Governor Tina Kotek Visits Marion County on One Oregon Listening Tour
16th tour stop included visits to Aumsville, Detroit, Silverton and Woodburn
Today, Governor Tina Kotek visited communities in Marion County for the 16th stop of her One Oregon Listening Tour.
Governor Kotek traveled to Aumsville, Detroit, Silverton, and Woodburn, meeting with community leaders and residents to learn about issues facing the Mid-Willamette Valley around wildfire recovery, homelessness, summer learning, and other challenges.
“I came away from today impressed by the resilience of community members across Marion County,” Governor Kotek said. “From rebuilding homes after the 2020 wildfires to finding compassionate solutions to address homelessness to supporting students throughout the summer, I’m grateful for the can-do spirit I saw in every community.”
The day started with a breakfast meeting at Neufeldt’s Restaurant in Aumsville. The Governor met with Aumsville Mayor Angelica Ceja, members of the city council and the chief of police for a discussion about the critical need that the city of approximately 4,000 residents has for more affordable housing options and a wastewater treatment system.
She then traveled to Detroit for a discussion with local leaders about the town’s ongoing recovery efforts from the 2020 Labor Day wildfires. The 2020 wildfires destroyed over 1,500 structures in the Santiam Canyon, including massive destruction to the town of Detroit, including the loss of 264 homes.
This conversation was followed by a tour of the impacted region with a community member whose home and neighborhood burned down nearly three years ago. He is rebuilding his home using wood that was milled from the area after the fire.
From there, the Governor joined nursery, greenhouse, and Christmas tree business leaders for a lunch meeting about agriculture and natural resources in the region at The Oregon Garden in Silverton.
She then toured Sheltering Silverton’s daytime resource center for people experiencing homelessness and their new micro-shelter community which is expected to be open later this summer. Sheltering Silverton received $565,000 from the Governor’s homelessness emergency funding package to add 20 new shelter beds.
Governor Kotek then convened a housing and homelessness roundtable at the Silverton Community Center. She heard directly from individuals who have experienced homelessness and from providers about the positive impact of funding from the Affordable Housing and Emergency Homelessness Response Package that followed her homelessness emergency executive order.
“This recent funding we got was incredibly helpful,” said Sarah White, the founder and director of Sheltering Silverton, who said state dollars have supported the expansion of the organization's day shelter to 40 hours per week and made their low-barrier shelter operational for the entire year. “You brought us back to prioritizing shelter and it has an extraordinary impact on people’s lives. … The day you took office, you treated homelessness like the emergency it is.”
Following this discussion, she drove to Valor Middle School in Woodburn. The school district is utilizing funding from the Student Success Act and other sources to offer summer programming for students. This includes dual language instruction, reading proficiency instruction, enrichment programming through recreation and the arts, and more. The discussion centered around the need to have long-term, dedicated funding to support summer learning opportunities in the years ahead.
“The funding opens doors,” Woodburn School District Superintendent Juan Larios said. “Summer school means a lot for a lot of kids. More than just learning – structure and a reminder that someone cares.”
“Working families need (summer learning opportunities),” added Sonia Kool, the language program director for the Woodburn School District. “It’s a safe place.”
Her day concluded with a dinner meeting at Trapala 2 in Hubbard with local leaders working on housing, economic development, and other issues in the area.
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Governor Kotek traveled to Aumsville, Detroit, Silverton, and Woodburn, meeting with community leaders and residents to learn about issues facing the Mid-Willamette Valley around wildfire recovery, homelessness, summer learning, and other challenges.
“I came away from today impressed by the resilience of community members across Marion County,” Governor Kotek said. “From rebuilding homes after the 2020 wildfires to finding compassionate solutions to address homelessness to supporting students throughout the summer, I’m grateful for the can-do spirit I saw in every community.”
The day started with a breakfast meeting at Neufeldt’s Restaurant in Aumsville. The Governor met with Aumsville Mayor Angelica Ceja, members of the city council and the chief of police for a discussion about the critical need that the city of approximately 4,000 residents has for more affordable housing options and a wastewater treatment system.
She then traveled to Detroit for a discussion with local leaders about the town’s ongoing recovery efforts from the 2020 Labor Day wildfires. The 2020 wildfires destroyed over 1,500 structures in the Santiam Canyon, including massive destruction to the town of Detroit, including the loss of 264 homes.
This conversation was followed by a tour of the impacted region with a community member whose home and neighborhood burned down nearly three years ago. He is rebuilding his home using wood that was milled from the area after the fire.
From there, the Governor joined nursery, greenhouse, and Christmas tree business leaders for a lunch meeting about agriculture and natural resources in the region at The Oregon Garden in Silverton.
She then toured Sheltering Silverton’s daytime resource center for people experiencing homelessness and their new micro-shelter community which is expected to be open later this summer. Sheltering Silverton received $565,000 from the Governor’s homelessness emergency funding package to add 20 new shelter beds.
Governor Kotek then convened a housing and homelessness roundtable at the Silverton Community Center. She heard directly from individuals who have experienced homelessness and from providers about the positive impact of funding from the Affordable Housing and Emergency Homelessness Response Package that followed her homelessness emergency executive order.
“This recent funding we got was incredibly helpful,” said Sarah White, the founder and director of Sheltering Silverton, who said state dollars have supported the expansion of the organization's day shelter to 40 hours per week and made their low-barrier shelter operational for the entire year. “You brought us back to prioritizing shelter and it has an extraordinary impact on people’s lives. … The day you took office, you treated homelessness like the emergency it is.”
Following this discussion, she drove to Valor Middle School in Woodburn. The school district is utilizing funding from the Student Success Act and other sources to offer summer programming for students. This includes dual language instruction, reading proficiency instruction, enrichment programming through recreation and the arts, and more. The discussion centered around the need to have long-term, dedicated funding to support summer learning opportunities in the years ahead.
“The funding opens doors,” Woodburn School District Superintendent Juan Larios said. “Summer school means a lot for a lot of kids. More than just learning – structure and a reminder that someone cares.”
“Working families need (summer learning opportunities),” added Sonia Kool, the language program director for the Woodburn School District. “It’s a safe place.”
Her day concluded with a dinner meeting at Trapala 2 in Hubbard with local leaders working on housing, economic development, and other issues in the area.
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