News

Columbia View Park. Click to enlarge

Gresham parks languish as funds dry up. Neighbors pitch-in to care for Columbia View Park.

Gresham $32 million behind in park maintenance

Because of lack of funds the City's Parks Department has only been able to mow the perimeter of Columbia View Park (See 'Related Content' below. Editor). Columbia View Park is located at NE 169th & NE Pacific Dr. Get Map!

Neighbors pitch-in

Neighbors who frequent the park have been picking up litter, mowing areas the City isn't, mulching around new trees, hauling debris to disposal stations and watering young trees that have been planted in the last couple of years. A big THANK YOU to these many volunteers.

How you can help

Some ivy is beginning to appear under the tree canopy areas and this needs to be removed before it spreads to the trees. This is something anyone can do anytime on their own. It is a good project to take your children to the park, teach them to identify ivy and remove it. This activity can be as simple as taking one grocery bag, filling it with ivy, taking it home and disposing of it.

Volunteers paint the plaza Click to enlarge

Splashes of Color mark a new beginning! Plaza del Sol comes to the Rockwood Cultural Marketplace

Rockwood, Sep 19, 2009
When Rockwood coverage happens its commonly due to negative events. So, we felt it was very important to share an amazing community building event that took place today in Rockwood.

Welcome Rockwood's Plaza Del Sol painting!

Plaza del Sol is one of several new interim uses being sited by the Gresham Redevelopment Commission on the Cultural Marketplace (former Fred Meyer store) property in Rockwood at SE 187th & SE Stark St. Get Map!

The plaza is the first piece of a recently approved interim use plan for the Rockwood Cultural Marketplace to transform the site with new sidewalks, paths, benches, a wildflower garden, play area, basketball courts, a food-cart area, and many other family friendly activities.

Using supplies donated by Parr Lumber and Miller Paint, volunteers worked throughout the day to paint the huge 13,000-square-foot “Plaza del Sol,” a colorful scale model of the solar system on the Southeast corner of the site.

How many people bike, walk, and skateboard on Gresham streets & trails? Volunteers Needed to Count Users, Sept 8-13

Regional Streets and Trails User Count and Survey

Gresham is participating in a nationwide effort to document the number of people biking, walking, skateboarding, and rollerblading on trails and local streets. As part of that effort, City staff is asking for volunteers to help conduct counts and surveys.

Dates and Times

4 to 6PM on Sept. 8, 9, 10 (Tues, Weds, Thurs)

Noon to 2PM on Sept. 12 and 13 (Saturday, Sunday)

Sign up now!

Count Locations

The City has identified 18 locations where counts will be taken:

How many people bike, walk, and skateboard on Gresham streets & trails? Volunteers Needed to Count Users, Sept 8-13

Regional Streets and Trails User Count and Survey

Gresham is participating in a nationwide effort to document the number of people biking, walking, skateboarding, and rollerblading on trails and local streets. As part of that effort, City staff is asking for volunteers to help conduct counts and surveys.

Dates and Times

4 to 6PM on Sept. 8, 9, 10 (Tues, Weds, Thurs)

Noon to 2PM on Sept. 12 and 13 (Saturday, Sunday)

Sign up now!

Count Locations

The City has identified 18 locations where counts will be taken:

How many people bike, walk, and skateboard on Gresham streets & trails? Volunteers Needed to Count Users, Sept 8-13

Regional Streets and Trails User Count and Survey

Gresham is participating in a nationwide effort to document the number of people biking, walking, skateboarding, and rollerblading on trails and local streets. As part of that effort, City staff is asking for volunteers to help conduct counts and surveys.

Dates and Times

4 to 6PM on Sept. 8, 9, 10 (Tues, Weds, Thurs)

Noon to 2PM on Sept. 12 and 13 (Saturday, Sunday)

Sign up now!

Count Locations

The City has identified 18 locations where counts will be taken:

Express yourself, Help Gresham set attractive, innovative, Multi-Family Design Standards. Community forum Sep 30th

When: Wednesday, Sep 30, 2009 6:30PM
Where: City Hall Conference Center
(Springwater Room)
1333 NW Eastman Pkwy
Gresham, OR
Get Map!

Share your ideas!

The Multi-Family Design Standards project will create Code that will facilitate the creation of multi-family housing that is attractive, innovative, of high quality design and materials, and compatible with surrounding neighborhoods. Multi-family development is defined as three or more units located on a single lot. The project will also look at duplexes and mixed-use developments. Issues include defining a vision for multi-family development regarding site design and building design by considering desired quality, design excellence, sustainability, transportation access, traffic impact

Finally some good news. District receives additional $6.2 million in funding

Board votes $2 million to rehire teachers, $2 million for obligations. Places $2.2 million in contingency fund.

Reynolds board votes to spend added millions now, rehire teachers

by Betsy Hammond
The Oregonian, Thursday Aug 13, 2009

A unanimous Reynolds school board voted (tonight) to spend $2 milllion to immediately hire back laid-off teachers in order to reduce class sizes before school starts Sept. 8.

A standing-room-only crowd of teachers and parents applauded loudly.

Many had testified that students would suffer from a lack of attention and individualized instruction if the district stuck to its earlier plans to eliminate one of every four teaching positions and raise class sizes to 35 or larger at most grade levels.

Nadaka Nature Park

Great things are happening! "Nadaka Nature Park" sign and a new nature-based play area enhance the park

Volunteers remove invasives, create new play area

Approximately 25 hearty volunteers showed-up to the July 11th cleanup to help restore Nadaka Nature Park's urban habitat. Volunteers removed and disposed of wood waste, including invasive ivy, blackberries and holly, filling a 40 cubic yard drop box provided by the Wilkes East Neighborhood Association to capacity. Volunteers pitched-in to create a small nature based play area at the south edge of the park beside the meadow (photos below).

Nadaka gets a "sign"

Volunteers also installed a beautiful new "Nadaka Nature Park" sign at the entrance to park, and added "Friends of Nadaka" and "Wilkes East Neighborhood Association" to the list of groups contributing to park improvements on the Park Supporter's sign post (photos below). The signs, purchased by WENA through a generous grant from the City of Gresham, are a great addition to our wonderful park.

Cypress Park neighbors send a message to criminals! Residents join-in the 26th National Night Out

Neighbors gather against crime

The Wasco St. Neighborhood Watch (NE Wasco St. from 172nd to 179th) celebrated their first National Night Out "block party" Friday, Aug. 7, 2009 from 6PM-9PM. Two watch members took the initiative to prepare a flier invitation and others members distributed it.

Great participation

The block party attracted 40 members of the neighborhood, some who had never met. Conversation was fun and lively, one student performed magic.

The neighborhood potluck consisted of wonderful dishes from all families including Russian and Philippine cuisine. Everyone commented on what a great time it was.

An annual event

Wasco St. Neighborhood Watch plans to host an annual National Night Out block party each year.

Officer Pemberton discusses local gang activity. Click to enlarge

East Metro Gang Enforcement Team slideshow brings local gang activity home to Capri Terrace residents

Neighbors hear gang presentation

Officer John Pemberton, East Metro Gang Enforcement Team (EMGET) spoke to the Capri Neighborhood Watch group in mid-June. 17 families along with 8 children heard about graffiti & gangs in the surrounding areas.
During the slideshow presentation neighbors learned in East Multnomah County alone there are over 129 active documented criminal street gangs, over 700 active documented gang members, and only 7 cops dedicated to combating gangs and gang violence. Officer Pemberton reminded everyone to photograph any graffiti they found before removing it and to mark the location & date the tagging was found before sending the photo to the Police. Neighbors were urged to report gang activity to 503-666-1844.

Bob & Mary Lundbom & their grandson hosted the event with hot dogs, multitudes of toppings along with lots of potluck sides and goodies.

Member presentations

Jerry Dunn gave an update on neighbor Gail Anderson. She is still in the hospital in Charlotte North Carolina. Everyone had signed a card for her the previous week & had been received by her with much appreciation.

Discussion regarding Code Enforcement & debris on a couple of neighborhood sites was discussed. A reminder about the up coming neighborhood Clean-Up and the Capri Terrace Neighborhood Garage Sale were mentioned.

Glenn Mathew, Watch Coordinator, gave an update of the happenings in our Watch area, which were relatively ZERO. He had hand outs, but also reminded members to check out the website CrimeReports.com, to follow crimes in the Gresham area.