Madrone Wall Update- January 2007

[elaine]

After nearly a year in 2005 spent collecting input from hundreds of citizens, five local Community Planning Organizations (CPO’s), City of Damascus government, Carver businesses, public organizations (Metro, State Parks, etc.), and over 30 organizations including Sierra Club, Native Plant Society of Oregon, Audubon Society of Portland, Three Rivers Land Conservancy, Mazamas, and The Access Fund, the Board of County Commissioners unanimously accepted, at the 31 January 2006 Study Session, the Clackamas County Parks Advisory Board (PAB) recommendations that the Hardscrabble property (a.k.a. Madrone Wall) become part of the Clackamas River Watershed Protection and not be sold to a private interest or mined. The unanimously-accepted recommendations included making this site a priority for parks master planning. At the 16 January and 20 February 2007 PAB meetings, park planning items in the five year parks plan will be re-evaluated and re-prioritized. Given the overwhelming positive response from over 500 citizens, local businesses, local government (Damascus, CPO’s), and over 30 organizations, the massive anticipated Damascus population growth in an area severely underserved by parks (the 2000 County Parks Master Plan, for the Damascus-Boring Area sub-area, calls for 131 park acres in 1995 and 259 acres in 2015 yet offers zero park acres), and the Commissioner’s own insistence to make parks master planning a priority for this site, we urge the PAB recommend authorizing parks master planning funding in February and follow-on County Commissioner authorization in Spring 2007.

 

Last November’s election brought in a new County commissioner, Lynn Peterson, former Council President of the Lake Oswego City Council. Commissioners Martha Schrader and Peterson have recently reiterated their support for making the parks master planning process a priority in 2007. We continue to research grant opportunities from various organizations that may be able to help offset parks advocacy and anticipated park-creation costs. A public tour is being planned in the spring to coincide with the perfusion of spring wildflowers at this amazing civic treasure so stay tuned. Please take this opportunity to register your support for this park creation project by contacting the Board of County Commissioners (bcc@co.clackamas.or.us) and urge them to take the next step – parks master planning for the Hardscrabble/Madrone Wall site located 2.2 miles east of Carver along County Scenic Highway 224. Please continue to respect Clackamas County’s “No Trespassing” posting at the Madrone Wall. Updates are regularly posted on our www.savemadrone.org website.

 

Keith K. Daellenbach

Director, Secretary/Treasurer

Madrone Wall Preservation Committee

www.savemadrone.org

 

 

 

[elaine]

Last weeks PAB meeting was cancelled due to the weather, but it has been rescheduled for tomorrow. Both Keith and I will be attending. You can attend the meetings located at the Sunnybrook Service Center 1/4 mile west of I-205 off Sunnybrook Rd. It starts at 7pm- fourth floor. Public comment is generally not allowed, but they often let Keith and I speak.

 

Also, with the Metro bond measure passing in November of 2006, Clackamas County received part of the $44 million grant that is shared with Multnomah and Washington Counties. We're not sure how much of this $44 million Clackamas County received to spend on open space acquisition, park development or improvements, but hopefully the County Commissioners and Parks Staff would consider the Madrone Wall and it's development with some of those funds.

 

You can e-mail the Commissioners above urging them to make the Madrone Wall a priority in the final 2 years of the Parks Master Plan and to use some of the Metro bond measure funding they received.

 

Hopefully we'll know more after tomorrow night and next month's PAB meetings.