During their meeting Monday, Oct. 23, the Salem City Councilors approved guidelines for future sidewalk repair, a grant to support housing services and vehicle charging stations. They opted to further discuss proposed changes to the city’s sign code which will impact businesses’s ability to advertise.
Changes to Sign Code – continue hearing in November
The city is looking to update, clarify and amend its sign code which will affect the size and places that businesses can put up signs. Councilors heard a presentation on the proposed changes, and opted to continue the discussion in their Nov. 13 meeting, saying they wanted more time to receive public input.
The proposed amendments come after several years of planning, and a public hearing held by the Planning Commission in May where commenters raised concerns about outdoor advertising signs, temporary signs, public art and light pollution.
Among the proposed changes are limiting the amount of space painted or attached signs can take up in a window if it’s within 30 feet of a public street. The limit would be 20% or less of the window’s surface area. It would also extend the time period for sign permit extension requests from 90 to 180 days.
It would also change standards for illuminated signs to measure brightness through foot-candles rather than lumens. Foot-candles describe the amount of light that reaches a surface, and are a more standardized and accessible measurement recommended by the International Sign Association, according to a memo from Community and Urban Development Director Kristin Retherford.
Billboards in the Mixed-Use III zones of the city are proposed to be removed, but existing signs would be allowed to be maintained and repaired. Much of southeast Commercial Street is Mixed-Use III zoning, according to the city’s interactive zoning map.
Guidelines for the next decade of sidewalk repairs – APPROVED
Councilors heard information about the City’s Sidewalk Repair Program, and unanimously approved guidelines for how the public works department will allocate $18.2 million to sidewalk and crosswalk projects over the next decade.
The infrastructure bond package voters approved last November included $3.5 million for safer pedestrian crossings, $6 million to add sidewalks and $8.7 million to replace damaged sidewalks. Project locations would be drawn from the existing requests, according to Public Works Director Martin in a staff report.
Once selected, the locations would be evaluated against criteria including equity; street classification; proximity to schools, transit, parks and the next nearest crossings; hazards and the history of pedestrian crashes.
The council also approved allocating $1.2 million of the infrastructure funds to sidewalk projects near Southeast Liberty Street and Northeast Silverton Road, to coincide with pavement projects on those streets expected in the next few years.
Read Salem Reporter’s overview of the plans here:
Overlay zone removal and changes in the Fairmount area – APPROVED
In September, councilors approved a second reading of a motion to eliminate three of five overlay zones in the South Central Association of Neighbors which had prohibited buildings taller than 35 feet. Councilors unanimously approved the changes Monday, the final step in changing the city code.
The change allows for several additional stories to be built in some areas. Building height limits will increase by 10 feet in the two zones that were retained, enough for an additional story and intended to encourage denser, mixed-use housing.
Case workers, barrier removal for homeless people – APPROVED
Councilors unanimously approved a $625,000 grant agreement with the Salem Housing Authority to pay four case workers who will help place homeless people into transitional or permanent housing.
Of that money, $100,000 will go toward removing barriers to housing such as security deposits, extraordinary damages, past due utility bills, basic furnishing, transportation, documents and personal care items.
Electric vehicle charging stations – APPROVED
All councilors voted to ratify a lease for WattEV at the Salem Municipal Airport to add a charging depot for electric trucks on Southeast Airway Drive, next to the city’s public works waste transfer station.
The company will pay the city around $129,000 annually for the next 25 years.
Councilors also approved an agreement with Portland General Electric Company to install electric vehicle chargers on PGE-owned poles located in the public right-of-way. The city and PGE are targeting 20 locations for the first phase of the program that will extend into 2024.
Grant applications – APPROVED
Councilors approved putting in applications for state and federal grants to pay for energy efficiency, community service officers and airport improvements.
Grants include the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant Program, through which the city is eligible to receive up to $214,750 for work intended to reduce fossil fuel emissions, bring down total energy use and improve energy efficiency.
It also voted to apply for two state grants to support airport improvement projects and an airport resilience study in 2024, which would match federal grant requirements.
The council also accepted $99,800 from the U.S. Department of Justice for its Community Service Officer Program, $10,600 of which went to Marion County.
Original Story:
The Salem City Council meets Monday, Oct. 23, to consider paying for case workers and other services intended to help house Salem’s most vulnerable homeless people.
Councilors will also consider agreements for two projects to build electric vehicle charging stations at the Salem Municipal Airport and on poles owned by Portland General Electric.
READ IT: Agenda
How to participate
The council meets Monday, Oct. 23, at 6 p.m. in-person at the city council chambers, 555 Liberty St. S.E., room 220, with the meeting also available to watch online. The meeting will be livestreamed on Capital Community Media’s YouTube channel, with translation to Spanish and American Sign Language available. Anyone may attend the meeting to listen or comment.
The public comment portion of the meeting takes place after opening exercises, such as roll call and the Pledge of Allegiance, and residents are invited to comment on any topic, whether it appears on the agenda or not. If a public comment does not relate to an agenda item, it may be saved for the end of the meeting.
To comment remotely, sign up on the city website between 8 a.m. and 2 p.m. on Monday.
For written comments, email [email protected] before 5 p.m. on Monday, or on paper to the city recorder’s office at the Civic Center, 555 Liberty St. S.E., Room 225. Include a statement indicating the comment is for the public record.
Case workers, barrier removal for homeless people
Councilors will consider approving a $625,000 grant agreement with the Salem Housing Authority to pay four case workers who will help place homeless people into transitional or permanent housing.
Of that money, about $100,000 would pay for removing barriers to getting people housed including security deposits, extraordinary damages, past due utility bills, basic household furnishings, transportation, obtaining documents and personal care items.
Such case workers are frequently called upon by the city’s Outreach and Livability Services team, a group of police and public works employees who clean up homeless encampments and refer people to services.
People can be referred to case workers through coordinated entry, which links local homeless service providers together through a common database with information about people seeking services and the type of help they need, according to Nicole Utz, housing administrator.
Electric vehicle charging stations
The council will consider approving a lease for WattEV at the Salem Municipal Airport to develop a charging depot for electric trucks.
The southern California company would pay the city about $129,000 annually over the next 25 years.
The space is on airport property but outside the security fence, and is located along Southeast Airway Drive adjacent to the city’s public works waste transfer station.
City Manager Keith Stahley has already executed the lease, and the council will consider ratifying it.
WattEV is planning a depot that could power about 40,000 trucks per year, paid for by a $6.5 million grant from Oregon’s Department of Environmental Quality. The total project cost would be about $10.6 million, according to the grant application.
Councilors will also consider an agreement with Portland General Electric Company to install electric vehicle chargers on PGE-owned poles located in the public right-of-way.
If approved, the installation would be part of a pilot program the utility is trying out with various local governments.
The city and PGE are targeting 20 Salem locations for the first phase of the program, which will extend at least into 2024, according to the agenda item.
Grant applications
Councilors will consider authorizing city applications for state and federal grants that could pay for energy efficiency, community service officers and airport improvements.
They include the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant Program, through which the city is eligible to receive up to $214,750 for work intended to reduce fossil fuel emissions, bring down total energy use and improve energy efficiency.
The council will consider accepting about $99,800 from the U.S. Department of Justice through the Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant program to help local police agencies “prevent and reduce crime,” according to the agenda.
The city has used such funds largely to maintain the Salem Police Department’s Community Service Officer program.
If approved, about $89,200 would go to the city of Salem while the rest would go to Marion County.
Councilors would also consider applying for and accepting two state grants to support federally funded airport improvement projects and an airport resiliency study in 2024.
The money would come from the state’s Critical Airport Relief grant program, which helps airports match grant requirements for projects.
New apartments
The council will also hear an informational report on the city planning administrator’s decision to approve a new multi-family apartment complex with 279 units at 4195 Aumsville Hwy. S.E. in southeast Salem.
Contact reporter Ardeshir Tabrizian: [email protected] or 503-929-3053.
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Ardeshir Tabrizian has covered criminal justice and housing for Salem Reporter since September 2021. As an Oregon native, his award-winning watchdog journalism has traversed the state. He has done reporting for The Oregonian, Eugene Weekly and Malheur Enterprise.
Abbey McDonald joined the Salem Reporter in 2022. She previously worked as the business reporter at The Astorian, where she covered labor issues, health care and social services. A University of Oregon grad, she has also reported for the Malheur Enterprise, The News-Review and Willamette Week.
