Riverfront Park

PROJECT BACKGROUND
Planning for Milwaukie Riverfront Park began in earnest in 1998 with the establishment of the Milwaukie Riverfront Board. The Downtown and Riverfront Land Use Framework Plan, adopted in 2000, identified development of the Riverfront Park "Living Room" as a high priority project.

Planning for the current park design began in 2005 with a survey to determine what components the community would like to see included in the park. City Council approved of the preliminary plan in 2006, and approved a contract with David Evans and Associates (DEA) for final design. The design for what will become the City’s “Living Room” was developed by DEA and was approved by the Milwaukie Design and Landmarks Committee and Milwaukie Planning Commission in 2010.

The existing site contains a boat launch, parking areas and a small restroom. The completed park design will include new parking areas north and south of Kellogg Creek, a play area for children, one large and one small restroom facility, an amphitheater for performances, a festival lawn, two overlooks for river viewing and pathways for pedestrians and bikers. View the approved park design here.

PROJECT STATUS

Permitting:

Joint Department of State Lands (DSL) and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) permit submitted January 2009
- Department of State Lands (DSL) approval received April 2009
- USACE approval pending
Milwaukie Planning Commission approval received May 25, 2010

Construction:

Phase I of construction (Klein Point overlook) completed November 2012
Capital Campaign underway to construct Phases II - IV

Fundraising:

The City has contracted with Betsy Wright and Mark Sherman, of C3 Strategies, a capital campaign consulting firm, to facilitate fundraising for "Riverfront Park on Milwaukie Bay". As part of this effort, a project prospectus packet has been developed (see attached below), a steering committee has been established and a capital campaign fund has been established with the Oregon Community Foundation for accepting donations. Steering Committee members include Dave Green and Gary Klein from the City's Riverfront Task Force, Jonathan Nicolas, from ODS Companies, Mike Richardson, of Dark Horse Comics, Craig Van Valkenburg, of Willamette View, and Tom Kemper, of KemperCo.
City staff plans to submit grant applications to the Oregon Marine Board and Oregon Parks and Recreation Department in April 2013 for the development of the next phases of the park.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
JoAnn Herrigel
Director of Parks and Sustainability
503-786-7508
herrigelj@ci.milwaukie.or.us

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