GreenWorker Rides in 2013 Rose Festival Starlight Parade

The annual running of the Starlight Parade was held on Saturday, June 1st kicking-off the Portland Rose Festival. Riding on one of the floats was GreenWorker Shawn Kummer, representing the Portland-Kaohsiung Sister City Association, Dragon Boat Paddling and the team he paddles for, Team Dumples (they don’t sound tough, but their combination of spirit, enthusiasm and might makes them a force to be reckoned with). The dragon boat float and festive Team Dumples made the front page of the Metro Section of the Sunday Oregonian! This is just a glimpse into the diverse activities that GreenWorks staff are engaged in outside the office. Click here to read the article.

Metro Natural Areas Levy Passed!

On Tuesday, Metro region voters approved a property tax levy to pay for parks and natural areas funding. The tax will provide Metro with approximately $10 million a year for maintenance and restoration at its properties. Read the full article here. GreenWorks is pleased that the region has spoken in favor of funding parks and natural areas. As landscape architects we support this movement to protect the area’s vibrant network of outdoor destinations and protected land. As volunteers and consultants we’ve collaborated with Metro for many years and look forward to working together on future projects that safeguard our parks and natural areas for future generations.

Wilsonville SMART Operations Fleet Facility Construction Complete

Construction has been completed on the City of Wilsonville South Metro Area Regional Transit (SMART)  Operations Fleet Facility.  The project includes a 12,600 square foot Fleet and Administration Building located on an approximately 4.5 acre site.  Site improvements include employee and bus parking, fleet maintenance, and administrative services, and is located on SW Boberg Road adjacent to the Wilsonville Westside Express Service (WES) Station. Design services provided by GreenWorks, include Conceptual Site Design and Grading Coordination, type ‘C’ Tree Preservation and Removal Plans, and Final Construction Documentation.  The design team developed a budget sensitive sustainable plan that embraces the natural characteristics of the site, and architectural design features.  Habitat and buffering improvements integrated adjacent to the Significant Resource Overlay Zone (SROZ), provide a transition and embraced the landscape strategy of incorporating native and drought tolerant plants, in combination with a temporary irrigation system.  Stormwater is managed through on site conveyance in channels and basins, and is celebrated through roof rainwater capture and outfall at architectural scuppers along the building entrance.

It's Spring in Tanner Springs Park!

Humans and heron alike are enjoying the beautiful weather at Tanner Springs Park located in NW Portland in the Pearl District. Check out these awesome photos courtesy of Mike Houck (Urban Greenspaces Institute)!

Expo Center Stormwater Wall

GreenWorks is working with the City of Portland Bureau of Environmental Services to design a Green Wall at the Expo Center that will also manage roof stormwater runoff. Because of this added function, we have taken to calling this project a Stormwater Wall. A design workshop was just recently held on April 16^th with our project partners at Metro and the Expo Center along with participants from BES and GreenWorks. There was a lot of good conversation, information and design ideas generated during the work session from which to move forward with into the design phase of the project. The Storm Water Wall project will serve as a prototype for BES from which they can monitor and learn from for future green wall projects. It will also provide an exciting and attractive new green sustainable feature to the the Expo Center.

It's National Arbor Month and National Landscape Architecture Month!

April is a busy month for landscape architects and lovers of trees.  This month is dedicated to Arbor Month and National Landscape Architecture Month (NLAM). The City of Portland began the celebration for Arbor Month by adorning valuable trees with price tags.  The city is holding events all month long for those interested in getting involved and learning about Portland’s trees!

On the national front, National Landscape Architecture Month brings awareness to the profession and our role in the built environment. This year’s theme is Healthy Living Through Design.  Check it out!

Mirror Pond Visioning Project in Bend, Oregon

GreenWorks has started consulting work with Bend Parks and Recreation District on alternatives that will provide four different solutions for the community to  consider for the iconic Mirror Pond on the Deschutes River in Bend, Oregon. Each option, ranging from taking out a dam to dredging or something in between, will illustrate the visual impact, cost estimates, regulatory requirements, challenges and opportunities. GreenWorks visited the site recently. Click on this link to watch a video for more information

Mirror Pond in Bend, Oregon

Parking Redesign Project at Memorial Park

GreenWorks is working with Wallis Engineering on the redesign of the parking lot located in the lower portion of Memorial Park for the City of Wilsonville in Oregon. A concept plan has been completed and has been posted on the City’s website as part of an online open house to solicit public comments. To see the concept plan and learn more information about the project, click on this link.

Nature-Play Areas Developed at Roger Tilbury Memorial Park

After completing the Master Plan, GreenWorks is currently in the Design Development phase for  Roger Tilbury Memorial Park for Tualatin Hills Parks and Recreation District.  The 12 Acre site includes traditional neighborhood park features, nature-based play areas, and an accessible trail network. The neighborhood park is a unique site due to its large size and significant natural features including heavily wooded areas with steep topography and a stream protected by a vegetated corridor regulated by Clean Water Services. The project has some very interesting concepts for nature-based play including an active area with a long embankment slide, a building area designed to feel like a remnant log fort, and a discovery area intended to represent the wildlife and natural character of the site. Stormwater is gathered from a swale and sent cascading down a natural creek bed and then ending at a collection point at the bobcat den.  

Lake Oswego 2nd Street / Green Street Under Construction

We have been working on a very exciting green street project with the City of Lake Oswego right in the heart of their downtown business core. Construction began just a couple of weeks ago and quite a bit of progress has been made already. Below are images of the formwork for the southern most flow-through planters and the concrete truck filling up the forms. Needless to say we are very excited about this construction work and will have more updates as the work progresses.