Santiam Canyon
Wildfire Recovery
The fire that tore down the Santiam Canyon on Labor Day 2020 was one of the most devastating disasters in the history of Marion county. Hundreds of homes were burned, lives were lost, and communities were destroyed. From the time that Commissioner Willis evacuated his family early that morning and jumped in a Sheriff deputy’s car to help other families evacuate, he has been focused on standing up for the people and communities of the Santiam Canyon. That is why he and his fellow commissioners opened and operated a shelter at the fairgrounds for wildfire evacuees, opened a county leased hotel to house people who had nowhere to go, fought to give property tax relief to people who had lost their homes, eliminated permit fees for folks to rebuild, set aside $500,000 to help the cities of Gates and Detroit stave off bankruptcy, rebuilt critical radio towers and equipment for first responders, and assisted the Santiam Wildfire Relief efforts to find long term solutions for victims of the fire. Commissioner Willis is committed to doing everything necessary to rebuild our communities and stand up for the people of the Santiam Canyon.
Public Safety
When the fires tore down the Santiam Canyon in the middle of the night, over sixty of our Sheriff’s deputies answered the call and drove into the flames to help our citizens evacuate out of danger. Commissioner Willis was a part of this effort, and knows firsthand that ensuring that our public safety officials have the resources to keep us safe is one of the most important jobs of the Marion County Commission. That is why Commissioner Willis and the Board of Commissioners approved a plan to add fifty new jail beds to increase the capacity of our jail. Our Sheriff’s deputies, deputy district attorneys as well as the non-profits and health care providers they work with do incredible work for our county. Increasingly issues of mental health and substance abuse in Marion County are putting strains on our public safety resources. We must continue to make sure our Sheriff’s office has enough staff, modern equipment and support to keep our neighborhoods safe. Commissioner Willis continues to be a strong advocate for our Sheriff’s deputies and local police in our community.
The Homeless Crisis
Through a combination of restrictive housing regulations, lax enforcement policies regarding illegal drugs and criminal activity, and inadequate statewide mental health facilities, state law makers have created a serious homeless problem all across western Oregon. Marion county has not been immune from the effects of these harmful policies. Commissioner Willis has worked to address the homeless crisis in Marion County as a founding member of the Mid-Willamette Homeless Alliance. He traveled to Washington D.C. and successfully lobbied the Department of Housing and Urban Development to direct federal resources to Marion and Polk Counties directly to address the homeless crisis in Salem, instead of allocating these dollars through a statewide system. Additionally, Commissioner Willis and the Board of Commissioners dedicated $3 million in federal ARPA funding to Salem’s new homeless navigation center. Commissioner Willis has advocated to state and local leaders to end unregulated homeless campsites where criminal activity and unsafe conditions have resulted in the death of several homeless individuals in Marion County over the past year. He continues to promote a shared vision of compassionate and responsible public policy that treats homeless individuals with dignity, while at the same time, addressing the negative impact that unregulated homeless camping has on the broader community.
Jobs and Employment
During the COVID-19 crisis when the state allowed large national retailers to stay open but forced small restaurants, hair salons, and local retailers to close, Commissioner Willis pushed back and fought for the small local businesses that were being treated unfairly. Commissioner Willis and the Marion County Board of Commissioners stood up for small businesses with the Governor’s office, and as a result, local Marion County businesses were allowed to reopen months before similar businesses in Multnomah County. Additionally, Commissioner Willis and the Marion County Board of Commissioners emptied the economic development budget to provide emergency grants to Marion County businesses with less than 5 employees to help them survive the state mandated shutdowns. Commissioner Willis will always stand up for our local businesses and the employees who make them great.
Housing
After being sworn into office, Commissioner Willis hosted the first Marion County Housing Initiative meeting, bringing together contractors, developers, planners, and regulators to find ways to address the housing challenges in our community. Marion County, which used to be one of the most affordable places to own a home on the west coast, has quickly become cost prohibitive for many families. The Board of Commissioners has made this their top priority in setting up a new CDBG program to make home ownership available for working families in Marion County. This includes a down payment assistance program and incentives for developers to build owner occupied housing in Marion County. Commissioner Willis will continue to do everything in his power to keep the dream of home ownership alive in Marion County.
Transportation
The Marion County Board of Commissioners led the state in implementing a county run safety corridor on the McKay/Yergen/Ehlen corridor in North Marion County, reducing the number of accidents on that corridor and improving safety for residents. Commissioner Willis and the Board of Commissioners also approved a “safe routes to schools” program to improve kids ability to safely walk to school in East Salem and Stayton. Marion County is growing, and our roads, bridges, and sidewalks need to keep up with that growth. Commissioner Willis will continue do everything he can to ease congestion and keep residents safe in Marion County.
Farming and Forestry
Farming and forestry are fundamental to our lives and livelihood here in Marion County. Agriculture is not only important to our economy but also to our culture. Marion County is the number one producer of agricultural products in the state of Oregon. Commissioner Willis is a strong advocate for our farmers and foresters here in Marion County as well as those who process and ship our farm and forest products. Too often government regulations, taxes, and poor planning have closed our family farms and destroyed jobs. Because of poorly planned forest policies our local lumber companies are often unable to obtain the logs they need to produce enough lumber to build the homes that we need to address our housing crisis. As a result, too often we are importing lumber from places like China and Brazil where environmental regulations are lax, instead of supporting sustainable production and good jobs here at home. Commissioner Willis continues to be a strong voice for farming and forestry on the Marion County Commission.
Controlling Spending
and Limiting New Fees
Commissioner Willis believes we owe it to the taxpayers of Marion County to manage the county budget efficiently. We need to weed out duplication of services and continue to find and eliminate waste in county government. The taxes received by Marion County belong to the people of Marion County.