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Michael Dunne

Michael Dunne is a columnist for The Chronicle. Michael has decades of experience in business writing and public relations and is also the host of KLCC's Oregon On The Record. Michael has a degree in political science from the University of California and enjoys running, hiking, and mountaineering.

Housing crisis a multi-faceted issue

It’s a crisis in our community which, on paper, has a very easy solution, yet in practice might be the hardest challenge we have – creating enough affordable housing to meet our needs. Indeed, a perfect storm of factors have…

Bridging the Digital Divide

The famous line, “If you build it, they will come” is taking on a new and significant meaning in Oregon with regard to critical infrastructure. For when it comes to expanding broadband into the more rural areas of the state,…

Real and perceived outdoor dangers

Recently, I was in a conversation with several young adults about their favorite outdoor spots in Oregon. They were new to the area, and new to outdoor recreation. It was a passing-the-time kind of discussion, with no real focus, and…

A ‘spark’ of inspiration 

Hands-on opps for youth coming to Booth-Kelly SPRINGFIELD — “Sparks” will soon be flying at the Booth-Kelly Center in Springfield — ones that will intersect community, education, and business for the county’s young and underserved population.  This spring, Connected Lane…

Shearer leading the way

SPRINGFIELD — Chief Andrew Shearer actually wanted to become a firefighter in his youth. “I joke with some of my longtime friends in law enforcement that when I was a kid, I really wanted to be a firefighter,” Shearer said…

Wyden: Low-cost housing not a bridge too far 

SPRINGFIELD – While Eugene recently hosted Democratic Party luminaries Senators Bernie Sanders and Jeff Merkley and retiring Representative Peter DeFazio, Springfield also enjoyed an audience with a political heavyweight as Senator Ron Wyden made an appearance at Hayden Bridge Landing…