Salem in 2001

World Events

• The Taliban begins destroying ancient Bamiyan Buddhas of Afghanistan. Later this year, the US invades Afghanistan as The War on Terror.
• George W. Bush is inaugurated as president in January, promises tax cuts as his priority. He establishes the Office of Homeland Security. 
• Almost 3,000 are killed in the 9/11 attacks at the World Trade Towers (which collapse), the Pentagon and rural Pennsylvania when terrorists take control of US airliners in suicide missions.
• Anthrax spores are sent through US mail: 22 persons exposed, 5 die.
• ENRON files for bankruptcy after an 8 billion buyout is cancelled: the largest bankruptcy in U.S. history.
• Roy Moore is removed as Supreme Court Justice in Alabama after defying a court order concerning a religious monument he placed on state property. 
• iPod is introduced by Apple. 
• Wikipedia is launched (NOTE: Many of the items included in World Events listings on this website are selected from Wikipedia.)
• Academy Awards:"A Beautiful Mind" (US), "No Man's Land" (Bosnia). Prize-winning Books: The Corrections, Jonathan Franzen and The Amazing Adventures of Cavalier and Klay, Michael Chabon.In Salem

Memorials were erected to worldwide victims of the 9/11 attacks and to a local resident.

After the 9/11 disasters, vigils at Riverfront Park give residents of Salem an opportunity to express public sympathy for the loss of life in the terrorist attacks on our citizens. A memorial is mounted in Riverfront Park. Two months later, a memorial observation platform was erected at Basket Slough for Rich Guadagdo who died in Pennsylvania during that attack.

When you visit
 The Riverfront memorial to worldwide victims is mounted at the south end of the park overlooking the Willamette Slough and Pringle Creek.
Follow this map link to the Rich Guadagno Observation Platform, or or follow these directions to drive to the Basket Slough National Wildlife Refuge, located 10 miles west of Salem in Polk County. From Marion Street Bridge, drive west on Route 22 for 9.7 miles and turn right on 99W. Drive north 1.9 miles to Coville Road and turn left. After 1.5 miles, you arrive at the Trail head parking lot and information kiosk. Begin the moderate uphill trail and turn left at the junction. The memorial is .4 miles from the parking lot. (Note: walk softly: on our last visit to the memorial, a deer crossed the path and stood to gaze at us.)

Other events

• At Riverside Park in June, a joyous occasion is celebrated as the Carousel opens. Hazel Patton, a local community activist in historical preservation, inspired the project. The mission of the carousel is to enhance the quality of life in the Willamette Valley by invigorating community cohesiveness, fostering cultural and educational opportunities, creating a living history, and increasing tourism. The project brought together artists and experts in many creative occupations and is enjoyed by residents and visitors of all ages. A visit to Riverfront Park should include a stop at the Carousel, even without children. No one can resist the appeal to listening to the familiar music (if you are old enough to remember the experience from your own childhood) and watching the joy of the children passing as they ride the horses around in a lively circle. As you leave, notice the mementos inscribed in tiles along the walkway. In this fashion, local families have contributed to the lasting heritage of this historical entertainment. Hours of operation vary, but generally it is opens every day, 11-5 with a fee for children, but no cost to accompanying parent.
• Bob DeLong is appointed City Manager.
• The City Council also experiences changes, giving Mayor Mike Swaim his "first friendly majority since his election in 1996". The Statesman recorded the council's opposition to "unfettered growth", years-old rules concerning land use for builders, as they raised minimum wages for city workers and employees of contractors and began work on "corporate disclosure that would require contractors to submit information on environmental, labor and consumer relations records." Mayor Swaim announced he would not seek re-election next year.
• In a local poll taken at the end of 2001, readers of the Statesman Journal report the outstanding local story of the year was the economic crisis when low rainfall and federal decisions caused Detroit Lake to be drained to meet fish needs and water quality downstream. Because of the hardship caused to recreational business and families sustained by them, the Save Our Lake committee is formed and the area put under a federal recreation lake program to bring money for improvement projects.
• The attraction of the Carousel and the opening of the Oregon Garden in Silverton tie for second place in the newspaper poll. In the following year, the garden attraction added another feature with the relocating of the Gordon House to the property: bringing to our area of Oregon a house designed by Frank Lloyd Wright.
• A traffic accident south of Salem causes the death of Albany police officer Jason Hoeroef and Oregon State Police senior trooper Maria Mignano. A young driver, Jacob Todoriko, fell asleep at the wheel of his pickup, which left the highway and struck three officers who were helping a disabled motorist. State Police Sgt. John Burright is critically injured. Todoriko's sentence includes public addresses to inform other motorists of the dangers of driving while drowsy.
• As meth addiction in Oregon and Marion County deepened, Congress allocates $580,000 to help combat the production and trafficking of the addictive stimulant.
• Local school news includes the $5,700, 000 sale of historic Bush School, the last downtown elementary school, to Salem Hospital for demolition. Parents are relieved that a replacement Bush School on 14th Street (near Mill Street) will alleviate traffic concerns on Mission Street, but concerned because that the new construction will demolish 16 homes in the SESNA neighborhood.
• Other school construction, funded by a $177 million school bond of 1998, creates four new schools in the Salem-Keizer School District. The bond also funds renovations at other schools, including a new wing at North Salem High School and a student commons at South Salem High School.
• The Statesman describes the Salem downtown as being threatened with "decaying buildings, climbing vacancy rates, fizzled improvements, and economic doldrums". Suburban malls and conflicts between teens and merchants are also mentioned. One business that closed this year is the more than 80-year-old Anderson's Sporting Goods on Liberty Street. However, an encouraging event is the new National Register listing of the Salem Downtown Historic District.

Salem in 1996

World Events

• Iraq's known biological warfare resources are destroyed as part of the UNSCOM supervision, but many sites are not opened for inspection.
• Palestinian and Israeli governments recognize the existence of each.
• President Bill Clinton signs the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban at the UN and the Electronic Freedom of Information Act Amendments.
• After 35 people are killed in Port Arthur, Australia, the government bans private possession of automatic and semi-automatic rifles, offering a buy-back program. ( No Australian mass killing for 20+ years.)
• In Montana, the "Unabomber" who engaged in mail bombing for nearly 20 years, killing three people and injuring 23 others, is arrested.  At Centennial Olympic Park in Atlanta, a bombing kills 1 and injures 111.
• An E Coli strain of infection kills 6,000 people in Japan.
• Amber Hagerman, 9 -year old murder victim, becomes the namesake of the Amber Alert System. 6-year old JonBenet Ramsay is found murdered: a case that remains unsolved.
• In Chicago, after a 3 year-old boy falls into a deep gorilla enclosure, a female gorilla, Binti Jua, sits with the injured boy until his rescue.
• "Toy Story" is first computer animated, feature film. Academy Awards:"The English Patient" (US) "Kolya" (Czech Republic). Prize-winning Books: Ship Fever and Other Stories, Andrea Barrett and Independence Day, Richard Ford.

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In Salem
This year the residents adopted a new Charter. The charter establishes a form of city government and functions much like the Constitution. The Territorial Legislature of Oregon granted Salem's first charter in 1957 and the Oregon State Legislature granted the city's charter under statehood in 1860, after a three-year political struggle. One of the most vocal opponents was Asahel Bush, publisher of the Salem's Oregon Statesman newspaper. The Legislative charter was amended many times over the next 136 years. Meanwhile, the citizens adopted the "Home Rule" amendment to the state constitution, making it possible for local voters to charter their own city.amen to state made it possible for a city to obtain a Home Rule Charter that could be adopted by the voters of the community. Salem finally adopted a Home Rule charter in 1996. The charter, however, did not fundamentally alter the city's form of government. The elected Mayor and Council, who serve without pay, appoint the City Manager. The City Manager hires (and can discharge) the other salaried staff members.
Our city government meets in the Council Chamber of the Civic Center, seen above. The large screen, which can be rolled up, is used for Power Point presentations by speakers who stand at the podium to the left foreground (or one out of sight to the right). In the front of the chamber are three seats. From left: the City Attorney, to make sure the legal provisions of the Charter are followed; the Mayor who conducts the meeting, is a Council member-at-large; and the City Manager who is responsible for carrying out the decisions of the Council. To each side sit the Councilors, the legislators, one from each of our eight Wards. The row of seats in the foreground of the photograph is for those Department staff representatives present to give information on an item being considered. During the Budget Sessions, those 9 committee members sit here. Where the photographer is standing there is a podium for the Recorder, who keeps an electronic tape of the proceedings, and spaces for media representatives. Seats along each side are for residents and visitors.

When you visit
One of the interesting features of the Chamber is the wall of proclamations, testimonials and gifts to the city. The Chamber meetings are always open to the public and residents are invited to attend. If one wishes to speak on a subject being discussed, there is a sign-up sheet by each entrance and copies of the agenda. Testimony is limited to three minutes, but councilors may ask questions, giving an opportunity to extend the conversation as needed. The meetings are conducted in a friendly, congenial manner and everyone is welcome. They are held at 6:30 on the second and fourth Mondays of the month. The meetings are also broadcast on CCTV.

Other events

• Mike Swaim is elected as Mayor and will hold the office until 2002. Asked about his goals for Salem, he replied: "What would I wish for our community, if I can motivate both the people and our elected representatives? It would be nothing less than what drew me, and probably you, to Salem to begin with: a community where open space is in abundance; where there is plenty of clean water for both people and industry; where history is valued; where crime is managed within tolerable limits; where the quality of life in each of our neighborhoods is elevated above expediency; where youth are supported; and where every member in the community is valued on the basis of the content of their character."
• A flood this year brought the Willamette River to a height of 35.9 feet, causing water damage to structures along the shoreline, and especially to residences in Keizer. Previous high water measurements were in 1964 (37.7'), 1880 (43.3'), 1890 (45.1') and both 1891 and 1861 (47.') High water in Mill Creek created major erosion n the North Santiam River that affected Salem's water supply for several months. Volunteers saved the new West Salem Branch Library by hastily boxing up books and equipment, and loading them into two large moving vans that moved to higher ground. The flood waters temporarily reached as much as three feet above the floor level of the library.
• The first phase of Riverfront Park opened on 23 acres in the Riverfront Downtown Urban Renewal Area along the east side of the Willamette River (not during the flood, fortunately). This was former industrial property owned by Boise Cascade.
• Salem's roots in the lumber and textile industries gradually gave way to high technology. In 1989, Siltec, a computer chip manufacturer, established a facility. By 1996, the facility had grown to more than one million square feet of manufacturing and had been renamed Mitsubishi Silicon America.
• Salem residents had their first opportunity to vote-by-mail for federal elections.
• During the 1996-97 school year a second courtyard at Waldo Middle School continued an earlier transformation in landscaping. Wes Niemela and a group of students and staff had worked for two years to collect plants from the forests around Salem and from Mr. Niemela’s garden. The courtyard garden is still a centerpiece of the school. This year, science teacher Mike Weddle and the Roots and Shoots/Leo Club are responsible for creating a second native Oregon species courtyard complete with a pond, waterfall, native Oregon trees, plants, and animals.