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About Keizertimes. (Salem, Or.) 1979-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 22, 2021)
VOLUME 42, NO. 14 JANUARY 22, 2021 SECTION A $1.00 Chick-fi l-A looking more likely near Keizer Station By ERIC A. HOWALD Of the Keizertimes Chick-fi l-A, another fan favorite restaurant, is giving the Keizer Station area a hard look. For the fi rst time since rumors of a Keizer location surfaced more than a year ago, the restaurant’s interest was formally acknowledged in a meeting of the Keizer Planning Commission. “The Area D master plan amendment has been applied for and it is going through the comment process. Chick- fi l-A is the applicant on that,” said Shane Witham, Keizer interim planning director, at the meeting Jan. 13. A Keizer location would be the next logical step for the restaurant that sent food trucks to Keizer late last year, a move that many suspected was something like a market test. The restaurant would be placed alongside other new development in the “jug handle” that moves shopping center traffi c out of Keizer Station and back to Interstate 5. While the application for a master plan amendment is a new milestone for bringing the chicken chain to Keizer, it is by no means a certainty. A few years ago, Chick-fi l-A has applied for a change to a master plan in the Keizer Station area. File Photo ‘The Freak’ at Volcanoes No. 2 PAGE A10 In-person learning targets set PAGE A2 Please see CHICK, Page A6 Local fi rst responders get a shot in the arm BY MATT RAWLINGS Of the Keizertimes The fi rst responders of Keizer are used to putting themselves in harms way on a regular basis, and for the last 10 months, the dan- g e r they subject themselves to has increased due to the COVID-19 pandemic. However, many fi rst responders in Keizer recently re- ceived the fi rst round of the COVID-19 vacci- na- tion process. At the beginning of the year, Marion County Fire District #1 (MCFD1) re- ceived hundreds of doses of the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine and put together a collaborative effort to begin vaccinating fi rst responders in Keizer, as well as the rest of Marion County. Kyle McMann, the fi re chief for MCFD1, is in charge of administering the vaccines for MCFD1, Keizer Fire Dis- trict (KFD) and Keizer Police COVID-19 Department (KPD) and began vaccinating fi rst responders on Jan. 8. “It feels like we're seeing the light at the end of the tunnel. It has given a lot of us hope,” MCFD1 McMann said. “Optimism is something that we haven’t had for months.” “It’s been a diffi cult time for the entire community and it’s a relief to know vaccina- tions are in progress,” added KPD lieutenant Chris Nelson. According to Centers for Disease Control and Preven- tion (CDC) the Moderna vaccine is 94.1% effective af- ter the second dose — which is administered 28 days after the fi rst dose. The vaccine is intended to provide immuni- ty to COVID-19 for a year. “There is defi nitely a sense of relief around the depart- ment,” KPD Fire Marshal Ann-Marie Storms said about receiving the vaccine. “It pro- vides a sense of relief and helps us know that we are on the right track and close to a Please see RESPOND, Page A6 Compost facility clears fi rst hurdle By ERIC A. HOWALD Of the Keizertimes A proposed compost facility, west of Volcanoes Stadium, took a small step forward in a meeting of the Keizer Planning Commission Jan. 13. Commissioners recom- mended adding compost fa- cilities to the approved uses in industrial zones with an 6-1 vote. Commissioner Frank Hostler did not give a specifi c File A Renewable Carbon facility in Sandoval County, N.M. reason for his dissent but, ear- lier in the meeting, questioned the proposed placement of the facility near Labish Creek/ Ditch and the potential for harmful runoff. Keizer’s city council will still need to approve the change. The inventor of the in- container compost technology and a managing partner in the business seeking approval, spoke to Commissioners during the meeting about his hopes for a Keizer facility as a proof-of-concept. “We want to prove we can be a good neighbor in an industrial zone instead Please see HURDLE, Page A6 File Keizer was one of many cyber attack victims in 2020 By ERIC A. HOWALD Of the Keizertimes At least Keizer wasn’t alone in its data being held for ransom in 2020. According to a report on the state of ransomware in the United States, Keizer was one of 113 federal state and municipal governments and agencies that fell victim to cybercriminals. In addition, 560 healthcare facilities and 1,681 schools, colleges and universities were subjected to the fallout of ransomware. Keizer paid a nearly $50,000 ransom, plus con- sulting and negotiating fees to retrieve its data but the city got off easy in other respects. Delaware Coun- ty in Pennsylvania paid a $500,000 ransom and Tillamook County paid $300,000. Impacted schools had to cancel in-person and virtual classes and even re- vealed details of alleged sex- ual assaults. Other impacts were liter- ally matters of life and death. “The attacks caused sig- nifi cant, and sometimes life-threatening, disruption: OREGON'S ambulances carrying emer- gency patients had to be re- directed, cancer treatments were delayed, lab test results were inaccessible, hospital employees were furloughed and 911 services were inter- rupted,” according to the re- port authored by Emisoft, a fi rm that specializes cyberse- curity research and network protection products. Ransomware is differ- ent than what the average user envisions when being hacked. While data might still be destroyed or down- loaded data, ransomware primarily locks data behind an encrypted door that can only be unlocked with a nu- meric key held by the hack- ers. Hackers are typically known to charge ransom based on the number of serv- ers it was able to lock up and payments are made through a web of untraceable digital transactions. Ransomware can stay in targeted computers for weeks or months undetect- ed before hackers reveal its MCFD1 paramedic takes readers behind the badge PAGE A3 Lack of supply delays Oregon vaccine schedule PAGE A6 Please see CYBER, Page A6 STRESS-FREE CAR SHOPPING DEALER 1 FORD 7 YEARS RUNNING! # 3555 River Rd N, Keizer (503) 463- 4853 skylineforddirect.com Health & safety of our staff, customers, and community is our top priority.
