Commentary

Nice crossing job …

Written May 2nd, 2014 by Hasso Hering

Comments: no responses.

Before … and after … … a paving crew made improvements on the railroad crossing on Riverside Drive. Nice job! In case you’re wondering, the photos were taken from opposite sides of the tracks. The job was done Thursday and the road reopened Friday. (hh)

Posted in: Commentary, News
Tags: PNWR, Riverside Drive

Police/fire panel takes significant step

Written May 2nd, 2014 by Hasso Hering

Comments: 9 responses.

For four months now, a committee of citizens has been reviewing Albany’s plans for a new police headquarters and downtown fire station. One way to keep track is to attend the meetings every other week or so, but that is tedious work as one recent session lasted more than two hours and didn’t break up […]

Posted in: Commentary, News
Tags: Albany Fire Department, Albany Police Department, Albany Public Safdety Facilities

Power failure: What caused it

Written May 1st, 2014 by Hasso Hering

Comments: one response.

A crew was working at Pacific Power’s Hazelwood substation in West Albany Thursday, installing a modern breaker to replace one that suffered a “catastrophic failure” on Monday afternoon, causing a widespread power outage in Albany and Corvallis. To learn more about the cause, I talked Thursday with Doris Johnson, Pacific’s Albany-area business representative, and James […]

Posted in: Commentary, News
Tags: Hazelwood substation, Pacific Power, power failure

Where did the ditch go?

Written April 30th, 2014 by Hasso Hering

Comments: 2 responses.

Nobody seems to love what’s left of Albany’s Thurston Street Canal. Decades ago it was turned into a narrow ditch. The water flow is very sluggish. Now somebody was kind enough to cut the grass on the banks. But look where the cuttings ended up: In the ditch, making an already stagnant waterway even more so.

Posted in: Commentary
Tags: Albany canals, Thurston Street Canal, Town Center Plan

Life in a railroad town

Written April 30th, 2014 by Hasso Hering

Comments: 2 responses.

Pity the poor people who do not live in railroad towns. They miss the fun of sitting at a crossing and watching a freight rumble past.

Posted in: Commentary, News, Videos
Tags: Oregon Electric, PNWR, Portland & Western, Union Pacific

Slow down for the deer

Written April 29th, 2014 by Hasso Hering

Comments: no responses.

The deer are back with us after hanging out some other place for the last few weeks. That means it’s time to remind motorists on our semi-rural roads to slow down.

Posted in: Commentary
Tags: collisions with wildlife, rural roads

No signals but no chaos

Written April 28th, 2014 by Hasso Hering

Comments: 4 responses.

When a power failure hit the Albany area on Monday afternoon and knocked out all the traffic signals, motorists did what they usually do when this happens: Without being told, they took turns.

Posted in: Commentary, News
Tags: Pacific and Queen, Pacific Power, power failure