Oregon

Oregon State Parks seeks approval for new, improved campsite reservation system

Published

2 years ago

April 12, 2024

Oregon State Parks seeks approval for new, improved campsite reservation system

The Oregon Parks and Recreation Department wants to create a new website where visitors reserve state park campsites. The cost? $13.35 million for five years.

If approved, the website could go live as early as late 2024 or early 2025, officials said.

“Visitors (would) notice a new website specific to Oregon State Parks with a new look, improved search functions, more visuals, greater accessibility and improved mobile compatibility,” OPRD spokeswoman Stefanie Knowlton said.

The state agency’s contract with website vendor ReserveAmerica.com expires in 2025 and could not be renewed. That opened up a competitive bidding process in 2023.

For the next website, parks officials decided on a platform called Recreation Hub, designed to “modernize and simplify campground management,” according to the department.

The platform is owned and run by Conduent and Booz Allen Hamilton, a multinational corporation that also runs Recreation.gov, the federal government’s website for booking campsites and permits across the nation’s public lands.

OPRD will ask the Oregon State Parks and Recreation Commission for approval of the contract at a meeting April 23-24 in Cannon Beach. Public comments are open for the decision.

Knowlton said parks officials and visitors tested different platforms over a 10 month period and decided Recreation Hub “was the most intuitive and accessible option.”

“Beyond improving tools available for visitors to make state park reservations, it will also offer agency staff reservation management, volunteer management, website content management, retail operations and visitor support features,” Knowlton said in an email.

Knowlton said the fee for booking a campsite — which currently sits at $8 per transaction — would not change in the short term.

However, she laid out that could be a possibility in the future.

“The $8 reservation fee has not changed in 15 years,” she said. “There is not a specific plan to change the fee, but leadership is discussing what amount makes sense for the future.”

The new website would cost $2.67 million per year. OPRD will ask to sign a five-year contract for $13.35 million.

The previous website, ReserveAmerica, cost $2.1 million per year, Knowlton said, “but it did not include all the functions that the new site will.”

Knowlton said the cost of the website would be paid by reservation fees. If the reservation fees don’t cover the full cost of the website, additional funds would come from the agency’s budget.

Zach Urness has been an outdoors reporter in Oregon for 15 years and is host of the Explore Oregon Podcast. Urness is the author of “Best Hikes with Kids: Oregon” and “Hiking Southern Oregon.” He can be reached at zurness@StatesmanJournal.com or (503) 399-6801. Find him on X at @ZachsORoutdoors.

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Oregon

Feb. 5 Portland officer-involved shooting was justified under Oregon law, DA says

Published

1 hour ago

February 19, 2026

Press Room

Feb. 5 Portland officer-involved shooting was justified under Oregon law, DA says

PORTLAND, Ore. (KATU) — The Multnomah County District Attorney’s Office has determined that the officer involved shooting on February 5, 2026, was “justified under Oregon law and non-criminal.”

“This conclusion in no way diminishes the impact of this tragic loss of life. Incidents involving the use of deadly force by law enforcement officers have tremendous impacts on families, communities, and the involved officers,” Ryan Solomon said in a memo sent to DA Nathan Vasquez. “The Multnomah County District Attorney’s Office is committed to transparency, accountability, and ensuring the community receives clear and timely answers.”

57-year-old Erik Sherrer was shot and killed after PPB’s SERT team served a search warrant in connection with an investigation that began several days before. Sherrer was wanted for pulling a gun on a security guard at a Safeway store in northeast Portland.

Portland Police also released the names of the two officers who fired their duty-issued guns. Detective Charles Asheim is a 17-year veteran of the bureau assigned to the Special Resources Division, and a member of SERT. Officer Dustin Barth is a 10-year veteran of the bureau assigned to Central Precinct, and a member of SERT.

Both remain on paid administrative leave per standard protocol.

Portland Police also released over an hour’s worth of body worn camera footage of the incident.

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Oregon

Pickup truck goes airborne, crashes into Oregon home

Published

13 hours ago

February 18, 2026

Press Room

Pickup truck goes airborne, crashes into Oregon home

A dramatic home‑security video shows a pickup truck launching off a dirt mound, clearing a retaining wall, and flying nearly 100 feet before crashing into a Tigard, Oregon home in the middle of the night. The homeowner, David, says he woke around 3 a.m. to a massive boom and shaking walls, initially thinking he was half‑asleep and imagining it. Police confirmed no one was injured, despite the truck plowing directly into the house.

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Oregon

Your picks: Who is the best 6A guard in Oregon high school boys basketball?

Published

1 day ago

February 18, 2026

Press Room

Your picks: Who is the best 6A guard in Oregon high school boys basketball?

In the past week, The Oregonian/OregonLive featured some of the best 6A guards in Oregon high school boys basketball.

Now, we want to hear from you: Which 6A guard is the best of the best in the 2025-26 season?

Read the write-ups on every 6A guard at the links below, and then vote in the poll at the bottom of this page.

The voting will conclude Sunday, March 8, at 11:59 p.m. Pacific. Later, we will publish the “fans’ all-star team” based on the vote of the readers.

Note: OregonLive’s polls are intended to be fun. You can vote as many times as you want, but we discourage the use of script, macro or other automated means. OregonLive reserves the right to adjust the voting based on irregularities. Email jhumburg@advancelocal.com with concerns.

THE CANDIDATES

Candidates were selected based on information provided by coaches. Among the coaches who declined to respond to our requests for information about their team were Beaverton coach Andrew Vancil, Mountainside coach Dustin Hewitt, North Medford coach Scott Plankenhorn and South Medford coach James Wightman. Read more about each of these players here: TOP 6A GUARDS (PART 1) | TOP 6A GUARDS (PART 2)

Dache Acelar, sr., Benson

Sloan Baker, jr., West Linn

RJ Barhoum, jr., Clackamas

Ryan Barone, sr., Jesuit

Ian Bautista, sr., Westview

Isaac Bongen, jr., Central Catholic

Andwele Bridges, sr., Forest Grove

Ashton Cantwell, jr., Nelson

Sufyan Carter, so., Wells

Greysen Castaneda, so., Newberg

Levi Cohen, so., South Eugene

Tre Crawford, sr., McDaniel

Maddyn Cummings, jr., Barlow

Riley DeBorde, sr., Sherwood

Judah Dresser, jr., Sherwood

Patrick Duque, sr., Cleveland

Robbie Durbin, sr., Lake Oswego

Rocco Ebenal, jr., Sunset

Brooks Fortune, jr., Southridge

Ter’Rae Foster, so., Gresham

Jackson Freeman, sr., Lake Oswego

Anthony Fuentes, sr., McNary

Elijah Gabriel, jr., South Eugene

Braylon Gaines, jr., Nelson

Levi Gaither, sr., Gresham

Kai Gallic, sr., Sheldon

Malachi Garlington, jr., Nelson

Silas Gentry, jr., Barlow

Mason Gray, fr., Reynolds

Jacob Harper-Grant, so., Grant

Elijah Harari, sr., Lincoln

Penny Harrison, jr., Jesuit

TyVelle Hill, fr., Roosevelt

Eli Hopkins, jr., Oregon City

Kendall Hopkins-McGlothen, fr., Benson

Richad Hudson, jr., Benson

Kingston Hunter, sr., Tigard

Kahllel “KJ” Jackson, jr., Jefferson

Victor Jackson, so., Jefferson

Tayshawn Juarez, jr., Sprague

Blake Karman, jr., Wells

Chaz Katoanga, sr., Nelson

Jemai Lake, sr., Tualatin

Jack Lapray, sr., West Salem

Micah Leake, sr., Lakeridge

John Lee, so., Jefferson

Carter Lemon, jr., Tualatin

Kai Lindsey, jr., Lincoln

Carter Lockhart, so., Nelson

Robbie Long III, sr., Central Catholic

Max Martinov, jr., Clackamas

Malik Mason, so., Grant

Grady McKittrick, sr., Grants Pass

Jayden Metcalf, sr., Roosevelt

Jonah Munns, so., West Salem

Heath Outcalt, jr., Lakeridge

Zamir Paschal, sr., Central Catholic

Carson Pickens, so., Lakeridge

Jakai Pippa-White, so., Gresham

Bastian Rapier, so., Franklin

Luke Reeves, sr., David Douglas

Cole Ricketts, sr., McNary

Jaamir Roberson, sr., Jefferson

Jamarea Sanders, so., Grant

Jacob Sanderson, sr., West Salem

Elijah Schmidt, jr., Sprague

Jaydon Schregardus, jr., Nelson

Alijah Scott, sr., Oregon City

Harrison Scott, sr., Roseburg

Teagan Scott, sr., South Salem

Preet Singh, jr., Newberg

Jaelyn Smith, so., Reynolds

Joe Stimpson, sr., Jesuit

Ahmad Surur, sr., Wells

Elijah Thompson, jr., Southridge

Pat Vialva Jr., jr., Tualatin

Malcolm Weatherspoon, jr., Central Catholic

Tko Westbrook, sr., South Salem

Major Williams, jr., Jesuit

Evan Wusstig, sr., West Salem

Weiming Zhu, sr., McDaniel

For complete coverage of Oregon high school sports, including schedules, scores, recruiting news and additional player spotlights, visit OregonLive’s high school sports section throughout the season.

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