At its first meeting of the new year Tuesday, the Ashland City Council is expected to sew up loose threads from last year with votes to approve the 2200 Ashland St. Master Plan, formally create an Ashland Parks & Recreation Department and the first reading of an ordinance to mitigate carbon pollution for new residential structures, according to meeting materials.
Editor’s note: Ashland.news reporter Morgan Rothborne covers city government, including its ongoing efforts to find ways to shape policies around homelessness. For better insight into the issue, Rothborne spent a night in early December in the shelter when it was operated by Jobs with Justice in Calvin Hall at First Presbyterian Church of Ashland.
Carrie Dahle: Staging might sound fancy, but it’s just about showing off your home’s best features. Rearrange furniture, bring in cozy touches or work with a pro to create a space that feels both welcoming and aspirational. Trust me — staged homes sell faster and for more money.
Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek on Thursday continued the homelessness state of emergency she declared on her first day in office for a third year as the state continues to grapple with the crisis of thousands of people living outside.
Although mobile home parks once offered affordable living options, a shift during the past decade found privately owned investment and property management companies purchasing or stepping in to manage mobile home parks which, residents say, have imposed stringent rules that were not in place when they first moved in.
The city of Ashland’s severe weather shelter will move to 2200 Ashland St. and be operated by Rogue Retreat starting Wednesday, Jan. 1, and will operate in that location for 90 days, according to city Emergency Management Coordinator Kelly Burns.
In June, the nation’s highest court ruled in favor of Grants Pass, deciding that cities could impose criminal penalties without running afoul of constitutional provisions against cruel and unusual punishment. Since then, city officials have limited where about 600 homeless people can pitch a tent or sleep to just two locations in the city of 39,000.
Following an outspoken public comment period mainly opposing the project, Ashland School Board voted Thursday evening to approve a development team tasked by the Sunstone Housing Collaborative to build a housing complex at Lincoln Field on North Mountain Avenue.
Councilor Bob Kaplan: Our housing problem may still feel intractable, and progress is slow, but we are focused on removing obstacles and creating opportunities that weren’t on the table five years ago.
Real Estate Corner: I’ve been noticing an interesting trend. There’s movement both ways — people discovering Ashland as their dream destination and others leaving for the next chapter in their lives. So, what’s driving these shifts? Let’s examine why people are moving to (and from) our fantastic town.
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Ask Strider: A worried older brother asks our advice columnist’s advice. And a dog’s guardian wants to know if there is any hope getting their hat-hating dog to calm down. As always, Strider tries to give words that help!
After a successful production of “The Vagina Monologues” and raising more than $2,000 for Planned Parenthood of Southwestern Oregon, Ashland actor and director Lia Dugal intends for “The Climate Monologues” to premiere in Oregon in late 2025 or early 2026 at the Bellview Grange in Ashland.
It’s complicated.
Herbert Rothschild: Whether visualization and intention by themselves can effect broad social change is impossible to determine, but the question merits sustained consideration.
(It’s free)
