Nancy Wyse, Benton County Commissioner

09/13/2026

Who has two thumbs and got to be a judge for the Chili Cook-off this year?! Me! Along with some other fine folks, of course. Lucky for us, all of the chili was delicious!

09/12/2026

Thank you Mayor Dan Sheets and the City of Monroe for hosting the First Responders event, today, September 11, 2026- the 25th anniversary of 9/11.
Speakers included Mayor Sheets, Councilor Jeremy Felty, Councilor Harry Myers, State Representative David Gomberg, Sheriff Jef Van Arsdall, Commissioner Gabe Shepherd, and myself.

In addition, Sheriff Van Arsdall received the Mayor's Award for Distinguished Public Service and Community Leadership... well deserved!

The city also celebrated their new flag poles with a ribbon cutting.

09/11/2026

Today's Love of Learning column by Eric Niemann reflects on the 25th anniversary of September 11, 2001 and a Philomath soldier who gave his life.

Featuring quotes from City Councilor Rich Saalsaa and yours truly.

On the 25th anniversary of 9/11, Philomath voices reflect on the attacks, the war on terror and a soldier's ultimate sacrifice.

09/10/2026

See you there!

Philomath's Public Safety Chili Cook-Off returns Sept. 13 with 24 teams and some friendly trash talk, plus a new Emergency Preparedness and Services Fair.

09/07/2026

Happy Labor Day!

On Labor Day, we honor the dignity of work and every person whose labor helps uplift humanity.

08/31/2026

𝐈𝐭'𝐬 𝐭𝐢𝐦𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐠𝐞𝐭 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐲 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐬𝐜𝐡𝐨𝐨𝐥! 🚍

You may have noticed a few different styles of school zone speed signs around our county. Each has their own rules regarding when the school zone needs to be observed, but they all indicate that the school zone speed is 20 𝓶𝓹𝓱.🚸

The school zone sign itself is the start of the 20 𝓶𝓹𝓱. zone🚸. This speed limit is in effect until you reach an "𝐞𝐧𝐝 𝐬𝐜𝐡𝐨𝐨𝐥 𝐳𝐨𝐧𝐞" sign or another posted speed sign. That doesn't mean as soon as you SEE the end school zone sign you are out of it. Don't start speeding up yet. The school zone ends at the exact location of that sign.

🚦 A flashing light on a school zone sign indicates children are actively arriving or leaving the school. This means to expect pedestrian traffic. Slow down and observe the school speed limit.

🚸 A sign that indicates "𝐛𝐞𝐭𝐰𝐞𝐞𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐬 𝐨𝐟 7𝐚𝐦 𝐚𝐧𝐝 5𝐩𝐦" lets you know that the speed limit is to be observed anytime during those hours on a school day. If you are unsure whether or not it's a school day, the best choice would be to slow down anyways.

🏃‍♂️ The school zone sign that says "𝐚𝐧𝐲 𝐝𝐚𝐲 𝐚𝐭 𝐚𝐧𝐲 𝐭𝐢𝐦𝐞 𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐜𝐡𝐢𝐥𝐝𝐫𝐞𝐧 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐩𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐞𝐧𝐭" means you should be observant of your surroundings and know that children frequent that area of the road. You must slow down to 20 mph in these zones if you see a child waiting at a crosswalk, children are walking within a crosswalk (starting the moment they step off the curb), or if you see a crossing guard waiting to help children across- even if they are not actively moving children at that time.

𝐓𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐤 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐤𝐞𝐞𝐩𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐤𝐢𝐝𝐬 𝐬𝐚𝐟𝐞!

08/31/2026

8/31 EDIT: We've been notified of a link issue. As soon as it has been resolved, we will post an updated link.

NEW for Benton County property owners: sign up for our property recording alerts system! Get notifications for any time documents containing user-specified data are recorded.

08/30/2026

It's a beautiful day in Benton County! More importantly, it's a good day to have a great day!!

08/27/2026

ATTENTION BENTON COUNTY DRIVERS: Emergency road closure this Thursday and Friday on SW 53rd Street, from South of Country Club Blvd to Beals Ave. See map for details (in red) and detour guidance (in blue). Northbound lanes of 53rd closed from Plymouth to Country Club.

08/22/2026

Thank you to Oregon's First Lady Aimee Kotek Wilson for touring the Benton County Crisis Center to learn more about our successes and current challenges!