SEE PG A2
SINCE 1979 • VOLUME 40, NO. 28
SECTION A
APRIL 12, 2019
$1.00
Shooting range bill moves forward
By ERIC A. HOWALD
Of the Keizertimes
A bill that would supply an
extra avenue of recourse to
Keizer residents impacted by
shooting taking place at a Polk
County quarry passed out of
the Oregon Senate Commit-
tee on Judiciary with a 6-1
vote Tuesday, April 9.
The bill (Senate Bill 1040)
allows the owner, operator
and lessee of the property to
be held liable for injuries re-
sulting from bullets leaving
the range. The individual dis-
charging the fi rearm can also
be held liable if the fi nal bill
passes both the houses of Ore-
gon Legislature.
The bill is humorously
site-specifi c and would only af-
fect “an active quarry or mine
located on property adjacent to
the Willamette River in Polk
County and across the riv-
er from the City of Keizer,” a
result of amendments made to
the original language.
Supporters and opponents
of the bill turned out for a
public hearing on the matter
last week at the Capitol.
After closing the public
hearing, Sen. Shemia Fagin
called the original wording “a
no-brainer. If you are going
to own a property you should
be taking care not to affect the
property around you.”
During deliberations Tues-
day, Sen. Floyd Prozanski ques-
tioned limiting the measure to
active quarries vs. inactive ones.
D
MaRdi GraS GOL
PHOTO/Lyndon Zaitz
Tfe Rotary Club of Keizer feld its annual Go for tfe Gold Raffl e dinner and auction at tfe Keizer Civic Center on Saturday,
April 6. Tfe tfeme was Mardi Gras and everyone got into tfe spirit including (from left) Melissa Davis, Melanie Stiger and
Raeanne McDonald. See more pfotos and tfe names of tfe raffl e winners on Page 12.
Missed
quotas, dirty
laundry nab
spotlight at
KPD union
hearing
By ERIC A. HOWALD
Of the Keizertimes
An objection to a ad-
ministrative rule judge
fi nding that Keizer Police
Department’s sergeants are
supervisors – and there-
fore not eligible for union
membership – was heard in
front of all three members
of the Employment Rela-
tions Board in March.
The hearing was a con-
tinuation of a request for
union representation by
Keizer’s six sergeants that
was initially denied in Jan-
uary. The board members
have not yet made a ruling
on the objection.
Unlike hearings that
unfurled over two days in
2018, the objection hear-
ing involved only attorneys
from both sides. Daryl S.
Garrettson represented the
union, the Keizer Police
Association, and Kathy A.
Peck represented the city
of Keizer.
The Keizer Police Asso-
ciation contends that ser-
geants’ duties do not rise to
the level of supervisory and
therefore warrant inclusion
in the union. The city as-
serts that sergeants act as
supervisors and have been
for at least two decades.
Please see KPD, Page A7
Rich Angstrom, president of
Oregon Concrete Aggregate
Producers Association, said the
change was made to separate
the intended property, owned
by Lance Davis, from others in
the area.
“There is a difference be-
tween this site and some closed
Please see RANGE, Page A8
Bill draws
support,
opposition
at fearing
By ERIC A. HOWALD
Of the Keizertimes
A bill that creates an extra
avenue for pursuing injury
lawsuits resulting from shoot-
ing at a Polk County quarry
drew supporters and detrac-
tors at a public hearing at the
Capitol Tuesday, April 4.
The bill was moved to the
fl oor by members of the Sen-
ate Committee on Judiciary
Tuesday, April 9. Sen. Kim
Thatcher and Rep. Bill Post
are sponsoring the legislation.
In testimony, Mayor Cathy
Clark said the bill was neces-
sary because of jurisdictional
boundaries.
“We have crafted legisla-
tion that would allow us to
work more proactively to pro-
tect the life and safety of our
residents,” she said.
Keizer City Manager Chris
Track & Field
season begins
PAGE B1
Spring DEN
& GAR
HOME
Home
& Garden
SPECIAL
SECTION
Please see HEARING, Page A8
The choice in Zone 6
Voters face a decision between two starkly different candidates when it comes
to who will represent the Keizer on the Salem-Keizer School District board of
directors this May. We sat down with both candidates to go deeper on what
they see as the key issues and the role of a director within the school district.
Lee: Funding,
Betfell seeks a
continuity essential more granular role
By ERIC A. HOWALD
Of the Keizertimes
For Chuck Lee, Keizer’s
representative on the Sa-
lem-Keizer School District
Board of directors for the past
12 years, funding is the prima-
ry source of the district’s woes.
“All of the issues we have
from low graduation rates to
lack of support for teachers
with students coming from
toxic environments, class size
and everything else cost mon-
ey,” Lee said. “If we’re serious
about increasing the gradu-
ation rate and lowering class
size and giving teachers sup-
port, we need the fi nancial
resources.”
And the situation isn’t get-
ting any better. Gov. Kate
Brown’s proposed budget for
the next fi scal year was at best
a break-even proposition for
Salem-Keizer and the most re-
cent draft to come out of the
Legislature’s Ways and Means
Committee would result in
laying off 33 teachers, he said.
“It’s one of the reasons why
it was so attractive to partner
with CTEC (Career Techni-
See page B1 for more details
SPRING
Cfuck Lee
Danielle Betfell
cal Education Center). For
30 years, one of the district’s
goals was to have a career
technical space and the re-
sources never came avail-
able,” he said.
CTEC is a public-private
partnership and Lee remains
heavily involved with the
funding and direction of the
school through his position
as president of Mountain
West Group, an investment
fi rm owned by Larry Tokar-
ski.
By ERIC A. HOWALD
Of the Keizertimes
When asked what she sees
as the top priorities for the
Salem-Keizer School Dis-
trict, Danielle Bethell is quick
to dole out anecdotes about
interactions with parents and
potential constituents along
with her answers.
In part, it’s a refl ection of
how she would seek to do
business differently if voters
elect her to the Salem-Keizer
School Board in May.
“I think I have a different
Please see LEE, Page A7
lens to look at things through
as a mom and a business owner.
I have access to the emotion-
al things going on and I have
a good fi lter for those things
and decide if they need to go
to the school board or if it’s
something that can be worked
out through relationships at
the level of the district staff,”
Bethell said. “Because I’m so
involved, people feel that I’m
approachable and, regardless of
the state of emotion, they reach
out.”
When one constituent
reached out to ask why Mc-
Nary High School wouldn’t
be installing a turf soccer fi eld
as the school undergoes major
renovations, she saw in it a re-
buke of the current trajectory
the district is on in providing
equal opportunity.
“We, as a school district,
unfortunately feel that every-
body is equal and every school
should look the same. I think
that competition in life is
healthy and it’s a conversation
I want to have. We’re turning it
into a regime where everybody
Ballers headed
to Dominican
Republic
PAGE A4
Gragg a Hall
of Famer
PAGE B1
Please see BETHELL, Page A7
SUV EVENT
SALES
Keizer
3555 River Road N, Keizer
(503) 463 - 4853
www.skylineforddirect.com