SINCE 1979 • VOLUME 38, NO. 19 SECTION A FEBRUARY 10, 2017 $1.00 Code change could lead to Safeway gas station At the time, there was already a By ERIC A. HOWALD gas station on the southwest cor- Of the Keizertimes The Keizer City Council cleared ner of the intersection (where the fi rst hurdle that may make way the focal point is now), and for a gas station in front of the Keiz- the then-councilors hoped to er Safeway location on River Road prevent another from crop- ping up before discussions North. In a 5-1 vote, the council approved could be had about what city a text amendment which removes an leaders wanted the intersec- tion to look like, overlay zone pro- said Nate Brown, hibiting gas stations, Keizer’s commu- in an area about a “The Renaissanwe nity development bl o c k - a n d - a - h a l f vision hasn't director. in every direction, “There is a lot of around the River progressed. specifi c criteria that Road North and I don't see has been developed Chemawa Road and we’re in a intersection. Coun- interest in that different place. It cilor Kim Freeman and I would hate would be a healthy was absent. While any ap- to limit a business discussion to have about what we want proval for a gas sta- that is looking it to be now,” Brown tion remains far off, said. the removal of the to expand.” The request to overlay zone will allow the city to — Amy Ryan, remove the over- lay zone included a proceed with talks Keizer City Counwilor proposal by Safeway. about adding a Safe- The proposal offers way gas station. The zone predates Keizer’s build- two sites for potential placements of ing codes and was approved in 1996 the eight-pump gas station, either by city councilors who were con- along the north side of the parking cerned about “safety and aesthet- lot close to Chemawa Road North- ics” in the main corridor of Keizer’s east or in the southwest corner be- hind Oregon State Credit Union. downtown. The proposal also includes a traffi c study, but the numbers were from an An unpaved portion of the Safeway older traffi c report, a newer one was parking lot is one potential lowation conducted in 2016. for a proposed gas station. A report from Brown states, “The KEIZERTIMES/Eriw A. Howald McNary dominates W. Albany PAGE A12 Please see SAFEWAY, Page A7 Armed man subdued PAGE A2 KEIZERTIMES/Eriw A. Howald Duo proposes municipal internet service By ERIC A. HOWALD Of the Keizertimes A pair of Keizer residents met with some resistance to the idea of creating internet service as a public utility at the Keizer City Council meeting Monday, Feb. 6. Keizer residents Dylan Juran and Daniel Miedema spoke to the council about what other cities have done and what they see as the rea- sons for pursuing the idea. “There are some changes that have been happening where the big carriers are imposing data caps. Another thing we are concerned about is the end of net neutrality,” Juran said. With data caps, users are charged additional fees for go- ing over an allowed amount. Net neutrality refers to pre- venting internet service pro- viders from charging more for allowing certain content to fl ow across their systems, charges which would likely end up costing users who want to access the content. Users might also incur addi- tional charges for accessing the internet from different types of devices. Net neutrality is currently mandated as part of a 2015 U.S. Court of Appeals decision, but there is increased concern that it might be over- turned under pressure from the new presidential adminis- tration. “One of the largest solu- tions is municipal internet, which is communities com- ing together to build a fi ber or wireless internet networks,” Juran said. While the cost would be substantial, Juran said it was an investment in Keizer. “It might be a way to get away from a service provider you may want to get away from. And businesses might consider Keizer as a place they want to build because it offers services like this,” Juran said. Juran noted that Indepen- dence and Monmouth com- bined forces to install their own network and Mt. Vernon, Wash., a city similar in size and population to Keizer, has also Please see INTERNET, Page A7 Keizer 3555 River Road N, Keizer (503) 463 - 4853 www.skylineforddirect.com *Must trade 1995 or newer. Must fi nance wirh Ford Motor Company Credit. On approved credit. **0% x 60 = $23,499 to fi nance after $996 discount. The employees of Uptown Musiw rewently earned national rewognition for their pursuit of exwellenwe in wustomer serviwe. Uptown Musiw wins national award By ERIC A. HOWALD Of the Keizertimes There are certain things Paul Elliott, the owner of Keizer’s Uptown Music, can teach a new employee, like how to answer the phone and take good care of a cus- tomer. But, whenever he hires a new employee for the store at 3827 River Road N., Elliott is looking for the thing he The store was selected out can’t teach: a servant’s heart. “Having that servant’s of thousands nationwide, El- heart will make them take liott said. “Sometimes customers the extra step – because they want to do it, not because we call our vendors and manu- facturers directly and those told them to,” said Elliott. The approach is working businesses ask who sold them according to colleagues in the the equipment, apparently music retail industry. In Janu- we got a lot of good feedback ary, the store was awarded the and it was the manufacturers Music and Sound Retailer that nominated us,” Elliott Award for best customer ser- said. vice for a single-store dealer. Please see UPTOWN, Page A9 'The solutions we bring to the table are nuclear.' PAGE A3 KPD cracks down on home squatters SISTERS OWE $72,000 IN FINES By ERIC A. HOWALD Of the Keizertimes This week, the front door to home at 1689 14th Street N.E. is boarded up. Orange fl iers are posted all over the house to notify would-be oc- cupants that it has become unsafe. “No trespassing” are in windows. A little over a week ago, that wasn’t the case. On Wednesday, Feb. 1, Please see SQUAT, Page A9 Celt thespians, artists shine PAGE A5 KEIZERTIMES/Eriw A. Howald Poliwe rousted squatters from this 14th Street home last week. GET PAID TO TRADE! MSRP Skyline Discount Skyline Price $24,595 - $1,096 $23,499 “Special” Ford Credit Retail - $3,500 * Trade-In Assistance Trade-In Assistance Bonus Cash - $500 Final Price $19,499 2017 ESCAPE S Get an extra trade-in bonus on a new Ford! ONLY 12 AT THIS PRICE! 0% x 60 ** Available