The Salem-Keizer School Board on Tuesday will consider renewing the charter agreement for Howard Street Charter School, a middle school in downtown Salem with about 200 students.
Howard Street opened in 1997 and is currently operating under a five-year contract with the district which expires June 30, 2022. If the board renews the charter agreement, district leaders will negotiate a new contract with the school which will ultimately need school board approval.
Board members will vote on a contract for Robert Silva to serve as the district’s chief operations officer, replacing Mike Wolfe, who retired in late 2021. Silva was previously the director of technology and information services and joined the district in January 2015.
The board will also consider a proclamation declaring the month of January “Parent and Guardian Engagement in Education Month.”
The board will discuss, but not yet vote on, two requests from the city of Salem to approve property tax exemptions for apartment buildings under the city’s multifamily unit tax incentive program. The first is the City Center Apartments, a 157-unit development at 420 Center St. N.E., and the second is a two-unit development at 227 and 229 Commercial St. S.E.
The board is scheduled to vote on both exemptions at its Feb. 8 meeting. In December, the board for the first time voted against a tax exemption requested by the city for a housing development at 990 Broadway St N.E., with a majority of board members saying they didn’t believe the exemption would support more affordable housing in Salem.
To participate: The board meets Tuesday at 6 p.m. virtually. Members of the public can watch the meeting live on YouTube using the links below, or on CC:Media, channel 21.
English: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xGa6ge4bloo
Spanish: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wQ8MnLZiym8
The board will take live public comment for 45 minutes during the meeting, and comments can also be submitted in writing. Sign-ups are open until 4 p.m. Monday using the form here.
-Rachel Alexander
