Vera Katz Eastbank Esplanade | |
---|---|
Location | SE Water Ave. and Hawthorne Blvd. Portland, Oregon |
Coordinates | 45°31′25″N122°39′58″W / 45.523718°N 122.666149°W |
Area | 10.69 acres (4.33 ha) |
Opened | 2001 |
Owned by | Portland Parks & Recreation |
The Eastbank Esplanade (officially Vera Katz Eastbank Esplanade) is a pedestrian and bicycle path along the east shore of the Willamette River in Portland, Oregon, United States. [1] Running through the Kerns, Buckman, and Hosford-Abernethy neighborhoods, it was conceived as an urban renewal project to rebuild the Interstate 5 bicycle bypass washed out by the Willamette Valley Flood of 1996. It was renamed for former Portland mayor Vera Katz in November 2004 [1] and features a statue of her near the Hawthorne Bridge.
The project, designed by landscape architects Mayer/Reed, cost $30 million, [2] of which $10 million built a lower deck on the Steel Bridge. [1] The esplanade extends 1.5 miles (2.4 km) from the Steel Bridge ( 45°31′37″N122°40′13″W / 45.526871°N 122.670403°W ) to the Hawthorne Bridge ( 45°30′46″N122°40′05″W / 45.512804°N 122.668059°W ). [1] The south end connects to the Springwater Corridor, a rail trail that runs south to Sellwood, then east to Gresham, then south to Boring. The esplanade includes a 1,200-foot (370 m) floating walkway, the longest of its kind in the United States. [1] Connected to this is a 120-foot (37 m) public dock. [1] Thirteen markers along the esplanade correspond to the eastside street grid.
Construction began in October 1998, and the walkway was dedicated in May 2001. [1]
The esplanade was closed for 21 days due to high river levels in 2011, the first time it had been closed since it was built. [3]
On the same day in February 2015, two dead bodies were discovered along the esplanade. The events appear to be unrelated. [4] [5] [6]
Public artworks installed along the esplanade include Alluvial Wall , Echo Gate , the Ghost Ship sculpture, the statue of Vera Katz and Stack Stalk .
The Steel Bridge is a through truss, double-deck vertical-lift bridge across the Willamette River in Portland, Oregon, United States, opened in 1912. Its lower deck carries railroad and bicycle/pedestrian traffic, while the upper deck carries road traffic, and light rail (MAX), making the bridge one of the most multimodal in the world. It is the only double-deck bridge with independent lifts in the world and the second oldest vertical-lift bridge in North America, after the nearby Hawthorne Bridge. The bridge links the Rose Quarter and Lloyd District in the east to Old Town Chinatown neighborhood in the west.
The Hawthorne Bridge is a truss bridge with a vertical lift that spans the Willamette River in Portland, Oregon, joining Hawthorne Boulevard and Madison Street. It is the oldest vertical-lift bridge in operation in the United States and the oldest highway bridge in Portland. It is also the busiest bicycle bridge in Oregon, with over 8,000 cyclists and 800 TriMet buses daily. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in November 2012.
The Burnside Bridge is a 1926-built bascule bridge that spans the Willamette River in Portland, Oregon, United States, carrying Burnside Street. It is the second bridge at the same site to carry that name. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in November 2012.
The Marquam Bridge is a double-deck, steel-truss cantilever bridge that carries Interstate 5 traffic across the Willamette River from south of downtown Portland, Oregon, on the west side to the industrial area of inner Southeast on the east. It is the busiest bridge in Oregon, carrying 140,500 vehicles a day as of 2016. The upper deck carries northbound traffic; the lower deck carries southbound traffic. The Marquam also has on and off ramps for Interstate 405 on the south end of the bridge, while the terminus on the east bank of the river is near the interchange with Interstate 84.
Vera Katz was an American Democratic politician in the state of Oregon. She was the first woman to serve as Speaker of the Oregon House of Representatives and was the 49th mayor of Portland, Oregon's most populous city. She grew up in New York City, moving to Portland in 1962, and was elected to the Oregon House in 1972. She served as mayor from 1993 to 2005.
Klickitat Street is a city street located in northeast Portland, Oregon, United States. The main stem of the street is 3.75-mile (6.04 km) long, and runs east-west parallel to—and one block south of—northeast Fremont Street, from the eastern edge of Irving Park to Northeast 67th Avenue. Additional disconnected segments are east of Rocky Butte from 105th to 117th, 148th to 154th, and 163rd to 165th. A segment named Klickitat Court is between 135th and 140th.
Harbor Drive is a short roadway in Portland, Oregon, spanning a total length of 0.7 miles (1.1 km), which primarily functions as a ramp to and from Interstate 5. It was once much longer, running along the western edge of the Willamette River in the downtown area. Originally constructed from 1942–43, the vast majority of the road was replaced with Tom McCall Waterfront Park in the 1970s. Signed as U.S. Route 99W, it had been the major route through the city and its removal is often cited as the first instance of freeway removal in the U.S. and as a milestone in urban planning; the original road is remembered as the first limited-access highway built in the city.
Buckman is a neighborhood in the Southeast section of Portland, Oregon. The neighborhood is bounded by the Willamette River on the west, E Burnside St. on the north, SE 28th Ave. on the east, and SE Hawthorne Blvd. on the south.
The Springwater Corridor Trail is a bicycle and pedestrian rail trail in the Portland metropolitan area in Oregon, United States. It follows a former railway line from Boring through Gresham to Portland, where it ends south of the Eastbank Esplanade. Most of the corridor, about 21 miles (34 km) long, consists of paved, off-street trail, though about 1 mile (1.6 km) overlaps city streets in Portland's Sellwood neighborhood. A large segment roughly follows the course of Johnson Creek and crosses it on bridges many times. Much of the corridor was acquired by the City of Portland in 1990; remaining segments were acquired by Metro thereafter.
The 40-Mile Loop is a partially completed greenway trail around and through Portland in the U.S. state of Oregon. It was proposed in 1903 by the Olmsted Brothers architecture firm as part of the development of Forest Park. One greenway expert calls it "one of the most creative and resourceful greenway projects in the country."
The Willamette River Greenway is a cooperative state and local government effort to maintain and enhance the scenic, recreational, historic, natural and agricultural qualities of the Willamette River and its adjacent lands. A number of trails exist along the greenway, but significant gaps still exist.
Kelley Point Park is a city park in north Portland in the U.S. state of Oregon. Bounded by the Columbia Slough on the south, the Willamette River on the west, and the Columbia River on the north, the park forms the tip of the peninsula at the confluence of the rivers. Marine Terminal 6 of the Port of Portland lies immediately east of the park along the Columbia, while Terminal 5 is along the Willamette slightly south of the Columbia Slough. The park is at 45.6498384°N 122.7637106°W and rises to an elevation of 39 feet (12 m) above sea level. Sauvie Island is west of the park across the Willamette River. Hayden Island is slightly upstream of the park on the Columbia River opposite Marine Terminal 6.
Bicycle use in Portland, Oregon has been growing rapidly, having nearly tripled since 2001; for example, bicycle traffic on four of the Willamette River bridges has increased from 2,855 before 1992 to over 16,000 in 2008, partly due to improved facilities. The Portland Bureau of Transportation says 6% of commuters bike to work in Portland, the highest proportion of any major U.S. city and about 10 times the national average.
Ghost Ship is an outdoor 2001 sculpture by James Harrison and Rigga, a group of local artists, located along the Eastbank Esplanade in Portland, Oregon. It is made of copper, stainless steel, art glass, and two lamps. It is part of the City of Portland and Multnomah County Public Art Collection courtesy of the Regional Arts & Culture Council.
Echo Gate is an outdoor 2001 sculpture by Ean Eldred and the architectural firm Rigga, located along the Eastbank Esplanade in Portland, Oregon, United States. It was funded by the City of Portland Development Commission's Percent for Art program, and is part of the City of Portland and Multnomah County Public Art Collection courtesy of the Regional Arts & Culture Council.
Vera Katz, also known as Mayor, Vera Katz, is an outdoor bronze sculpture depicting Vera Katz created by American artist Bill Bane. Unveiled in 2006, it is located along the Eastbank Esplanade in Portland, Oregon. Katz, a former mayor of the city between 1993 and 2005, supported arts and culture during her tenure and established Oregon's Percent for Art program. She was also instrumental in developing the Eastbank Esplanade, which is named after her. The sculpture has received a mostly positive reception and has inspired people to adorn it with clothing, flowers and makeup.
Stack Stalk is an outdoor 2001 sculpture by Ean Eldred and the architectural firm Rigga, located along the Eastbank Esplanade in Portland, Oregon.
Alluvial Wall is an outdoor 2001 sculpture by Peter Nylen and the architectural firm Rigga located along the Eastbank Esplanade in Portland, Oregon.
The Willamette Escarpment is an escarpment that runs along the east bank of the Willamette River in Portland, Oregon, United States. The escarpment comprises two distinct sections: a 200-acre (81 ha) North Escarpment Unit, which extends from the Fremont Bridge northwest to the St. Johns Bridge, and a 75-acre (30 ha) South Escarpment Unit, which extends from the Sellwood Bridge north to the Ross Island Bridge.