Tag: I-205
Planting in memory of Gail Achterman
On April 14, 135 volunteers gathered in SE Portland to enhance the I-205 Multi-Use Path for cyclists, pedestrians and neighbors. As part of the tree planting, family, friends and colleagues of Gail Achterman gathered to plant more than a dozen oaks in her memory.
Oregon State Rep. Alissa Keny-Guyer greeted the volunteers. She was honored, she said, that Gail’s memorial planting was in her district. She recalled Gail’s warmth and helpfulness, and her advocacy for land management and transportation policies. Gail was instrumental, she said, in helping ensure the Columbia River Gorge became a scenic protected area.
Pictured in the slide show above are Gail’s husband, Chuck McGinnis, Rep. Alissa Keny-Guyer, FOT Executive Director Scott Fogarty, ODOT Region 1 Public Policy & Community Affairs Manager Shelli Romero, and other community volunteers planting in Gail’s memory.
Planting a new forest
Please join us for our March and April plantings along the I-205 Multi-Use Path! ODOT’s Elizabeth Craig wrote this story about the first planting along the path in 2012:
The threat of snow and ice didn’t stop volunteers from coming out on January 16 to plant trees along the I-205 Multi-Use Path as part of MLK Day of Service. More than 100 people joined Friends of Trees and ODOT in planting 165 trees along the path in Parkrose as part of a three-year effort between Friends of Trees, ODOT and Metro to add thousands of trees to the path.
Janet Schmidt is an outreach and events specialist with REI, the corporate sponsor of the Jan. 16 planting. Janet addressed the crowd of volunteers at the start of the day’s planting and explained that REI employees nominate groups for REI sponsorships. Friends of Trees happens to be an employee favorite, she explained. “It’s perfect we’re doing the path because we’re avid cyclists,” Janet commented.
I have a dream for I-205
By Shelli Romero
ODOT and Friends of Trees kicked off the third season of the I-205 Multi-Use Path greening project last month. The Oct. 22 planting in the Parkrose Centennial area of Portland took place near TriMet’s Park and Ride facility and along the east side of I-84 just north of Sandy Boulevard.
The “I Have a Dream” Foundation-Oregon, an organization whose mission is to help children succeed in school and college, brought twelve people including two staff, one of their own volunteers, and nine young Dreamers. Becca Wolf, a Program Coordinator with the Class 10 Dreamers, has been with the “I Have a Dream” Foundation-Oregon for four years.
REI awards $15,000 to Friends of Trees
Friends of Trees is honored to receive a $10,000 grant from REI (Recreational Equipment, Inc.) in Portland to support two Green Space Initiative plantings along the I-205 Multi-Use Path and $5,000 from REI in Eugene for natural area restoration work in the Eugene-Springfield area.
This fall and winter mark the third planting season of the three-year I-205 Multi-Use Path project, which involves a partnership with Metro, the Oregon Department of Transportation, Portland’s Bureau of Environmental Services, and a dozen other nonprofits, businesses, agencies, and community groups.
Second annual Equity Bike Ride includes even more sponsors and adventures than last year’s ride
The Skanner just published this informative story about the upcoming Equity Bike Ride on August 25, which will include a portion of the I-205 Multi-Use Path where Friends of Trees volunteers have planted thousands of trees during the past two years.
Below are excerpts from Helen Silvis’s story, which you can read in full on The Skanner’s web site.
“East Portland, or ‘The Numbers,’ is home to one-quarter of the city’s residents. But this fast-growing area is also poorer and has fewer resources than other parts of the city. So what’s being done to level the playing field for this multicultural area? Find out Aug. 25 at the Second Annual Equity Ride.
The East Portland Plan, adopted in 2009 aims to bring more resources and support to residents living east of 82nd Avenue. Check out some of the efforts underway at the second annual Equity Bike Ride, gathering from 5:30 pm, Aug. 25 in Lents Park, SE 92nd Avenue at Steele. The bike ride will set off at 6 p.m. and travel six and a half miles through the Lents neighborhood.
‘It is open to anybody who wants to join in and participate,’ said Shelli Romero, public policy and communications manager for Oregon Department of Transportation, who started the Equity Ride last year. ‘We’ve doubled the number of sponsors and we expect a lot of people to come so we encourage people to get there early.’
…
The ride will stop four times to check out new development: first, on the new I-205 path at SE Liebe; second, at Holgate Transit Center; third, at Gilbert Heights Middle School; and finally at Zenger Farm. At each stop on the Equity Ride, speakers from sponsoring groups will explain how their work impacts equity and diversity issues, and what’s possible for future projects.
Enjoy a tamale, courtesy of Hacienda CDC, and find out more about transit, housing, networking and development in East Portland, as you discover the joy of biking on the new path along I-205.”
In addition, you can see some of the thousands of new trees that Friends of Trees volunteers have planted along the path in partnership with ODOT, Metro, and a dozen foundations, agencies, sports teams, and neighborhood groups. Logan Lauvray, who directs Friends of Trees’ Green Space Initiative program, will describe the planting project as part of the Equity Bike Ride.
–TR