Dec 14 2020 thru Dec 20 2020

Aiming for transparency, Salem’s new police chief Trevor Womack released a statement Friday afternoon explaining that the department has to weigh the right to free speech and city laws when deciding how to respond to rallies that have frequently resulted in violence in recent months.

Salem police on Thursday arrested a man in connection with a November shooting in east Salem that left a victim wounded.

After winning Oregon's Superintendent of the Year award earlier this year, Salem-Keizer's leader is now one of four in the running for a national honor.

Most people with Covid have mild or moderate symptoms and recover in weeks, but for some, symptoms like memory loss, fatigue and shortness of breath linger for months.

Salem is in the process of creating a management plan for Bush’s Pasture Park and the Deepwood Estate Gardens to look at how to protect features like Oregon white oak stands and camas fields for the next few decades.

“With everything that’s going on right now, if I can be the difference, stepping up and being that example, then I’m going to do it,” said Jeffrey Tolbert, one of the first Salem Hospital workers to receive the vaccine. “I’m just grateful to have the opportunity.”

After receiving a first shipment of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine Thursday morning, Salem Hospital kicked off its vaccination campaign. Dr. Katherine Landen, emergency department medical director, received the first dose.

Business is on the agenda for the third special legislative session. Oregon's unemployment rate dropped before the "freeze." SEDCOR will hold its annual awards. State eases tax penalties for businesses.

The Red Kettle Campaign is a longtime tradition of the Salvation Army, but Covid has the organization looking for new volunteers and asking people to donate online if they don’t want to do so in person.

Mirroring a national trend, Oregon's second-largest school district saw far more Fs than typical this fall, even after substantial improvements during the final weeks of the quarter.

After the county received fewer applications than expected for a $3.5 million pot of money, it invited more businesses to apply. With a deadline to spend the money looming, the county is encouraging businesses to act quickly and to fill out applications completely and accurately.

Marion and Polk County residents have several chances to get a free Covid test before the end of the year through events organized by local health departments and organizations.

Sixty students recorded their parts for the winter classic at home, with orchestra director George Thomson putting in a long weekend to mix and edit the video.

To help local bars and restaurants set up outdoor serving areas for the cold and wet months ahead, the city of Salem set up a $200,000 grant program to help them purchase coverings, heaters and other items. While the program will help restaurants and bars keep their products in front of customers, it's not expected to make up for an already very difficult year.

Marion and Polk counties are still considered “extreme risk” for the spreading coronavirus and will remain under restrictions that prohibit indoor dining, gym visits and limit church services. Marion County is reporting triple the rate of cases that would allow it to enter a lower risk level.

In Baker County, LeAnne Bourne was the first health department worker trained to interview residents newly-diagnosed with Covid. After dozens of phone calls, she's heard everything from jokes to sobs as she listens to people.

The board will hear about how the agency has spent $372,725 spent in recent months on economic development projects.

Salem Health expects to receive 975 doses of Pfizer's Covid vaccine later this week, enough for about half the hospital's employees who care for Covid patients. Vaccination events at long-term care facilities will begin next week.

Fourteen seniors have been given another place to stay after a Sunday fire did damage to apartments in the Robert Lindsey Tower. Nicole Utz, Salem Housing Authority administrator, said some seniors could come back within a week while others might take weeks.

The Salem Police Department is holding its annual toy drive, with an online wish list this year because of Covid. Many have sent in gifts, filling one of the rooms in the new police station with board games, toy cars and crayons.

Despite the pandemic, researchers from Willamette Valley Genealogical Society are available to help trace family roots. Some work can be provided at no cost.

A fire Sunday afternoon at Robert Lindsey Tower has left many low-income seniors without a home. The cause is under investigation.