If America no longer — or just barely — works in some respects, a bridge on Albany’s Belmont Avenue may be a symbol of this decline. The problem is red tape strung up by state and federal agencies that are unaccountable for the delays they cause. Belmont Avenue crosses a seasonal stream, but to call […]
If you live in the Willamette Valley and hear far-off rumbling during the night, it might be men working. Or women. They are driving combines to get the grass seed harvested before the weather turns. Grass seed production is a big deal in the valley, though prices have been depressed in recent years. The crop’s farm gate […]
As you can see in this video, the Portland & Western’s project to build a new rail link in Albany remains stalled at Main Street, where the track stops. The idea is to connect the railroad’s Millersburg yard with the Toledo Branch line so freights coming across the Willamette River bridge no longer have to enter the Union […]
A single member’s vote in the Oregon Senate may save Oregonians from having to pay even more for fuel than we’ll have to pay anyway in coming years. Betsy Johnson, a Democrat from Scappoose, voted with the 14 Republicans on July 6 to force a tie vote, 15-15, on Senate Bill 488, which would extend […]
On the way through Millersburg, the continuing dismantling of the former Albany Paper Mill is not the only sad sight you see. On the opposite side of Old Salem Road, there is another, not nearly as well known or easy to see. That is where in 2009, a company named Peak Sun opened a small […]
What are you supposed to do if you happen upon an invader? Kill it, probably. But it didn’t seem right in this case, and anyway I didn’t realize an invader was what I saw. Let me explain. A few days ago, riding my bike on the Cox Creek path near the Albany and Millersburg Talking […]
Legislature quits; we’re safe!
We can breathe a little easier now. The legislature has adjourned, and the damage has been relatively minor. Lawmakers convened in January, started work in February and called it quits on Monday, just five days before the constitutional deadline. During all that time they allocated more money to schools and various other programs, but they […]
Tags: legislature