Hasso Hering

It’s an hour later, stupidly

Written March 8th, 2014 by Hasso Hering

Comments: 2 responses.

Once again we have undergone the ridiculous rigmarole of a time change. (If you read this after 2 on Sunday morning, that is. And in case you forgot, it’s an hour later this morning than you think.)

Posted in: Commentary

Zoning: The fix falls short

Written March 8th, 2014 by Hasso Hering

Comments: 4 responses.

About two years ago Albany Mayor Sharon Konopa had the great idea to form a task force that would comb through the city development code and recommend changes to make it easier to open or run a business. On Wednesday the city council will hold a hearing on the result, a list of revisions so […]

Posted in: Commentary
Tags: Albany City Council, Albany development code, Main Street District, waterfront district, zoning restrictions

Why background-check bill deserved to die

Written March 8th, 2014 by Hasso Hering

Comments: 2 responses.

Our Oregon legislature did not accomplish much during the short session that ended Friday, but its main achievement lies in what it did not do. Among the things it did not do was to enact Senate Bill 1551, requiring private sellers of firearms to obtain background checks on the would-be buyers.

Posted in: Commentary
Tags: gun control, Oregon legislature, SB 1551

Forget pot dispensaries for now

Written March 7th, 2014 by Hasso Hering

Comments: 3 responses.

You can forget about legal dispensaries of medical marijuana in Oregon for the foreseeable future — unless voters approve legalization of the weed in the form of an initiative this fall. The state Senate voted this morning, 28-2, to go along with changes the House had made in SB 1531.

Posted in: Commentary
Tags: marijuana dispensaries, medical marijuana, Oregon legislature, SB 1531

Speed up or pull over

Written March 6th, 2014 by Hasso Hering

Comments: 4 responses.

Picture yourself on one of our winding two-lane roads through the hills, and for some reason yours is not the only vehicle on the road. OK, so maybe it is a nice afternoon, and lots of other people are driving home from the beach. The weather is good and the pavement dry, so why is that […]

Posted in: Uncategorized

Grocery carts: a tech solution?

Written March 6th, 2014 by Hasso Hering

Comments: 5 responses.

Some years ago Albany passed a city ordinance to put a stop to the nuisance of grocery carts being taken from stores and abandoned all over town. It’s an elaborate law, and as far as I can see it has done almost no good. Could there be a technological solution?

Posted in: Commentary
Tags: ", "Town Mouse, Albany City Council, grocery carts

What will become of this building?

Written March 5th, 2014 by Hasso Hering

Comments: 2 responses.

This is the downtown Albany building at issue in a proposal the CARA urban renewal advisory board may receive and consider the next time it meets, on March 19.

Posted in: News
Tags: 420 Third, Albany urban renewal, CARA, Scott Lepman