On the agenda: Debate over large west Salem housing development continues at City Council

Whitney Woodworth, Salem Statesman Journal
·3 min read
The directory near the courtyard entrance of City Hall at Salem Civic Center.
The directory near the courtyard entrance of City Hall at Salem Civic Center.

Debate over an application for a 436-unit apartment complex in west Salem will continue Monday after neighbors complained about traffic, removal of trees and the validity of the developer's application.

the Salem City Council is set to review the planning administrator's decision on a site plan for the residential development in the 2100 block of Doaks Ferry Road NW. The administrator previously approved the application, and the West Salem Neighborhood Association appealed the decision.

The issue came before the City Council during its last meeting on July 24 and drew lengthy public comment from neighbors and neighborhood association members concerned about traffic, the development's impact on city trees and the livability of the area, and technical issues with the developer's application.

The six-lot subdivision Titan Hill Estates and the 436-unit Titan Hill Apartments would be located at Doaks Ferry Road and Orchard Heights Road NW near West Salem High School and Straub Middle School.

The City Council voted during the July 24 meeting to close the public hearing but keep the record open until July 31 for new evidence, Aug. 7 for rebuttal testimony and Aug. 14 for the applicant's final written argument.

No public written or oral testimony will be allowed during the Monday meeting.

Other meeting agenda items include:

  • A motion from Councilor Linda Nishioka to direct city staff to host open house-style meetings for residents of north, south, central and west Salem. In the meetings, the mayor and councilors would meet with residents and talk about upcoming infrastructure projects, hear about concerns facing their community and talk about new efforts regarding housing, homelessness and parks. Each meeting is expected to cost the city $5,000 in resources.

  • In a separate motion, Councilor Vanessa Nordyke is requesting city staff provide resources for a south Salem Town Hall tentatively scheduled for Sept. 23. The meeting topics would be similar to the ones proposed in Nishioka's motion.

  • An end-of-session report summarizing the city's legislative activities during the Oregon State Legislature's 2023 session.

  • An information report on the referendum petition to send the Safe Salem Employee Payroll Tax to voters.

  • A summary of recent activity stemming from the 2022 voter-approved infrastructure bond. Projects underway include the paving of two parking lots and Minto-Brown Island Park, the Union Street Family Friendly Bikeway and the McGilchrist Complete Street.

  • An information report on a planning administrator's decision to approve a 75-unit multi-family housing development at 5080 MacLeay Road SE.

How to participate in the meeting

The meeting is at 6 p.m. It will be held in person at the City Council Chambers at the Salem Civic Center, 555 Liberty St. SE and also can be watched on Comcast Cable CCTV Channel 21 or on the Salem YouTube channel in English/American Sign Language and Spanish.

Those wishing to comment in person can sign up on the rosters at the chamber entrance before the start of the meeting.

Written public comments on agenda items can be emailed by 5 p.m. Monday to cityrecorder@cityofsalem.net. Or preregister between 8 a.m. and 2 p.m. Monday at cityofsalem.net/Pages/Public-Comment-at-Salem-City-Council-Meeting.aspx to speak during the meeting via Zoom.

For questions, comments and news tips, email reporter Whitney Woodworth at wmwoodworth@statesmanjournal.com, call 503-910-6616 or follow on Twitter at @wmwoodworth

This article originally appeared on Salem Statesman Journal: Salem Titan Hill Estates development gets neighbor complaints