The Salem Fire Department (Saphara Harrell/Salem Reporter) The city of Salem plans to ask voters to approve spending $300 million over 10 years to pay for infrastructure improvements, fire equipment and parks. The bond would be on the November 2022 ballot. City officials said it won’t raise property taxes because[Read More…]
Saphara Harrell - Salem Reporter
Salem City Council chooses new ward boundaries that plan for future growth in west, south Salem
Screengrab of the third map proposed for new ward boundaries. Current wards are outlined in black; new boundaries are shown in color. In a near unanimous vote on Monday night, the Salem City Council chose to re-draw ward boundaries in a way that will accommodate for future growth in the[Read More…]
Library staff felt Covid concerns were dismissed by now-resigned librarian
Former city librarian Sarah Strahl stands near the automated materials handler, a machine that will process returns immediately, at the Salem Public Library on Wednesday, Aug. 18, 2021. (Amanda Loman/Salem Reporter) An email accidentally sent to Salem library employees triggered more than a dozen grievances and the announcement of the[Read More…]
Meet the guitar shop owner who got Salem millions to help with housing and homelessness
Justin Martin. (Courtesy/Justin Martin) In the back room of a downtown Salem guitar shop, Justin Martin makes calls to secure millions of dollars for Salem. Martin, who’s going into his fifth year lobbying for the city, is also a part owner of Guitar Castle and has an “On Air” sign[Read More…]
Uncategorized Counter to state and national trends, Salem’s homeless women outnumber men
Lynelle Wilcox holds the shelter cat, Athena, at Safe Sleep women’s shelter on Oct. 29, 2021. (Saphara Harrell/Salem Reporter) When Theresa Gettmann’s roommates moved out in September 2020, she ended up homeless. She wasn’t on the lease and couldn’t find another place to live without an ID or a job.[Read More…]
Uncategorized Corban adds ag science program for fall 2022
The building where the new ag program at Corban University will be held. (Courtesy/Corban University) Corban University, a private Christian university in south Salem, is adding a new 4-year agricultural science degree program to its roster next year, contributing to a growing agricultural education sector in the Willamette Valley. The[Read More…]
Mayor Chuck Bennett doesn’t plan to seek fourth term
Salem Mayor Chuck Bennett (Amanda Loman/Salem Reporter) When Salem Mayor Chuck Bennett ran for a third term in 2020, he made his wife, Cherie, a promise. He agreed that it would be his last two years. Now he’s making good on that promise as he doesn’t plan to run for[Read More…]
Saffron Supply Co. moves business after century downtown
Saffron Supply Co. is moving from its downtown location after nearly a century in the same spot. (Ron Cooper/Salem Reporter) After spending a career in banking, Adam Stout wanted to be part of conversations about where the Salem community should go in the future. For years, he searched for the[Read More…]
Here’s how Salem’s wards would change under proposed new maps
Salem city council chambers on Wednesday, September 30, 2020. (Amanda Loman/Salem Reporter) Salemites could soon find themselves represented by a new city councilor. The Salem City Council on Monday will consider three new maps to determine which councilor represents which residents. They will select a final alternative later this month.[Read More…]
Center for Hope and Safety plans to open doors to motel shelter later this month
Later this month, the Center for Hope and Safety hopes to open the doors on a project that will more than double its current capacity to shelter survivors of domestic violence and abuse. A northeast Salem motel will now serve as transitional housing for survivors of domestic violence and abuse.[Read More…]
