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City of Silverton

Former Mayor Palmer joins Silverton council race

By James Day Two sitting Silverton councilors will be joined by a long-time city political figure in this fall’s election. Incumbent Council President Elvi Cuellar Sutton and Matt Gaitan, who was appointed to a seat by the council after the 2022 election, have been joined in the 2024 race by Kyle Palmer, whose history as an elected official goes back […]

City of Silverton

Trash rate: City OKs 23% increase

Trash and recycling rates in Silverton are going up 23% starting Sept. 1. The Silverton City Council voted 5-1 on July 1 to approve the rate request from Republic Services, which serves as the city’s trash hauler under a franchise agreement. Republic Services says the rate increase is necessary to match the 10 percent rate of return that is guaranteed […]

Miller won’t seek second council term

Silverton Councilor Jess Miller is moving into a new community volunteering arena. Miller, a family physician in Mount Angel, announced June 3 that he will not seek re-election for a second four-year term on the council. He told Our Town that in 2025 he plans “to focus my volunteer efforts on enacting a parental equality bill in Oregon family law.” […]

City of Silverton

Water issues – Council discusses reservoir, swimming hole access, passes budget

By James Day The Silverton City Council passed its regular budget for 2024-25 and one for its urban renewal agency at its June 17 meeting at the Silverton Community Center. But both spending plans, which total approximately $79 million, involved little councilor discussion and no amendments were offered. The budgets passed unanimously, and the largest chunk of time at the […]

City of Silverton

Election nears – Jess Miller not seeking another term on Silverton council

By James Day There will be at least one new councilor in Silverton next January. Jess Miller, who was elected in 2020, told the council at its June 3 meeting that he will not seek a second four-year term. Miller told Our Town that he will be focusing his community service time on working to pass parental equity legislation at […]

Oversight – Board appoints bond $ watchdogs

The Silver Falls School District Board has unanimously appointed 17 individuals to serve on a Bond Oversight Committee ahead of a Nov. 7 vote on a $138 million facilities bond. Officials said their goal is to let residents know who would be overseeing implementation of bond projects before casting their ballots. During the board’s Oct. 9 regular meeting, Superintendent Scott […]

Governor Tina Kotek inspects the interior of one of Sheltering Silverton’s new “pallet shelters”. JAMES DAY

Homeless summit – Governor in Silverton for ‘listening’ sessions

By James Day Oregon Governor Tina Kotek visited Silverton on June 22, making two stops. One was to discuss homelessness and housing issues; the other to engage with agricultural and natural resource officials in a luncheon at The Oregon Garden. Our Town attended the homeless session. Media were not allowed at The Oregon Garden session. Kotek, 57, a first-term Democrat […]

New to the team – Matt Gaitan joins Silverton City Council

By James Day Just like that, the Silverton City Council was whole again. New councilors Marie Traeger, April Newton and Eric Hammond were voted in on Nov. 8 to replace outgoing members Jim Sears, Dana Smith and Crystal Neideigh, with Jason Freilinger winning election as mayor, replacing Kyle Palmer. However, Freilinger’s ascension to the mayor’s post left his council seat […]

New role, new faces – Mayor Freilinger, four new Silverton councilors

By James Day Silverton installed a new mayor and four new councilors on Monday, Jan. 9, signaling the beginning of a new political era in town. Jason Freilinger, who had served as council president, was sworn in as mayor, replacing Kyle Palmer, whose elected office experience dates to 2004. In addition, outgoing councilors Jim Sears, Dana Smith and Crystal Neideigh […]

Costs rising – Silverton council agrees on new spending for civic center

By James Day The City of Silverton has agreed to spend an additional $350,000 on “contract administration” costs for the civic center project. The Dec. 19 City Council session included a Zoom meeting with project/design consultants from Mackenzie and Compass Project Solutions. The consultants have spent just more than $250,000 in contract administration costs to date and recognized that they […]

Upkeep issues – Code enforcement complaints go back to 2015

By James Day Property owner Wes Holman used the public comment period of the Dec. 5 Silverton City Council meeting to raise concerns about trash and debris at a home near the Holman house on South Third Avenue. The complaint record apparently goes back to 2015, and although Holman said there have been some temporary improvements he remains ”not satisfied” […]

Election 2022: New councilors – Hammond, Newton, Traeger cite communication challenges

By James Day Silverton will have four new councilors beginning in January. Eric Hammond, April Newton and Marie Traeger were elected to four-year terms in a seven-candidate field on Nov. 8 to replace retiring councilors Jim Sears, Dana Smith and Crystal Neideigh. In addition, current council president Jason Freilinger was elected to a two-year term as mayor, and one of […]

Mayor: Freilinger – Traeger, Newton, Hammond headed to Silverton council

By James Day Jason Freilinger, a 10-year city council veteran, has been elected Silverton mayor. Freilinger will replace Kyle Palmer, who has served as both a councilor and mayor since 2004. Palmer chose not to seek reelection. Although results have not been certified, Freilinger leads with 56.88% of the vote to 43.12% for planning commissioner Morry Jones.  Jones already has […]

Election 2022: Freilinger elected mayor; Traeger, Newton, Hammond lead for council

By James Day Ten-year Silverton City Council member Jason Freilinger appears to be on his way to being elected the town’s mayor.  Freilinger, a financial services officer and this term’s council president, was leading corporate executive Morry Jones by nearly 450 votes, according to unofficial results released Tuesday night by Marion County. Freilinger had 1,896 votes (56.66%), with Jones at […]

Election 2022: Silverton candidates participate in two-hour forum

By James Day Silverton’s two mayoral candidates and six of the seven City Council hopefuls took part in a two-hour public forum on Oct. 18 at the Palace Theater. The event was hosted by the Silverton Discourse Project, with Our Town reporter Stephen Floyd serving as the moderator. Approximately 100 residents attended, some munching popcorn from the Palace concession stand. […]

Silverton candidate forum set for Oct. 18

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 […]

Slew of candidates – Seven contend for City Council seats in Silverton

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 […]

Voters to decide – Candidate forum set for Silverton council, mayor races

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 […]

Letters to the Editor: Support for ‘supermom’ in school board election

We wholeheartedly endorse Melissa Seifer Briggs for Silver Falls School Board. Melissa is an experienced attorney, most recently with the Oregon Judicial Department, and a Silverton native. She and her husband, David Briggs, have five young children, ages 12 to 3. Melissa is devoted to all children, especially those who may be disadvantaged or at risk. The depth and breadth […]