Keizer mayor lays out 2025 priorities: public safety, infrastructure and housing

Mayor (unnamed) delivered the City of Keizer’s annual State of the City address to the Keizer Chamber of Commerce, reviewing 2024 accomplishments and setting priorities for 2025 that center on public safety, core infrastructure, housing capacity and continued regional collaboration.

The mayor said the city’s staff of about 100 serves roughly 40,000 residents and highlighted steps the city has taken to modernize systems and prepare for future growth, including a new municipal code, a human resources information system and updated neighborhood and traffic-management frameworks. “Data is power,” the mayor said, urging residents to use publicly available statistics and the city’s Long Range Planning Task Force materials to follow trends.

The speech placed public safety first among short-term priorities. The city plans to expand camera systems—license-plate readers and parks cameras are installed and police body cameras are being purchased with grant funding—and to increase the use of police drones with the goal of having at least one drone operator on duty each shift. The mayor said Keizer’s police department is fully funded but not yet fully staffed and that recruitment and retention remain active efforts. The address also signaled that the city will take a more active role with regional partners on opioid and fentanyl response, organized retail theft, human trafficking and other crimes tied to the I‑5 corridor.

Infrastructure maintenance and transportation topped the list of foundational concerns. The mayor noted Keizer maintains 15 wells, three reservoirs and two interties with Salem and that methodical maintenance has kept water quality high; monthly water costs for Keizer households were cited at about $16.16. The city will pursue road maintenance and improvements, including the Verta Lane project (sidewalks and bike lanes) and Wheatland Road phase 1, and begin a transportation system plan update this year with grant support. The mayor identified a planned Willow Lake storm-drain realignment project and said its construction is projected to cost ratepayers approximately $1.92 per month.

On housing and land use, the mayor said Keizer’s real market property value has grown—topping roughly $6 billion—and that recent years’ construction activity (about $18 million in building permits in 2023–24) has not translated directly into proportional property-tax revenue because of Oregon’s Measure 50 assessed-value rules. The city will continue work on middle-housing opportunities, development-ready zoning such as the River Cherry Overlay District, and a sidewalk gap program to connect missing pedestrian links.

The mayor announced that council-directed town halls will be held to involve the community in upcoming urban growth boundary (UGB) discussions and said the Long Range Planning Task Force will meet more often than in prior years to inform budget and policy conversations. Short-term goals also include finalizing the Gold Star Family Memorial (target unveiling Sept. 28), revising the parks master plan focused on Keizer Rapids Park, and considering a broader utility discount program for households with members under age 60 in need.

The address listed several administrative and program updates completed in 2024: codification of the municipal code, implementation of an HRIS to replace spreadsheet-based tracking, modernization of community event center policies, and updates to the neighborhood association framework and the neighborhood traffic management program. The mayor also named key city executives and thanked outgoing and interim staff: City Manager Adam Brown; Assistant City Manager Tim Wood; City Recorder Melissa Bissett; Police Chief Andrew Copeland; Planning Director Shane Witham; Public Works Director Bill Lawyer; City Attorney Joe Lindsay; Human Resources Director Garrett Cleaver; and the recently retired city attorney Shannon Johnson and HR director Michelle DePina.

On homelessness and social services, the mayor said Keizer participates in the HUD-established continuum of care through the Mid‑Willamette Valley Homeless Alliance and partners with the Salem Housing Authority, Mid Willamette Valley Community Action Agency and local nonprofits to provide transitional housing and services. The mayor emphasized Keizer’s neighborhood-based approach to transitional housing and the role of local nonprofits and volunteers in responding to food insecurity and other needs.

The mayor framed several ongoing funding and policy challenges: slowing real-estate growth after pandemic-driven increases, the ending of some federal relief programs such as ARPA and other large funds, and the diminishing buying power of the state gas tax that complicates road maintenance budgets. The address noted that some projects had been delayed or canceled in recent years because of inflation-driven cost increases.

The mayor closed by reiterating the city’s values—“pride, spirit and volunteerism”—and by urging public involvement in upcoming town halls and task-force meetings to inform decisions about the urban growth boundary, sidewalks, parks, transportation and public-safety funding.