Metro secured its first land acquisition in the Rock Creek Watershed and Greenway target area in September with the purchase of 20 acres on the edge of Portland. The acquisition safeguards water quality in the Rock Creek watershed and protects wildlife habitat in the Abbey Creek headwaters.
Located north of Germantown and Kaiser roads along the western flank of Forest Park, the property includes a portion of the wildlife corridor connecting Rock Creek to the region’s largest protected nature park. There is abundant evidence of elk on the property and in the nearby area.
Originally zoned for commercial forest use, the property was logged in 1995 and reforested with Douglas fir. Today the fir, combined with Western red cedar, big leaf maple and cottonwood, provide an intact forest canopy. Two small, year-round creeks collect water from larger, primarily undeveloped properties on the western slopes of the Tualatin Mountains and the northern portion of Forest Park.
The Rock Creek headwaters are located in one of the 27 areas identified for protection in 2006 when voters approved Metro’s Natural Areas bond measure. The program funds land acquisition and capital improvements that protect water quality and fish and wildlife habitat, enhance trails and wildlife corridors, and provide greater connections to nature in urban areas throughout the Portland metropolitan area.