A special good morning to subscriber Richard Eberhard
Tuesday, October 4, 2022 • Redmond, Oregon • $1
redmondspokesman.com
REDMOND MAYOR’S RACE
Candidates
discuss
issues in
local forum
@RedmondSpox
HOMELESSNESS | SEARCHING FOR SOLUTIONS
Safe Parking Program
proposes new location
BY NICK ROSENBERGER AND NICOLE ROGERS • Redmond Spokesman
BY NICK ROSENBERGER
Redmond Spokesman
Mayoral candidates faced off Sept. 27 in a fo-
rum hosted by the Redmond Rotary, Kiwanis and
Executive Association at the Senior Center.
The event saw candidates discuss a variety of
topics and their stances on the role of the mayor,
homelessness, school safety and more. Redmond
Spokesman editor Tim Trainor moderated the dis-
cussion.
The four candidates — Charles Baer, Ed Fitch,
Jay Patrick and Ben Schimmoller — each touted
their experience as a selling point for why they
should be picked for the job. Fitch and Patrick
both highlighted their decades of involvement in
Redmond city government, while Schimmoller
focused on his experience in the Oregon State
Legislature working for Senator Tim Knopp (R-
27).
The composition of Redmond city council will
change in November with five city council can-
didates running for three open seats. None of the
council candidates going for the job have been
elected to public office before. Current city coun-
cilor and candidate Cat Zwicker was appointed to
her position after councilor Jon Bullock resigned
in November 2021.
The mayor, in turn, will help steer the ship now
populated by many newcomers.
Fitch, who is an attorney, spoke about the legal
learning curve required of city councilors and the
need to get out of the chute once the new council
takes their seats.
“We have to have a better process for setting
our goals,” Fitch said. “Because we have not in-
volved the community before in setting our city
goals.”
M
ountain View Community Development has found a new location for the expansion of the Redmond Safe
Parking Program: SE 7th Street and SE Evergreen Avenue, in the east side of the city.
The new site, which is cur-
rently owned by the county,
would set aside a place for people
struggling with homelessness to
sleep overnight in their vehicles.
The plan is to use the site for a
three-month trial period, then
evaluate its progress.
Rick Russell, pastor of Moun-
tain View Fellowship Church,
said the 90 days would be a trial
period to make sure the program
works well for participants, the
county and the surrounding area.
Mountain View Fellowship
Church hosted an open house
Oct. 3 to discuss the plan with
nearby residents and businesses.
“This seemed like an ideal
piece of property,” said Russell,
organizer of the safe parking pro-
gram.
Unlike the previously pro-
posed Pershall location, which
the city council scrapped after
neighbors complained at an Aug.
“
“This seemed like an ideal piece of property. It’s
a relatively flat piece of property, nothing fancy
about it. It’s a pretty wide open area so it’s not
hidden by trees or anything like that.”
— Rick Russell, pastor of Mountain View Fellowship Church and organizer
of the safe parking program
23 city council meeting, the new
site is located on county land
rather than land owned by the
city.
Additionally, city funds were
mistakenly used to prepare the
Pershall location. Russell said
there will be no city or county
funds used at the new site as
there’s no improvements needed
to host the program.
“It’s a relatively flat piece of
property, nothing fancy about
it,” Russell said. “It’s a pretty wide
open area so it’s not hidden by
trees or anything like that.”
Russell added that they’re
committed to the safety and
cleanliness of the site. He said or-
ganizers would provide portable
toilets, solar panels, garbage ser-
vice and generators to recharge
batteries, if needed. They will
also work with participants to
bring in potable water.
The property is limited to six
vehicles, but Russell said over-
all capacity will depend on how
many people are living in each
vehicle. Most families taking
part in the program are less than
three, he said, and he’s never seen
more than four people in one RV.
Russell and Sierra Hopper, the
program director, said only three
to four vehicles will be allowed at
the new site while it gets off the
ground.
If all goes well, they aim to
have participants sleeping at the
site by early November.
According to Russell, the new
site was on a list of properties the
county had been thinking of sell-
ing at auction. The 1.7 acres have
a real market value of $101,440,
according to Deschutes County.
Much of the blowback from the
prior Pershall location was due to
See Location / A6
See Forum / A6
SPORTS
Rivalry football
Redmond falls to Bend, A8
LOCAL
REDMOND AREA PARKS AND RECREATION BOND
Bond backers rally supporters
Organizers hopeful but not
confident in November vote
BY NICK ROSENBERGER
Redmond Spokesman
Kind, generous
Friends remember crime victim, A3
Supporters of the $49 million
Redmond Area Parks and Rec-
reation bond gathered Saturday,
Oct.1, at the proposed site of the
new recreation center at SW 35th
and Lava in Redmond.
Donuts, a bouncy castle and doz-
ens of pamphlets and yard signs
lined the tables as supporters tried
to drum up support for the uncer-
tain measure.
Matt Gilman, the chairman of
the RAPRD board of directors,
says there has been growing sup-
port across the political aisle —
gaining endorsements from every
Redmond mayoral candidate, city
council candidate and Deschutes
County Commissioner Tony
DeBone.
“There has been a lot of support,
a lot of positive attitudes,” Gilman
said. “There’s a lot of bipartisan sup-
port for this.”
But, despite the impassioned
supporters, there’s no guarantee the
measure will pass. Gilman said he
feels more confident than in 2019,
the last time RAPRD tried to pass a
bond, but he’s still not confident the
nearly $50 million bond and 5-year
levy will pass.
“It’s going to be very close,” he
said. “Six weeks before the election
still and things can change really
quickly. It’s keeping us on our toes.”
While many support the new
WEATHER FORECAST
See Bond / A6
INSIDE
Calendar .......................................................A2
Obituaries ....................................................A6
Coffee Break ............................................. A10
Classifieds ................................................. A12
THIS WEEK’S FORECAST SPONSORED BY
Volume 113, No. 5
USPS 778-040
Jo i n u a s r k a b l e
f o r a g r e e x m p e r i e n c e
dinin
TUESDAY
Sunny
WEDNESDAY
Partly cloudy
THURSDAY
Sunny
FRIDAY
Sunny
SATURDAY
Sunny
SUNDAY
Sunny
MONDAY
Partly cloudy
85/45
83/47
82/46
82/46
80/45
79/44
76/44
The Spokesman uses
recycled newsprint
U|xaIICGHy02326kzU
Wine and Dine as you step back in time...
For reservations call
541.527.4336
646 SW 6th St., Redmond
Wed - Sat 5 to 9 p.m.