Under the controversial deal, Keiser plans to buy 280 acres of state parkland for $2.5 million to build a 27-hole golf course about 14 miles from Bandon Dunes in Oregon. The Bureau has stipulated that Keiser must pay an additional $450,000 for the land, which is half of market value for the property, minus a token fee the parks department.

The Oregon Parks and Recreation Department has agreed to accept several parcels of land, $2.5 million in cash for future land acquisitions, and money to clean up an invasive plant species in exchange for the state privatizing 280 acres of the public coast so Keiser, the owner/developer of Bandon Dunes Resort, can develop a low-cost golf course geared toward local play.

John Kitzhaber was sworn in as governor of Oregon twice wearing his trademark jeans, but because of a no-denim dress code, Kitzhaber plans to respectfully dress appropriately when he appears on February 10 at a Democratic forum at Oswego Lake Country Club, Lake Oswego, Ore., with primary-race rival Bill Bradbury, reports The Oregonian. “We are…