For the past three years, we’ve been listening to and learning from community members to hear what they wish to see along 42nd Avenue. Through multiple design workshops, community meetings, and informal conversations, one of the most requested features is more community gathering space.
This year we’re making that happen! We have been working with a team of community members and organizations over the past six months to help design 42nd Avenue’s new Community Plaza. With many thanks to Bill Dickey and Matt Witham, the plaza will be located in the patch of grass in front of Morel Ink, between Port Laundry and the Spare Room. Thanks to the efforts of Habitat for Humanity’s Eddie Barnhart and Jessica Jazdzewski, the plaza will also include a rain garden, to be installed by Verde. The space currently holds a rotating plaza information board, installed by our team a few months back to begin gathering input. Since then, we have been hosting regular events on the site, one of which provided free Spare Room hamburgers in exchange for insights on the space.
With this input, we designed three concepts and asked community members to vote on which they liked best. Thanks to Miss Zumstein, Rose’s Ice Cream, and Cat Six Cycles, we were able to reward voters and those providing input with over 600 ice cream sandwiches and cones during the NE Sunday Parkways event. With a finalized concept, we will break ground on the plaza this October. Head to www.42ave.org/community-plaza to check out the progress on the plaza!
With Beaumont-Wilshire, Cully, and Concordia sharing a common boundary at 42nd and Alberta Court, residents of these neighborhoods are especially encouraged to become familiar with the “new” 42nd Avenue and to participate in any or all of the following upcoming events: a NE 42nd Avenue Business Association Breakfast on September 25 at St. Charles Church, with special guest Tom Kelly, owner of Neil Kelly Company and Portland Development Commission Chair; the Annual Harvest Fest on October 3, featuring family fun, entertainment, and food; and the Fresh Chance Career Fair on October 22 at PCC Metro Workforce Training Center. See the calendar on page 3 for more information.