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About The Bulletin. (Bend, OR) 1963-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 18, 2021)
THURSDAY • February 18, 2021 Serving Central Oregon since 1903 • $3 TEACHABLE MOMENTS: SHOWS HOW LEARNING ENVIRONMENTS HAVE SHIFTED IN A PANDEMIC SPORTS PULLOUT, A5-8 Local police slowly add body cams BY GARRETT ANDREWS The Bulletin Around a half-dozen Bend police officers are wearing body cameras as the depart- ment nears the end of a pilot program testing various prod- uct models. The Bend Police Depart- ment will know in a few weeks whether it will move forward quickly with a vendor and start spending the more than $400,000 budget allotment the City Council set aside for add- ing body cams, a move popular with police groups and reform- ers alike. Bend, often described as a progressive leader in small- town policing, has been be- hind the curve in equipping its more than 100 officers with body cameras, which are in use at more than 10,000 agencies nationwide. Nearby Redmond Police Department has used the technology for five years. “I’m really excited,” said Bend Police Capt. Jason Man- iscalco, project manager of the body camera project. “We’ve been trying to do this for a long time.” Maniscalco said every offi- cer and patrol vehicle will soon be outfitted with a camera, but he couldn’t provide a specific timeline for when. “We really don’t know,” he said. “It really comes down to availability of equipment, availability of staff from the vendor we chose, and also some internal IT equipment needs to be updated before we go live.” See Body cams / A4 Dean Guernsey/The Bulletin Bend Police officer Karin Porter activates a body cam Wednesday. Lawsuit holds fate of sick trees at Walton Lake (again) School garden program takes root in Central Oregon BY MICHAEL KOHN The Bulletin A plan by the U.S. Forest Ser- vice to remove trees areas around Walton Lake due to laminated root rot is being challenged in court by the nonprofit Blue Mountains Biodiversity Project. At stake is the future of hundreds of trees that form the scenic backdrop for the popular lake. The infected trees around Walton Lake, and what to do with them, have drawn consider- able controversy in recent years. The Forest Service says it intends to remove weakened trees that pose a threat to the public. Environmentalists argue that the tree disease is natu- ral, the threat can be managed safely and cutting them down would destroy the scenic ambi- ance of the lake. See Trees / A4 CAPITOL ROUNDUP Amy Anderson, dean of students at Realms Middle School in Bend, places a handful of debris into a compost pile at the school’s garden on Wednesday. Delays have legislation, redistricting up against deadlines Ryan Brennecke/Bulletin photos Environmental Center program is an outdoor learning option for teachers BY KYLE SPURR The Bulletin Last spring, the future of a gar- den education program in Cen- tral Oregon was in question when schools shut down due to the COVID-19 pandemic. But as students started return- ing to classes in the fall, the garden program became an attractive op- tion for teachers who wanted to offer outdoor learning. Interest has continued to grow this year in the program, which is run by The En- vironmental Center, a sustainabil- ity organization in Bend. The organization recently awarded about $15,000, divided among 13 local schools, to fund educational gardens and outdoor classroom spaces in the spring. Realms Middle School in Bend received about $1,000 for its school garden. The middle school will be BY GARY A. WARNER Oregon Capital Bureau After a double-dose of win- ter storms across the Wil- lamette Valley knocked out power to hundreds of thou- sands from Portland to Salem, state government is trying to thaw out a few hot issues. Redistricting delay Oregon should know by April 30 if it will be adding a sixth congressional seat for the 2022 election. Census officials have unofficially said Oregon’s population growth has been enough to ensure the state’s first new seat in 40 years. The new added representa- tion in Congress would be a rare piece of good news in an otherwise disastrous rollout of U.S. Census information needed for reapportionment. Anderson pulls a tarp back to check on the progress of a cob oven. able to build an outdoor oven to keep students warm and a native plant garden on its 3-acre campus. Amy Anderson, Realms’ dean of students who oversees the school’s garden, said the program is not just an extra activity for students, but rather a critical part of the school’s curriculum. “We consider time in the garden a complement to the classroom,” An- derson said. “They are reading about food and they are growing food.” See Garden / A4 TODAY’S WEATHER Rain and drizzle High 45, Low 34 Page A12 INDEX Business Classifieds Comics A11-12 A14 A9-10 Dear Abby Editorial Events A7 A8 GO! Horoscope Local/State Lottery A7 A2-3 A6 Obituaries Puzzles Sports A4 A10 A5-7 The Bulletin ù An Independent Newspaper We use recycled newsprint Vol. 119, No. 42, 14 pages, 1 section SUN/THU See Delays / A13 U|xaIICGHy02330rzu