If you have the “gift of puns,” the city of Salem needs your help to name its new electric sweeper. Suggestions can be submitted until Oct. 11.
Joe Siess - Salem Reporter
Viva Salem is back at Riverfront Park on Saturday
A grand celebration of Latin American culture will fill Riverfront Park during Hispanic Heritage Month in Salem.
Teen gets probation for shooting death of Salem cat
A teenager accused of fatally shooting a cat with a pellet gun in a southeast Salem neighborhood in May admitted to first-degree aggravated animal abuse in Marion County Juvenile Court. The boy, 17, could be on probation for up to five years.
What Salem’s leaders want to see from legislators in the year ahead
An annual state payment to help cover Salem’s public safety costs and ongoing funding for homeless shelters remain top priorities for city leaders heading into the 2025 legislative session.
City pauses hiring for critical community violence reduction coordinator
As local organizations and the faith community work to employ tactics like community peace walks to help curb violence in Salem, the city is struggling to hire for what is considered a key role in advancing its months-long community violence reduction efforts. The city has paused its recruitment until after a special report on the community efforts is presented to city council in November.
Crowded, aging Riverfront Park playground will be upgraded in 2026
The city of Salem was just awarded a $770,000 grant from the Oregon Parks and Recreation Department to help make much needed upgrades to the 26-year-old playground at Riverfront Park. The new playground concept which evokes local Salem and Oregon wildlife, includes new special equipment, and a realignment of the park pathway that currently cuts through the playground area.
Marion County Sustainable Business Network to put on second sustainability summit
Marion County’s sustainability program, , formerly EARTHWise, is hosting a free gathering to help businesses become more environmentally friendly and cut costs at the Keizer Civic Center at 930 Chemawa Road from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 27.
Salem’s new summer baseball team will be called the Marion Berries
Next summer, Salem is getting a collegiate baseball team which will play at a renovated Willamette University ballpark bordering Bush’s Pasture Park.
Punx in the Park brought thousands to Marion Square Park for punk rock and good times
Many of the adults supporting Punx in the Park are former street kids who said they want to provide the community with the resources they needed as teenagers taking care of themselves.
BUILDING SALEM: Grocery Outlet to breathe new life into vacant building in south Salem shopping center
Grocery Outlet will move into a freshly renovated storefront in the Southgate Shopping Center by spring of 2025, breathing new life into the area.