WEDNESDAY, JUNE 9, 2021 | SILVERTONAPPEAL.COM
PART OF THE USA TODAY NETWORK
Town hall on dam signals return to normal
super healthy for our democracy, super healthy for the
process,” Marion County Commissioner Colm Willis
said. “It’s wonderful.”
Bill Poehler
Salem Statesman Journal
USA TODAY NETWORK
The Scotts Mills dam on Thursday. County officials
held an in-person town hall meeting to discuss the
future of the crumbling dam on Butte Creek. ABIGAIL
DOLLINS/STATESMAN JOURNAL
Some want the dam removed.
Others want it to remain or, better yet, to be repaired.
In-person public forums like town halls have been a
casualty of the pandemic. But for the first time in over a
year Thursday evening, dozens of people came together
to discuss the fate of the Scotts Mills Dam in a public
forum at the dam hosted by Marion County.
For an hour, people stood in Scotts Mills Park and
discussed what should happen with it. After the forum
ended, people on differing sides of the issue talked
amongst themselves and attempted to come to a reso-
lution.
The resumption of in-person town halls is a sign of
the return to normalcy in small towns.
“It’s super healthy, super healthy for our community,
Fate in the hands Marion County
For decades, the fate of the century-old dam has
been in question.
The 5-foot tall, 40-foot wide concrete dam was built
in the mid-1800s on top of a 10-foot waterfall on Butte
Creek to channel water to drive the city’s namesake
mill.
The ownership of the dam was in question for years.
But as it is connected to Scotts Mills Park, which
Marion County has owned since the 1950s, the county –
and the landowner on the Clackamas County side of
Butte Creek – are responsible for deciding its fate.
See DAM, Page 2A
An employee with the Oregon Secretary of State’s
office takes boxes containing signatures for
Initiative Petitions 17 and 18 from the petitioners
inside the Oregon Public Service Building on
Wednesday. CONNOR RADNOVICH/STATESMAN JOURNAL
Cora Edmonds, 4, picks strawberries with her family at Boones Ferry Berry Farm on Wednesday in Hubbard.
The farm is currently offering Sweet Ann and Hood strawberries for u-pick.
Berry good
Emily Teel and Bill Poehler Salem Statesman Journal | USA
TODAY NETWORK
T
he sweet smell of strawberries lin-
gers like a fog over the Willamette
Valley. h With sunny weather re-
turning and summer fruit like blue-
berries, raspberries and cherries coming into
season – combined with eager people seeking
outdoor activities – U-pick farms are starting to
open for the year all around Salem. h U-pick
season lasts until the fall in Oregon as fruits and
vegetables like corn, apples and pumpkins
reach their peak.
ing you to bring your own containers for what you pick.
Some of the farms are only open dependent on the
amount of produce they sell being available.
Some farms are sparse and unattended with you
paying by the honor system.
Others have restaurants, gift shops and offerings
like hay rides, which can make for a full day of activity
for a family or group.
It’s a wise move to reach out to the U-Pick farm, or
at least visit their Facebook page, before you plan on
visiting.
What to bring:
h Containers - While many farms will have buck-
ets to pick into and containers to buy, you’ll save mon-
ey if you remember to bring your own. Kitchen con-
tainers (like Tupperware) are great for berries be-
cause they’re lightweight, easy to carry and, once you
Prices and amenities vary by farm with some requir-
See U-PICK, Page 3A
Fulfillment in football
Players join women’s
league for myriad reasons
Abigail Dollins Salem Statesman Journal | USA TODAY NETWORK
M
aria Rivera perused the aisles
of a sporting goods store. She
passed the women’s section,
dotted with bright pinks and
purples, and approached the football equip-
ment. She asked the store clerk where the
mouthpieces and girdles were in her size.
See PIONEERS, Page 2A
The Capital Pioneers line up for the national anthem
before their first home game against the Sioux Falls
Snow Leopards on May 1 in Stayton.
Vol. 140, No. 25
Online at SilvertonAppeal.com
News updates: h Breaking news h Get updates from
the Silverton area
Photos: h Photo galleries
Serving the Silverton
Area Since 1880
A Unique Edition of
the Statesman Journal
QEAJAB-07403y
New gun
initiatives
submitted
Connor Radnovich
Salem Statesman Journal
USA TODAY NETWORK
Gun control activists submitted the initial round of
signatures Wednesday in support of two initiative
petitions that would require registration of assault-
style semi-automatic firearms, create a permit for
purchasing guns and stop the sale of gun magazines
that hold more than 10 rounds.
“This will be a bellwether for the nation, it’s one of
the most comprehensive packages put together,” said
Pastor Mark Knutson of the Augustana Lutheran
Church in Portland.
Petitioners said they gathered 2,000 signatures
each for IP 17 and IP 18 in about a week, and now the
Secretary of State’s office has 10 days to verify that
each has 1,000 valid signatures.
The campaigns will have to clear various legal and
bureaucratic benchmarks if the initiatives are to make
it to the ballot in November 2022, not the least of
which is the gathering of 112,020 signatures by July 8,
2022.
Lift Every Voice Oregon is leading the effort. The
faith-based coalition was also behind a trio of initia-
tive petitions in the 2020 election cycle, one of which
was approved to circulate in late April.
“We were moving forward actually really, really
well. We had the ballot titles, we’d gone through the
Supreme Court, we were ready to start collecting sig-
natures, and then COVID hit,” said Rabbi Michael Ca-
hana of Congregation Beth Israel.
The 2022 initiatives have much in common with
their 2020 predecessors, but there are some changes.
IP 17 would require anyone interested in buying a
gun to go through a permitting process beforehand.
This process would include a background check as
well as live-fire and classroom training.
The permit would be good for five years and would
be renewable.
The petition would also ban the sale and manufac-
ture of ammunition magazines that hold more than 10
rounds of ammunition, except to the military or law
enforcement.
IP 18 would ban the manufacture, purchase, use
and possession of assault-style firearms beyond its
effective date, and require all firearms that qualify be
registered within 180 days.
Any firearms already purchased and registered
could still be legally used: on private property, for
hunting, at shooting ranges, in competition and at
educational exhibitions. Impermissible use would
qualify as a Class A misdemeanor on first offense,
with higher penalties possible for additional offenses.
The petition lists dozens of rifles that would be
subjected to the new restrictions.
Semi-automatic shotguns and semi-automatic
pistols also qualify as “assault-style” if they have any
one of a number of augmentations or attachments.
For pistols, these include: a threaded barrel, capa-
ble of accepting a flash suppressor, forward handgrip
or silencer; a second handgrip; or a stabilizing brace or
any similar component.
See INITIATIVES, Page 2A