McKenzie CDC
Newsletters
Our Monthly Newsletters
This is a list of our monthly newsletters starting in April 2021.
Holiday 2021 Newsletter
A lot has happened since the Holiday Farm Fire devastated the McKenzie Valley Community. Our residents, local organizations, and elected representatives have rallied admirably and achieved concrete progress towards recovery. Alongside heartbreaking milestones such as the one-year anniversary of the fire on Labor Day, we have also celebrated hard-earned positive ones, such as the cleanup of Blue River Park, which had most of its trees destroyed, but has – with the help of volunteers and support from organizations such as the McKenzie River Chamber of Commerce – been able to bring forth beauty and hope for the community from the ashes, much like the wonderful “Viribus” sculpture which now stands on Blue River’s Cascade Street.
July 2021 Newsletter
The McKenzie CDC was thrilled to announce this July that the Oregon state legislature approved a funding package of over $600 million to support wildfire recovery efforts, reminding us that although the path to recovery has not been an easy one, we are not alone in this fight. The recovery funding package includes over $20 million for infrastructure and an additional $110 million specifically for water and sewer infrastructure projects within wildfire-impacted communities. This means that plans to establish a communal sanitation district in Blue River can proceed, and hopefully become a template of success for other communities by allowing property owners to rebuild in spaces that might not have met current planning requirements for their own septic systems.
June 2021 Newsletter
As we hit nine months since the wildfire there has been a lot of progress along the McKenzie River valley. The Post Office is back in Blue River, House Bill 2289 has been signed, loosening some planning restrictions for those rebuilding and new houses (or at least frames) are popping up all along the affected stretch of Highway 126. On top of that, hazard tree removal is progressing well and the recent wet weather and sunshine have resulted in a welcome greening up of the burn area.
May 2021 Newsletter
The McKenzie CDC is committed to helping McKenzie River valley residents build back better. Charitable grants and generous donations have enabled us to hire a full-time Resource Coordinator and two Community Organizers to actively support survivors on the ground and we continue to work on many projects which are already underway including supporting Oregon Senate Bills 745 & 405, which will offer communities along the valley a better chance to replace lost homes while at the same time laying down better infrastructure for future generations.
April 2021 Newsletter
Seven months after the dreadful night of the Holiday Farm Fire, which destroyed so much of our beautiful landscape and devastated so many livelihoods across the McKenzie valley, its terrible impact is still being felt across our river communities. As we transition from emergency response to long-term recovery, and our focus shifts towards the intrinsically interlinked tasks of restoring our landscape, our economy, and our community, the McKenzie CDC is committed to helping residents build back better.
our Recovery Partners
Many Hands Make Light Work of Cleanup
Subscribe to these Newsletters
Keep up to date on the McKenzie CDC’s work here in the valley and Subscribe to these monthly Newsletters by emailing us at mckenziecdc@gmail.com or getting in touch through our Contact Us page. A huge amount of work has been done by locals, volunteers, and organizations such as the Cascade Relief Team but to bring our beautiful valley back there remains much more to do and we would love to keep you up to date and involved so subscribe now and we will email you a fresh Newsletter every month!
Donate to Help Communities on the McKenzie Recover!
Help Us Help The McKenzie Valley
You can help us reach our recovery goals by donating through the big yellow PayPal Donate button above or mailing us at PO Box 406, Walterville, OR 97489. We hope you will continue with us on our journey to a rejuvenated and beautiful McKenzie, any support you offer is much appreciated!
