For someone who has been following the long history of this Albany site on the Willamette River, as I have, this weekend marks another milestone. The first five houses of Edgewater Village are finished, beating a deadline, and the public gets a look at them Saturday.
So how’s it going with OReGO, the state’s volunteer program of charging a mileage fee instead of the gasoline tax to pay for highway programs? It could use more volunteers, for one thing. For another, there may be technical issues to iron out.
Albany’s “BottleDrop” will open as scheduled, but not in time to prevent the state Bottle Bill from becoming more expensive to consumers in 2017. And the increase then may not be justified. Read on if you want to know why.
Hoping to slow down global climate change, the Obama administration is pushing ahead with its crackdown on power plants that burn fossil fuels. If it wasn’t so expensive to consumers and harmful to the economy, this would be amusing to watch, especially from the vantage point of the Oregon coast.
Rather than going to court to salvage his rejected initiative proposal, Albany petitioner Tom Cordier is trying something else. Friday he submitted six new initiatives, all aimed at forcing the city council to seek voter approval of any utility franchise fees or “privilege” taxes. But the way I read the texts, they likely will run into […]
This little pile of redwood sticks in a wheelbarrow doesn’t look like much. But with the Big One in mind, I thought I’d better not throw away all the wood I was cutting out of a little sequoia in front of the house.
Great bond sale, and a question
Albany officials were delighted with the results of Wednesday’s bond sale to pay for the planned new police headquarters and downtown fire station replacement. The high demand — 10 bidders — showed the strength of the city’s financial situation. As for me, I was a little puzzled, which once again shows that I’m mystified by […]
Tags: $18 million bond, Albany City Council, public safety buildings