Bend Mayor Sally Russell announced Thursday she will not run for the mayoral race in November. The mayor said she reached her decision over time and with input from her family. Mayor Russell thanked the public for their support and said she’s appreciated everyone she has worked with, and will continue to work with over the coming months. Russell praised the tireless efforts of her colleagues and partners to make Bend a better place under the challenging circumstances of recent years. Speaking of her greatest accomplishments, the mayor said the city’s comprehensive transportation plan and passage of the largest transportation bond measure in the city’s history were some of the highlights of her time in office, as well as passage of the city’s urban growth boundary, and efforts to fast forward affordable and workforce housing. In the future Russell said she hopes to explore several projects close to her heart. One of those includes the Deschutes Collaborative Forest project; the mayor spoke of the need to protect forests more than ever in the face of climate change and drought.