West Salem Redevelopment Advisory Board Gets Up to Date on the City’s Homelessness Response and Planned Park Improvements

The West Salem Urban Renewal Agency, guided by the recommendations of the volunteer Redevelopment Advisory Board, has been on a mission to improve the West Salem area’s public spaces, building infrastructure and access to housing since 2001. 

At their March 4 meeting, the West Salem Redevelopment Advisory Board (WSRAB) had an agenda that included public comment, updates from the City Council on projects relevant to the board, and a presentation about proposed improvements to the Wallace Marine Park Natural Area. 

The meeting began with public comment from Nick Fortey, Parks and Transportation Chair of the West Salem Neighborhood Association, about a potential public art project. The neighborhood association is in the “conceptual stages” of a plan to add public art installations to the Edgewater Parkway, Fortey said. Board members agreed the area is “underutilized” and were receptive to the idea of public art. They encouraged Fortey to come back when the association had more details. 

City councilors Paul Tigan (Ward 1, representing downtown Salem and inner West Salem)  and Micki Varney (Ward 8, representing outer West Salem) joined the meeting to give an update on city happenings related to the area. 

Their update included the status of city outreach to people living at the homeless encampment at Wallace Marine Park, including the newer development of the Salem Police Department’s Homeless Services Team being available seven days per week. 

“The city's responsibility is to manage the incidents of homelessness. So we have folks who are going into the park, engaging with people, connecting them with services,” Tigan said. 

He noted that the city’s ability to permanently house people is dependent on the availability of other services. “At some point another part of the system has to respond and provide those folks with the connections to permanent housing or the mental health treatment that they need, or the addiction treatment, or whatever the case may be,” he said. 

Board members agreed they have seen a decrease in the number of people living at the park recently, and asked about the sustainability of the city’s outreach efforts to the park. 

“I think with sustainable funding, we can continue to send people and help. Is it going to stem  the national tide of the housing crisis, things like that? I can't say for sure, but we can do our part,” Tigan said.

Tigan acknowledged that to fund the program beyond the initial 18-month pilot period, they would need to work with state and community partners to secure that funding from other sources. 

Varney provided an update about the City’s Pringle Creek Pathway project. The City is currently in the process of getting community feedback on their project designs for a multi-use path that will connect the area around the Commercial Street SE Bridge with the nearby parks, including Wallace Marine Park. 

“It's really exciting and the plans look fantastic,” Varney said. “There will be an internal project team meeting in April where they'll review the feedback and choose the preferred alternative out of the two designs. One design has more curve in it and one is more angular and straight. Both of them incorporate art.”

The estimated overall project budget is $9 million: $6 million for the estimated construction costs, with the remainder slated for design and management costs.The projected start date for construction is October 2027. 

The meeting concluded with a presentation about the City’s Wallace Nature Area Enhancement project, presented by Parks Planning Manager Rob Romanek. Romanek explained that the city is in the data collection phase of the project. 

The City is seeking public input on future improvements to Wallace Marine Park and the adjoining natural area that borders the river. Their proposed project goals include protecting the wetland areas, removing blackberries and other invasive species, and potentially adding a paved multi-use pathway in the natural area. 

“We're trying to get people to use the park more. That's really the goal,” Romanek said. 

As of press deadline, the WSRAB has three vacant board positions: 

• One seat for a resident living in the Salem area at-large

• One seat for a business or property owner in the Riverfront-Downtown Urban Renewal area, on the inner east side of the river

• One seat for a resident living in Ward 8, the outer West Salem area 

Interested volunteers can find application instructions on the City of Salem website’s Current Board and Commission Openings page. 

The WSRAB meets on the first Wednesday of every month from 7:30 a.m-9:00 a.m. Their meetings are open to the public and are held in-person at the City’s Urban Development Department on 350 Commercial St NE in Salem. Recordings of the meetings are streamed live via the City of Salem Urban Development YouTube channel. Meeting agendas and minutes are available on the City of Salem website.