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Bill Currier Newsletter — September 28, 2026
Mayor Bill Currier • Adair Village Weekly Update • September 28, 2026
Good morning, Adair Village,
Let's start with a number: $601,500. That is the full budget for the Community Park improvements taking shape in the heart of our city, and this week I want to walk you through exactly where those dollars come from, because the answer says a lot about how we manage growth here. It turned out to be a fitting week for numbers all around.
Fresh housing statistics came out for the mid-valley
,
state regulators moved toward a deal on who pays for data center power
, and the staff report for our October 6 transportation hearing is now posted for anyone who wants to read ahead. Pour a cup of coffee. This edition is for the detail lovers.
🚨 Public Safety
🔹 License plate cameras, and where Oregon draws the line: A bipartisan pair of state lawmakers,
a Portland Democrat and a Winston Republican, is preparing legislation for 2027
that would
outlaw automated license plate reader cameras statewide
, going beyond
this year's Senate Bill 1516, which allows Oregonians to sue vendors of the technology and limits how long police may hold the data
. The concerns are not abstract:
at a U.S. Senate hearing last week, a Florida woman testified about spending 13 days in jail after a camera misidentified her vehicle in a fatal hit-and-run case
.
→ 🗣️ My take: I want our law enforcement partners to have effective tools, and I want every resident to trust that those tools will not be turned against innocent people. Those two goals are not in conflict; they both depend on accuracy, retention limits, and accountability. I will be watching this debate closely, because how the state answers it will shape policing technology in every small city, including ours.
👉 Read the license plate camera story
💼 Economic Development
🔹 An OSU discovery with a mid-valley payoff:
Oregon State University scientists have patented a more eco-friendly process for separating two metals critical to the semiconductor and atomic energy industries, using a water-based solution rather than a toxic organic solvent to separate zirconium from hafnium
. Here is the local hook:
only two facilities in the United States perform that separation at industrial scale, and one of them is ATI Specialty Alloys & Components right in Albany
.
→ ⚡ Why this matters: This is the mid-valley economy at its best, with university research and regional manufacturing feeding each other. Cleaner processes protect the air we all share and strengthen the case for keeping these skilled jobs close to home.
👉 Read about the OSU breakthrough
🔹 Corvallis pumps the brakes on new taxes: Facing
a compounding General Fund gap projected to hit $8.1 million for the 2027-29 biennium
, the Corvallis City Council
passed a resolution stating that "NO vote will be taken by the current Council" on potential new taxes, including a payroll or personal income tax, without a well-executed public engagement effort, and town halls on the budget gap are now underway
. Plenty of our residents work, shop, and run businesses in Corvallis, so decisions there ripple here. Engagement before taxation is the right order of operations, and I will keep an eye on where this lands.
👉 Read the budget town hall story
🏘️ Community Development
🔹 Where every park dollar comes from: Last week I shared what is coming to Community Park: ADA restrooms, a walking path with Camp Adair history plaques, benches, lighting, and a covered pavilion. This week, the ledger.
→ 📊 By the numbers: The pavilion is the largest line at $198,900, followed by the walking path at $173,200, site preparation with bonds and insurance at $116,000, restrooms at $68,200, and benches and lighting at $45,200. Total project: $601,500.
→ 🗣️ My take: The City's share is $180,450, about 30 percent, and it comes from system development charges, the fees that new construction pays so that growth helps fund the amenities growth requires. Not a dime of it comes out of your utility bill. The remaining roughly 70 percent is what we are asking the Oregon Parks and Recreation Department to fund, and our application lines up squarely with statewide priorities on ADA access and family-friendly gathering space. With this city on track to more than double in population by 2028, I can think of no better use of growth dollars than a park that will belong to everyone, permanently. If you have thoughts on the park design, reply to this email and they will reach me.
🔹 Read ahead for October 6: The staff report for the City Council's public hearing on DCA-26-01, our transportation code amendments, is now posted on the City website, along with a marked-up exhibit showing every proposed change and a clean version of the final language. The hearing is Tuesday, October 6, at 6:00 p.m. at City Hall, 6030 NE William R Carr Avenue, and written comments are welcome before or at the meeting. This is the rulebook our streets, sidewalks, and neighborhood connections will follow for decades, and it deserves your eyes before it is adopted.
👉 Read the Council staff report (PDF)
👉 See the marked-up code changes (PDF)
🏡 Housing
🔹 A friendlier market, by the numbers: New figures show the mid-valley housing market settling into better balance.
In August, the Corvallis median sales price reached $617,900, about 15.7 percent higher than last August, while completed sales jumped to 65 homes
. The good news for buyers:
total active inventory grew to 201 homes, a 4.1 percent jump from July, and a typical home now spends about 68 days on the market, with sellers accepting an average of 98.8 percent of asking price
.
→ 💡 What this means for Adair Village: A $617,900 median next door is exactly why our approach to growth matters. With 200 homes built in recent years, another 200 underway, and 200 more proposed, we are adding the supply and variety of housing that keeps this town within reach. I have called Oregon home for 35 years and raised my family here, and I want the next generation to be able to afford that same choice.
👉 Read the housing market report
🏗️ Infrastructure & Utilities
🔹 A win for ratepayers on data center power: Last week I encouraged you to comment on the state's data center findings. This week brought real movement:
Pacific Power agreed to a deal with state regulators, the Citizens' Utility Board, and advocacy groups that would directly assign the costs of new energy projects and infrastructure needed for data centers to the data center operators themselves
. The Citizens' Utility Board called it
"the strongest from a for-profit electric utility yet" under Oregon's new POWER Act
, and
the Public Utility Commission is expected to approve the deal on November 13
.
→ 💡 Why this matters:
Rates at Oregon's two largest investor-owned utilities have climbed 50 percent since 2020 while data centers grew to nearly one quarter of all retail electricity sales statewide
. The principle here is one I have written about before in other contexts: growth should carry its own costs, not shift them onto households. And a reminder: the state's public comment window on its data center report is still open through October 24 if you want to weigh in.
👉 Read the Pacific Power story
📅 Dates & Community Moments
🔹 A bookish Fall Festival weekend: Corvallis wrapped up its Fall Festival weekend in Central Park, and this year it came with a bonus next door.
The Friends & Foundation of the Corvallis-Benton County Library held its annual Fall Festival Book Sale Friday through Sunday in the library's main meeting room, where a team of volunteers had spent weeks sorting donated books
, offering
more than 4,500 books plus CDs, DVDs, and puzzles
. To every volunteer who sorted, priced, and staffed those tables: thank you. That quiet work funds our shared library.
👉 Learn about the Friends & Foundation
🔹 Plan your first full week of fall: From live music to museum exhibits, the Corvallis Advocate keeps a running calendar of happenings close to home.
👉 Browse the community events calendar
🤝 In Closing
That is the week in numbers: a $601,500 park, a 30 percent local match, 201 homes on the market, and one hearing on October 6 that I hope has your name on the sign-in sheet. If any figure above raises a question, reply to this email; I read what you send, and your questions often shape what I dig into next. You can also reach City Hall at 541-745-5507, Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Thank you for letting me share the math behind the decisions. It is your city, and you deserve to see the ledger.
Bill Currier
Mayor, City of Adair Village
