Medford

The City of Medford has paused payment of a $11,550 grant to a local church following a report that alleges conversion therapy is being practiced there. The pastor of the church, Chad McComas, is also the founder of homeless nonprofit Rogue Retreat.

In April, a graphic novel version of Margaret Atwood’s dystopian story The Handmaid’s Tale was pulled from the shelves of North Medford High School after a parent complained about images of nudity, sexual assault, and suicide.

With the renovation and construction of a new middle school underway in Medford, the district is looking to finalize new attendance zones for the city.

In September, OPB reporter April Ehrlich faces trial for charges tied to her coverage of Medford police breaking up a homeless encampment in 2020.

Volunteers are coming together for a clean-up event along Bear Creek in the Rogue Valley. The event is organized with others across the state for Earth Week.

Environmental agencies are continuing their efforts to clean up a spill of petroleum products into Bear Creek after Tuesday’s three-alarm fire at a fuel depot near downtown Medford.

The proposed 115-unit complex would begin to address a chronic housing shortage in the region that was made worse by the 2020 wildfires in the Rogue Valley.

The Rogue River-Siskiyou National Forest was awarded $100,000 this week to reduce damaging wildfire risk in the watershed that provides drinking water to Medford and surrounding communities.

Politics often get in the way of building homeless shelters. But because of recent wildfires and the pandemic, Southern Oregon saw an unusual amount of growth in shelters this year.

Last week, an unhoused man died in Medford after being exposed to the elements during a cold night. In response, housing advocates are asking the city to halt its controversial “prohibited camping, lying and sleeping” ordinance.

The festival was held to celebrate America's newest national holiday. Juneteenth marks June 19th, 1865, when enslaved African-Americans in Texas got news — two years after the Emancipation Proclamation was issued — that they were free.

During a visit to Southern Oregon Tuesday morning, Senator Ron Wyden announced he will prioritize planning and fire-safety for what is expected to be an extreme fire season.