Looking Forward

As we await the arrival of spring in the high desert, we are already seeing the early signs unfold around us. While the Ospreys return and the forest comes alive with the drums of woodpeckers, we anticipate the coming of longer days. We watch a deepening alpine snowpack and know that it will carry us into summer, our creek beds rushing with fresh water.

This is a time of looking forward.

At Central Oregon LandWatch, this season has also been one of looking ahead and marking out a proactive course for our future. In mapping a vision for our region that sustains what we love – our mountain vistas, rolling farmlands, ubiquitous wildlife, and thriving towns and cities – we need to be sure we are guided by sound policies.

We find ourselves in the heart of the 160-day legislative session at the Oregon State Capitol, where LandWatch has been steadfastly advocating for issues that affect us all across Central Oregon. 

Our goals for this session are to situate land use planning as our strongest resource to respond to wildfire risk, limit housing sprawl into our rural lands, promote affordable housing within towns and cities, and ensure everyone has access to participate in Oregon’s land use system.

As a supporter of LandWatch, your contributions make our policy work possible. In honoring our values, we are in staunch support of policies that balance housing needs with conservation and stand our guard against unjustifiable bills that put our water, wildlife, and communities at risk.

We thank you for your unwavering support of this work. With you, we can trust that defensible policy will guide this region into a balanced, equitable, and idyllic future.

Together for Central Oregon,

Ben Gordon

Executive Director