SINCE 1979 • VOLUME 37, NO. 10
McNary
swimmers
sweep McKay
What's this photo
got to do with a
MHS junior?
SEE PG. 14
SEE PG. 6
KEIZERTIMES.COM
JANUARY 16, 2015
50 CENTS
What’cha got cooking, Cafe 159?
By ERIC A. HOWALD
Of the Keizertimes
The margherita pizza is
divine, extra cheesy and with
a crust that is hearty, but not
overfi lling. The Thai chicken
slice is a tad overdone, but
more fl avorful for it. The main
course was preceded by a salad
of leafy greens, cranberries, al-
monds and feta cheese, topped
with just the right amount of
vinagerette that brought out
the best of the other ingredi-
ents. Fresh-made mint choco-
late and strawberry ice cream
that arrived for dessert at the
perfect time, and with a smile.
Both fl avors are sumptuous,
a delightful combination of
cool and refreshing.
If McNary High School’s
young chefs prove consistent,
Cafe 159 might very well be-
come the hottest lunch ticket
in Keizer.
“It’s like getting spoiled in
the middle of the day,” said
teacher Marrla Wilkinson as
she sat down in the bistro sec-
tion of Room 159 at McNary.
Thursday, Jan. 8, was only the
second sit-down service for
the seven Lady Celts who run
Cafe 159, but Wilkinson was
one of the lucky ones making
her second visit.
“The fi rst time was in No-
vember and it was a Thanks-
giving meal with turkey, gravy
and some sides,” said senior
Makenzie Young-Jackson, one
of the chefs and servers.
Not so long ago, such ser-
vice was something of a pipe
dream. The McNary culinary
offerings were much more
minimal due to a lack of prop-
er facilities – think electric
stove tops and ovens found in
residential kitchens.
“We were making mac
and cheese out of a box,” said
Young-Jackson, who has been
enrolling in culinary classes
since her freshman year. “Now,
we’re making homemade ice
cream and pizza dough from
scratch.”
“It’s more like a restau-
rant, and all of our techniques
have taken that big step for-
ward,” said Regan Comstock,
a junior who will graduate in
June.
The kitchen facilities were
renovated as part of a Career
and Technical Education Re-
vitalization grant through the
Oregon Department of Edu-
cation.
“The new kitchen has
given the students exposure
to equipment they will see in
the industry: convection ov-
ens, fl at top grills and warm-
ing/proofi ng ovens. We have
also confi gured the room so
that we have the centers that
are represented in industry:
bake station, hot line, cold
line, dining room,” said Sheri
Bond, McNary’s culinary arts
teacher.
McNary senior Cheyenne
Shepherd said the remodel
in side
Clark gives
State of the
City address
(Page 2)
Holiday card
contest
(PG. 3)
MHS boys stay
in fi rst place
(PG. 12)
KEIZERTIMES/Eric A. Howald
Olivia Berger rolls out pizza dough in preparation for a meal at McNary's Cafe 159.
has changed the way the team
behind Cafe 159 thinks about
cooking.
“When we were cook-
ing for ourselves, we didn’t
think much about how the
food looked, but the feed-
back we’ve gotten has been
how much people like how
the whole meal feels like what
they would fi nd at a sit-down
restaurant. That means it has to
look good,” Shepherd said.
Please see CAFE, Page 8
A stitch and
time saves fl ags
KEIZERTIMES/Craig Murphy
Debbie Lockhart, deputy city recorder with the city of Keizer, looks over a city fl ag to repair. She
has been doing such work for about three years.
By CRAIG MURPHY
Of the Keizertimes
Debbie Lockhart has a
great view of her handiwork.
For the last few years, the
deputy city recorder for Keiz-
er has been volunteering her
time to mend fl ags as needed
at the Keizer Civic Center.
Three fl ags fl y over the
main entrance at 930 Che-
mawa Road North: United
States, the state and the city.
Since there are lights under-
neath, the fl ags can stay up 24
hours a day. Lockhart can see
the fl ags out her window.
Given the variation in
Oregon weather, that means
the fl ags can be subject to a
fair amount of rain and wind
throughout the year.
When Dan Collingham
started as the city's facil-
ity maintenance worker about
three years ago, Lockhart
ran her idea to repair fl ags
as needed by him. Colling-
ham agreed; in the time since
Lockhart estimates she has
done 10 repair jobs. With fl ags
costing an estimated $60 each,
that means the longtime city
employee has saved taxpayers
approximately $600 so far.
“I like making things last,”
said Lockhart, who started
working for the city in 2002.
Related to that, Lockhart
does the repairs on her 1962
sewing machine she was given
in the seventh grade.
Needed repairs are brought
to Lockhart’s attention by
Collingham.
“I check the fl ags on a
regular basis, especially after
a hard rain,” he said. “I’ll take
them down if it’s going to be
really windy or wet. Other-
wise we keep the fl ags up all
the time.”
By CRAIG MURPHY
Of the Keizertimes
When the Keizer Police
Department brought back its
Community Response Unit
a year ago, one of the main
goals was to deal with drug
complaints.
That has resulted in sev-
eral longtime drug homes in
Keizer being busted, with the
most recent example taking
place Jan. 8 on the 400 block
of Juedes Avenue North.
Two people were arrested
and an aggressive dog was shot
when offi cers served a search
warrant at the home early that
morning.
According to a news re-
lease from the Keizer Police
Department, members of
the KPD’s CRU squad heard
about complaints of drug
dealing at 453 Juedes Avenue
North in December and be-
gan an investigation. A search
warrant was secured and
served shortly before 6 a.m.
on Jan. 8.
According to police, when
offi cers entered the house,
a 93-pound four-year-old
American pit bull terrier-mix
dog became aggressive and
charged at the offi cers. Sgt. Jeff
Goodman, believing serious
Hearing for Area
C next Tuesday
By CRAIG MURPHY
Of the Keizertimes
Keizer Station Area C is
the subject of a public hearing
again next week.
A revised proposal for
apartments and a retirement
community facility will be
discussed during the Jan. 20
Keizer City Council meet-
ing. The meeting is a day later
than usual due to Monday
being Martin Luther King Jr.
Day. The 7 p.m. meeting takes
place in council chambers
at Keizer Civic Center, 930
Chemawa Road NE.
The area in question drew
plenty of attention a few years
back, when plans called for a
large retail outlet – believed at
the time to be Walmart – to
build a 116,000 square foot
store.
A size limit of 80,000
square feet for retail space was
subsequently put into place.
Mountain West Investments
and Bonaventure Senior
Housing LLC have submit-
ted the revised application for
land owned by Oregon Terri-
tory Development and Jerold
KEIZERTIMES/Craig Murphy
A sign gives notice of next week's hearing at city hall about
proposed development for Keizer Station Area C, seen here in
the background.
and Kathleen Egner. The por-
tion impacted would be about
17 acres, or half of Area C.
The proposal was origi-
nally planned to be brought
to council last month, before
veteran councilors Jim Taylor,
Joe Egli and longtime mayor
Lore Christopher left their
seats. However, some updates
were needed and thus the is-
sue is coming up next week.
Even with the delay, the
staff report wasn’t fi nished un-
til late Tuesday afternoon. The
overall package sent to coun-
cilors is 567 pages, including a
70-page staff report. The Keiz-
ertimes received a copy of the
package Tuesday evening.
Sam Litke, the senior plan-
ner for Keizer, said the new
Please see AREA C, Page 9
It's a beautiful morning...
Please see FLAGS, Page 9
Dog shot, two arrested
Please see SHOT, Page 5
KEIZERTIMES/Craig Murphy
The sky over Keizer was awash in gorgeous colors at sunrise Wednesday morning, Jan. 14.
This is looking east from Keizer Station Area C.