Category Government
City manager Steve Powers will retire Feb. 28
City Manager Steve Powers responds to questions from a crowd of neighbors at Pringle Community Hall on Jan. 17, 2020. Salem’s city manager, Steve Powers, announced Monday that he will retire Feb. 28 after six years at the city. Powers began working for the city…
Salem’s economic development plan aims to help businesses recover from the pandemic
The Chang Tuh facility expansion on Wednesday, June 23, 2021. (Amanda Loman/Salem Reporter) When the pandemic first sent many businesses into a shutdown, Annie Gorski was getting dozens of calls and emails each week. Gorski, the city of Salem’s economic development manager, said businesses knew…
Salem to ask voters to approve $300 million infrastructure bond next November
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…
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…
Challenges persist for rural Marion, Polk county residents lacking broadband as state plans for federal funds still uncertain
Santiam Canyon (Ron Cooper/Salem Reporter) Thousands of Marion and Polk county residents lacking high-speed internet continue to face barriers to education and their ability to earn a living, and whether a federal bill intended to expand broadband access will help remains unclear. Oregonians will see…
Oregon Supreme Court upholds new state legislative districts
Oregon state Sen. Kathleen Taylor, D-Milwaukie, chairs a Senate committee meeting on redistricting on Monday, Sept. 20, 2021. (Amanda Loman/Oregon Capital Chronicle) Oregon’s new legislative boundaries are set for the next 10 years after the Oregon Supreme Court on Monday dismissed two challenges to the…
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…
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…
Safer roads for Marion County, more sidewalks in the city possible with new federal cash
Sidewalk damage on Pearl Street Northeast on Wednesday, Feb. 24, 2021. (Amanda Loman/Salem Reporter) Marion and Polk county residents may soon find it easier to walk on neighborhood streets or safer to cross the road as millions of dollars in federal funding earmarked for infrastructure…