OPB’s First Look: Smelly, discolored water plagues Lakeview

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Good morning, Northwest.

After OPB visited the Southern Oregon town of Lakeview, our reporters published an investigation into how a series of bad bets, mismanagement and failed industries left the rural town teetering on the brink of financial collapse.

But nearly every conversation with residents had a throughline: smelly, discolored water.

We begin today’s newsletter with a follow-up investigation. As Lakeview attempts to dig itself out of years of poor oversight, some worry its reputation for bad water will keep people away and prevent a much-needed civic renaissance.

Here’s your First Look at Wednesday’s news.

— Joni Auden Land and Saskia Hatvany

Top story

Lakeview is working to solve its financial crisis. But smelly, discolored water could hold it back

A small town of around 2,400 people located on Oregon’s southern border, Lakeview is no stranger to challenges.

But even as the town teeters on the brink of financial collapse, its residents worry most about the smelly, discolored water. Test results published this year also show elevated levels of lead in the water, partially from a series of deteriorating pipes running underneath the town.

“Our water is right on the edge of, you know, the clean water standards,” interim town manager Stan Foster said. “We don’t want Lakeview to be the Flint of the West.” (Joni Auden Land)

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3 things to know

1. More neighbors of a Knife River gravel and sand mining site in rural Crook County filed lawsuits against the multi-billion-dollar construction materials company last week, alleging that its mining practices polluted the aquifer feeding their home wells, causing years of worsening health problems for both people and animals. (Jen Baires)
2. Oregon’s semiconductor industry is receiving what could be a critical lifeline in its effort to grow and stabilize in the state. A statewide initiative called the Frontiers of Advanced Semiconductor Technology has been awarded a U.S. National Science Foundation Regional Innovation Engines grant of up to $160 million over the next 10 years. (Tiffany Camhi)
3. Organizers are attempting to inform Deschutes County residents about ranked-choice voting ahead of the first deadline to submit signatures for a potential ballot initiative that would bring the alternative electoral system to Central Oregon. (Kathryn Styer Martínez)

Northwest headlines

• Measles exposure warning issued for three Providence Health sites in Portland metro (Casey Frizzell)

• Pacific and Willamette universities’ merger plan becomes official (Tiffany Camhi)

• Washington governor wants to require FAFSA for high school graduation (Aspen Ford, Washington State Standard)

• Oregon’s new package recycling rules go on trial, could impact other states (Alex Baumhardt, Oregon Capital Chronicle)

• Cases of parasitic outbreak remain low in Oregon as other states see surges (Shaanth Nanguneri, Oregon Capital Chronicle)

• Portland Fire fall short in final seconds against the Sun, losing 90-87 (Associated Press)

Listen in on OPB’s daily conversation

“Think Out Loud” airs at noon and 8 p.m. weekdays on OPB Radio, opb.org and the OPB News app. Today’s planned topics (subject to change):

Today’s planned topics:

Topics subject to change.

• What’s the latest on Moda Center funding?

• Columbia Riverkeeper and other groups sue Trump administration to prevent weakening Endangered Species Act

• Multnomah County Sheriff’s office still using solitary confinement too often, says auditor’s report

One more look

The complex history of Oregon Country Fair: Hippies, camas fields and Native belonging

The annual Oregon Country Fair is one of the longest-running arts and craft fairs in the United States, as well as one of 28 designated Oregon Heritage Traditions.

Each year, the fair attracts tens of thousands of visitors seeking eclectic art forms — as well as echoes of Lane County’s counterculture past.

Where it takes place, though, is on an archaeological Kalapuya site. Can the Oregon Country Fair hold the balance between tie-dyed celebration and deeper cultural respect? (Kunu Bearchum)

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