The South Waterfront offers instant access to some of Portland’s best hiking and biking trails. Enthusiasts have three easy ways to access area trails: 1) The River Place/Waterfront paths 2) The Springwater Corridor 3) The SW Trails. All of these hikes are part of the “40-Mile Loop” and the now more than 140 miles of trails that run along the east and west banks of the Willamette.
Related Links 40 Mile Loop, Portland Parks and Recreation
Fred Leeson sure has been writing up a storm about the South Waterfront lately – he had another small article last Thursday about our Greenway and the current situation with the boat dock. According to the article things are not sounding so good – the feds say the docks are nesting grounds for predators of young salmon. Read the full article here: South Waterfront Dock Idea may Sink.
Last Friday the Daily Journal of Commerce published an article updating Portlanders on the status of the neighborhood park here in South Waterfront. The bid process for construction of the park has been extended to January 15th, but the article states that construction will begin in late February 2009 – horay! Read the full article HERE.
The City Council is agreesively reorganizing the city bureaus and one of the changes is that Comissioner Nick Fish will now be overseeing Portland Parks & Rec.  It will be interesting to see how Commissioner Fish works towards getting the South Waterfront Greenway and Neighborhood Park completed.  Here is the official announcement:
http://www.portlandonline.com/parks/index.cfm?a=222450&c=48747
We received an update for the South Waterfront Greenway this week – here is the latest:
November 2008 Update
The Greenway Project Team is working to obtain the necessary permits for the Central District Greenway from state and federal natural resource agencies. Key features of the riverbank design are being updated to enhance natural conditions along the
Improved Riverbank Design
Changes to the design concept have been developed through conversations with the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) in order to secure a federal permit.
The improved design includes:
Contaminants Testing
Concerns about the presence of in-water contamination from past industrial uses will require additional testing this fall. Test results will help ensure that construction of the park also manages any remaining risk from past industrial activity.
A plan to gather sediment samples from the river bottom in the Central Greenway District was recently reviewed by the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ). Samples will be gathered in November and then tested to ensure public health and the environment are protected before, during and after construction of the Greenway.
Future Updates
The project team will continue to send periodic updates with news of progress to complete the Central District Greenway. For more information about the project, contact Patty Freeman, project manager at 503-823-5592, pkpatty@ci.portland.or.us, or visit www.portlandparks.org.
Barbara Hart
Community Engagement & Public Involvement Manager
To stay informed, please visit the South Waterfront Greenway page on the PP&R website: http://www.portlandonline.com/oni/index.cfm?c=29377&a=217758
Hey Everyone – I just noticed that Portland Parks & Recreation has just launched a new blog caleld Park Talk. This blog is designed to keep the public informed about happenings at our local Portland Parks. It even has an RSS feed so you can have the news delivered to you! Let’s hope we start hearing some new news about the parks in South Waterfront soon.
Our friends at Portland Parks & Recreation sent us an updated FAQ page. It answers many questions, such as what is the current status of the Greenway? Will the light craft boat dock be built? And what is holding up construction of the Greenway? This is great information, to download the PDF, please click here: south-waterfront-greenway-faq-7_2008.pdf
You can also find this PDF and more information about the project on the City of Portland’s website, please click here.
Over the weekend our friends at Portland Parks and Recreation put up a notification on the South Waterfront Neighborhood Park projects web page asking for public input to name the neighborhood park.
Please go to the PP&R Website to submit your name recommendations.
Here is the latest update from Portland Parks & Rec. regarding the SWF Neighborhood Park.
Community Questionnaire Results
Thanks to all of you who shared ideas and comments with us in April. We appreciate your help to complete the preferred design for the district’s first park. The design team has used your input to improve the overall design and refine the features of the park’s three unique areas. You can find a summary of the responses to the Community Questionnaire at http://www.portlandonline.com/shared/cfm/image.cfm?id=197308.
Neighborhood Park Design
We invite you to view the refined park design to see how public comments have been addressed. The Project Advisory Committee (PAC) considered community input and discussed the preferred design at their final meeting on May 13. A summary of the PAC meeting and the slide show presented to them by the design team are both available on the project Webpage at http://www.portlandonline.com/parks/index.cfm?c=46111&.
Don’t forget to visit the scale model of the preferred design, currently across from the Neighborhood Park site at Umpqua Bank on SW Bond!
Next Steps
The next steps are to further refine the design with preliminary details, and to select materials and products. Once all the park elements are thoroughly specified, bids and permits will be sought to build the park. Construction is scheduled to begin in February 2009. The Urban Gardens area, Naturalized Landscape area, and park pathways should be completed and open for use by July / August 2009. The lawn will require an 8-12 week establishment period with no foot traffic, but should be open by October 2009.
Questions?
If you have questions about the Neighborhood Park, or want to request paper copies of project materials, contact Sandra Burtzos at Sandra.Burtzos@ci.portland.or.us, or 503-823-5594.
See the model of the preferred design
Visit Umpqua Bank to view a model of the future park. The preferred design includes three main areas: an
Find project materials and information like meeting summaries, design presentations, and event details online at http://www.portlandonline.com/parks/index.cfm?c=45404
The next Project Advisory Committee Meeting will be Tuesday, May 13, 4:00 – 6:00 p.m. in the
This was recently posted on the City’s Bureau of Planning website, to view the original post please click here.
Project Overview:
In December 2004, the Portland City Council accepted the South Waterfront Greenway Development Plan (GDP) schematic and directed the Portland Development Commission (PDC), Portland Parks & Recreation (Parks), and the Bureau of Planning (Planning) to create an implementation strategy for the GDP.
PDC and Parks were to create an implementation strategy that addressed governance, maintenance, and capital costs, whereas Planning was directed to amend the Portland Zoning Code to allow for smother implementation of the GDP than code allows in its current state. Planning was asked by the Council and other stakeholders not to begin this process until the other elements of the implementation strategy were nearly complete.
Project Basics
The South Waterfront Greenway Code Update focuses primarily on code amendments that will make the implementation of the GDP easier to review when applicants choose the GDP as their preferred option to address required Willamette Greenway improvements in the South Waterfront District. (Applicants also have the option of meeting the base-line development standards presented in Section 33.510.253 or creating a plan consistent with the approval criteria of Chapter 33.851 of the Zoning Code.) The project will also propose new design guidelines applicable to the review of the GDP.
At the same time, the project may propose a few minor amendments to elements of the South Waterfront subdistrict that should be considered. These include a lifting of a prohibition on hotel uses in the district above a certain size and the removal of the required residential development area.
Legislative Process
The plan will be reviewed and approved by the Portland Design and Planning Commission in advance of final adoption by the Portland City Council. As the plan is developed, a series of briefings will be conducted with the Planning and Design Commissions (mostly with the Design Commission) and periodic public briefings will be conducted with the South Waterfront Greenway Partnership Group (a stakeholder group involved in the implementation of the GDP) as well as the North Macadam Urban Renewal Advisory Committee. Updates on the progress of the plan and draft versions of the plan will be periodically posted on this website.
It is anticipated that the Design and Planning Commissions will be asked to hold formal hearings adopting the plan in September of 2008 with City Council review following in October or November of the same year.
If you wish to be added to a mailing list for this plan effort please send or email your mailing address to us at the addresses below. Also, please contact either of the staff below if you have questions about this plan.
Project Schedule
April 3, 2008: Design Commission Briefing
June 5, 2008: Design Commission Briefing/Work Session
August 2008: Planning Commission Briefing, Design Commission Briefing
September 2008: Planning Commission Hearing, Design Commission Hearing
Contact Information
Project & Code Development Manager:
Troy Doss, Senior Planner
troy.doss@ci.portland.or.us
503 823-5857
Design Guideline Project Manager:
Lora Lillard, City Planner
llillard@ci.portland.or.us
503 823-7721
Anatoliy (Toliy) Ioffe is a long-time Pacific Northwest resident with a love for the outdoors. He is thrilled to live next to the river, whose valley has been described as Oregon's Garden of Eden.
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