City Council Passes New Funding for Portland Parks

Portland City Council Votes Unanimously to Adopt New Funding for Portland Parks, Trails, and Natural Areas

Today (March 12) the Portland City Council unanimously adopted a new residential and commercial park system development charge (SDC) package. Over the next 12 years, this financing package is projected to raise roughly $240 million in capital funds for new parks, trails and natural areas to service our growing population of residents and workers. By building part of the cost of parks into the cost of new development, the program will help raise needed funds to help implement the Parks 2020 Vision. This includes:

• Acquisition of an estimated 700 acres of new parkland including ~550 acres of new natural areas.
• Development or improvement of roughly 225 acres of existing parkland and restoration of approximately 80 acres of public natural area.
• Acquisition of approximately 15 to 22 miles of new trailway.
  

The program will also help leverage state and federal dollars to acquire and develop hundreds of acres of additional parkland and many more trail miles. It will also bring new parks to rapidly growing areas of the City that are already park and natural area deficient.

We would like to thank all of you who played a role in this important effort by sending letters and emails, testisfying or otherwise contacting the City Council in support. Commissioner Saltzman specifically expressed his appreciation to park advocates who engaged in this effort.

The entire Portland City Council deserves our appreciation for adequately funding a critical component of Portland's adopted Parks Master Plan, Parks 2020 Vision. 

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