Parks and nature bond measure

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Shape how the 2019 bond measure continues Metro's work to protect clean water, restore habitat and connect people to nature while centering racial equity and climate resilience.

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A group of black and brown children from Club Aves look under a nurse log with a Metro nature educator.

Students from Club Aves look under a nurse log during a tour of Smith and Bybee Wetlands.

group of people being led on a tour through future Chehalem Ridge Nature Park

Chehalem Ridge tour

Marine Drive Trail

Men in orange hardhats discuss work in a natural area.

Rosario Franco, center, talks with his crew at Multnomah Channel near Sauvie Island.

In November 2019, voters in greater Portland approved a $475 million bond measure to further protect clean water, restore fish and wildlife habitat and provide opportunities for people to connect with nature close to home.

The bond measure provides funding across six program areas:

Protect and restore land, $155 million
Local parks and nature projects, $92 million
Nature in Neighborhoods capital grants, $40 million
Metro parks improvements, $98 million
Walking and biking trails, $40 million
Large-scale community visions, $50 million

Racial equity is the core of the bond measure. It prioritizes outcomes that benefit people of color, Indigenous people, people with low incomes, people with varying abilities and other historically marginalized groups who have not benefited equitably from past investments. The bond measure also prioritizes work to make the region more resilient to climate change.

Now it’s time to turn those expectations into actions.

Metro will work in partnership with community members, community organizations, tribes, local park providers and others to ensure these investments make a difference on the ground.

Featured news

New 86-acre natural area in Sandy River Basin protects wildlife habitat, improves climate resilience

By Kelsey Wallace
Oct. 19, 2020 2:36 p.m.

A newly acquired 86-acre property in the Sandy River Basin will protect wildlife habitat, improve landscape connectivity and climate resilience, help provide access for restoration and land management and provide potential opportunities for native plant harvest by Indigenous communities.
Metro seeks members for Parks and Nature oversight committee

Oct. 15, 2020 10:15 a.m.
Read the spring 2020 issue of Our Big Backyard

April 20, 2020 6:45 p.m.

See how climate change is likely to affect greater Portland, and learn what you can do to make your community more resilient. Find the latest in parks and nature news, including a project to discover untold stories about women buried at Metro's historic cemeteries.
Read the winter 2020 issue of Our Big Backyard

Jan. 22, 2020 8:23 p.m.

Learn how Indigenous community members led a prescribed burn at Quamash Prairie Natural Area and worked to reconnect land, culture and habitat. Also in the winter 2020 issue of Our Big Backyard, you can find out about the latest parks and nature news and events and explore the Glendoveer Field Guide.
Restoring fire: prescribed burn at Quamash Prairie reconnects land, culture and habitat

By Cory Eldridge
Jan. 2, 2020 10:30 a.m.

Early last fall, a wildland fire team from the Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde led a prescribed burn of Quamash Prairie Natural Area west of Tigard.