Prineville, Ore. – Crook County is inviting residents to weigh in on long-debated plans for a secondary access route to Juniper Canyon, an issue brought into sharp focus by the recent Highland Fire. A community meeting is scheduled for tonight, August 20th, from 6–8 p.m. at Carey Foster Hall at the Crook County Fairgrounds.
The secondary access question has been under discussion for years as part of the county’s Transportation System Plan (TSP), a 20-year roadmap for future transportation investments. But the Highland Fire, which swept through the area earlier this summer, reignited community concerns about limited evacuation options for the growing Juniper Canyon community.
Crook County Community Development Director John Eisler said while the fire did not destroy homes, it underscored what residents have feared for years.
“Here we had a big fire, the wind was blowing south, and at first it looked like a worst-case scenario,” Eisler said. “Thankfully, there were no structures damaged. But it is certainly a chance to see; here’s something that happened, here’s how it played out, here’s how it was responded to, here’s how it impacted traffic, and then use that as information as we make our plans moving forward.”
The upcoming meeting will present the preferred access route identified through the county’s Juniper Canyon Alternative Access study. County staff and partner agencies, including Crook County Fire & Rescue, OSU Extension’s College of Forestry, and the Bureau of Land Management, will share updates on transportation planning, wildfire resilience, and land management.
Residents will also have the chance to review updated cost and funding options and provide feedback before the TSP heads to the Planning Commission and Board of Commissioners for consideration.
Eisler emphasized that this session is being held in the evening to allow broader participation after some residents expressed frustration with daytime-only meetings held in April.
“We wanted to make sure people that work in Bend, or Redmond, or just in town, that couldn’t make it last time, can make it to this,” Eisler said.
At a prior April meeting, no consensus emerged among residents on which alternative access route the county should pursue. Eisler hopes this follow-up session, with the preferred option laid out, will give the community clearer information to react to.
For more information, residents can contact the Community Development Department at 541-447-3211 or visit the county’s Transportation System Plan webpage .
Mr. Alderman is an investigative journalist specializing in government transparency, non-profit accountability, consumer protection, and is a subject mater expert on Oregon’s public records and meetings laws. As a former U.S. Army Military Police Officer, he brings a disciplined investigative approach to his reporting that has frequently exposed ethics violations, financial mismanagement, and transparency failures by public officials and agencies.
