Hayhurst

3-9-04 Meeting Minutes

Cedar Sinai Park

David Fuks, CEO, and Eric Cugnart, BOORA Architects, presented the Master Plan for development on SW Boundary Street. Mr. Fuks gave us a brief history of CSP and told us that CSP has roughly 280 residents and 240 employees on their 27-acre campus, with an additional 10 to 15 people taking advantage of the adult day care services each day. CSP has a mission to serve the elderly and infirm. Mr. Fuks showed us a map of the campus and pointed out the route of a planned elder-friendly path through the forested area. It is CSP’s hope that the trail can connect to the proposed Red Electric Trail so that their residents will have more options to walk beyond the campus.

Mr. Cugnart then showed us a series of plans for a three-phase expansion of CSP. This is a 20-year plan, with the first phase to be constructed within five years. While no architectural drawings are available at this point,
the first phase calls for a two-story skilled nursing facility with underground parking to be built on their new 10-acre tract on the south side of Boundary. The underground parking and loading docks will be accessed from the south via an extension of 62nd Street. The first phase also calls for a central esplanade between the new building and the Rose Schnitzer Manor. Phases two and three call for possible expansion of the nursing facility, relocation of offices to the southern buildings, affordable senior housing and park-like green space on the property north of Boundary Street. They estimate that the nursing facility will cost $15 million dollars; donations can be dropped off in the main office.

Guest Speaker - Kendra Kimburauskus, Sierra Club

Kendra Kimbirauskus of the Sierra Club spoke on behalf of the National Environmental Trust regarding the polluted Superfund site in the Willamette River. We approved a motion to support the call for a
reinstatement of the federal Superfund “Polluter Pays” tax. Additional information can be obtained from National Environmental Trust, 221-7922x13 and www.deq.state.or.us/nwr/PortlandHarbor/phfactsheets.htm.

Committe Reports and Other Business

Land Use:
There is a pending street vacation of SW Hillsdale Court and SW Sunnyside Avenue. This is the right-of-way just off Beaverton Hillsdale Hwy. at the 4300 block. We can expect development on that site within a few years.

Parks and Environment:
Zari Santer, Director of Portland Parks and Recreation (P&R), attended the SWNI meeting in February. She announced that the department must plan for a 2.5% decrease in their budget. Possible outcomes in the southwest include closure of the Fulton Park Community Center, reduced money towards SUN schools and closure of all pools on Sundays.

SWTrails:
We have started planning to improve the trail and stairs on the 45th Street right-of-way between SW Cullen and Beaverton Hillsdale Hwy. I urge anyone interested in this project to contact Lillie Fitzpatrick at the email address below. We need money and volunteers. It is estimated to cost close to $1000; donations can be sent to SWNI, 7688 SW Capitol Hwy., Portland, OR 97219, with a notation to 45th St/SWTrails.

News and Announcements:
1) Candidates Fair, sponsored by SWNI, March 31, 7 to 9 pm, at the
Multnomah Arts Center.
2) Metro fish and wildlife protection plan Open House. Thursday, March 18, 4–8 pm at the Mittleman Jewish Community Center.
3) Portland Public Schools (PPS) has located the Odyssey magnet program at Hayhurst Elementary School beginning September 2004.

Red Electric Trail Discussion:
Although it was not on our agenda, several people wanted to discuss the Proposed Red Electric Trail. The Red Electric Line was a train line that ran through parts of Hillsdale and Hayhurst neighborhoods many years ago. Portions of the original train right-of-way (ROW) were sold or transferred to private individuals, but the majority of the route was placed in public hands and is represented on city maps as a “paper street”, or unimproved ROW. There are many “paper streets” all over town that are publicly owned by the city of Portland. ROW laws and maps can be accessed at the City’s website. I urge everyone to use www.portlandmaps.com to find out where the ROW’s exist around your property. You can also find crime statistics, zoning information, earthquake hazard information and development possibilities around your property.

This trail was proposed many years ago as a way to connect Willamette Park to the Tualatin River in Tigard, via a 15 mile regional, recreational trail. It was incorporated into the SW Urban Trails Plan and the SW Community Plan and adopted by City Council. These documents can be viewed at the SWNI office. For several months, P&R staff has been looking at several possible alignments for the trail and possible ways around privately held portions of the original train route. Please contact Bryan Aptekar, P&R, for more information, baptekar@ci.portland.or.us.

Neighborhood Involvement:
I would like to remind Hayhurst neighbors that if they feel that they haven’t been asked to be involved in neighborhood activities, I have been asking.

We still have three positions open on the board: Public Safety, Transportation, and Land Use. Currently held positions such as Chair,
Vice-Chair, Secretary, and Parks and Environment expire in January 2005. If anyone has just a few hours a month to volunteer for the greater good of the neighborhood and the city, please mail or call for a copy of the by-laws, lf@pdx.edu or 503-892-9921.

Email us
lf@pdx.edu

Web Links from Today's Meeting

DEQ Portland Harbor Fact Sheet (
Portland Maps: Information on your property