By Salem Reporter
New Oregon laws tackle affordable housing, rebuilding from fire
Wildfire in September 2020 swept through the Santiam Canyon, destroying homes, businesses and vehicles. (Amanda Loman/Salem Reporter) SALEM – Two years after passing sweeping legislation requiring many cities to allow duplexes anywhere single-family homes could be built, the Oregon Legislature…
Data digest: Covid by the numbers for Oct. 6, 2021
A screengrab of a chart showing the number of Covid-positive patients hospitalized in the region which includes Benton, Lincoln, Linn, Marion, Polk and Yamhill counties. Salem Reporter is keeping you informed of the latest Covid numbers. Here’s our report for…
Salem gets new House seat on redrawn congressional district map
District 6 on Oregon’s new congressional map. (Oregon State Legislature) For the first time in eight years, Salem has an open playing field for its congressional seat. The redrawn boundaries Oregon legislators approved Sept. 27 put the city on the…
Combine, car crash leaves two with minor injuries
Scene of a crash between a car and a combine on Cordon Road Northeast near Kale Street Northeast. (Marion County Sheriff’s Office) A crash between a combine and a car in northeast Salem Tuesday afternoon left two people with minor…
Dr. Dean Sidelinger: Big-picture team player in Oregon public health
Dr. Dean Sidelinger was hired as Oregon’s state health officer and epidemiologist in September 2019.(YouTube video) At 50, there’s a lot that Dr. Dean Sidelinger could brag about. He earned a doctor of medicine degree from a highly ranked university…
Woman hospitalized after hit-and-run, police searching for driver
The Salem Police Department is searching for a driver accused of hitting a woman with a car on Saturday and fleeing the scene. A Salem patrol officer was passing the Oregon State Fairgrounds around 1:10 a.m. on Saturday when a…
As the pandemic disrupted substitute teaching, this Salem teacher worked to lift her colleagues’ spirits
Substitute teacher Leslie Polson in a Woodburn High School PE class on Sept. 27, 2021 (Courtesy/Leslie Polson) Leslie Polson has taught in Oregon classrooms for four decades, but last year, she ended up chopping vegetables. Polson, a Salem substitute teacher,…
Data digest: Covid by the numbers for Oct. 5, 2021
A screengrab of a chart showing the number of Covid-positive patients hospitalized in the region which includes Benton, Lincoln, Linn, Marion, Polk and Yamhill counties. Salem Reporter is keeping you informed of the latest Covid numbers. Here’s our report for…
Pentacle Theatre returns to the stage with murder mystery “The Mousetrap”
Actors rehearse “The Mousetrap” for the Pentacle Theatre. The show opens Oct. 8 and will be performed without masks. (Courtesy/Pentacle Theatre) Salem’s Pentacle Theatre is back with its first live show since the Covid pandemic began debuting Friday on its…
Oregon’s rural counties on their own if Covid vaccine mandate causes staff shortages
Jess Tolman, the chief of Vale Fire and Ambulance, is warning of service impairments if the state’s vaccine mandate remains in place. (The Enterprise/Pat Caldwell) SALEM – Rural counties that fear first responders will quit in bulk ahead of a…