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Metro Council approves funding for Blue Lake Nature and Golf Learning Center
Metro news release: June 12, 2009
Contacts: Karen Kane, 503-797-1942
The Metro Council has budgeted $10.6 million to complete design, engineering and construction of an environmentally-focused nature and golf learning center at Blue Lake Regional Park in Fairview, Ore. Final approval is set for June 25 with the adoption of Metro’s budget. The master plan includes a nine-hole family golf course, a six-hole pitch and putt course, a pre-engineered golf and operations building, and a covered driving range. Plans also include replacement of the aging Lake House Events Center, restoration of an existing wetland and other improvements to Blue Lake Regional Park.
The Nature and Golf Learning Center will be built in a sustainable manner and will be designed to protect and improve water quality, wildlife and native habitat. The center will offer educational programs, and the golf courses will provide individuals of all ages and golf abilities the opportunity to learn and play on a fun, challenging and unique course. Designers will locate holes to respect the environment and the Native American history in the area, and will route the course to take advantage of river, lake and wetland views as well as contribute to their protection.
"Its focus on improving the environment as well as making the game of golf available to a wider range of people makes the Nature and Golf Learning Center the first of its kind in the northwest and a true community resource,” said Metro Councilor Rod Park, who represents the district in which Blue Lake is located. “Non-golfers, especially youth, can learn from the game’s integrity, and more experienced players can improve their game in a setting that places high regard on the nature of the area."
Located in an 85-acre undeveloped Metro parcel on the east side of Blue Lake Road, the golf course will use minimal water and no harmful chemicals. Because no direct streams feed into the 64-acre Blue Lake, the land-locked body of water suffers from algae growth and other factors that contribute to lowered water quality, which has been mitigated somewhat by the introduction of solar-powered water circulators through a partnership between Metro and the Blue Lake Improvement Association. As a further improvement to water quality, Metro hopes to employ a system in which the golf course is watered from the lake and fresh water is pumped into the lake, helping to create a more natural circulation of water.
The anticipated opening for the facility is summer 2012. The contract for design was awarded to Waterleaf/Design Works of Portland.
Metro expects to issue Full Faith and Credit Obligation bonds to repay a short-term internal construction loan with revenues from the golf project paying the debt service obligations.
Blue Lake Regional Park is located 20 minutes east of downtown Portland and is open from 8 a.m. to legal sunset every day except Dec. 25 and Jan. 1. Metro, the regional government that serves 1.4 million people in the Portland, Oregon metropolitan area, provides planning and other services that protect the nature and livability of our region.
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Blue Lake nature and golf learning center
Learn about Metro's future nature and golf learning center at Blue Lake Regional Park.