WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 19, 2020 ❚ SILVERTONAPPEAL.COM
PART OF THE USA TODAY NETWORK
School board members in Silverton won’t be censured
Bill Poehler and Natalie Pate Salem Statesman Journal
USA TODAY NETWORK
SILVERTON – The Silver Falls School Board de-
clined to censure its members for improper discus-
sions outside of board meetings, but instead will re-
quire its members to undergo training about commu-
nications.
Two independent attorneys hired by the board in-
vestigated a complaint regarding email and text com-
munications between Silver Falls School Board mem-
bers. Board member Tom Buchholz recommended no
action be brought against four of seven members: Jen-
nifer Traeger, Jonathan Edmonds, Janet Allanach and
Lori McLaughlin.
But Buchholz said he thought seven violations of
board policy by member Shelly Nealon in the two in-
vestigations justified her censure, a public reprimand.
The board, however, voted 6-1 Monday to acknowl-
edge the violations and require board members re-
ceive targeted training regarding the violations by
Aug. 31, 2020.
“This response does not foster trust,” said Owen
Von Flue, a former school board member and repre-
sentative of the group of community members who
brought the complaint.
To date, Silver Falls School District has spent $9,992
from its general fund to pay for costs associated with
the complaint.
The complaint, which was brought by 112 communi-
ty members, alleged that five board members violated
board policy concerning discussion outside of execu-
tive session.
It specifically pointed to Nealon’s repeated commu-
nications with the board about the contract of former
superintendent Andy Bellando, who resigned in July
and now is the interim superintendent for the Dallas
School District.
Communication between board members is to be
held only in executive session, according to board pol-
icy.
“Discussing a superintendent’s contract outside of
executive session is dangerous,” Buchholz said. “If the
See SCHOOL, Page 3A
Stayton city
councilor
wades into
House race
Bill Poehler Salem Statesman Journal
USA TODAY NETWORK
Nick Haas, of Portland, opens a doorway that was boarded up on a home built 1864 on a plot of land west of
Silverton that was used in the Alan Alda movie "Isn't It Shocking?". The house has been uninhabited and
dilapidated for years. Haas purchased the home in 2017 on the condition he move it to a new location and
restore it. Photographed on Feb. 4, 2020. ANNA REED / STATESMAN JOURNAL
House from Alan Alda
movie gets new hope
Bill Poehler Salem Statesman Journal
USA TODAY NETWORK
Nick Haas thought his dream home was gone.
For nearly a decade, the Portland resident had been
fascinated with a picturesque, long-abandoned two-
story farmhouse near Mt. Angel, even though he
didn’t know where it was located for much of that
time.
The Wiesner Farm House, which was completed in
1880 and at one time was the key location in the Alan
Alda movie "Isn’t It Shocking?," was scheduled to be
demolished by means of a practice burn by a local fire
department.
With help from the Wiesner family, Haas has un-
dertaken the monumental task of moving the house
to a new location a few miles away and restoring the
house that has significant historical and popular cul-
ture value to the area.
“It was a dream of mine as a kid,” said Chance
Wiesner, the great-great grandson of its builder.
Chance grew up in the house and now lives in Salem.
“I didn’t really get to fulfill it, but it’s great to see it
fulfilled.”
See WIESNER, Page 3A
Oregon state parks offer free
camping to minority groups
Zach Urness Salem Statesman Journal
USA TODAY NETWORK
State officials are looking to expand the diversity of
people visiting Oregon’s outdoors with a pilot pro-
gram that offers a free weekend of camping at state
parks.
Eight camping trips, each with two nights spent in
yurts or cabins, will be available to people in groups
underrepresented in the state park system during the
summer of 2020, officials said.
The groups eligible include racial ethnic minor-
ities, those with disabilities, members of the LGBTQ
plus community and those living in poverty, officials
said. Others could qualify as well.
“Parks are for everyone, and this small gesture
eliminates a very real barrier — cost — from the equa-
tion,” said OPRD’s director Lisa Sumption. “We hope
this is just a start for participants, and one camping
trip will inspire many more outdoor adventures.”
A lone Democrat has waded into a field brimming
with Republicans.
Stayton city councilor Paige Hook has become the
first and thus far only Democrat to file to run for
House District 17, a long-time Republican stronghold,
against a field that includes six Republicans.
“It has been a strategic choice to
wait until now,” said Hook, who
works at the state legislature. “There
are six people running on the Repub-
lican side and why put someone on
the side for attacks until they had to.
“I would say it’s a thing of I don’t
Hook
have to run against six Republicans;
I have to run against one Republi-
can.”
Rep. Sherrie Sprenger has held the seat since 2008
and won the past six elections.
She announced last year she would not run for re-
election for the position and instead would run for
Linn County Commissioner.
Republicans Jami Cate, Susan Coleman, Bruce
Cuff, Tim Kirsch, Dylan Richards and Scott Sword
have filed for the May 19 primary election. The final
day to file for the position is March 10.
Republicans have won every election for the seat
since 2002, after the district was drawn into its cur-
rent form.
Jim Moore, the Director of Political Outreach for
the Tom McCall Center for Civic Engagement at Pa-
cific University, said the greatest chance for a Demo-
crat in such a Republican stronghold is in the final
year before redistricting as the 2020 election is.
He said that demographics in a district can change
due to new people moving into the district, and
House District 17 has seen its largest gain in unaffili-
ated voters.
“A new name can break through more easily,”
Moore said. “Looking at the numbers here, that’s
probably not a factor.”
House District 17 includes cities in east Linn and
Marion County including Detroit, Gates, Idanha,
Lebanon, Lyons, Mill City, Stayton, Sublimity, Sweet
Home and Waterloo.
Hook said she wants to get the district more of a
voice in the decisions made in the legislature, where
the Democrats hold a supermajority.
See RACE, Page 3A
See CAMPING, Page 2A
Online at SilvertonAppeal.com
Vol. 139, No. 9
News updates: ❚ Breaking news ❚ Get updates from
the Silverton area
Photos: ❚ Photo galleries
Serving the Silverton
Area Since 1880
A Unique Edition of
the Statesman Journal
QEAJAB-07403y
©2020
50 cents
Printed on recycled paper
Rep. Sherrie Sprenger, R-Scio, speaks on the first
day of the short legislative session at the Oregon
State Capitol in Salem on Feb. 3, 2020. ANNA REED /
STATESMAN JOURNAL