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About Keizertimes. (Salem, Or.) 1979-current | View Entire Issue (Aug. 12, 2016)
SINCE 1979 • VOLUME 38, NO. 35 SECTION A AUGUST 12, 2016 $1.00 Officers, $$$ needed in spotlight By ERIC A. HOWALD With property tax levels locked in as Of the Keizertimes a result of an amendment to the Oregon “We’re not complaining, A moment of gravity, but not survival. constitution passed in 1997, city officials there isn’t doom looming, That’s how Chief John Teague, of the are discussing adding a fee to utility bills to Keizer Police Department, characterized the increase the general fund. Police services are but on a perfect day we’re need for new public safety officers in Keizer. funded through the general fund, and annual After months of city discussions circling the costs of providing public safety officers hoping to add ive oficers.” issue of new officers, the Keizer City Council perennially exceeds the amount collected Chief Teague got a look at both Teague’s vision for the from property taxes. department and what it would cost to bring it to the department, but the price tag associated To fund one officer, residents would have with them will be hefty, an estimated $100,000 to to contribute an additional $10-$11 per year through fruition at a work session Monday, Aug. 8. “We’re not complaining, there isn’t doom $120,000 per year, which doesn’t include the cost of a fee added to the utility bill, or about $1.85. per bill, looming, but on a perfect day we’re hoping to add department issued gear (about $5,000) and additional Wood said. To fund all five officers, the fee would vehicles (about $100,000). Tim Wood, Keizer’s climb to $9.25 per bill. five officers,” Teague said. Those five officers would serve specific roles in finance director, supplied the estimated costs. Please see OFFICERS, Page A7 A VERTICAL VISION Mayor wants to take River Road to new heights By ERIC A. HOWALD Of the Keizertimes Talks of a vertical vision for River Road North hit a ceiling before getting off the ground at a meeting of the Keizer Economic De- velopment Commission (KEDC) Tuesday, Aug. 2. Commissioners are working to develop a re- volving loan program to encourage redevelopment of River Road properties. In the past, such programs have paid for streetscaping and sidewalk improvements (the bowling pin sidewalk in front of Town & Coun- try Lanes is one example), and Mayor Cathy Clark is hoping to take the next step. “Looking at other downtown cores, the proj- ects are going up. If we’re looking at property devel- opment and the proper- ties that are under-utilized, what would it take to go up and put workforce housing on a second or third floor?” Clark asked her fellow commissioners. Clark hopes to use mon- ey from the sale of property in Areas B and C of Keizer Station to fund a revolving loan program to support and attract small businesses to River Road. Commissioner Rick Day outlined a possible frame- work for a loan program including everything from a vetting process to mentor- ship for businesses taking part but, without knowing how much funding might be available, the commis- sioners were at something of an impasse. That’s when Clark rolled out her vision for River Road. “I would like the land LEVEL 2: MULTI-FAMILY HOUSING OPEN LEVEL 1 : BUSINESS to work more effectively for us in terms of business space and second-gener- ation growth, and I want to know how the city can provide the activation en- ergy to make a process like that feasible,” she said. AJ Nash, a KEDC com- missioner and commercial realtor, lowered the reality hammer quickly. It boiled down to needing subsidy at the local level. “You’re talking a gi- ant chunk of money, not $50,000 or $100,000, you need $500,000 to $1 mil- lion,” Nash said. “A busi- ness that can’t afford sin- gle-story renovation, can’t afford redevelopment.” He added that rental rates along River Road are also unlikely to re- coup such a large invest- ment. Current average rental rates are about $1 per square foot on River Please see VISION, Page A9 KEIZERTIMES/Andrew Jackson Farmhouse ‘unsalvageable’ report says PAGE A2 Trash rate increase gets hearing By ERIC A. HOWALD Of the Keizertimes Keizer trash rates are likely to increase beginning in October, but how they will change will be a topic the Keizer City Council debates at its Aug. 15 meeting. There will also be a public hearing on the issue at 7 p.m. meeting at Keizer Civic Center, 930 Chemawa Road N.E. Representatives of Valley Recycling & Disposal and Lorens Sanitation and Recycling filed a request to raise rates Monday, Aug. 8. The request outlines three options for rolling out increases. The request to raise rates is the result of a 30 percent hike in tipping rates the two waste management companies pay Covanta Waste to Energy, which incinerates solid waste, and the Pacific Region Compost Facility, which handles mixed organics. Tipping rates are a fee paid by the businesses every time a load is dropped off at the site, they are calculated per ton. The rate increases would help the businesses offset the hike in tipping costs. If the council chooses to adopt a rate increase, most residential rates would change by $2.05 or less per bill. Assuming an increase is coming, the main question for members of the council to decide will be how to distribute the costs to customers. Under the first option, residential and multifamily cart rate, as well as extra pick-ups, would increase 7 percent beginning October. For a residential customer with a 35-gallon waste cart, a 95-gallon mixed recycle cart and a 95-gallon organic cart, rates would increase from $21.45 to $22.95. Customers with a 65-gallon waste cart would see their rates go up $2.05 per billing cycle. A waste truck can show up at a private residence up to 12 times a month for regular service, if the customer makes use of all of those stops, the cost is about $1.91 per pick-up with the rates in first option. Volunteer needs reach record lengths PAGE A3 Larry at McNary PAGE A5 Please see TRASH, Page A7 Forum shines light on racial struggles, police responses By ERIC A. HOWALD Of the Keizertimes The question was: when you see a police officer, what do you think? Rev. Michael Weaver of the Free Church of Oregon put it to members of his congregation. The answers he got back were eye-opening for anyone who thinks Salem-Keizer is immune to the shockwaves of recent officer-involved shootings of black men. “They felt uncertainty, they wondered what or who will be addressing me today, will he or she be fair, will I be given the respect I deserve based on my interaction, should I be in fear?” Weaver was one of several racial and ethnic community leaders participating in a community forum aimed at “Bridging the Gap” between cops and the members of a New digs Northwood wins All-City PAGE A10 KEIZERTIMES/Derek Wiley McNary High School unveiled a new gym loor Monday, Aug. 8. See page A10 for the story. Please see FORUM, Page A9 % FORD CREDIT APR FINANCING — FOR — Keizer www.skylineforddirect.com 72 MONTHS ACROSS 2016 LINEUP* 3555 River Road N, Keizer • (503) 463- 4853 *0% APR financing for 72 months at $13.89 per month per $1,000 financed regardless of down payment. Not available on Focus RS, Mustang GT350, F-650 and F-750. Take new retail delivery from dealer stock by 9/6/16. See dealer for qualifications and complete details.
