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From YouTube: City Council Recap July 2023
Description
Mayor Melanie Kebler gives an update on some of the work that the City Council accomplished this past month.
A
Previously,
at
Bend
city,
council,
hi,
I'm
mayor
Melanie
Keebler-
and
this
is
your
city
council
recap.
When
Council
met
on
July
19th,
we
heard
an
update
about
our
2023
2025
Council
goals.
One
thing
I
want
to
highlight
is
that
permit
turnaround
times
have
improved
over
the
past
five
months.
City
staff
have
consistently
met
and
exceeded
the
review
time
goals
related
to
new
residential
and
commercial
construction.
A
We're
also
seeing
more
rent
and
price
restricted
housing,
funded
or
completed
886
over
the
past
two
years
are
now
in
the
pipeline
and
to
Circle
back
on
our
previous
set
of
goals.
Council
supported
the
creation
of
529
shelter
beds
in
our
community
in
the
last
two
years.
I
also
want
to
give
a
quick
shout
out
to
our
Ben
fire
and
rescue
team.
A
They
received
the
lifeline
EMS
award
from
the
American
Heart
Association
for
the
commitment
to
Quality
Care
for
heart
attacks
and
strokes
in
our
community
Council
also
had
a
ribbon
cutting
for
the
new
community
block
party
trailer
in
the
past
few
years,
particularly
following
the
covid-19
pandemic.
We
have
heard
a
desire
from
the
community
to
create
spaces
for
civic
engagement.
A
You'll
see
the
block
party
trailer
at
upcoming
events
such
as
National
Night,
Out,
on
August
1st
in
the
state
of
the
city
event
on
September,
8th,
the
trailer
features,
barbecue
equipment,
long
games,
a
pop-up,
tent
chairs
and
other
things
that
help
us
show
up
in
neighborhoods
across
bent.
During
council's
work
session
last
night,
we
discussed
plans
for
a
Roundtable
process
to
refine
a
transportation
fee
which
would
help
the
city
meet
critical
needs,
such
as
Street
pavement
preservation.
A
The
roundtables
will
involve
Community
stakeholders
and
help
determine
rate
levels
and
project
prioritization.
You
can
learn
more
at
bendoregon.gov
backslash,
Transportation
Dash
fee
Council
also
heard
an
update
about
Midtown
Crossings,
a
major
piece
of
The
Pedestrian
and
bicycle
friendly
improvements.
There
is
the
Hawthorne
overcrossing,
which
is
a
bridge
over
the
Parkway
and
railroad
that
will
connect
East
Bend
with
West
Bend
and
is
built
for
Walkers
and
bikers
about
30
million
dollars
in
state
and
federal
grants
have
been
awarded
for
that
project
and
we're
really
excited
that
design
will
start.
A
Next
year,
mayor
Pro
tem,
Perkins,
councilor,
Mendez
and
I
joined
representative
Emerson
Levy
to
host
a
Roundtable
discussion
on
e-bike
safety.
This
week.
Other
key
stakeholders,
including
Ben
Lapine
schools
in
the
Oregon
Department
of
Transportation,
were
there
and
we
focused
on
identifying
opportunities
to
increase
Community
awareness
around
rules
and
safety
of
e-bikes
determine
what
gaps
there
are
in
our
laws
and
identify
fixes
to
ensure
our
community
is
riding
and
driving
safely.
A
Thank
you
to
everyone
who
wrote
to
Council
on
this
issue
and
provided
input,
look
out
for
our
Council
work
session
in
September
that
will
focus
on
this
safety
issue.
At
council's
meeting
last
night,
two
local
news
leaders,
Bob
Shaw
and
Alan
schoffler,
were
recognized
for
their
long-standing
service
to
the
local
journalism
community.