Dear Editor, The proposed $142 million ($75M new; $63M rural; $4M contingency) expense of demolishing the entire Schlador Campus and construction of a new insufficient sized, extravagant school, is neglecting students, district owners and common sense. Once remediated, Schlador may hold 1,000 students, compared to 450 new. This disregards the soon-demand for an expansion of the new high school; another […]
By Kristine Thomas For the second time in 14 months, the Oregon Secretary of State is investigating Silverton resident Gene Pfeifer for a possible violation of election law regarding his political action committee, Save Old Schools, SOS, for which he is the treasurer. On Aug. 7, 2013, Pfeifer was notified by the state he was being fine $425 for failing […]
By Kristine Thomas What would it cost to renovate Eugene Field Elementary School? The answer to that question lies in first defining the work that needs to be done to bring the building up to code and make it usable for the next 50 years. Silverton resident Gene Pfeifer believes Eugene Field Elementary School could be remediated for $4.5 to […]
By Kristine Thomas The Oregon Elections Division has determined Silverton resident Gene Pfeifer, treasurer of Save Old Schools, has violated election laws. The Save Old Schools committee members opposed the $36.9 million bond measure by the Silver Falls School District on the May 21 ballot. The bond was defeated 58 to 42 percent. If the bond had been approved, it […]
A civic responsibility to our future Every generation is faced with its own unique challenges. On May 21st we meet one of those challenges, the decision to support or not support the school bond measures in Silver Falls School District. In today’s fiscally constrained environment it is difficult to justify to voters the necessity of supporting current property tax rates […]
Editor’s note: This is the second in a three-part series on the proposed $36.9 million bond measure for construction and maintenance projects for the Silver Falls School District on the May 21 ballot. The April 1 story focused on the 92-year-old Eugene Field School. The May 1 story will look at what is proposed for Schlador Street, the former high […]
Was the city of Silverton too hasty in its handling of the stockpile of chemicals found on a property in town? Or did the chemicals themselves and the manner in which they were stored pose significant risk to surrounding properties – especially Silverton High School, a block away – to warrant the immediate closure and clean-up of the site?
