The 2013 Children's Performing Arts Series concludes in March with athleticism and musical diversity.

On Saturday, March 2, the African Acrobats will perform at 10:00 a.m. in the gym at Linn-Benton Community College.  The troupe's repertoire includes feats such as gymnastics, rope jumping, juggling acts, Limbo, balancing, contortionist, and human pyramid building.

The multimedia musical Frog Town closes the series at 10:00 a.m. Saturday, March 13, in the LBCC Forum.  Frog Town is an acclaimed diversity story, enhanced through projected animations, a live story reading, and live music performances featuring Portland All-Stars Linda Hornbuckle, Devin Phillips, Shannon Day, Andy Stokes, Fogatron, Heather Christie, Portland Opera soloist Victor Morris, and the No Kidding! Choir.

Admission is free for each event.

The Children's Performing Arts Series is presented by the Albany Parks & Recreation Department and funded by:  Mom Magazine, KRKT/KLOO, LBCC, AFSCME Local 2909, IBEW 280, Portland & Western Railroad, Target Distribution Center, KGAL/KSHO, Allied Waste Services, Greater Albany Rotary Club, Lassen RV & Lassen Toyota, Linn Veterinary Hospital, Linn County Cultural Coalition, the locally owned Red Robin, Oregon Freeze Dry, Phoenix Inn Suites, and River View Family Eye Care.

For more information, call 541-917-7777 or visit www.cityofalbany.net/parks/cpas/.

The City of Albany took over programming responsibilities for Comcast Cable Channel 28 on January 11, 2013.

The channel is provided for public, educational, and government use as part of the City's franchise agreement with Comcast.  City programming is being developed and currently includes a calendar of public meetings, fire safety information, and information about upcoming events presented by Albany Parks & Recreation Department.

Albany City Council meetings are broadcast live at 7:15 p.m. on the second and fourth Wednesdays of the month as of February 13, 2013.  The meetings are simultaneously streamed live on this website and will be rebroadcast on Channel 28 at other times to be announced.

The channel has been included in the franchise agreement since 1998; until now, programming was provided by other public agencies including Greater Albany Public Schools and Linn-Benton Community College.  The City Council resolution that created the channel and outlines its goals and policies is found here.

If you have questions about or suggestions for Channel 28, e-mail marilyn.smith@cityofalbany.net or call 541-917-7507.

Red-breasted Sapsucker, photographed by Matt Lee

Cabin fever?  Come enjoy a fun family activity that gets you outside. 

Talking Water Gardens engineered wetland, 577 Waverly Drive NE, is a great place for bird watching.  Plenty of birds visit the wetlands in the winter months including the American Coot, Northern Shoveler, bald eagles, mallards, and Great Blue Herons. 

Local birders are sharing photographs of these and other birds on the Talking Water Gardens website and Facebook page.  A flier at the entrance to the Gardens can help you identify the birds you see there.

For more information, contact Heather Slocum at heather.slocum@cityofalbany.net; visit www.talkingwatergardens.com, or follow TWG on Facebook. 

The Big Pickup, Albany's annual spring neighborhood cleanup, will focus this year on the area east of Century Drive NE between Earl and Dian Avenues.  Area residents can get rid of unwanted junk, trash, yard debris, and tires between 9:00 and 11:30 a.m. that day.  Community volunteers will be working in the area as well, picking up roadside litter and doing other work in Timber-Linn Memorial and Waverly Parks.

The Albany City Council invites service, church, and civic groups to participate; and they welcome suggestions for other projects that day to improve Albany's appearance - landscaping a curbside planter strip, planting trees, or helping a neighbor with yard work are some examples.

Volunteers will gather and register for their assignments at Timber-Linn Park, starting at 8:30 a.m.  All who help out can come back to the park for an appreciation lunch at noon.

The Big Pickup is part of a communitywide volunteer effort that includes the spring stream cleanup and Republic Services' (formerly Allied Waste) annual Recycle Roundup.  It is sponsored by the City of Albany and Republic Services.

For more information, contact Heather Slocum at 541-791-0058 or heather.slocum@cityofalbany.net.  Let her know by Friday, May 3, 2013, what you'd like to do and how many people will participate.

Thanks for helping to pick up Albany!

The Watercolor Society of Oregon will hold its spring 2013 conference April 5-7 at the Holiday Inn Express in Albany, and three events associated with the show are open to the public.

Mary Ann Beckwith, juror for the convention, will attend a public reception at the host hotel from 4-6 p.m. Friday, April 5.  Beckwith is a professor of art at Michigan Technological University and a prominent and titled member of the watercolor community throughout the United States.

An artists' reception will be held at Albany City Hall, 333 Broadalbin Street SW, 4:30-6 p.m. Saturday, April 6.

City Hall will also be open on Sunday, April 7, from 1-4 p.m. where more than six dozen watercolor paintings will be displayed through the month of April.

While in Albany, artists will be found painting at the Albany Regional Museum, the Historic Carousel and Museum, and at the Wheelhouse overlooking the Willamette River and on porches in the historic districts.

The Watercolor Society of Oregon has about 900 members; 200-300 are expected at the Albany convention.  For more information about the society and the convention, visit

Albany residents who are interested in saving money on commuting costs can learn more about how to do it through a free online tool sponsored by the Oregon Department of Transportation and transportation providers throughout Western and Central Oregon.  Drive Less Connect is endorsed by the Albany Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Commission.

The free tool, at www.DriveLessConnect.com, is part of Oregon's Drive Less Save More campaign, which encourages people to think before they drive, avoid trips when possible, and change driving to reduce congestion and improve air quality.  The campaign encourages Oregonians to use transportation options such as carpooling, vanpooling, transit, bicycling, walking, and telecommuting.

The tool allows users to use a private online calendar to track the trips made by biking, bus, walking, telecommuting, carpool, and other modes.  Participants are eligible to win prizes such as gift cards to First Burger, Safeway, and Starbucks. 

Here's how to get started:

• Create a profile at www.DriveLessConnect.com by clicking "Register Now."
• Click on "Ridematch" in the top blue bar to create a trip, then "Manage Your Trips" to view rideshare matches.  Click on "Calendar" to track your trips. 
• Questions?  Call Tarah at Oregon Cascades West Council of Governments, 541-924-8480.

Drive Less Connect has over 1,100 members in Linn, Benton, and Lincoln Counties.  Wasted time and fuel from commuter traffic costs Oregonians $1.2 billion annually, according to a study by the Texas A&M Transportation Institute.