4
Wednesday, May 27, 2020 The Nugget Newspaper, Sisters, Oregon
City
of
Sisters
Limited camping returns
COVID-19
VID-19 Situation Report
to state parks June 9
By Cory Misley
Salem 3 The Oregon Parks
and Recreation Department
(OPRD) will offer limited
camping at many state park
campgrounds starting June
9. State park camping closed
statewide March 23 in an
effort to contain the spread of
coronavirus and limit travel,
especially to smaller commu-
nities and rural areas.
A list of which camp-
grounds will open June 9 is
still being finalized. That list
will be published at www.
oregonstateparks.org by the
end of May. Not all parks and
all services will be available.
Most of the campgrounds
opening accept reserva-
tions, but some first-come,
first-served state park camp-
grounds may open as staff
and funding are available.
Those campgrounds that
do open will honor exist-
ing tent and RV reserva-
tions starting June 9, and
will accept new reservations
from one day to two weeks in
advance, instead of the usual
nine months in advance.
Reservations will still be
made through OPRD9s con-
tracted vendor, Reserve
America at https://oregon
stateparks.reserveamerica.
com. RV and tent campers
without reservations will
be welcome at open camp-
grounds as space and staffing
permit.
Reservations for most
yurts and cabins, and group
camping and group day-use,
are still subject to cancella-
tion. Visitors holding those
reservations will be con-
tacted if a cancellation is
required.
Two main forces deter-
mine when a state park
campground can open. Some
communities, such as the
north coast, are not yet ready
for overnight visitors from
outside their area.
A more widespread fac-
tor relates to funding. The
Oregon State Park system is
not funded by taxes, but by
revenue from park visitors,
a small share of the Oregon
Lottery, and a portion of state
recreational vehicle registra-
tions. The revenue needed to
operate state parks has fallen
drastically since March,
meaning one of the most
popular state park systems in
the country is being operated
by about half the usual staff.
With a skeleton crew and
limited means to hire more,
there will be far fewer staff
available to help visitors and
address common problems
such as noise and pets. Trash,
landscaping, and cleaning
services will all be reduced.
Interpretive activities and
ranger programs will be few
and far between, if at all.
Restrooms are expected to be
available at each open park,
but some shower facilities
may be closed. Service, and
whether a park is open or not,
is subject to change depend-
ing on health conditions
around the park, available
staff, protective equipment,
and cleaning supplies.
Visitors can help state
parks stay open:
" Choose a park as close
to home as possible. Don9t
travel if you9re sick.
" Visit with members of
your household.
" Bring everything you
need with you: trash bags,
cleaning supplies, hand sani-
tizer, food, water. Pack out
everything you bring in.
" Be gentle with the trails,
restrooms, showers, benches,
and picnic tables.
" Take it easy on yourself
by enjoying low-key, famil-
iar activities.
" Be a good neighbor.
Keep your pets on a leash,
your site clean, and respect
quiet hours from 10 p.m. to 7
a.m. every day.
" Keep at least six feet
away from people from out-
side your household, and
wear a face covering when
you can9t. Avoid crowds even
if you have a face covering.
" Cover coughs, and wash
your hands regularly.
" Watch the Prepare + Care
Welcome video at https://
youtu.be/IN7qsM08l9k.
" Oregon needs what its
parks can provide,= says
Lisa Sumption, OPRD direc-
tor. <This is less service
than Oregonians are used to,
and we9re doing our best to
stretch the budget, but it will
take continued cooperation
and support from visitors to
make this work.=
City Manager
With Memorial Day
Weekend behind us and
June around the corner,
the City is closely moni-
toring Deschutes County
data of COVID-19 cases
and continuing to research
ways to balance safety and
prosperity.
Most recently, the City
implemented a pilot program
to learn more about the use
of the right-of-way by busi-
nesses to better facilitate
social distancing. This pilot
program was started over
Memorial Day weekend
with a couple of businesses
that had previously inquired
and requested to potentially
use some of the right-of-
way. Specifically, the City
is allowing businesses who
request it to use two to four
parking spaces, creating a
temporary <parklet= adja-
cent to their business subject
to guidelines and restric-
tions, as well as a waiver and
release form.
This pilot program was
established as a temporary
policy by way of administra-
tive order vested through the
emergency declaration. The
flexibility to swiftly adopt
temporary policies has been
crucial over the past couple
of months and as we continue
to transition into reopening
the economy. Eventually
temporary policies imple-
mented through administra-
tive orders will have to be
adopted by the City Council
to extend beyond the emer-
gency declaration.
If we continue through
Phase I and Phase II of re-
opening without any set-
backs, then it would appear
that we could put the emer-
gency declaration behind
us. As a reminder, the state
set their emergency decla-
ration to July 6 and does
not directly relate to the re-
opening of the economy.
The City does not have a set
date for the expiration of the
emergency declaration. The
City9s emergency declaration
has been extended in incre-
ments and will likely con-
tinue to take that approach.
If you are a business
interested in the pilot pro-
gram, please contact the City
to learn more. The City will
be evaluating this pilot pro-
gram over the coming weeks.
At that time, any refinements
will be made as we look to
potentially having these par-
klets available for the rest of
this summer.
Learn more at www.ci.sisters.or.us
OUR DINING ROOM
IS NOW OPEN!
Sun-Thurs 11-9 • Fri-Sat 11-9:30
Menu at SistersSaloon.net
541-549-RIBS | 190 E. Cascade Ave.
Join us online for
Z UMBA Workouts!
Monday &
Thursday, 9 a.m.
Zumba is a cardio class combining dance moves and fitness elements,
with all students working out at their own fitness level and intensity.
Register at www.sistersrecreation.com
SNO CAP
PHOTO BY JIM CORNELIUS
Angeline’s Bakery is one of the sites where the City of Sisters is piloting
the use of City right-of-way (parking spaces) for business use in order
to maintain physical distancing.
MINI STORAGE
Sisters Industrial Park
157 Sisters Park Dr. • 541-549-3575
www.SistersStorage.com
• State-of-the-art
Security Technology
• Sizes from 5x5 to 12x40
• Individual Gate Codes
• Long-term Discounts
• On-site Manager