SINCE 1979 • VOLUME 38, NO. 42
SECTION A
JULY 21, 2017
$1.00
Police fee approved without dissent
By ERIC A. HOWALD
Of the Keizertimes
With a unanimous vote, the Keizer City Council
approved the city’s fi rst-ever fee for a city service
other than a utility, $4 a month to create a dedicated
fund for police staffi ng.
The council addressed the matter in two parts, the
PROPOSED
$
00
4
POLICE FEE
$
00
4
PARKS FEE
Safeway
Gas Station
Story on Page A2
Movie
Theater
Story on Page A3
fi rst was an ordinance imposing the fee, the second
was a resolution setting the amount.
The fee will be added to monthly bills for sewer
and water services, but the bills themselves might be
getting a name change to something akin to a “city
services bill.” Since utilities are billed bimonthly, the
charge will appear itemized as $8 for police services
COUNCIL
APPROVED
“ It’s going to lead
to some tough
decisions because
the costs are
going to escalate.
I don’t know there’s any
way to tell (by how much).”
— Chris Eppley, City Manager
beginning in November 2017.
The $4 rate will be discounted for some seg-
ments of the population and businesses. Multi-
family dwelling units will be charged $3.45 per
month to account for vacancies. Senior living res-
idential facilities will pay a fl at $4 fee for the en-
tire facility. Seniors and low-income households
can qualify for a $1.12 per month rate provided
they notify the city and show documentation.
Copies of the documentation will not be kept by
the city. Delinquent accounts will be charged a
$37 fee after 14 days, but no residents will have
their water cut off for failure to pay the fee.
In a document provided by Keizer Finance
Director Tim Wood, the city expects to collect
Celts in
7-on-7
PAGE A11
Please see POLICE, Page A8
Rockier road to
park fee passage
By ERIC A. HOWALD
Of the Keizertimes
After lengthy deliberation, the Keizer City
Council enacted a $4 monthly fee to pay for
parks maintenance and improvements at its
meeting Monday, July 17.
It was the second fee enacted in a single night
to pay for city services. The other was a $4 monthly
fee for police services (see related story above). Both
will begin with the November 2017 billing cycle.
Where the police fee cruised to approval, the
parks fee was met with opposition at almost every
turn.
Two residents in attendance, Bill Quinn and Jer-
ry McGee, suggested starting out with a $2 month-
ly rate. Jim Taylor, a member of the Keizer Parks
and Recreation Advisory Board, offered the only
testimony in support of the fee.
“Parks and the police go hand-in-hand, with
nice parks you have less crime. Two dollars gets us
by but it doesn’t do the big ticket items, like the
skate park,” Taylor said. “Four dollars will allow us
to fi x the skate park. If we don’t, it goes away.”
Woman
disappears
PAGE A2
Please see PARKS, Page A8
Developers may
have to pony up
for community
beautifi cation
By ERIC A. HOWALD
Of the Keizertimes
Imagine for a moment sitting atop one of the
100 largest private employers in the nation accord-
ing to Forbes magazine. Last year, revenues for your
company clocked in at $6.3 billion.
On a local level, fans of your company launched
social media campaigns hoping to court you to
their city where only one other major competitor
exists. When you make a decision and announce a
new store opening it is – without hyperbole – the
biggest story of the entire year for that town.
But, when the city’s community development
director sits down with you to discuss the designs
for a $2.3 million remodel of the building, you tell
him that putting trees in the parking lot is a “deal-
breaker.”
A similar conversation laid the groundwork for
the most recent meeting of the Keizer Planning
Commission. Along with city staff, the group spent
almost two hours discussing the intricacies of the
city’s landscaping codes as it relates to new and re-
development.
“When you have Taco Bell gut
their building, there was no re-
quirement for them to bring the
site up to (landscaping) compli-
ance. When Waremart comes in,
they are doing interior remod-
eling and there’s no requirement
to do landscaping in the parking
N. Brown
lot. Our intent is to say if you
are doing a remodel, you need to
address the landscaping requirements,” said Nate
Brown, Keizer community development director.
Please see BEAUTY, Page A8
Blast off!
A new look
for River
Road
business
PAGE A6
Swim
meets
PAGE A11
KEIZERTIMES/Eric A. Howald
Sophie Schurr vaults over an obstacle during the Keizer Police Department annual BLAST Camp on
Thursday, July 13. For more photos, see page A4.