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A coalition of Rogue Advocates, WaterWatch of Oregon, Rogue Riverkeeper, and Friends of Country Living is urging Governor Tina Kotek to reject a deep-pit gravel operation on Grave Creek, a tributary of the Wild and Scenic Rogue River. Eighty to ninety feet deep. Within fifty feet of Grave Creek. That is the shape of what […]

A street ends at an empty field at the edge of Woodburn’s urban growth boundary. This empty field is now the potential site of a new housing development, a possibility with House Bill 4035. (Photo by Robin Linares/Oregon Capital Chronicle)

The Grand Terrace Apartments project is back before the Ashland City Council, and approval now seems likely. Rogue Advocates originally opposed the proposal, but our persistence helped bring meaningful improvements, including fire-resistant, solar-powered buildings and fairer affordable housing standards. This project is a reminder that strong community advocacy can shape development for the better.

For the past eight years, Rogue Advocates has been actively engaged in reviewing and challenging the proposed Sunny Valley Sand and Gravel (SVSG) mine project on Graves Creek, just upstream from the Wild and Scenic Rogue River. This project poses significant risks to our region’s water, wildlife, and communities, and we remain committed to monitoring […]

Did you know Oregon has protected over 16 million acres of farmland since 1973? This shows our state’s dedication to keeping rural areas beautiful. But, three new bills – HB 2400, HB 2422, and HB 2316 – could change that. We strongly oppose these bills, fearing they could cause rural sprawl and harm our farming […]

With a few breakthrough projects this year and changes behind the scenes at Rogue Advocates we have quite a lot to tell you! We thank all of you who contributed generous donations, both in time and monetarily, that have allowed us to see so much done halfway through the year in Jackson and Josephine Counties. […]

Mail Tribune, November 28, 2022 –– A local land-use watchdog group has published a guide aimed at making Oregon’s often complicated land-use system easier to understand. If more people understand the state’s land-use rules — which involve urban growth boundaries and a host of laws intended to preserve the state’s farm and forest lands — […]

Land Use Program Manager Devin Kesner and Board President Jamie Talarico discussed our new publication, Participating in Land Use Planning, and tips for getting involved with local land use planning, on the Jefferson Exchange on Jefferson Public Radio. We talked about barriers to getting involved, the basics of our land use planning system, and more! […]

Public participation is powerful and central to the sustainable functioning of our government. Land use planning is dependent on the public being involved in the planning process. With enabling more public participation as our motivating force, we’ve put together a new publication to make participating in the land use realm more accessible. We know firsthand […]

Facing sustained opposition from Rogue Advocates and community members, Jackson County made its final decision to deny an application for an aggregate mining operation on nearly 64 acres a few miles north of Shady Cove on Highway 227. The application was seeking approval for mining, crushing, sizing, stockpiling, hauling, and blasting, all within close proximity […]

In a June 26 Guest Opinion in the Mail Tribune, former President of Friends of Jackson County (which merged with Rogue Advocates in 2011) reflected on 30 years of ensuring sustainable development in the Rogue Valley: “In the 1970s through the early 1990s, many Jackson County rural landowners requested rezoning of agriculturally zoned land that […]

Source: Kevin McNamara/KTVL On June 29th, 2022, Rogue Advocates’ Board member Steve Rouse was featured on KTVL News regarding a gravel mine proposed just north of Shady Cove and Trail. Jackson County originally denied the application based on adverse impacts to residences located as close as 100 feet from the operation that will involve blasting, […]