City Council, January 28th - Killer Bs, Boondoggles and the Budget

At City Council on Monday are few urgent action items or decisions - but several interesting updates. We'll call them "the Bs."

Bridge Boondogglery

Most interesting are worksessions on transportation funding and the bridge:
WORK SESSIONS – Held in the Library Anderson Rooms unless otherwise noted:
Proposed Fee for Transportation Funding ~ Monday, February 11, 5:30 p.m.
Salem River Crossing ~ Tuesday, February 19, 5:30 p.m. ~ Location to be determined

The Budget

Funding is of the moment, and the City has announced meetings on the budget.  Killing the Third Bridge process would free up budget for things like potholes, fire, and police!

COMMUNITY FORUMS ON CITY BUDGET:
West Salem Neighborhood Association – West Salem Roth’s ~ Monday, February 4, 7:00 p.m.
South Salem High School Library ~ Wednesday, February 6, 6:00 p.m.
Latino presentation – McKay High School ~ Tuesday, February 12, 6:00 p.m.
Center 50+ ~ Wednesday, February 13, 6:00 p.m.
BUDGET COMMITTEE MEETINGS – Held in the Council Chambers
Review Department Operations and Second Quarter FY 2012-13 Financial Information ~ Wednesday, February 20, 6:00 p.m.
Presentation of FY 2013-14 Budget by City Manager ~ Wednesday, April 10, 6:00 p.m.
Budget Reviews ~ Wednesday, April 17, 24, May 1, and May 8, 6:00 p.m.

Another Boondoggle

There's also more on the other boondoggle, the big airport this city needs!
Ordinance Bill No. 2-13 Adopting the Updated Airport Master Plan to Replace the 1997 McNary Field Airport Master Plan as a Detailed Plan of the Salem Area Comprehensive Plan; Amending SRC Chapter 64 ~ Monday, February 25

Other Bits

There are several bits on downtown parking. Apparently the stretch from two to four hours free parking downtown over the Holidays cost the City about $21,000 in revenue from "unissued" parking citations based on the two hour limit.  Hopefully the Parking Task Force will find this a useful data point as they seek a more rational system to allocate and properly price car storage.  The City is also considering new parking meter technology.  And Council will decide on an updated schedule of parking fees.

Council will fill two positions for the Planning Commission. Two of the three applicants specifically call out bike transportation in their applications! Having survived hearings on both Bike and Walk Salem and the Pioneer Cemetery and Alley, former Councilor (appointed to fill out Bob Cannon's term in Ward 7) Sheronne Blasi writes:

We have heard from Salem residents that they want to be able to walk and ride their bikes to the park and to the store, and the Planning Commission is in a position to help achieve that by further encouraging developers to design and build that support these types of communities.

Stephen Elzinga describes himself as a bike commuter:

As a bicycle commuter myself, I understand firsthand the importance of improving the safety and accessibility of alternative transportation routes.

There's also an update on the railroad Quiet Zone, which will reduce or eliminate much of the horn blowing in downtown, and staff thinks a spring implementation might be possible.

Finally, more Eminent Domain:  An update on the Wallace Road sewer easement.  (See here for more more discussion.)  And a new case on Edgewater at Rosemont, arising from a death and title complication in probate.