Parks and nature investments

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Learn how Metro uses voter investments to protect water quality, restore fish and wildlife habitat, and improve access to nature.

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17,000 acres and counting

Voters asked Metro to buy the region's most special land, before it's too late. Habitat is protected across the Portland metropolitan area, ensuring that nature is always close to home. Two bond measures have preserved 17,000 acres and 90 miles of river and stream banks, and supported hundreds of community projects.

Video

Go behind the scenes at three places protected by Metro's Natural Areas Program, and learn how voters have made a difference for the region’s water quality, wildlife habitat and outdoor recreation.

Explore your big backyard

Visit parks and natural areas

Whether you’re in the mood for a short hike or a weekend camping trip, a boat ride or a picnic, Metro has a destination for you.

Explore your big backyard

Newell Creek Canyon

Thanks to voters, Metro is investing a bond measure to purchase wildlife habitat and a levy to help care for regional parks and natural areas and improve them for visitors – including Newell Creek Canyon in Oregon City.

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Nature grants

Metro nature grants reward innovative ideas that connect communities with nature. Could your project be next?

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Metro operates a unique park system, one with nature at its heart.

Thanks to two decades of voter investments, Metro manages more than 17,000 acres of parks, trails and natural areas across every community in the region – from Chehalem Ridge on the west to the Sandy River Gorge on the east, from Blue Lake and Smith and Bybee Wetlands on the north to Graham Oaks on the south.

Voters have repeatedly trusted Metro to protect clean water, restore fish and wildlife habitat and provide opportunities for people to experience nature close to home.

To accomplish this, Metro has built and operates 14 parks, manages 14 cemeteries and offers three boat ramps. Four new parks are being designed or built right now. Metro purchases critical and rare habitat across the region. Metro scientists help heal damaged habitat by removing invasive plants and planting native trees, shrubs and flowers that support animals big and small.

Racial equity has become a key focus at Metro. The department is committed to making Metro’s parks and natural areas safe and welcoming places for people of color, connecting immigrant and refugees communities to nature, providing job training to young people of color and honoring the ongoing connection of Native people to the ceded lands Metro manages.

Across greater Portland, Metro supports community nature projects, from park building to stream restoration to pollinator gardens. By connecting residents and community organizations to each other, Metro helps build a greater sense of community as the community helps nature.

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Calendar

News

Parks and nature bond update: Potential renewal of parks and nature levy, ecological assessments and local share partner roundtables

5 days 22 hours ago

The Metro Council has asked parks and nature staff to develop a package for potential renewal of the parks and nature levy, the Natural Areas and Capital Program Performance Oversight Committee met for a training on bond criteria, ecological assessments are underway for the protect and restore program target areas, and the local share program is hosting roundtables with park providers.
Parks and nature bond update: Local share program launch, Blue Lake Regional Park improvements and community engagement

1 month 1 week ago

The local share program has launched with local parks departments and districts, the bond's first park improvement projects are moving ahead at Blue Lake Regional Park, and community engagement work continues in the protect and restore land and walking and biking trails programs.
Parks and nature bond update: Oversight committee meeting, local share progress and trails engagement

2 months 1 week ago

The bond oversight committee met on May 24, the local share program will soon be ready to accept project proposals from local jurisdictions, and the trails program held a pair of successful community engagement events.
Parks and nature bond update: Engagement and tool-making

3 months 6 days ago

Community engagement is underway for the trails program, the local share program is working with local partners on engagement, and projects are underway at local Metro parks.
Parks and nature bond update: local share program handbook and Metro park improvements

4 months 1 week ago

The new local share handbook provides guidance to program participants in selecting projects for local share funding. Additionally, $4 million has been dedicated to the Block 14 cultural heritage garden at Lone Fir Cemetery.