Neighbors frequently use the street along the Baltimore Woods that is hoped to become a corridor of the North Portland Greenway. Baltimore Woods was in limbo. While the recession kept developers at bay, the area gave rise to weeds, litter and neglect.
But neighbors around the 30-acre corridor in North Portland’s St. Johns neighborhood saw the land as a community asset. And with the support of a Metro Nature in Neighborhoods capital grant, the woods were given a new lease on life.
Much of Baltimore Woods borders homes, garages and lawns north of Cathedral Park toward Pier Park. The trees, some crawling with ivy and blackberry, act as a buffer between the elevated residential area and industrial sites below, on the edge of the eastern banks of the Willamette River.
A group called The Friends of Baltimore Woods had been advocating for restoration of the site for several years, but with development looming, it was time to act. They contacted Three Rivers Conservancy and met with Virginia Bowers, whose specialty is helping acquire land for preservation.
There must be an option for rescuing the woods, the group thought. After hearing their vision, Bowers said, “it seemed appropriate for Three Rivers to have a spot at the table."
Meanwhile, a feasibility study funded by the Port of Portland looked at options for aligning two proposed regional trails within the Baltimore Woods corridor rather than on a nearby street. In the final report, the Port noted support for preserving the woods as a trail asset and buffer, improving storm water filtration at the site, saving its 30 Oregon white oaks and potentially creating an area for environmental education.
A view of the trail, which separates residential and industrial land, in the St. Johns neighborhood. Barbara Quinn, chair of The Friends of Baltimore Woods, said the group hoped to purchase several of the lots along the corridor, which peaked in value a few years earlier and were steadily dropping in price.
But purchasing the land could be difficult, Bowers explained.
"For urban properties, you're not going to get certain wildlife habitat funding and endangered species funding you'd get in other areas. This land wouldn't meet those criteria," she said.
Metro's Nature in Neighborhoods capital grants are a rare exception.
Approved by voters across the region as part of a 2006 natural areas bond measure, the capital grants program funds land acquisition, restoration, neighborhood and urban redevelopment projects with a focus on helping nature thrive in urban areas.
The Baltimore Woods project was chosen during the 2010 grant cycle with commitments from the Portland Bureau of Environmental Services' Grey to Green program, SOLV and the funding match of the City of Portland's Parks & Recreation department. Metro provided $158,000 of the $475,000 project price tag.
Barbara Quinn shows the site where SOLV has begun removing invasive weeds and planting native trees and shrubs. With the financial backing, Bowers helped the group scoop up the five vacant tax lots along the corridor – including the site of proposed condos that were home to a large oak grove.
"The recession has had a silver lining because people were willing to sell," Quinn said. "Some saw that we were very interested in this project, and they wanted to do something good for the neighborhood as well."
"We were thrilled," she said.
SOLV came on board to organize volunteers to remove invasive species and plant new natives to stabilize the land. Quinn described the volunteer support in restoring the site as exciting. School and business groups, including Bainbridge Graduate Institute, Students Today Leaders Forever and Meyer Memorial Trust, have taken part in the effort. More than 50 freshmen from the University of Portland helped plant natives this fall.
"The educational aspect of this project is huge," Quinn said. "I think it's been wondrously successful so far."
Bowers hopes more land can be purchased for preservation in the coming years, possibly with the help of another Nature in Neighborhoods grant. She thanks the Nature in Neighborhoods program for turning a grassroots effort into real progress for the St. Johns community.
"Without the grant from Metro, it wouldn't have happened," she said. "No way."
Metro has awarded $4.7 million in capital grants to 18 projects across the region. Recipients are restoring salmon habitat, planting trees and creating a sense of place in their communities.