Front Deck central oregon lodging
New Hotel in the Works Near the Airport in Redmond Redmond is on the rise, and one case in point is the new 113-room hotel expected to break ground later this year. Mereté Hotel Management is partnering with Syncan B Corp. to develop the SpringHill Suites by Marriott Redmond Airport, with a goal to open by fall of 2021. The hotel will be located at 1908 NW Canal Blvd., along U.S. Highway 97 and just north of Wal-Mart in Redmond. “Redmond will benefit from the addition of an upper midscale Marriott hotel,” said Liz Dahlager, Vice President of Market Intelligence for Mereté Hotel Management, in a news release. “The hotel will offer an airport shuttle, and has great proximity to the revitalized downtown area and event venues in the area.” The project includes plans for a future second hotel on the site.
development
history
Documents Help Tell the Story of La Pine If up until now you didn’t know much about the history of La Pine, a small city 30 minutes south of Bend, you weren’t alone. It was only recently that a safe full of documents and photos chronicling the history and formation of La Pine was discovered, as part of the belongings of a Cannon Beach man who died in 2018. As part of his estate, Alfred Aya Jr. left a note for his friend’s son, George Hawley, directing him to the safe on the Oregon coast, according to the January newsletter of the Deschutes County Historical Society. Inside, Hawley found documents detailing the founding of La Pine by Alfred Aya Sr., including original articles of incorporation from 1910. The documents, given to the Deschutes History Museum, show how Aya Sr. and others had grandiose plans to develop the town, attract the railroad and commercial businesses and sell plats of land. Prior to the discovery, old newspaper clippings and oral history were relied upon to tell the story of La Pine. History buffs can see the materials at the Museum, upon request.
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Bend may be a modern-day boomtown, but some of the region’s smaller towns could still use support when it comes to economic development. The Central Oregon Intergovernmental Council is doing their part through the Rural Community Building Program. The new program will use grant money to support development projects in Madras, Prineville, Sisters, La Pine, Culver and Metolius. The COIC laid the groundwork in 2017 and has leveraged an increasing number of funding sources to grow the program into a permanent source of support for city and county governments, local nonprofits and other economic development organizations. As part of the program in 2020, the COIC will support the Sisters Country Vision, City of Culver Strategic Plan, Madras and Prineville Downtown Associations, Metolius Community Vision and La Pine Parks and Recreation District.
bendmagazine.com
M A R C H \ A P R I L 202 0
HOTEL RENDERING COURTES Y BA SE4
Rural Central Oregon Development Gets a Boost