November 9, 2025 • 29 mins
Portland's Singing Christmas Tree returns to create holiday memories. ODOT is urging drivers and passengers to buckle-up for safety. Oregon Attorney General Dan Rayfield discusses the case they presented to the U.S. Supreme Court against President Trump's tariffs. Oregon State Parks is making more changes to help cover a $14 million budget gap.
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:04):
Welcome to Local Voices. I'm brad Ford. Portland Singing Christmas
Tree is preparing for another memorable holiday series of performances.
The Oregon Depoverment of Transportation is urging holiday safety, the
Oregon Attorney General's Office is helping to lead a case
before the US Supreme Court against President Trump's tariffs, and
how Oregon State Parks is working to close a fourteen
(00:25):
million dollar budget gap. Portland Singing Christmas Tree is an
annual tradition for many families, and they're ready for another
series of performances. Paul Willie, director and conductor of Portland
Singing Christmas Tree, joins us on Local Voices. Paul, how
long have you been involved in Portland Singing Christmas Tree.
Speaker 2 (00:46):
This is my fourteenth year involved in the Tree. In fact,
when I started, my first daughter had just been born
and I was doing this for the first time with
a brand new baby at home with my wife. And
now she has been a part of the cast, and
now my second daughter is a part of the cast
and my wife as well. So fourteen years there's a
(01:07):
lot of time that we cover in our lives over
that time.
Speaker 1 (01:10):
Wow, that is terrific. This is the sixty third season
for the Portland's Singing Christmas Tree. For people who haven't gone,
what should they expect?
Speaker 2 (01:19):
Portland's Singing Christmas Tree has always been intended to be
a show that appeals to everyone, meaning that we have
elements that are both contemporary and traditional, maybe more gospel
in nature, more sacred in nature, but really intended to
appeal to young and old, all walks of life.
Speaker 3 (01:36):
The show is ninety minutes long.
Speaker 2 (01:38):
We keep it real tight from a time perspective so
people can get back home and put kids to bed
if they have them. But it's really a family friendly
holiday spectacular that involves a two hundred person choir with
youth singers, a live orchestra and band, dancers, actors and
musicians performing a whole mix of Christmas music and brings
(01:59):
a Christmas story line to life in and throughout the
whole ninety minutes itself.
Speaker 1 (02:03):
Why is it called Portland Singing Christmas Tree.
Speaker 2 (02:06):
For the vast majority of our history, Portland Singing Christmas
Tree is really focused on our mass choir, and the
choir over the years has been anywhere from one hundred
to three hundred people in size. But rather than leave
that choir standing on risers for an hour and a
half to two hours. We constructed this giant tree shaped
structure to put the people in themselves and decorate it
(02:29):
like a Christmas tree, and they're holding lights just like
Christmas lights you put on your tree itself. And so
imagine when the curtain opens, you have this giant tree
up there with people, and the music begins and you have,
you know, over one hundred people in this thing that
begin the whole show through song and dance. It's really
kind of this spectacular sight to see an experience it's
(02:51):
tough to describe in words, but it's an amazing It's
an amazing experience where we're able to kind of feature
that choir front and center.
Speaker 1 (02:58):
It is. It's amazing to see. I mean you can
almost hear it. Right when the curtain goes up. The
crowd kind of gasps when they see what they're looking at.
Speaker 2 (03:07):
Man, that is my favorite part of the whole show
actually is as we ask our audience to count backwards
from five four three two one and say Mary Christmas.
The moment they say that our curtain drops, the lights
come on, the music begins, and that audible gasp of
our audience. It is so electrifying, and then it really
sets the energy for the entire show, the entire ninety
(03:29):
minutes from that point forward.
Speaker 3 (03:30):
It's really special.
Speaker 1 (03:31):
It is what a terrific event and tradition in Portland.
What's the theme for this year's show and why did
you choose it?
Speaker 2 (03:39):
Yeah, we start our show planning in January, if you
can believe it, so not much of a break from
ending one season and starting the next. But when we
come together as a staff, the first thing we talk
about is goush What do we want our theme to be,
what's happening in and around our world and our community,
and how do we want to organize and orient our
show in service or in response to? And our theme
(04:02):
this year is joy. We chose joy because if we
look at our community and our nation and our world,
it just feels like there is so much happening that
feels either challenging or there's job losses or macroeconomic uncertainty,
and there's just a lot of weighty feeling on each
and every person around our community. And we thought, well,
what is our job as Portland Seeing and Christmas Tree.
(04:25):
We feel like our job is to kick off the
Christmas season, right. The best way we could do that
is to really bring the show to life through the
message of joy, something everyone feels that they need and
something we feel like we can deliver.
Speaker 1 (04:38):
Tell us about the performers. Are they from the Portland area?
Speaker 3 (04:41):
They sure are our performers.
Speaker 2 (04:43):
The choir is a mix of people from north and south, up,
up and down, I five down as far as a
Eugene ended up to about middle of Washington, and then
east and west as well. But our performers really come
from the local performing arts scene. A couple of names
that might be familiar. We have Georgian Rice, who has
been a mainstay in the Portland radio community but is
(05:04):
also a singer and performer herself. We have members from
Broadway Rows and other performers in and around the local
performing arts scene.
Speaker 3 (05:12):
And then we have.
Speaker 2 (05:13):
Local dance troops, both high school groups and others that
come in and are a part of the group that
comes up on stage to bring the show to life.
I love that the show was representative of greater Portland
and Southwest Washington and the immense talent that we have
in our community.
Speaker 1 (05:31):
It is truly what makes it special. You kind of
touched on this earlier, but who is the show made for?
Who goes to see Portland Singing Christmas Tree?
Speaker 2 (05:39):
You know, our audience is just about every walk of
life you can imagine. And you know, when I took
over the organization, what I love is the steep history
in making a show that appeals to everyone. We have
groups that come in and through multi generational families three
and four generations deep that have been coming to this
for decades. We have people who come in even just individually,
(06:04):
as well as groups from various retirement homes or from
a Salvation Army or other groups in and around that
we want to be able to invite and bring the
story of Christmas to life for I think the other
part I'll just mention is the show is there's both
a religious aspect to it as well as more of
a contemporary and just fun aspect to it. But the
(06:26):
show is really intended to have something for everyone to
kick off the Christmas season.
Speaker 4 (06:31):
Right.
Speaker 1 (06:32):
How was Issuear's show different from last year?
Speaker 2 (06:35):
You know, we have our patrons that come to our show,
about two thirds are repeat every single year. So I
really think it's important that what we have to share
each year has some elements that are familiar from prior years,
but that we can really bring to life something new
and special for them, so things that people can look
forward to.
Speaker 3 (06:53):
This year, we have a whole.
Speaker 2 (06:54):
New storyline with some elements coming from from Whoville with
the grand and Cindy lu Who, but a different story
and a different take than we've had in years past.
Speaker 3 (07:05):
We have Santa Claus coming like he normally does.
Speaker 4 (07:08):
Well.
Speaker 2 (07:08):
We have a cameo from Missus Clause and I have
a story about that that I'll share in just a moment.
But then from a music perspective, really bringing in a
good third to a half new music or new arrangements
with some new soloists that people haven't had a chance
to see or experience, all brought together with.
Speaker 3 (07:27):
Our orchestra and band, and then.
Speaker 2 (07:30):
Of course the choir as the mainstay. But you know,
I think the big thing is I love it when
patrons who come in year over years say, Wow, that
was amazing, that was so different than last year, And
that to me is a huge compliment to the show
and the show planning is to have something that's exciting
enough to keep coming back year after year and be
able to.
Speaker 1 (07:47):
Change it year after year tell us about the cameo
with missus Claus.
Speaker 2 (07:51):
Missus Claus is played by this absolutely amazing local dancer
and choreographer. She's been our choreographer for a good ten
years at least, and she choreographs the adults and the kids.
Speaker 3 (08:04):
She also works with local dance.
Speaker 2 (08:06):
Troops that come in and are part of the show,
but she's largely been kind of behind the scenes on
that coordination front. This year, we have a chance to
make her Missus Clause and so she's gonna come out
during one of the numbers, has this amazing tap dance
routine in and with our dance troup and our kids.
It just kind of a it's a sight for the eyes,
(08:27):
its a it's an experience for the ears. It's just
an incredible it's an incredible piece that comes to life
with her, and I think it'll be a lot of fun.
Speaker 1 (08:36):
That sounds like it, all right. What are the dates
for the performances? Where's it held?
Speaker 2 (08:41):
Yeah, So, first of all, it's held at Sunset Church
out off of Highway twenty six on the west side
of town. We have nine performances beginning on Saturday, November thirtieth.
There are four performances over that weekend November thirtieth and
December first, and then the weekend following we have five
more performances beginning Friday, and then two more Saturday, and
(09:02):
then closing out on Sunday, December seventh. So our show
run is really only two weekends starting November thirtieth ending
December seventh, we'll get nine solid performances in there.
Speaker 1 (09:11):
So where can people find out more on? How do
you buy tickets?
Speaker 2 (09:14):
You bet the best place to get tickets and learn
more is to go to singing Christmastree dot org. You
can purchase your tickets there. Ticket prices range from twenty
seven dollars to about fifty three dollars each.
Speaker 3 (09:27):
You can purchase there online.
Speaker 2 (09:28):
You can also call our box office which can be
reached at five zero three five five seven.
Speaker 1 (09:34):
Tree Terrific Paul anything else you want to add?
Speaker 2 (09:38):
You know, I just look forward to inviting each and
every person to come out and see an experience Portland
Seeing and Christmas Tree. We love to perform to a
packed house. Our tickets are selling fast, but we do
sure hope that each and every person gets a chance
to take advantage of it to both kick off their
season right and experience the real magic of Christmas.
Speaker 1 (09:56):
Paul, thanks for joining us on Local Voices. That's Paul Willie,
director and conduct of Portland Singing Christmas Tree. You can
learn more about the performances and buy tickets at Singing
Christmastree dot org. The Oregon Department of Transportation is urging
drivers safety this month. There's less daylight and stormy or weather.
(10:17):
Mindy mccartto dot joins us on Local Voices. Mandy tell
us about odots campaign to get drivers and passengers to
wear seat belts.
Speaker 5 (10:25):
So right this time of year, a lot of people
are out on the road, visiting families, going shopping, or
just getting out of the town for the holiday weekends. Unfortunately,
it is also a time when we see an increase
in crashes, and many of those killed aren't wearing their
seat belts. So this Thanksgiving seat Belt campaign runs from
(10:48):
November twenty second to through the thirtieth. The message is
simple but powerful. Buckle up every trip, every time, whether
you're heading across town or across the state. Wearing your
seatbelt is one of the easiest and most effective ways
to protect yourself and your passengers this time of year. Also,
(11:14):
you will see an increase in our law enforcement partners
out patrolling and partnering with ODONT. They will have those
extra patrols looking for seat belts and child safety seat
violations because it's not about the ticket, it's about saving lives.
Speaker 1 (11:35):
Do you know how many drivers on average don't wear
seat belts in Oregon?
Speaker 5 (11:40):
We are really a high level of participation in seat
belts and child safety seats. We're one of the top
five states in the nation where people do wear their
safety restraints when driving in vehicles. But that is just
not high enough for our standards. We want a hunter
percent compliance because if you're in a crash, no matter
(12:06):
if you're going slower fast, the seat belt and the
child safety seat is going to keep you from that
serious injury or fatality at a higher rate than if
you aren't wearing your seat belt.
Speaker 1 (12:18):
Well, we see messaging from ODA, you know, getting this
message out about the importance of wearing seat belts.
Speaker 5 (12:25):
Absolutely, we have billboards and we will have overhead signage
during these patrols and during this season that reminds people
to buckle up every trip every time.
Speaker 1 (12:37):
With the fall and winter weather along with the darker
days after the time change certainly does make it difficult
to see pedestrians and cyclists. Do you have some tips
on how they can be better seen by drivers?
Speaker 5 (12:50):
Yeah, definitely. You know, this fall and winter comes those
darker mornings and earlier nights, and that means ability becomes
even more important. Whether you're walking, biking, or working outside,
being visible can literally save your life. Reflective gear works
(13:12):
so much better than just bright colors alone. Adding reflective
strips to your moving parts like your arms and your
legs really catches the driver's attention. And don't forget about
the option of clipping on an led or wearable light.
It can really make a big difference being seen by drivers.
(13:33):
Drivers can also do their part, you know, slow down
and stay alert and expect to see people out and
about even in the dark.
Speaker 1 (13:43):
Yeah, what should drivers do? I mean, it's it's dark,
the intersections are dark. Oftentimes every intersection is a crosswalk,
and so it's really important for drivers to be looking
for either pedestrians or cyclists that might be out there
that they may not see any you know.
Speaker 5 (14:01):
Otherwise, we ask for drivers to expect the unexpected when
they're out on the road. People using wheelchairs, scooters, bicycles
or just pedestrians may be harder to see, especially in
the dark, fog, and rainy conditions that the Pacific Northwest sees,
so yield to pedestrians at all. Cross walks marked or unmarked,
(14:24):
give space. So when passing cyclists or mobility devices, users
allow at least three feet of clearance and more when
it's safely possible. Drive cautiously on wet or leaf covered roads.
Wet leaves can be slippery as just as slippery as ice,
(14:47):
so break gently and avoice sudden movements. Increase that following
distance to allow more time to react. And remember our
highways often run right through the heart of small towns
and communities. That means crosswalks, school zones, local businesses, and
homes are just steps from the road, So no matter
(15:11):
where you're driving, stay alert and be ready for the unexpected.
Speaker 1 (15:16):
Good advice, Mandy, anything else you'd like to pass along.
Speaker 5 (15:20):
Also, we always want to plug work zone safety, even
in the winter. Wintertime, construction is often happening on Oregon's highways.
If you see the orange cone, pay attention, stay alert,
slow down, move over when possible. A work zone's more
(15:44):
than just a construction zone. Work zones are anywhere where
someone is working alongside a highway, so that could be
a tow truck driver, our law enforcement partners, anyone who's
working alongside the highway that is technically con that a
work zone, so all rules still apply, so pay attention,
(16:05):
slow down, and move over for them.
Speaker 1 (16:07):
Mindy, can you also touch on the move over law?
How does that work, what's required, and what your drivers do.
Speaker 5 (16:14):
The move over law simply states when you see someone
working alongside of the road, like a tow truck driver,
an emergency responder, law enforcement, or a construction zone with
the Orange cones, or maybe one of our incident response crews,
it is your job to either move over if you can,
(16:36):
or slow down to at least five miles an hour
slower than the posted speed limit for your safety as
well as the safety of those working.
Speaker 1 (16:46):
That's Mindy McCart with the Oregon deprivmat of Transportation and
tips for drivers, cyclists, and pedestrians during these darker and
stormy your days. Oregon is leading a lawsuit against the
Trump administration's tariffs. The US Supreme Court heard arguments in
the case this week. President Trump says it's an extremely
important case. I think it's the.
Speaker 4 (17:07):
Most important decision, one of the most important decisions in
the history of our country, because without tariffs, without our
being able to use tariffs really openly and in every way,
we are really would suffer tremendously from a national security standpoint.
Speaker 1 (17:26):
US Solicitor General John Sowers says it's within the president's
authority to issue the tariffs.
Speaker 2 (17:31):
The power to impose tariffs is a core application of
the power to regulate foreign commerce.
Speaker 1 (17:38):
Justice Katanji Brown Jackson questioned Trump's tariff authority.
Speaker 6 (17:41):
Which seems a little inconsistent to say that we have
to interpret a statute that was designed to constrain presidential
authority consistent with an understanding that Congress wanted the president
to have essentially unlimited authority.
Speaker 1 (17:53):
Just as Sonya Soto Mayor said, tariffs are under the
control of Congress.
Speaker 7 (17:58):
I just don't understand this argument.
Speaker 1 (18:01):
It's not an article.
Speaker 4 (18:03):
It's a congressional power, not a presidential power to tax.
Speaker 3 (18:07):
And you want to say tarist are out of taxes,
but that's exactly what they are.
Speaker 1 (18:11):
Chief Justice John Roberts appeared skeptical.
Speaker 8 (18:13):
The vehicle is in position of taxes on Americans, and
that has always been the core power of Congress.
Speaker 1 (18:20):
President Trump's appointee Neil Gorsich told the administration's lawyers he
struggles with the argument that Congress can delegate its core
powers to the president, so one way ratchet towards the
gradual but continual accretion of power in the executive branch
and away from the people's elected representatives. After the Supreme
Court session, Oregon Attorney General Dan Rayfield gave an update.
Speaker 7 (18:42):
The Lowry Department Justice was in Washington, d c.
Speaker 8 (18:44):
This morning to argue the tariff's case on behalf of
all of the states here in the United States Supreme Court.
Incredibly informative hearing when on this morning, I thought some
of the most interesting things when we're coming from our
own lawyer, but were in fact coming from the lawyers
for President Donald Trump, some very insightful things about how
(19:06):
these tariffs are impacting or Godians, frankly impacting Americans. One
of the things you heard is that four trillion dollars
was the amount of money that's expected to be raised.
As President Trump talking about these things, they talked, even
from their own words, at about thirty to eighty percent
by their own calculations, are going to be paid by
Americans and what we were calling effectively a hidden tax
(19:30):
on all Americans as we're moving forward. These were things
that were said to the court, and the Court was
grappling with the reality did this president abuse an emergency
power to be able to do this? Normally, when you
pass revenue raising things that are going to impact all
of us, which we're seeing right now, whether it's clothes, utilities,
health care costs. When you do things like that in America,
(19:53):
you do that through votes, you do that in Congress.
And this was one of the most important things that
the Court was grappling with this morning. And so we
expect and hope to have a ruling here in the
near future because the impacts of these tarrafs are being
felt every time we walk into a store here in
Oregon or you're a small business paying bills.
Speaker 1 (20:13):
Rayfield was asked how long it might take to get
a decision.
Speaker 7 (20:16):
It's tough to know exactly when.
Speaker 8 (20:18):
What we did see is that the Supreme Court exhipedited
this hearing in a way that many other hearings are
not expeded. The oral argument, that is, and what you
would expect potentially to see is you know this could last.
You'll see a lot of things that can move into
next calendar year. However, these are things that are going
on right now, impacting people right now. So I would
(20:41):
expect something to happen sooner than the normal schedule just
based upon past actions.
Speaker 7 (20:45):
There's no way to predict that.
Speaker 8 (20:46):
One of the interesting things that you saw today was
people grappling with these powers, and there were a lot
of folks were coming to interesting conclusions. So all of
them could agree that the president doesn't have these powers,
but they may want to look at the different you know,
legal mechanisms and why he doesn't have those powers. For instance,
the term regulate doesn't income taxation, or that we get
(21:08):
more weedy into you know, kind of non delegation doctrine issues.
So again, the short answer to your question is we
would expect something sooner than the normal timeframe, and obviously
people would like to have that certainty sooner than later
as well.
Speaker 1 (21:21):
Attorney General Rayfield said the justices had pointed questions for
the federal Solicitor General.
Speaker 8 (21:26):
Yeah, I mean you could really palpably sense the gravity
of some of these issues that they were considering. Neil
Gorsic had some really moving questions for Trump's attorneys talking
about whether you know these are you know, at odds
with foundational principles here in America. You heard Chief Justice
(21:50):
Roberts talk about so Trump administration what effectively saying is
you can tax anything at any height, for any length,
for any reason. And that's an immense amount of power
that has been you know, if you would take the
Trump administration at their world in a way that no
other Trump administra or no other presidential administration has, it's
(22:10):
just an immense amount of power.
Speaker 7 (22:11):
And they were really grappling with that. So I think
you had.
Speaker 8 (22:14):
Every justice seriously considering whether the Trump administration has the
authority to do this. If I were sitting in the
shoes of either the Trump administration or the States holding
the line, I'd rather be sitting in our shoes right now,
or based upon the way that the questioning happening, when
they get back in chambers and they're talking about these
things and how they see the world, it'll be interesting
(22:36):
to see how that unfolds. But I think it was
very clear I think for all our goings, for all
Americans to know is that whether it was a conservative
justice or you know, a left leaning Justice that people
were actively considering not just the importance of the ruling
in this case at hand, but the hallmark and kind
of the pillars of our democracy in the future.
Speaker 1 (22:53):
Rayfield says, it's often difficult to get a read from
the justices questions, but not necessarily in this case.
Speaker 8 (23:00):
What I would say is that the questions that the
Justices were asking really go at the heart of whether
the Trump administration has the authority to set tariffs. And again,
I think the facts really speak for themselves, and I
think this was compelling for the Justices. Where no other
president had ever used this power to try and implement tariffs,
(23:20):
every other president had used the appropriate statutes that Congress intended.
Speaker 7 (23:25):
I think that weighed heavily.
Speaker 8 (23:26):
There were some what I would say conservative philosophical doctrines,
whether it's the major questions doctrine or the non delegation doctrine.
Speaker 7 (23:34):
Those are things that you don't hear discussed as much.
Speaker 8 (23:38):
Those were being dove into pretty heavily today by the
conservative justices.
Speaker 1 (23:44):
If the tariffs are reversed, what.
Speaker 8 (23:46):
Happens, Yeah, And the philosophy behind this is exactly what
we teach our kids. If you make it wrong, you
make it right, and if you screw up, you need
to fix it right. And you've had businesses or individuals
paying additional money for unlawful tariffs, and most likely what
happened is you had a Trump administration. They got advice
from his lawyers saying, hey, this probably isn't legal, you
shouldn't do that, but you go forward anyway and it
(24:08):
harms people.
Speaker 7 (24:09):
You got to fix that harm.
Speaker 8 (24:11):
How they do that is going to be an administrative function,
and there's probably a bunch of different ways that they
could do that efficiently. But I would trust the Trump
administration to get together to make sure that whether it's
a small business or an individual who's paid tariffs, that
they're reimbursed for that.
Speaker 1 (24:26):
That's Oregon Attorney General Dan Rayfield with information about the
case they presented to the US Supreme Court against the
tariffs imposed by President Trump. Oregon State Parks is working
to cover a fourteen million dollar budget gap over the
next two years. They're looking ways to raise revenue and
not cut services. Stephanie Olton with Oregon State Parks joins
(24:46):
US on Local Voices to explain what those changes will include.
Speaker 9 (24:50):
For Green Friday, November twenty eighth, will no longer be
waving fees at parks that require permits on that day.
On January first, State hikes were also will no longer
wave fees that those parks were. Parking permits in the
twelve month parking permits will increase from thirty dollars to
sixty dollars starting January first for Oregon residents, and then
(25:14):
then we'll be an out of state surcharge for out
of state residence and so the price for the annual
parking permit will be seventy five dollars and we're not
going to be offering the twenty four month parking permit
in twenty twenty six, and a couple other changes for parking.
The Oregon State Parks will no longer sell the Oregon
Pacific Coast passports, but we will honor those passports that
(25:36):
were purchased this year until they expire. And then we'll
also no longer honor the Jackson County parking permit. So
those are a couple of the changes with the parking
coming up that we wanted to make sure that visitors
knew in advance of the twenty twenty six season. And
in addition to that there'll be some additional changes that
are in the works but don't have all of the
(25:57):
details quite finalized. And some of those that we will
be adding additional parks that require a parking fee, and
the specific parks and implementation dates have not been finalized
on that. And we'll also be looking at fees to
use jump stations at Oregon Street Parks to support the
cost of that service. In addition, State Parks Day we
(26:19):
will be offering free parking, but the camping fees might
not be waived on that day depending on approval some
proposed Division fifteen rates and reservation policy updates, and some
of those additional proposed changes include looking at the rules
(26:41):
around cancelations, refunds, special access passes, and then also rate
ranges and so those will go through a public comment
period December through mid January and for possible approval as
soon as February. If those go through.
Speaker 1 (26:59):
Why are these changes needed?
Speaker 9 (27:00):
We wish they weren't necessary. We are looking at an
overall strategy of ways that we can in this moment
close the fourteen million dollar projected shortfall for this biennium
and so, and that's due to decreasing lottery revenue increasing
costs and long standing needs for more sustainable funding for
(27:24):
organ state parks. We don't receive general tax dollars and
the visitation fees don't cover the cost of maintenance and operations,
and so we're looking at several strategies, one of which
is increasing some of our fees, and in addition to that,
we're also streamlining costs, planning to add more cabins and
(27:45):
yurts to expand capacity and increase revenue, and we're also
looking for new partnerships and sponsorships to help build a
more sustainable funding future for organ state parks. One thing
that's important to note is that some of these fees
had not been increased for anywhere from seven to fifteen
years ago, and so we are having to catch up
(28:10):
in some ways. For example, the parking fee rates hadn't
been increased since two thousand and nine, and so there's
been a lot there's been a lot of infication and
a lot of increasing costs since then, and so that's
one thing to consider when you're looking at the parking fees.
Another thing is that if you're coming to Oregon State parks,
(28:33):
if you're hiking in, biking in, or taking public transportation.
You don't have to pay the parking fees, and the
proposed changes are part of a broader strategy to help
stabilize revenue and maintain park services and operations now and
in the future.
Speaker 1 (28:49):
It's Stephanie Nolton with Oregon State Parks and details about
changes they're making to raise revenue and close a fourteen
million dollar budget gap over the next two years. Thanks
for listening to Local Voices, I'm brad Ford. You can
hear past episodes on the iHeartRadio app under the podcast tab.
Local Voices is a public affairs presentation from iHeartRadio
Welcome to Local Voices. I'm brad Ford. Portland Singing Christmas
Tree is preparing for another memorable holiday series of performances.
The Oregon Depoverment of Transportation is urging holiday safety, the
Oregon Attorney General's Office is helping to lead a case
before the US Supreme Court against President Trump's tariffs, and
how Oregon State Parks is working to close a fourteen
(00:25):
million dollar budget gap. Portland Singing Christmas Tree is an
annual tradition for many families, and they're ready for another
series of performances. Paul Willie, director and conductor of Portland
Singing Christmas Tree, joins us on Local Voices. Paul, how
long have you been involved in Portland Singing Christmas Tree.
Speaker 2 (00:46):
This is my fourteenth year involved in the Tree. In fact,
when I started, my first daughter had just been born
and I was doing this for the first time with
a brand new baby at home with my wife. And
now she has been a part of the cast, and
now my second daughter is a part of the cast
and my wife as well. So fourteen years there's a
(01:07):
lot of time that we cover in our lives over
that time.
Speaker 1 (01:10):
Wow, that is terrific. This is the sixty third season
for the Portland's Singing Christmas Tree. For people who haven't gone,
what should they expect?
Speaker 2 (01:19):
Portland's Singing Christmas Tree has always been intended to be
a show that appeals to everyone, meaning that we have
elements that are both contemporary and traditional, maybe more gospel
in nature, more sacred in nature, but really intended to
appeal to young and old, all walks of life.
Speaker 3 (01:36):
The show is ninety minutes long.
Speaker 2 (01:38):
We keep it real tight from a time perspective so
people can get back home and put kids to bed
if they have them. But it's really a family friendly
holiday spectacular that involves a two hundred person choir with
youth singers, a live orchestra and band, dancers, actors and
musicians performing a whole mix of Christmas music and brings
(01:59):
a Christmas story line to life in and throughout the
whole ninety minutes itself.
Speaker 1 (02:03):
Why is it called Portland Singing Christmas Tree.
Speaker 2 (02:06):
For the vast majority of our history, Portland Singing Christmas
Tree is really focused on our mass choir, and the
choir over the years has been anywhere from one hundred
to three hundred people in size. But rather than leave
that choir standing on risers for an hour and a
half to two hours. We constructed this giant tree shaped
structure to put the people in themselves and decorate it
(02:29):
like a Christmas tree, and they're holding lights just like
Christmas lights you put on your tree itself. And so
imagine when the curtain opens, you have this giant tree
up there with people, and the music begins and you have,
you know, over one hundred people in this thing that
begin the whole show through song and dance. It's really
kind of this spectacular sight to see an experience it's
(02:51):
tough to describe in words, but it's an amazing It's
an amazing experience where we're able to kind of feature
that choir front and center.
Speaker 1 (02:58):
It is. It's amazing to see. I mean you can
almost hear it. Right when the curtain goes up. The
crowd kind of gasps when they see what they're looking at.
Speaker 2 (03:07):
Man, that is my favorite part of the whole show
actually is as we ask our audience to count backwards
from five four three two one and say Mary Christmas.
The moment they say that our curtain drops, the lights
come on, the music begins, and that audible gasp of
our audience. It is so electrifying, and then it really
sets the energy for the entire show, the entire ninety
(03:29):
minutes from that point forward.
Speaker 3 (03:30):
It's really special.
Speaker 1 (03:31):
It is what a terrific event and tradition in Portland.
What's the theme for this year's show and why did
you choose it?
Speaker 2 (03:39):
Yeah, we start our show planning in January, if you
can believe it, so not much of a break from
ending one season and starting the next. But when we
come together as a staff, the first thing we talk
about is goush What do we want our theme to be,
what's happening in and around our world and our community,
and how do we want to organize and orient our
show in service or in response to? And our theme
(04:02):
this year is joy. We chose joy because if we
look at our community and our nation and our world,
it just feels like there is so much happening that
feels either challenging or there's job losses or macroeconomic uncertainty,
and there's just a lot of weighty feeling on each
and every person around our community. And we thought, well,
what is our job as Portland Seeing and Christmas Tree.
(04:25):
We feel like our job is to kick off the
Christmas season, right. The best way we could do that
is to really bring the show to life through the
message of joy, something everyone feels that they need and
something we feel like we can deliver.
Speaker 1 (04:38):
Tell us about the performers. Are they from the Portland area?
Speaker 3 (04:41):
They sure are our performers.
Speaker 2 (04:43):
The choir is a mix of people from north and south, up,
up and down, I five down as far as a
Eugene ended up to about middle of Washington, and then
east and west as well. But our performers really come
from the local performing arts scene. A couple of names
that might be familiar. We have Georgian Rice, who has
been a mainstay in the Portland radio community but is
(05:04):
also a singer and performer herself. We have members from
Broadway Rows and other performers in and around the local
performing arts scene.
Speaker 3 (05:12):
And then we have.
Speaker 2 (05:13):
Local dance troops, both high school groups and others that
come in and are a part of the group that
comes up on stage to bring the show to life.
I love that the show was representative of greater Portland
and Southwest Washington and the immense talent that we have
in our community.
Speaker 1 (05:31):
It is truly what makes it special. You kind of
touched on this earlier, but who is the show made for?
Who goes to see Portland Singing Christmas Tree?
Speaker 2 (05:39):
You know, our audience is just about every walk of
life you can imagine. And you know, when I took
over the organization, what I love is the steep history
in making a show that appeals to everyone. We have
groups that come in and through multi generational families three
and four generations deep that have been coming to this
for decades. We have people who come in even just individually,
(06:04):
as well as groups from various retirement homes or from
a Salvation Army or other groups in and around that
we want to be able to invite and bring the
story of Christmas to life for I think the other
part I'll just mention is the show is there's both
a religious aspect to it as well as more of
a contemporary and just fun aspect to it. But the
(06:26):
show is really intended to have something for everyone to
kick off the Christmas season.
Speaker 4 (06:31):
Right.
Speaker 1 (06:32):
How was Issuear's show different from last year?
Speaker 2 (06:35):
You know, we have our patrons that come to our show,
about two thirds are repeat every single year. So I
really think it's important that what we have to share
each year has some elements that are familiar from prior years,
but that we can really bring to life something new
and special for them, so things that people can look
forward to.
Speaker 3 (06:53):
This year, we have a whole.
Speaker 2 (06:54):
New storyline with some elements coming from from Whoville with
the grand and Cindy lu Who, but a different story
and a different take than we've had in years past.
Speaker 3 (07:05):
We have Santa Claus coming like he normally does.
Speaker 4 (07:08):
Well.
Speaker 2 (07:08):
We have a cameo from Missus Clause and I have
a story about that that I'll share in just a moment.
But then from a music perspective, really bringing in a
good third to a half new music or new arrangements
with some new soloists that people haven't had a chance
to see or experience, all brought together with.
Speaker 3 (07:27):
Our orchestra and band, and then.
Speaker 2 (07:30):
Of course the choir as the mainstay. But you know,
I think the big thing is I love it when
patrons who come in year over years say, Wow, that
was amazing, that was so different than last year, And
that to me is a huge compliment to the show
and the show planning is to have something that's exciting
enough to keep coming back year after year and be
able to.
Speaker 1 (07:47):
Change it year after year tell us about the cameo
with missus Claus.
Speaker 2 (07:51):
Missus Claus is played by this absolutely amazing local dancer
and choreographer. She's been our choreographer for a good ten
years at least, and she choreographs the adults and the kids.
Speaker 3 (08:04):
She also works with local dance.
Speaker 2 (08:06):
Troops that come in and are part of the show,
but she's largely been kind of behind the scenes on
that coordination front. This year, we have a chance to
make her Missus Clause and so she's gonna come out
during one of the numbers, has this amazing tap dance
routine in and with our dance troup and our kids.
It just kind of a it's a sight for the eyes,
(08:27):
its a it's an experience for the ears. It's just
an incredible it's an incredible piece that comes to life
with her, and I think it'll be a lot of fun.
Speaker 1 (08:36):
That sounds like it, all right. What are the dates
for the performances? Where's it held?
Speaker 2 (08:41):
Yeah, So, first of all, it's held at Sunset Church
out off of Highway twenty six on the west side
of town. We have nine performances beginning on Saturday, November thirtieth.
There are four performances over that weekend November thirtieth and
December first, and then the weekend following we have five
more performances beginning Friday, and then two more Saturday, and
(09:02):
then closing out on Sunday, December seventh. So our show
run is really only two weekends starting November thirtieth ending
December seventh, we'll get nine solid performances in there.
Speaker 1 (09:11):
So where can people find out more on? How do
you buy tickets?
Speaker 2 (09:14):
You bet the best place to get tickets and learn
more is to go to singing Christmastree dot org. You
can purchase your tickets there. Ticket prices range from twenty
seven dollars to about fifty three dollars each.
Speaker 3 (09:27):
You can purchase there online.
Speaker 2 (09:28):
You can also call our box office which can be
reached at five zero three five five seven.
Speaker 1 (09:34):
Tree Terrific Paul anything else you want to add?
Speaker 2 (09:38):
You know, I just look forward to inviting each and
every person to come out and see an experience Portland
Seeing and Christmas Tree. We love to perform to a
packed house. Our tickets are selling fast, but we do
sure hope that each and every person gets a chance
to take advantage of it to both kick off their
season right and experience the real magic of Christmas.
Speaker 1 (09:56):
Paul, thanks for joining us on Local Voices. That's Paul Willie,
director and conduct of Portland Singing Christmas Tree. You can
learn more about the performances and buy tickets at Singing
Christmastree dot org. The Oregon Department of Transportation is urging
drivers safety this month. There's less daylight and stormy or weather.
(10:17):
Mindy mccartto dot joins us on Local Voices. Mandy tell
us about odots campaign to get drivers and passengers to
wear seat belts.
Speaker 5 (10:25):
So right this time of year, a lot of people
are out on the road, visiting families, going shopping, or
just getting out of the town for the holiday weekends. Unfortunately,
it is also a time when we see an increase
in crashes, and many of those killed aren't wearing their
seat belts. So this Thanksgiving seat Belt campaign runs from
(10:48):
November twenty second to through the thirtieth. The message is
simple but powerful. Buckle up every trip, every time, whether
you're heading across town or across the state. Wearing your
seatbelt is one of the easiest and most effective ways
to protect yourself and your passengers this time of year. Also,
(11:14):
you will see an increase in our law enforcement partners
out patrolling and partnering with ODONT. They will have those
extra patrols looking for seat belts and child safety seat
violations because it's not about the ticket, it's about saving lives.
Speaker 1 (11:35):
Do you know how many drivers on average don't wear
seat belts in Oregon?
Speaker 5 (11:40):
We are really a high level of participation in seat
belts and child safety seats. We're one of the top
five states in the nation where people do wear their
safety restraints when driving in vehicles. But that is just
not high enough for our standards. We want a hunter
percent compliance because if you're in a crash, no matter
(12:06):
if you're going slower fast, the seat belt and the
child safety seat is going to keep you from that
serious injury or fatality at a higher rate than if
you aren't wearing your seat belt.
Speaker 1 (12:18):
Well, we see messaging from ODA, you know, getting this
message out about the importance of wearing seat belts.
Speaker 5 (12:25):
Absolutely, we have billboards and we will have overhead signage
during these patrols and during this season that reminds people
to buckle up every trip every time.
Speaker 1 (12:37):
With the fall and winter weather along with the darker
days after the time change certainly does make it difficult
to see pedestrians and cyclists. Do you have some tips
on how they can be better seen by drivers?
Speaker 5 (12:50):
Yeah, definitely. You know, this fall and winter comes those
darker mornings and earlier nights, and that means ability becomes
even more important. Whether you're walking, biking, or working outside,
being visible can literally save your life. Reflective gear works
(13:12):
so much better than just bright colors alone. Adding reflective
strips to your moving parts like your arms and your
legs really catches the driver's attention. And don't forget about
the option of clipping on an led or wearable light.
It can really make a big difference being seen by drivers.
(13:33):
Drivers can also do their part, you know, slow down
and stay alert and expect to see people out and
about even in the dark.
Speaker 1 (13:43):
Yeah, what should drivers do? I mean, it's it's dark,
the intersections are dark. Oftentimes every intersection is a crosswalk,
and so it's really important for drivers to be looking
for either pedestrians or cyclists that might be out there
that they may not see any you know.
Speaker 5 (14:01):
Otherwise, we ask for drivers to expect the unexpected when
they're out on the road. People using wheelchairs, scooters, bicycles
or just pedestrians may be harder to see, especially in
the dark, fog, and rainy conditions that the Pacific Northwest sees,
so yield to pedestrians at all. Cross walks marked or unmarked,
(14:24):
give space. So when passing cyclists or mobility devices, users
allow at least three feet of clearance and more when
it's safely possible. Drive cautiously on wet or leaf covered roads.
Wet leaves can be slippery as just as slippery as ice,
(14:47):
so break gently and avoice sudden movements. Increase that following
distance to allow more time to react. And remember our
highways often run right through the heart of small towns
and communities. That means crosswalks, school zones, local businesses, and
homes are just steps from the road, So no matter
(15:11):
where you're driving, stay alert and be ready for the unexpected.
Speaker 1 (15:16):
Good advice, Mandy, anything else you'd like to pass along.
Speaker 5 (15:20):
Also, we always want to plug work zone safety, even
in the winter. Wintertime, construction is often happening on Oregon's highways.
If you see the orange cone, pay attention, stay alert,
slow down, move over when possible. A work zone's more
(15:44):
than just a construction zone. Work zones are anywhere where
someone is working alongside a highway, so that could be
a tow truck driver, our law enforcement partners, anyone who's
working alongside the highway that is technically con that a
work zone, so all rules still apply, so pay attention,
(16:05):
slow down, and move over for them.
Speaker 1 (16:07):
Mindy, can you also touch on the move over law?
How does that work, what's required, and what your drivers do.
Speaker 5 (16:14):
The move over law simply states when you see someone
working alongside of the road, like a tow truck driver,
an emergency responder, law enforcement, or a construction zone with
the Orange cones, or maybe one of our incident response crews,
it is your job to either move over if you can,
(16:36):
or slow down to at least five miles an hour
slower than the posted speed limit for your safety as
well as the safety of those working.
Speaker 1 (16:46):
That's Mindy McCart with the Oregon deprivmat of Transportation and
tips for drivers, cyclists, and pedestrians during these darker and
stormy your days. Oregon is leading a lawsuit against the
Trump administration's tariffs. The US Supreme Court heard arguments in
the case this week. President Trump says it's an extremely
important case. I think it's the.
Speaker 4 (17:07):
Most important decision, one of the most important decisions in
the history of our country, because without tariffs, without our
being able to use tariffs really openly and in every way,
we are really would suffer tremendously from a national security standpoint.
Speaker 1 (17:26):
US Solicitor General John Sowers says it's within the president's
authority to issue the tariffs.
Speaker 2 (17:31):
The power to impose tariffs is a core application of
the power to regulate foreign commerce.
Speaker 1 (17:38):
Justice Katanji Brown Jackson questioned Trump's tariff authority.
Speaker 6 (17:41):
Which seems a little inconsistent to say that we have
to interpret a statute that was designed to constrain presidential
authority consistent with an understanding that Congress wanted the president
to have essentially unlimited authority.
Speaker 1 (17:53):
Just as Sonya Soto Mayor said, tariffs are under the
control of Congress.
Speaker 7 (17:58):
I just don't understand this argument.
Speaker 1 (18:01):
It's not an article.
Speaker 4 (18:03):
It's a congressional power, not a presidential power to tax.
Speaker 3 (18:07):
And you want to say tarist are out of taxes,
but that's exactly what they are.
Speaker 1 (18:11):
Chief Justice John Roberts appeared skeptical.
Speaker 8 (18:13):
The vehicle is in position of taxes on Americans, and
that has always been the core power of Congress.
Speaker 1 (18:20):
President Trump's appointee Neil Gorsich told the administration's lawyers he
struggles with the argument that Congress can delegate its core
powers to the president, so one way ratchet towards the
gradual but continual accretion of power in the executive branch
and away from the people's elected representatives. After the Supreme
Court session, Oregon Attorney General Dan Rayfield gave an update.
Speaker 7 (18:42):
The Lowry Department Justice was in Washington, d c.
Speaker 8 (18:44):
This morning to argue the tariff's case on behalf of
all of the states here in the United States Supreme Court.
Incredibly informative hearing when on this morning, I thought some
of the most interesting things when we're coming from our
own lawyer, but were in fact coming from the lawyers
for President Donald Trump, some very insightful things about how
(19:06):
these tariffs are impacting or Godians, frankly impacting Americans. One
of the things you heard is that four trillion dollars
was the amount of money that's expected to be raised.
As President Trump talking about these things, they talked, even
from their own words, at about thirty to eighty percent
by their own calculations, are going to be paid by
Americans and what we were calling effectively a hidden tax
(19:30):
on all Americans as we're moving forward. These were things
that were said to the court, and the Court was
grappling with the reality did this president abuse an emergency
power to be able to do this? Normally, when you
pass revenue raising things that are going to impact all
of us, which we're seeing right now, whether it's clothes, utilities,
health care costs. When you do things like that in America,
(19:53):
you do that through votes, you do that in Congress.
And this was one of the most important things that
the Court was grappling with this morning. And so we
expect and hope to have a ruling here in the
near future because the impacts of these tarrafs are being
felt every time we walk into a store here in
Oregon or you're a small business paying bills.
Speaker 1 (20:13):
Rayfield was asked how long it might take to get
a decision.
Speaker 7 (20:16):
It's tough to know exactly when.
Speaker 8 (20:18):
What we did see is that the Supreme Court exhipedited
this hearing in a way that many other hearings are
not expeded. The oral argument, that is, and what you
would expect potentially to see is you know this could last.
You'll see a lot of things that can move into
next calendar year. However, these are things that are going
on right now, impacting people right now. So I would
(20:41):
expect something to happen sooner than the normal schedule just
based upon past actions.
Speaker 7 (20:45):
There's no way to predict that.
Speaker 8 (20:46):
One of the interesting things that you saw today was
people grappling with these powers, and there were a lot
of folks were coming to interesting conclusions. So all of
them could agree that the president doesn't have these powers,
but they may want to look at the different you know,
legal mechanisms and why he doesn't have those powers. For instance,
the term regulate doesn't income taxation, or that we get
(21:08):
more weedy into you know, kind of non delegation doctrine issues.
So again, the short answer to your question is we
would expect something sooner than the normal timeframe, and obviously
people would like to have that certainty sooner than later
as well.
Speaker 1 (21:21):
Attorney General Rayfield said the justices had pointed questions for
the federal Solicitor General.
Speaker 8 (21:26):
Yeah, I mean you could really palpably sense the gravity
of some of these issues that they were considering. Neil
Gorsic had some really moving questions for Trump's attorneys talking
about whether you know these are you know, at odds
with foundational principles here in America. You heard Chief Justice
(21:50):
Roberts talk about so Trump administration what effectively saying is
you can tax anything at any height, for any length,
for any reason. And that's an immense amount of power
that has been you know, if you would take the
Trump administration at their world in a way that no
other Trump administra or no other presidential administration has, it's
(22:10):
just an immense amount of power.
Speaker 7 (22:11):
And they were really grappling with that. So I think
you had.
Speaker 8 (22:14):
Every justice seriously considering whether the Trump administration has the
authority to do this. If I were sitting in the
shoes of either the Trump administration or the States holding
the line, I'd rather be sitting in our shoes right now,
or based upon the way that the questioning happening, when
they get back in chambers and they're talking about these
things and how they see the world, it'll be interesting
(22:36):
to see how that unfolds. But I think it was
very clear I think for all our goings, for all
Americans to know is that whether it was a conservative
justice or you know, a left leaning Justice that people
were actively considering not just the importance of the ruling
in this case at hand, but the hallmark and kind
of the pillars of our democracy in the future.
Speaker 1 (22:53):
Rayfield says, it's often difficult to get a read from
the justices questions, but not necessarily in this case.
Speaker 8 (23:00):
What I would say is that the questions that the
Justices were asking really go at the heart of whether
the Trump administration has the authority to set tariffs. And again,
I think the facts really speak for themselves, and I
think this was compelling for the Justices. Where no other
president had ever used this power to try and implement tariffs,
(23:20):
every other president had used the appropriate statutes that Congress intended.
Speaker 7 (23:25):
I think that weighed heavily.
Speaker 8 (23:26):
There were some what I would say conservative philosophical doctrines,
whether it's the major questions doctrine or the non delegation doctrine.
Speaker 7 (23:34):
Those are things that you don't hear discussed as much.
Speaker 8 (23:38):
Those were being dove into pretty heavily today by the
conservative justices.
Speaker 1 (23:44):
If the tariffs are reversed, what.
Speaker 8 (23:46):
Happens, Yeah, And the philosophy behind this is exactly what
we teach our kids. If you make it wrong, you
make it right, and if you screw up, you need
to fix it right. And you've had businesses or individuals
paying additional money for unlawful tariffs, and most likely what
happened is you had a Trump administration. They got advice
from his lawyers saying, hey, this probably isn't legal, you
shouldn't do that, but you go forward anyway and it
(24:08):
harms people.
Speaker 7 (24:09):
You got to fix that harm.
Speaker 8 (24:11):
How they do that is going to be an administrative function,
and there's probably a bunch of different ways that they
could do that efficiently. But I would trust the Trump
administration to get together to make sure that whether it's
a small business or an individual who's paid tariffs, that
they're reimbursed for that.
Speaker 1 (24:26):
That's Oregon Attorney General Dan Rayfield with information about the
case they presented to the US Supreme Court against the
tariffs imposed by President Trump. Oregon State Parks is working
to cover a fourteen million dollar budget gap over the
next two years. They're looking ways to raise revenue and
not cut services. Stephanie Olton with Oregon State Parks joins
(24:46):
US on Local Voices to explain what those changes will include.
Speaker 9 (24:50):
For Green Friday, November twenty eighth, will no longer be
waving fees at parks that require permits on that day.
On January first, State hikes were also will no longer
wave fees that those parks were. Parking permits in the
twelve month parking permits will increase from thirty dollars to
sixty dollars starting January first for Oregon residents, and then
(25:14):
then we'll be an out of state surcharge for out
of state residence and so the price for the annual
parking permit will be seventy five dollars and we're not
going to be offering the twenty four month parking permit
in twenty twenty six, and a couple other changes for parking.
The Oregon State Parks will no longer sell the Oregon
Pacific Coast passports, but we will honor those passports that
(25:36):
were purchased this year until they expire. And then we'll
also no longer honor the Jackson County parking permit. So
those are a couple of the changes with the parking
coming up that we wanted to make sure that visitors
knew in advance of the twenty twenty six season. And
in addition to that there'll be some additional changes that
are in the works but don't have all of the
(25:57):
details quite finalized. And some of those that we will
be adding additional parks that require a parking fee, and
the specific parks and implementation dates have not been finalized
on that. And we'll also be looking at fees to
use jump stations at Oregon Street Parks to support the
cost of that service. In addition, State Parks Day we
(26:19):
will be offering free parking, but the camping fees might
not be waived on that day depending on approval some
proposed Division fifteen rates and reservation policy updates, and some
of those additional proposed changes include looking at the rules
(26:41):
around cancelations, refunds, special access passes, and then also rate
ranges and so those will go through a public comment
period December through mid January and for possible approval as
soon as February. If those go through.
Speaker 1 (26:59):
Why are these changes needed?
Speaker 9 (27:00):
We wish they weren't necessary. We are looking at an
overall strategy of ways that we can in this moment
close the fourteen million dollar projected shortfall for this biennium
and so, and that's due to decreasing lottery revenue increasing
costs and long standing needs for more sustainable funding for
(27:24):
organ state parks. We don't receive general tax dollars and
the visitation fees don't cover the cost of maintenance and operations,
and so we're looking at several strategies, one of which
is increasing some of our fees, and in addition to that,
we're also streamlining costs, planning to add more cabins and
(27:45):
yurts to expand capacity and increase revenue, and we're also
looking for new partnerships and sponsorships to help build a
more sustainable funding future for organ state parks. One thing
that's important to note is that some of these fees
had not been increased for anywhere from seven to fifteen
years ago, and so we are having to catch up
(28:10):
in some ways. For example, the parking fee rates hadn't
been increased since two thousand and nine, and so there's
been a lot there's been a lot of infication and
a lot of increasing costs since then, and so that's
one thing to consider when you're looking at the parking fees.
Another thing is that if you're coming to Oregon State parks,
(28:33):
if you're hiking in, biking in, or taking public transportation.
You don't have to pay the parking fees, and the
proposed changes are part of a broader strategy to help
stabilize revenue and maintain park services and operations now and
in the future.
Speaker 1 (28:49):
It's Stephanie Nolton with Oregon State Parks and details about
changes they're making to raise revenue and close a fourteen
million dollar budget gap over the next two years. Thanks
for listening to Local Voices, I'm brad Ford. You can
hear past episodes on the iHeartRadio app under the podcast tab.
Local Voices is a public affairs presentation from iHeartRadio
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