Neighborhood News is a monthly Salem Reporter feature to highlight news or issues of concern to each Salem neighborhood association. Read previous editions here.
Salem is divided into 17 neighborhood associations that meet monthly. They serve as a conduit to city officials for things like park improvements, road projects and planning and building. Learn more and find your association here.
Leaders of each association are invited to submit a brief news item or report highlighting the association’s work, neighborhood concerns, upcoming activities or anything else of interest. Submissions are lightly edited for style and clarity.
Grant Neighborhood Association
August 6 National Night Out and Street Painting Celebration
We made GNA logo buttons; we bounced in a castle; we had butterflies painted on our faces; we made dream catchers with local flower petals; we ate hotdogs and homemade muffins; we learned about Salem Bike Vision, Travel Salem, and the city of Salem’s many activities and resources; we chatted with Salem Police & hopped on a huge fire truck; and, best of all, we enjoyed a pleasant August evening outdoors in Grant Park with our neighbors and friends. A good time was had by all.
Did you know that kids can be taught how to ride bikes at school? We learned that and much more at our August board meeting from Beth Schmidt representing Safe Routes to Schools. Another guest, Ken Bierly ,informed us about the Salem Floodplain Species Assessment.
A summary of the meeting will be available in our September newsletter and on our website. Minutes will be posted before the Sept. 5 meeting.
For more news, follow GNA on Instagram and Facebook.
–Submitted by Susan Napack, vice chair
Highland Neighborhood Association
This August, the Highland Neighborhood Association is sponsoring the Salem Seekers Event at River Road Park, featuring 30 exquisite glass-blown birds crafted by local artists Gail and Art Obendorf of south Salem, owners of Glass Art Oregon.
These birds will be hidden along the park’s paths throughout the month, offering an ongoing, family-friendly treasure hunt. Each visit to the park could reveal one of these beautiful creations, making it a fun and unique experience for everyone. We encourage all residents to join in the hunt and celebrate the artistic talent within our community.
Earlier this month, HNA hosted a successful National Night Out at River Road Park, where neighbors enjoyed activities like fruit “bugs,” giant bubbles, and another round of our glass bird hunt. Special thanks to Andi Madison for organizing the event, which also featured visits from Councillor Virginia Stapleton, Councilor-elect Irvin Brown, Salem Police Department, Salem Fire Department, and others.
In June, HNA voted to endorse Quiet Clean Salem’s mission, a group advocating for the reduction of gas-powered leaf blowers due to their negative impacts on health, noise pollution, and climate change. We are proud to support this initiative, reflecting our commitment to enhancing the livability and sustainability of our neighborhood.
Join us for our next Highland Neighborhood Association (HNA) monthly meeting on Thursday, Sept. 12th, at 6:30 p.m.! We’ll gather at the North Neighbors Resource Center (945 Columbia St. N.E., Salem) and welcome those joining us virtually via Zoom.
–Submitted by Ryan Erickson-Kulas, secretary
North Lancaster Neighborhood Association
On Wednesday, Aug. 7, the North Lancaster Neighborhood Association organized a community event called the NANNO – Night After National Night Out . The event is similar to National Night Out except it was the night after … but you probably figured that out from the event name.
This is the third year NOLA has held a community event at McKay Park. This year was a great success with amazing sponsors and donations from businesses located in North Lancaster neighborhood. Ace Hardware, Safeway, Walmart, Dutch Bros, MegaFoods and The Cut graciously donated product or prizes for our raffle. The Oregon State Fair donated free admission tickets, a popular draw to our event! Miller’s BBQ was a tremendous support as our “resident chef” cooking up almost 150 hotdogs for our attendees and volunteers.
Several organizations were present to share resources and giveaway goodies to all participants. Those organizations include Community Action Energy Services, Marion Polk Food Share, Salem Public Library, Paid Leave Oregon, Chemeketa Community College, Bridgeway Recovery Services, Salem Health Community Health Education Center, Salem Public Works – Climate Action, Cherriots, the U.S. Marine Corps, Salem Police and Fire Departments, and Oregon Department of Human Services.
We also had ENLACE to perform live music. This wonderful community organization was part of NOLA’s event last year and participated in Northgate’s National Night Out event on Tuesday, Aug. 6. Amador Aguilar is the guiding light of the ENLACE program helping the youth of Salem connect culture with the love of music and dance.
The night was closed out with a beautiful sunset and an Aztec Danza group led by Willan Cervantes and Fabiola Chikuazemazatl. NOLA looks forward to hosting the event again next summer. In the meantime, our monthly meetings are the first Wednesday starting at 6:30 p.m. at Blanchet Catholic High School. Stop by, hear about your North Lancaster Neighborhood and have a muffin!
-Submitted by Deanna Garcia, chair
Northeast Neighbors
We had a wonderful day hosting the free Englewood Forest Festival on Aug. 10 attended by thousands of people. It was a family-friendly day of music, dance, art vendors and hands-on activities for all ages. We hope to provide community connection, inspire youth to dream, to provide environmental education and to support the arts.
If you would like to be involved planning our volunteer-run festival, we would love your help. Please contact NEN at [email protected] or the Englewood Forest Festival at [email protected]/.
Many thanks to our wonderful volunteers who make the festival possible. The event is funded in part by grants from the city of Salem Transient Occupancy Tax, Marion Cultural Corp., NEN, Fisher Hayes Joye & Allen, the Salem Leadership Foundation, Unitus Community Credit Union with support from Uptown Music, ENLACE Cross-Cultural, The Ink Spot, GreenSpaceDesign by Jude, Storyteller for Good, and Heritage Seedlings. We are grateful.
NEN is taking a month off in August. Our next meeting will be in September. Please check our new website, NortheastNeighbors.org/ for more information.
–Submitted by Lynn Takata, chair
Northgate Neighborhood Association
Northgate Park’s mural started with neighbors wanting something more to attract city people to the park in an exceptional way. With that thought came this idea to introduce to people of all ages Oregon’s unique wild animals. At first, we had 30 panels to complete. Now, it totals 32 panels of 4’x8’ exterior grade plywood, installed together to show each of the animals in the springtime, meaning many with their babies.
I had the pleasure of my fellow support painters, Veronica Aguilar, Leslye Garcia, Diane Crawford and Bayard Mentrum, who is also chair of our association.
Both Veronica and Leslye did a gorgeous job on the butterflies, one panel for each person. We installed three sizes to choose; toddler, medium and adult, so that parents could snap pictures of their children as well as themselves and fly away like butterflies. As first seen entering the main south side of Northgate Park, these large size butterflies have also been helping to attract people to the mural.
One of the signs of spring is the blooming cherry tree. This may not seem that “wild,” but I wanted to slowly go towards wildlife through these panels. I wanted something cheerful for both the parents and children near the playground, so I created a happily singing robin, and a pair of blue birds and their baby birds still in the nest.
All this would not have been possible without the consideration and help of the City Parks staff who gave us a special grant to be able to purchase the main supplies, and for hauling in the big purchases to our house. And special thanks go to Eduardo Angulo and Hallman Northgate Neighborhood Family Council, as well as Floyd from Benjamin Moore Paint Company on Lancaster Drive for their very kind donations. The association made a special plaque to celebrate this occasion.
Pre-installation work was done by Bayard, Jess Cruz and Bill Berry, our board members. On the day of the actual installation, Diane’s neighbor, Britain, helped to get these panels one by one to the trailer from our back yard and later from the trailer to its destination. Terry Crawford, who had brought his trailer, took all 30 panels to the north side of the park.
Jeremy, husband of Rebecca Strieper, board member, all the supporting artists mentioned earlier with their husbands, Ramon Arredondo from Hallman Northgate Neighborhood Family Council, Raúl Gaspar who is an ENLACE volunteer and Forgiveness & Peace gardener, as well as Jess and Bill, a soccer player at the park and finally Bayard, together united with one mission: to bring these panels to their final destination and drill them on, one by one. These panels are not light in weight to carry from the vehicle to their destination.
The hauling and installing of the first 30 panels took a lot of effort and time. It was twilight by the time we finally finished.
We worked together in unison to bring cheer to Northgate Park, our community, all visitors and friends.
So come with your family and friends to see up close the painted sampling of Oregon’s nature bounty.
-Submitted by Kaethe Mentrum, secretary and parks chair
West Salem Neighborhood Association
National Night Out: On Aug. 6, West Salem hosted at least ten National Night Out neighborhood parties, involving hundreds of neighbors, police, fire, and EMT’s. Potlucks, BBQ’s, music, and laughter echoed across the community. WSNA board members spread out and managed to attend at least seven of the parties, sharing cookies, WSNA lanyards, safety whistles, and information on the benefits of community and the WSNA. We saw a lot of old friends and met even more new ones. The events were great, and the hospitality even better! Thank you, West Salem neighbors, and Salem police, fire, and EMT’s for helping to keep us safe, and making it fun!
Updates from August General Meeting:
Julie Hansen, public works planner, presented information regarding vacating (renovation) of Northwest First Street. A previous attempt to vacate was stalled due to issues with access, public utilities, and water supply. The city is now considering vacating a smaller portion and developing only a part of the street. More information will be shared as it becomes available.
Guest speaker Brittany Randall from Brand Land Use provided ideas related to their development plan site on Northwest Second Street in Edgewater. Their development plans will be proposed following the approval of the work on First Street. They are considering space for eight to twelve food carts, along with additional plans for a patio and possible restaurant. There is a lot of goodness happening in West Salem. Stay tuned for more information as plans are presented and approved.
Emergency Manager Joe Hutchinson reminded residents of the importance of safety preparedness, especially as it relates to wildfires. You can check out all the important preparedness information on their website here.
WSNA Board Elections for 2024-25: August begins the election process for WSNA board positions. There were no nominations from general members at the August meeting, however, executive board members nominated fellow members and incumbents:
Chair: Mike Frietas (accepted), Vice Chair: Roberto Garcia (accepted), Secretary: Drew Strayer (accepted), Treasurer: Beverly Frietas (accepted). Nominations close on the first of September with voting held at the October general membership meeting. Please join us for this important election.
Upcoming Meetings:
- Sept. 5: 6:30 p.m. at Roth’s in West Salem.
- Oct. 3: 6:30 p.m. at Roth’s in West Salem.
WSNA Contact Information
- Website: www.westsalemna.com
- Email: [email protected]
-Submitted by Mo Zwicker, communications chair
Our next edition of Neighborhood News will run the second week of September. Submissions must be received by Monday, Sept. 9, to be included.
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