Vision

This initiative will create an intergenerational waterfront park that is distinctly Portland – reflecting the city’s culture, landscape, and identity as a river city. 

Waterfront Park will be transformed through enhanced river access, welcoming year-round public spaces and recreation, ecological restoration, and inclusive design. The Park will foster civic pride, support both daily life and large community gatherings, and serve as a catalyst for Downtown revitalization and long-term economic vitality.

To ensure a design that meets the current and future civic needs for Waterfront Park and reflects Portland’s values and priorities, extensive community engagement has been carried out by Portland Parks & Recreation (PP&R) to identify what makes the waterfront unique.

Meaningful input and contributions from over 100 community-based organizations, agencies, institutions, experts and community members – including the Project Advisory Committee – have woven Portlanders’ values and needs into the project vision, aims and program at the heart of the competition. The project will enhance beloved spaces that work well, such as the Japanese American Memorial and mature cherry trees and Salmon Street Springs Fountain, while encouraging transformation of underutilized spaces to better serve Portlanders.

The City is grateful to the community for helping imagine what the next generation of Waterfront Park can be – for residents, workers, visitors, families, river users, and future Portlanders.

Strategic objectives – delivering the City of Portland’s call for world-class contemporary urban waterfront park design:

1. Create an iconic public space that reflects Portland’s distinctive character and identity, and is embedded within a vibrant, accessible and ecologically rich riverfront.
2. Be a premier destination: elevate the Park’s appeal for daily visits to welcome residents, families, workers and visitors while balancing and improving major seasonal event infrastructure – boosting the local economy and reenergizing the Central City core.
3. Activate the river’s edge and foster a ​‘toes in the water’ human connection to the water, including features and activities that support swimming and in-water recreation.
4. Establish safe and secure spaces that are inclusive for all – including historically excluded communities – and are welcoming all day and in every season.
5. Celebrate the city’s diverse cultural and Indigenous heritage through art, storytelling and placemaking.
6. Strengthen the physical connection between the Park and Downtown with a design that includes new and inspiring views to the Park and the Willamette River beyond, and connects Park users to Downtown businesses and street life.
7. Advance ecological recovery by restoring riparian habitat, strengthening biodiversity and supporting native flora and fauna.
8. Relaunch the Park as a cultural hub – a place to connect with Portland’s music, arts, and hospitality scene through improved event and gathering spaces, pop-up retail, food and beverage offerings, and cultural programming.
9. Increase resiliency to climate change. Anticipate local climate pressures and likelihood of extreme weather events, including flood mitigation, storm water surge drainage, wildfire smoke, and excessive heat; observe Portland’s Climate Emergency Workplan.
10. Lead through sustainable practices and innovation across design, operations, and long-term use – making design choices that integrate resource-efficient systems, ecological design approaches, and technologies that support environmental health and stewardship.
11. Represent Portland’s unique spirit of place in a design that celebrates and features regional landscape design, local materials, and native plant species from the Pacific Northwest.
12. Optimize lasting value for the City through responsible, efficient, and cost-effective design that supports long-term maintenance, durability and asset lifespan.