Briefs for March 7, 2026

Published 6:00 am Saturday, March 7, 2026

Anis Mojgani former Oregon Poet Laureate was part of a past Sou’wester Arts Week. (Sora Blu photo)

Sou’wester Arts Week expands into more venues

The Long Beach peninsula welcomes back Sou’wester Arts Week for year seven, taking place March 8 to 16 at the Sou’wester Lodge, 3728 J. Place in Seaview, Washington. The multi-media art fest starts with a week long creative residency at the lodge for more than 60 artists working across writing, music, performance visual art, craft and culinary disciplines and culminates in a series of public events March 13, 14 and 15 over the peninsula extending to Ilwaco Cider Company and the Chinook School. For more information see souwesterlodge.com.

Road work for week of March 9

Crews will be tree trimming on Mullenbach Lane, Cow Creek Road, Beneke Creek Road and in the Brownsmead area.
They will also be performing ditch maintenance in the Brownsmead area and brushing, chopping and placing shoulder rock on Lewis & Clark Road.
Flaggers will be present; expect minor delays.

2026 BLM timber sales bring in $8.3 million+

The Bureau of Land Management announced it sold 27.6 million board feet of timber across 1,255 public acres in Oregon, for a total of $8,327,275, and indicates a strong demand in American lumber manufacturing by exceeding total appraised values by over $3 million. The timber will feed local mills and support jobs in local communities.

The BLM plans to hold seven sales during March to offer 56.9 million board feet of timber across 1,939 public acres in Oregon.

The BLM manages 58 million acres of forests, including 2.4 million acres in western Oregon. BLM forestry supports economic security, reduces risks from wildfire, conserves fish and wildlife habitat, and decreases costs of energy production. Local communities rely on jobs that come from BLM forests, and timber from public land feeds local industry.

Each year, the BLM forestry program’s sales support approximately 2,000 jobs nationally and generate more than $1 billion for local economies.

The BLM manages about 245 million acres of public land located primarily in 12 western states, including Alaska, on behalf of the American people. The BLM also administers 700 million acres of sub-surface mineral estate throughout the nation. “Our mission is to sustain the health, diversity, and productivity of America’s public lands for the use and enjoyment of present and future generations.”

— The Astorian