Project Updates
Thank you to everyone who attend the Mill Park Community Gathering on Wednesday, May 18, 2022 and gave feedback on the final design at the event or online. Read what we heard from the community about the final design.
View the presentation materials:
Want to be added to our project list for future updates? Email Maija Spencer at maija.spencer@portlandoregon.gov.
- Ver los materiales de presentación:
¿Quiere ser agregado a nuestra lista del proyecto para futuras actualizaciones? envíe un correo electrónico a odalis perez-crouse a Odalis.crouse@portlandoregon.gov
Overview
Mill Park is a 5.7 acre park located at 117th Avenue and Mill Court, next to Mill Park Elementary. It has an informal soft-surface walking trail, open lawn, and mature trees but is otherwise undeveloped. Thanks to funding from System Development Charges, PP&R now has funds to improve this park.
In the summer of 2021, a portion of the System Development Charge funds for this project were used to purchase the adjacent 22,000 square foot property at 1949 SE 122nd Avenue to create a new park entry from SE 122nd Avenue and increase the total open space provided by the future Mill Park to approximately 6.2 acres. This property will be incorporated into the final design for Mill Park.
In August 2021, PP&R entered into a temporary lease agreement on a month-to-month basis with Cultivate Initiatives, a nonprofit houseless services provider, to use the space for workforce and community services and storage. Cultivate Initiatives is the operator of Menlo Park Village, one of the Safe Rest Villages, at SE 122nd Avenue and E Burnside Street. No overnight shelter services are provided at this location. The agreement recognizes that this use is temporary until PP&R is ready to begin development of the park.
Improvements will be guided by the park’s 2017 Master Plan and may include a playground, splash pad, central lawn, gathering area, picnic shelter and tables, community garden, paved pathways, public art, and other park amenities. Through a Project Advisory Committee and Community Gathering events, the community will help guide the refinement of the park's design.
View the preferred design for Mill Park from the 2017 Master Plan and the full combined Mill and Midland Park Master Plans.
Project Background
In November 2014, Portland City Council designated $300,000 from 2014’s fall supplemental budget for new master plans for eastside parks. In April 2015, PP&R, the East Portland Parks Committee and Commissioner Amanda Fritz engaged the community in a public outreach process to determine which sites should be prioritized as part of the eastside park master planning process. Based on that process and PP&R staff input, Commissioner Fritz chose to fund a master plan for Mill Park and Midland Park, in a concurrent process, as requested by the Mill Park Neighborhood Association and given the close proximity of the two parks.
The community was a key partner with Portland Parks & Recreation during the Mill and Midland Master Plan process. The community's ideas and feedback gathered over a year-long process were used to create a master plan for what these two parks will become when they are fully built. The master plan identified the primary uses and features and began to arrange these features within the park space, resulting in a preferred design supported by the community. The combined Mill and Midland Park Master Plans were completed in 2017 and approved by City Council on November 8, 2017 at a Council meeting held at David Douglas High School.
Project Schedule
- Spring 2021 - Advisory committee recruitment and project set-up
- Summer 2021 - Winter 2021/22 - Community engagement and design development
- Community Gathering 1 - August 3, 2021
- Community Gathering 2 - November 2021
- Community Gathering 3 - May 2022 (date TBD) - Give feedback on the final design for the park
- Spring 2022 - Spring 2023 - Construction documents, bidding, and permitting
- Summer 2023 - Summer 2024 - Construction
- Fall 2024 - Opening celebration
Project Advisory Committee Members
Amy Schutzer, Andrew Long, Anne Downing, Audrey Anderson, Ayan Salat, Barbie Tew, Erin Zollenkopf, Francis Khampi, Heather Craig, Jasmine Anderson, Juanita Villalobos, Kari Koch, Mohammad Kahlid, Nang Piang, Pyae Sone Aung, Trevor Hopper
Project Advisory Committee Meetings
Meeting 5 - April 26, 2022
Meeting 4 - February 22, 2022
Meeting 3 - November 2, 2021
Meeting 2 - July 26, 2021
Meeting 1 - May 25, 2021