Reporter for The Canyon Weekly
Gates is moving forward with a project to establish a vision for the town’s business district using a grant received from Marion County.
Mayor Brian Gander said “this week we posted a request for proposals to hire a consultant to look into developing a vison plan and to make sure our building codes are up to par.”
The code work likely will involve items such as sidewalks, lighting and drainage.
“We hope to engage the community in defining services and business that think would be of help their daily lives,” Gander said.
Gates also is working on acquiring a grant for a solar project that would produce enough power to cover 86% of the city’s annual water treatment plant power usage.
The grant, Gander said, is being offered by the Oregon Department of Energy for renewable energy and infrastructure resilience development in rural governmental entities, tribes and similar organizations.
Gates is seeking $628,000 that will enable it to produce the majority of the treatment plant’s power; and put in a battery back-up system at the treatment plant that will support the plant during power outages and also prevent power spikes from damaging motors, pumps and other electronic systems.
Gander said city officials should know by late April if they have been awarded the grant.
