Announcement

Neighborhood Connections is a publication from the City of Gresham
Communications & Community Outreach offering City of Gresham news, Public Safety information, Community Activities & Events, Training & Workshops, Volunteer Opportunities, and more.

Inside this Issue

• Gresham is Paving the Way for Better Streets
• Don’t Let Potholes Become a Neighborhood Nuisance
• Crime Reports
• Free Tree Giveaway, Native Plants and Natural Gardening Consultations
• The “Back to School Essay Contest” Begins Soon!
• Urban Forestry Management Plan – Council Adoption on July 19
• Got Mussels? July 16 and August 6
• Hollybrook Park Summer Festival July 22
• Bicycle Helmets on Sale July 22
• You’re Invited: Transportation Community Forum July 26
• How to Ride Transit July 28
• Music Mondays at the Center for the Arts Plaza
• Significant Tree Walk August 17
• How do you Get Around Gresham and the East Metro Area?
• Shop Your Local GREAT Businesses
• Detour on Gresham-Fairview Trail
• Home Resource Efficiency and Toilet Rebates
• Healthy Kids Fair
• Block Party Time
• Free Summer Activities at the Library
• Multnomah County RSVP
• Project Linkage
• Mentor and Tutor Local Elementary School Students

Keep up with what’s Happening in your City!

Facebook - Read more
Twitter - Read more
Subscribe to City media releases - Read more

Gresham Neighborhoods listing

For more information, visit the Neighborhood Associations page at GreshamOregon.gov or contact Cathy Harrington at 503-618-2482, or email Cathy.Harrington@GreshamOregon.gov.

Neighbors celebrate the Nelson addition to Nadaka Nature Park. Click to enlarge

Rain didn't dampen the spirits of community festival guests Celebrating the Nelson addition On June 18th, 2011, the Wilkes East Neighborhood held a community festival at Nadaka Nature Park to celebrate the Nelson property addition which was purchased with local grants.

The new addition which added 2 acres to this wonderful nature park has allowed the opening of the south gate -- improving accessibility to all of our neighbors and visitors as well as making room for the master plan that will include community gardens and more.

Rain is our sunshine
June 18th was a very wet cloudy day, typical of Oregon spring weather. Despite the rain, 58 volunteers with SOLV arrived at 9AM at Nadaka Nature Park for a park clean-up event. Participants removed invasive plant species as well as trash and debris. Volunteers came from HB LEE Middle school, SUN Community Schools as well as GGAPP Peer group and Catholic Charities.

The festival started at 12 noon and lasted until 3PM. Constant rain didn't dampen the spirits of the several hundred guests that attended the festival.

Come enjoy Downtown at Night! When: Thu, Jul 21, 2011 5:30PM-8:00PM Where: Historic Downtown Gresham Main Street (and more!) Gresham, OR Get Map!

Music, Art & Wine
The Historic Downtown Gresham Business Association kicks off its fifth year of Third Thursdays, through August.

Stroll the shops of Historic Downtown Gresham while enjoying music, art, wine and community. We will feature different artisans, musicians and wines from the region each month. This annual event is lots of fun, so make sure to come out and enjoy all the great offerings and in-store specials during the months of May, June, July and August.

Freshwater mussel

Volunteer Opportunity Last year the Johnson Creek Watershed Council partnered with the Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation to conduct surveys for native freshwater mussels in Johnson Creek — with your help, we want to continue this work.

Spots are filling up quickly so RSVP today! All ages welcome. Saturday, July 16* — Gresham Woods Saturday, August 6th — Ambleside Saturday, September 24 — Bundy Reserve Time: 10:00am-1:30pm

Searching for freshwater mussels

Volunteers will learn about the biology and ecology of native freshwater mussels, and the many ways in which these animals benefit water quality and fish habitat. Native mussels are sensitive to pollution and disturbance, so exploring mussel distribution and the age structure of mussel beds provides insight on the biological conditions of Johnson Creek. Native Western pearlshell mussels were found in both stream reaches surveyed in the upper watershed, and native floaters were present in the lower watershed.

The event represents a unique opportunity for the general public to assist with field research

Road repairs, 165th & NE Russell Click to enlarge

Street Repairs Underway, Now through Fall 2011 Pothold Hotline Available Beginning this week and through the Fall five hundred individual street sections will be repaired within the boundaries of the City of Gresham.

Increased funding = More neighborhood repairs
Twenty-five percent of the five hundred scheduled repairs this summer will be residential. This is all made possible due to the increase in the gas tax and licensing fees. In total $3 million dollars will be spent on this project. In the past Gresham has only had $1 million dollars available at a time to repair city streets.

Got a Pothole? Give'm a Call
An adjunct to this project will be a Pothole Hot Line. Call 503-618-2626 to report potholes in your area.

Homes needed for 3 girls and 1 boy, ages 12-15 When: Jul 22-Aug 5, 2011 Where: Your Home! Gresham, OR Download Host Family Application (below)

Sharing Our Cultures

Thank you for your interest in hosting a high school exchange student from our Sister City of SokCho, South Korea. This is one of our two active student exchange student programs, with SokCho sending students to the Gresham area every other year opposite of the years students from Gresham travel to SokCho. The students come during the summer break approximately July 22rd through August 5th

Neighborhood Connections is a publication from the City of Gresham
Communications & Community Outreach offering City of Gresham news, Public Safety information, Community Activities & Events, Training & Workshops, Volunteer Opportunities, and more.

Inside this Issue

• Are You Ready? Workshop - Jun 18
• Crime Reports
• Music Mondays Return to the Center for the Arts Plaza
• Trees in the Summer = Lower Energy Costs
• Multnomah County RSVP
• Cellphones for Soldiers
• Project Linkage
• Summer Programs Available Through SUN
• Do Your Surroundings Promote Healthy Eating and Active Living - Jun 28
• Hollybrook Park Summer Festival - Jul 22
• Dcip-5: Institutional Master Plans - Jun 22
• Experience is the Best Teacher, and You Have a Lifetime’s Worth
• Downtown Plan Review - Jun 30
• Calling All East County Residents
• Springwater Trail Spur Project
• Neighbors Benefit from Mediation Tips
• Free Summer Activities at the Library
• Little Change Can Make a Big Difference
• Low Cost Summer Activities Through the PAL Youth Center
• Rockwood Standard Community Forum - Jul 7
• Block Party Time
• Transportation System Plan Update Community Forum - Jul 26
• Last Chance to Order your FREE SmartTrips Travel Tools!

Keep up with what’s Happening in your City!

Facebook - Read more
Twitter - Read more
Subscribe to City media releases - Read more

Gresham Neighborhoods listing

For more information, visit the Neighborhood Associations page at GreshamOregon.gov or contact Cathy Harrington at 503-618-2482, or email Cathy.Harrington@GreshamOregon.gov.

Kia Selley (linkedin)

"A passion for the built environment.." Kia Selley, most recently a development advisor with the Portland Development Commission, has been hired as the City of Gresham's new Urban Design and Planning Director.

Because of the unique combination of skills Selley brings to the job, City Manager Erik Kvarsten has also asked her to oversee the Rockwood-West Gresham Urban Renewal area.

Selley begins work June 13.

At PDC, Selley managed budget and expenditures for the Convention Center Urban Renewal Area, and provided oversight for community infrastructure, district-scale plans and real estate development projects.

A landscape architect by training, her professional background also includes comprehensive planning, development planning, development review, urban design streetscape projects, design-guideline development for transit-oriented development, permitting for complex construction projects and affordable housing.

When: June 20-24, 2011 8:45AM-2:30PM Where: Marshall High School 3905 SE 91st Ave (behind Eastport Plaza) Portland, OR Get map!

Join the Fun!
The Police Activities League invites kids, ages 8-14 to attend the twenty-Second Annual PAL Sports Camp. Local police officers, high school and college coaches from the surrounding area will work together to make the camp a unique experience for youth. Officers and coaches will work with campers to develop specific sports skills and foster good sportsmanship.

Cost is $50 per child. Reduced rates of $25 are available for families who qualify for the free or reduced lunch program during the school year. Transportation available upon request.

Click to download

Summer 2011 Newsletter is here. Download your copy today. INSIDE THIS ISSUE Nadaka Community Festival Disc Golf, Columbia View Park Reynolds 2011-12 Budget Recycling TV’s and Computers HB Lee MS, Sun Outdoor Club Nadaka Happenings 2011 Saturday Family Walks & Rides and more...

Download the full-color edition here!

Newsletters are a regular publication of the Wilkes East Neighborhood Association. They are hand-delivered to over 1,500 residences and businesses in our area, timed to correspond with our regular meetings.
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Got a story to share?

Wilkes East residents are encouraged to submit articles for the newsletter. Articles should be limited to 300 words and may be subject to editing. Send articles by email to: info@wilkeseastna.org, or by postal mail to: PO Box 536 • Fairview, OR 97024.