NEWS

Easy day for City Council Monday

A light agenda met the Keizer City Council at its Monday, Oct. 17, meeting.

There were no public hearings, but the council took actions on fee waivers and granting money to the Keizer Cultural Center for new windows.

Matt Lawyer gave a report from the Planning Commission including the multi-family housing projects under construction in the city and the River Cherry Overlay District (RCOD). He also announced the commission’s new youth member, Amanpreet Sandhu, a McNary High School student.

Following Lawyer was Lisa Cejka giving a Parks Advisory Board report. She reported on the new trail at Palma Ciea Park, an Eagle Scout project. She announced incidents of vandalism and graffiti in some parks, including an alleged arson fire that damaged the gazebo at Chalmers Jones Park, at the Keizer Civic Center.

A park clean-up event at Wallace House Park on Saturday, Oct. 29, was announced. Leaders are seeking five teams of 5-6 people each to help gather trash and do planting and seeding chores. The clean-up will begin at 10 a.m. Volunteers are advised to wear weather- and work-appropriate attire.

During the meeting Mayor Cathy Clark read a proclamation marking October 2022 as domestic violence awareness month. She presented the proclamation to Jayne Downing, executive director of the Center for Hope and Safety. She brought along Max, a support dog for the center.

Downing told the council about the Center.

The council voted to waive Keizer Community Center fees for the Latino Business Alliance for its Expo Negocio event on Thursday, Nov. 10. The event is open to the public and will feature workshops and networking. Fees for two concerts by the Keizer Community Band were also waived. The first concert will be on Dec. 14; the second will be held in May. This will be the first concert by the band since the beginning of the COVID pandemic. 

The Keizer Cultural Center received a $30,000 grant for new windows for the 106-year old building. The Keizer Heritage Foundation is working on raising the remaining $18,000 needed.

Councilor Laura Reid announced that the 40th birthday celebration of Keizer as a city is scheduled for July 8-9, 2023. 

It was announced that Councilor Roland Herrera had been honored by the League of Oregon Cities for his work with the organization’s Color Caucus with the Community Leadership Award that will be named after him.