​TRANSPORTATION BOND Pulled from May Ballot

The City Council voted to withdraw the May ballot measure for the transportation bond, in light of the COVID-19 pandemic and related economic impacts. Circumstances have changed dramatically since Council agreed to put the bond measure on the May ballot.

The reasons include:

• Uncertainty about how long the pandemic will last
• Likely economic impacts, in particular, on Bend’s service sector, which will be affected by a reduction in hotel and restaurant activity
• A more volatile municipal bond market, and
• Advice from economic, business and public health experts

Although transportation issues are a high community priority, at this time public health concerns are the primary focus of the nation and our community. The City will continue to monitor the economic impacts of COVID-19, and may consider referring the general obligation bond measure for transportation improvements to the voters when appropriate in the future.