Milwaukie Spring Park
Milwaukie, Oregon
Filed In: Urban
Spring Park is a tucked-away neighborhood park that doubles as an entrance to a larger park beyond. A rhythm of native boulders marks the entry to the park area, opening onto an area of permeable paving and low-maintenance lawn surrounded by native tuft grasses, flowering spirea, and evergreen salal. The central park area is defined by a closely planted ring of red alder to define the space and prevent foot traffic to the train track beyond. The park is inhabited by three main elements: an active playground area surrounded by a curved, sloping seatwall, a passive play mound built from salvaged concrete and planted with native serviceberry, and a majestic existing deodar cedar.
Lando and Associates was the prime consultant and designed in collaboration with the local neighborhood association, Lando and associates recycled or salvaged materials and used installation practices such as live stake plantings due to their ease of volunteer installation and cost savings. Native plant species and increasingly informal plant groupings make the transition from the actively maintained park area to the ‘wild’ park and Willamette River beyond.