park will sit on a half- acre parcel of land adjacent to the Grand Peaks housing devel- opment on Camp Polk Road and the City’s well site in the light- industrial area. The developers dedicated that piece of land to the City to develop. Next to the park will be two private pickle- ball courts for use by residents of Grand Peaks. The park is for the public. Inside... Benches will be installed to encourage sitting and enjoying the mountain view. Its proxim- ity to the new Lodge at Sisters senior living facility makes it a viable walking destination for Lodge residents. In January, Sisters Middle School teacher Susie Werts, nat- uralist Jim Anderson, and author Jean Russell Nave met with the CPAB and made a presentation about the plight of the monarch butterfly, offering suggestions of how the City could help restore vital pollinator habitat and ways to modify some City practices that could improve butterfly and pollinator survival. “Journey’s Flight” is the name of the book created by Nave and Werts’ middle school students following the release of their monarch butterflies, one of which made a record- set- ting migration. The students named the butterfly Journey and are continuing to study the importance of butterflies as pollinators. PRE-SORTED STANDARD ECRWSS U.S. POSTAGE PAID Sisters, OR Permit No. 15 Land that has been a private preserve under the auspices of The Nature Conservancy (TNC) for the past 35 years may become public, to be administered and managed by the Sisters Ranger District. TNC Director of Stewardship Derek Johnson told The Nugget that the organization intends making a donation of the 160-acre preserve in Stevens Canyon north of Sisters to the U.S. Forest Service in order to “move resources into places where they can have more impact.” Johnson said, “We regu- larly assess lands we own and how they can contribute to the goals that we have, the conservation objectives we are trying to achieve.” The property is an in- holding surrounded by lands administered by the Forest Service. Johnson said that TNC has worked with the Forest Service on many conservation projects in the area and, “this just seemed like a natural next step in our partnership.” Sisters District Ranger Ian Reid told The Nugget that “If acquired, the prop- erty would be managed with a conservation empha- sis similar to adjoining public lands that are allo- cated as deer winter range See WILDHAVEN on page 24 Trail runners battle wind in Rumble By Charlie Kanzig Correspondent Sunday April 8 dawned with a tempest brewing. Strong winds from the west combined with sleety rain, causing an instant chill for anyone out in it. But by the time the 16th annual Peterson R i d g e Rumble trail run began, the clouds had parted and the wind died down a bit, eliminating the threat of hypothermia for runners and spectators. “You never know what you are going to get in April in Sisters,” said Race Director Sean Meissner. “It actually turned out much better than the weather forecast, which had called for heavy rain, and we barely had a sprinkle.” This year’s edition of the Rumble included some adjustments to the course for the 40-mile race, while See RUMBLE on page 23 PHOTO BY CHARLIE KANZIG See NEW PARK on page 21 Runners chose between a 20-mile and a 35-mile option on Sisters trails. Letters/Weather ................ 2 Announcements ................12 Bunkhouse Chronicle ........13 Obituaries ........................17 Classifieds ..................26-28 Meetings ........................... 3 Movies & Entertainment ....13 Paw Prints ....................... 14 Crossword ....................... 25 Real Estate .................28-32
