You are invited to the Wildfire Forum organized by Old Farm Neighborhood District on Thursday, April 24 at 5:30 pm at the Larkspur Community Center (located at Reed Market Road and 15th Street). Doors open at 4:30 pm.

As Bend grows ever closer to the wildfire-susceptible Deschutes National Forest, what is being done to protect our community?  This event will give you an opportunity to engage with city and county staff tasked with addressing the many complex issues related to our wildfire risks.

Topics and Panelists Include:

• Neighborhood Preparedness / Own Your Zone and Home Protection Strategies (Melissa Steele, Bend Fire & Rescue and Tim Brownell, Director, Deschutes County Dept. of Solid Waste)
• Wildfire Risk Consideration in Long-range City Planning (UGB/Master Plans) (Brian Rankin, Senior Strategist, Growth Management and Mike Riley, Bend City Council)
• Current and Outdated Standards / Specs for New Housing Development (Russ Grayson, Assistant City Manager, Community and Economic Development)
• Evacuation Planning, Critical Transportation Routes, Regional Planning (Nathan Garibay, County Emergency Manager)
• Flammable Vegetation Code (Julie Craig, City of Bend Code Enforcement)

If you have questions for the panelists, please submit them in advance to: [email protected].

The City of Bend has it’s own Frequently Asked Questions page on wildfire preparedness here. You can also submit additional questions there, and sign up for Deschutes Alerts.