By Stephen Floyd Teachers in the Silver Falls School District (SFSD) are currently working under last year’s expired contract as labor negotiations drag on in the shadows of high inflation, housing costs and COVID-19 burnout. Negotiations began in April, and teachers with the Silver Falls Education Association (SFEA) started the school year with nine of 16 contract terms settled with […]
By James Day Silverton will have a new mayor come January, but the town still will be led by a Silverton native. Outgoing mayor Kyle Palmer, who has served in the position since 2017, is a lifelong resident, as are the two individuals running to replace him, Morry Jones and Jason Freilinger. Jones is a corporate executive who has served […]
A second election forum for Silverton candidates will be held Tuesday, Oct. 18, at the Palace Theatre. Doors open at 5:30 p.m., with the audience-question driven forum organized by the Silverton Discourse Project getting underway at 6 p.m. Concessions will be for sale. On hand will be mayoral candidates Jason Freilinger and Morry Jones. Six of the seven City Council […]
By James Day There will be a distinct changing of the guard for the Silverton City Council come next term. That’s because there will be three and perhaps four new councilors when the session begins in January. Incumbent councilors Jim Sears, Dana Smith and Crystal Neideigh all chose not to seek re-election to new four-year terms. In addition, Council President […]
By James Day Two major developments are proceeding in Silverton, with perhaps as many as 110 new homes coming on line in the next few years. Two model homes already have been constructed for the West End Gateway development at the edge of the Silverton city limits just before the Silver Spur RV Park. Larry Hilton of More Realty, the […]
By Melissa Wagoner Nine grants totaling almost $44,000 were approved Oct. 3 when the Silverton City Council accepted the recommendations of the Silverton Tourism Promotion Committee. Awards ranged from familiar community events such as First Friday, the Sidewalk Shindig and Silverton Arts Festival, to brew-based entries like the Homer Invitational Brewfest and the Fox Foundation Fall Line Stout and Ale […]
By Melissa Wagoner Witches young and old met at dusk on Friday, Oct. 7 at the Silverton Reservoir and held the inaugural Silverton Witch Paddle. Taking to the water rather than the skies on all manner of crafts, from stand-up paddle boards to kayaks, an estimated 30 witch-garbed enthusiasts celebrated the season with camaraderie the likes of which many hadn’t […]
By James Day Silverton has held four public outreach meetings on downtown parking issues. The problem is simple: new development in the downtown area has led to parking challenges, for both business customers and their employees. A possible fix lies just north of downtown where the city is building a new $19 million civic center on property that was once […]
By Melissa Wagoner When Dr. Tim Richardson was in dental school at the University of Washington, he had a dream of becoming a traveling dentist. During the summer of 2006, he flew to Kenya with a Washington-based nonprofit to find out just how to make his dreams come true. “I stayed in a little volunteer hut with no running water […]
A group of nine Silverton firefighters participated in the annual Portland Firefighter Stairclimb Challenge on Sunday, Sept. 25, at the US Bancorp Tower. Silverton had the largest participation among all competing agencies, said Joe Boyd, executive director of the event. The climb began in 2009 but did not take place in 2020 and 2021 because of the COVID-19 pandemic. It […]
By Melissa Wagoner When Silverton-based nurse Holly Perez received a call from the Maps Community Foundation informing her she had just been chosen a Community Award recipient for 2022, she was caught off guard. “My daughter Sofia nominated me,” Perez said. “I was not aware of this; therefore, it was quite a surprise.” It was a good one. As a winner, […]
By Stephen Floyd Six candidates are vying for three seats on the Mount Angel City Council, with an even split between incumbents and newcomers. As of the Aug. 30 filing deadline, councilors Ray Eder, Tony Astorga and Matthew Donohue had filed for new terms, while challengers Mary Franklin, Justin Roney and Joseph Pfau were vying for an open seat. The […]
By Stephen Floyd When late Mount Angel Mayor Don Fleck died suddenly in June, City Councilor Pete Wall was prepared to temporarily take up the mantle. As president of the City Council, he became acting mayor, but told fellow officials he would not seek election if appointed to fill the remainder of Fleck’s term, and would instead return to his […]
By Stephen Floyd Two political newcomers have joined races for mayor and City Council in Scotts Mills, leading to a contested election in a city that sometimes struggles to fill the ballot with candidates. Incumbent Mayor Paul Brakeman and councilors Robin Fournier, Casey Dean and Monika Martin have filed for new terms and are joined by Jason Axness, seeking the […]
By James Day A 1.7-acre parcel in the hills off of Edison Heights Road will become part of Silverton. The Silverton City Council voted at its Sept. 12 meeting to accept an annexation request from the property owners, Al and Sheila Skomial, who sought the annexation because of a failing well, which does not deliver the required water flow and […]
By Brenna Wiegand A string of past Our Town stories reflect the flurry of activity encircling the old wading pool in Silverton’s Coolidge McClaine Park. It all started in 2014 when Silverton participants in that year’s Ford Family Foundation Leadership program chose to beautify the wading pool/fountain in Coolidge McClaine as its public service project. Ford Family Foundation offered $5,000 […]
Frequent Addresses Mt. Angel Public Library, 290 E Charles St. Silverton High, 1456 Pine St., Silverton. Silverton Senior Center, 115 Westfield 50 & older. 503-873-3093 Silver Creek Fellowship, 822 NE Industrial Way, Silverton. Silver Falls Library, 410 S Water St.. Weekly Events Monday SACA Food Pantry, 9 a.m. – noon, SACA, 421 S Water St. Repeats Thursday 503-873-3446, silvertonareacommunityaid.org Senior […]
By Melissa Wagoner Every month Lunaria – a cooperative fine art gallery established in downtown Silverton in 1995 – celebrates one or more of its 24 members through a gallery show that kicks off with a First Friday gala event. “These gala events provide the public an opportunity to view a wider selection of the featured artist’s work as well […]
There will be something for the body and something for the soul when the community gathers to Share the Harvest Sunday, Oct. 23. More than just a soup-and-bread dinner that benefits local youth, the event includes live music and a silent auction featuring hand-turned pottery. Immanuel Lutheran Church is the setting, 303 N. Church St., Silverton. Its great hall will […]
Silverton Mayor Kyle Palmer is reviving the Mayors Ball fundraiser on Oct. 22. It is believed that this will be the first time the event has been held in a decade. The Portland-based oldies band Johnny Limbo and the Lugnuts, long-time musical performers for the ball, will be on hand for the show, which runs from 7 to 11 p.m. […]
By James Day The Elizabeth Ashley Hoke Memorial Trust, which has been active in a wide variety of causes since its founding in 2017, has added the programs of Silverton Together to its portfolio. Activities that Silverton Together was engaged in include a school supplies program, coats for kids, a holiday program and a reading program. “When I read that […]
By James Day The Silverton Chamber of Commerce is hosting an election forum on Wednesday, Sept. 28 at the Oregon Garden. The noon luncheon event ($15 for chamber members and $20 for non-members) will take place at the education building, which is just across from the visitor center entry gate. Go to https://business.silvertonchamber.org/events/details/silverton-candidate-forum-20009 to register. Invited to participate will be […]
By Stephen Floyd The Silver Falls School District is getting closer to another facilities improvement bond measure after previous attempts to fund deferred maintenance and building upgrades were rejected. On Aug. 22, the School Board approved formation of a Bond Advisory Committee to explore potential scope and scale of a bond measure. The committee, made of district employees, parents, community […]
By James Day A Silverton Habitat for Humanity project has received a $30,000 grant from the Oregon Community Foundation (OCF). The award was part of $8.7 million in grants to 371 nonprofits that the foundation announced last month. North Willamette Valley Habitat For Humanity will use the funds to help hire a project manager for the planned 18-unit project on […]
By Melissa Wagoner This summer, thanks to a Youth Wage Grant from the Willamette Workforce Partnership, three teenaged interns joined the Silver Falls Library team, reshelving books, compiling packets for the Summer Reading Program and helping on the library floor. “We really loved it and the kids really loved it,” Dena Chaffin, a Youth Services Librarian said. While all three […]
