A6 The BulleTin • Sunday, May 9, 2021
Park & Rec
Continued from A1
Borja sees the biggest chal-
lenge facing the district to be
its response to the ongoing
COVID-19 crisis. He also sees
the rapid pace of growth in
Bend to be a challenge for the
district as it handles more peo-
ple, which creates stress on its
infrastructure.
Borja says he is the most
qualified candidate for the
position because of his lived
experience and professional
background
in outdoor
education
and commu-
nity outreach
— he has
worked with
the park dis-
trict, the Boys
Borja
and Girls
Club of Bend and Bend-La
Pine School District.
“Most importantly I am
qualified because I care and am
invested in making sure this
district’s patrons have access
to green spaces and can fully
access BPRD’s opportunities,”
said Borja.
Robin Vora
Vora, 67, emigrated to the
United States at the age of 13
from Bombay (Mumbai), In-
dia. He spent his career in re-
source man-
agement,
working
with the U.S.
Forest Ser-
vice and the
U.S. Fish and
Wildlife Ser-
Vora
vice.
Vora has
been a forester, ecologist,
wildlife biologist and man-
ager, working in seven states.
Among family members, how-
ever, he is known as the “En-
ergizer Bunny” for his tenacity
and drive, he said.
Vora moved to Oregon in
2002 to take a deputy district
ranger position in Bend. Since
arriving in Bend he has served
on the board of a soil and water
conservation district and the
Orchard Neighborhood Asso-
ciation board. He has volun-
teered with a number of local
organizations including Tower
Theatre, Deschutes Land Trust,
East Cascades Audubon Soci-
ety and others.
Vora says his priority for the
park district is to expand the
network of trails, create new
parks in underserved neigh-
borhoods, increase native veg-
etation in city parks and install
a fish passage through Mirror
Pond dam.
Vora also said COVID-19
has presented challenges due
to lost revenues from canceled
programs. He also thinks
the district is challenged
in providing fair access to
parks and recreation for all
socio-economic groups and
minorities, and wants more
programs and staff to serve
minorities.
The lack of a fish passage
over the Mirror Pond dam
presents another challenge,
said Vora. He wants a fish pas-
sage put in place if the dam is
to be retained. He is, however,
against dredging the pond.
“The public should not pay
for dredging Mirror Pond,”
said Vora. “The pond appears
to be stabilizing, if dredged it
will only fill in again.”
Vora says his work experi-
ence in natural resource sci-
ence management and active
involvement in parks, trails,
and recreation programs qual-
ify him for the job.
“I believe in the broad mis-
sion of the Bend Park & Rec-
reation District, serving all
peoples with a wide range of
priorities,” said Vora. “I hope
to make a significant contri-
bution to the District and my
community.
Position 3
Position 3 is a race between
the incumbent Nathan Hov-
ekamp and newcomer Lauren
Nowierski-Stadnick.
Nathan Hovekamp
Hovekamp, 55, is the current
board chair. He describes him-
self as a “die-hard bird nerd”
and has lived in Bend since
1997. He has
a busy pro-
fessional life,
employed by
Central Or-
egon Land-
Watch as
wildlife pro-
Hovekamp
gram direc-
tor, and by
Central Oregon Community
College as a biology professor.
His goal for the park district
is to maintain its current high
standards of excellence, he
said. The biggest challenge for
the district, Hovekamp said, is
keeping up with Bend’s rapidly
growing population.
“It is particularly difficult
and expensive to secure land
for new parks and easements
for new trails and trail connec-
tions as residential develop-
ment continues its torrid pace
in Bend,” said Hovekamp.
He will also continue to
push the park district “to give
careful thought” to ensuring
affordable and equitable access
to programs and equal distri-
bution of amenities across the
entire district.
Looking forward, Hov-
ekamp is excited about Alpen-
glow Park, still under construc-
tion in southeast Bend. This
and other future parks need to
retain big trees and protect as
much naturalized open space
as possible, he said.
Hovekamp is also pushing
the District to complete the
Deschutes River Trail through
the city by filling in the re-
maining gaps.
“The District manages al-
most half of those riverbank
miles and bears responsibility
for their careful stewardship,”
said Hovekamp.
Lauren Nowierski-Stadnick
Nowierski-Stadnick, 36, is
a graduate of MIT where she
earned a degree in chemical
engineering in 2006. Three
years later she
graduated
from Car-
dozo School
of Law and
is currently
a civil law
attorney in
Bend.
Nowierski-
Nowier-
Stadnick
ski-Stadnick,
who grew up in Yonkers, New
York, is also a competitive
powerlifter and plans to re-
turn to competition in 2022.
At MIT she played ice hockey,
lacrosse and field hockey. She
believes her background in
sports, science and law makes
her uniquely qualified to be-
come a park board member.
“I love creative problem
solving and advocacy and I
would be honored to use my
skills to benefit the commu-
nity,” she said.
Nowierski-Stadnick says she
wants to improve transpar-
ency over how the park district
spends public funds.
“Continuing to improve ac-
cessibility to the financial in-
formation and decision-mak-
ing process should be easy and
cheap, and it should improve
community confidence,” she
said.
Nowierski-Stadnick also
wants to grow the district in a
way that reflects the growth of
Bend, namely the expansion
of biking and walking trails to
connect parks and neighbor-
hoods. This includes increas-
ing access for underrepre-
sented populations to park and
recreation facilities.
Nowierski-Stadnick likewise
wants to see trail improve-
ments through town, espe-
cially around Mirror Pond. She
believes that the park district
needs to quickly obtain ease-
ments between Drake Park and
Pacific Park to complete that
section of the trail.
She also advocates for better
technology to help people find
and use trails. She wants to
make the park district’s website
more user-friendly, with better
trail maps and improvements
to recreation information.
“We have a tremendous
park and trail system, and
technology that does not do it
justice,” said Nowierski-Stad-
nick. “It would be great to im-
plement a more user-friendly
website or app to allow resi-
dents and visitors alike to fully
appreciate the tremendous
recreational opportunities we
have here in Bend.”
Position 5
Position 5 is a race between
two candidates with lengthy
experience in the environment
and parks: incumbent Deb
Schoen and challenger Eliza-
beth Hughes Weide.
Elizabeth Hughes Weide
Hughes Weide, 63, is a re-
tired environmental consul-
tant and project manager who
spent much of her 32-year ca-
reer in North-
ern Califor-
nia, assessing
the environ-
mental im-
pacts of vari-
ous projects,
including the
expansion of
Hughes Weide
parks and the
construction of bike paths.
“As an environmental con-
sultant and entrepreneur, I
am uniquely qualified to assist
the (park district) with future
park expansion requiring river
access and impacts to ripar-
ian habitats and threatened
and endangered species,” said
Hughes Weide.
In addition to her environ-
mental background, she is also
a Master Gardener with the
Oregon State University Exten-
sion Program and spends sum-
mers at the Hollinshead Com-
munity Garden as a mentor for
the community gardeners. She
is also a dog lover and spends
part of her time with her four
Australian shepherd dogs,
which she shows at agility and
obedience competitions.
Hughes Weide advocates for
equitable access to parks. She
said she wants to ensure Amer-
icans with Disabilities Act
compliance and coordination
with special needs groups.
“I will encourage outreach to
diverse populations within the
district,” she said.
Hughes Weide said funding
will be a challenge for the dis-
trict going forward, especially
after the park board approved
system development charge
(SDC) waivers for several af-
fordable housing projects in
Bend.
“Reducing funds for park ex-
pansion does not make sense,”
said Hughes Weide. “Every-
one in Bend deserves access
to quality parks, and as Bend
grows, the parks must continue
to expand to meet the needs of
our citizens.”
Hughes Weide said she in-
tends to work with the park
board and district staff to eval-
uate other options to support
affordable housing goals in
Bend without adversely im-
pacting park expansion.
Hughes Weide said the focus
over the next few years needs
to be on the expansion of
multi-use trails and bridges on
the Deschutes River Trail Sys-
tem and the interconnection
of with other trails throughout
the area, including U.S. Forest
Service trails and the Bend Ur-
ban Trail System.
“Ultimately, the expanded
multi-use trail system could
The Bulletin file
The Bend Park & Recreation District’s headquarters is next to the Deschutes River.
allow bikes, pedestrians, run-
ners, and other users to access
miles of uninterrupted access
along the Deschutes River and
throughout Bend and sur-
rounding communities,” said
Hughes Weide.
Deb Schoen
Schoen, 63, has lived in
Bend since 2013 and has 40
years of experience in the parks
and recreation industry after
a career with the Tualatin Hill
Park and Recreation District.
“My passion and concern
are accessibility, affordability,
and equity regarding public
resources and offerings,” said
Schoen, who is sometimes seen
around town driving a 1963
Volkswagen dune buggy with
her husband.
Schoen, who has been on
the board since January 2020,
said she wants to focus on di-
versity, equity, and inclusion
as the board makes decisions
related to pol-
icy and pro-
grams.
“Our con-
tinued focus
should be
on building
community,
Schoen
minimizing
or eliminat-
ing barriers to participation
and increasing opportunities
for people to be in and enjoy
nature,” said Schoen. “Com-
munity members deserve
close-to-home access to parks,
trails and natural spaces.”
As for challenges faced by
the park district, Schoen said
the district will need to focus
on rebuilding after the pan-
demic lockdowns, including
hiring staff, adapting to state
rules and building back pro-
grams. She also identified land
acquisition in underserved ar-
eas as a challenge.
Looking ahead, Schoen said
the district must continue to
work with community part-
ners to address affordable
housing, childcare and trans-
portation connectivity through
trails and parks.
e e
Reporter: 541-617-7818,
mkohn@bendbulletin.com
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