The City of Wilsonville is a fast-growing community located along a 2.7 mile stretch of the Willamette with an equally fast-growing interest in connecting to the River.

Projects in Planning

There are a number of exciting developments planned in the near future that will greatly enhance the Wilsonville park system and allow for further connectivity with our neighboring communities and the Willamette River. Plans include:

•  Increased Access to the Willamette River: The recently updated Parks and Recreation Master Plan addresses the public’s desire for greater access to the Willamette River. The plan supports improved access at publicly owned sites and increased awareness of the river among the community. It also supports the recommendations of the Bicycle and Pedestrian Master Plan to add river overlooks and develop a water “trail” of connected boat launches.

•  Bicycle /Pedestrian Bridge across the Willamette River: With the lack of any crossing option other than the I-5 Boone Bridge, the river serves as a significant barrier for bicyclists and pedestrians desiring to cross to destinations south. The possibility of building a bike/pedestrian bridge and its potential location is being evaluated.

•  Tonquin Trail: The City, Metro, and local governments are working in partnership with other agencies to develop a 12 mile regional non-motorized trail that would allow public access to a wildlife corridor with unique geologic features that stretch northward from the Willamette River to the Tualatin River National Wildlife Refuge in Sherwood. Sections of the trail system that currently exist are within the newly developed residential community of Villebois and on Boeckman Road between 95th Avenue and 110th Avenue.

•  Rivergreen Stormwater Outfall Improvement Project: The existing outfall has been discharging surface runoff collected from a portion of the adjacent Rivergreen Homes subdivision onto a terrace of the Willamette River. The combination of this stormwater runoff and groundwater seepage has caused significant erosion of the river bank. The proposed improvements involve the use of low impact development such as construction of a bioswale to reroute the stormwater discharges and bioengineering treatments for bank stabilization and prevention of further erosion.

Completed river improvement projects include:

•  Boeckman Creek Restoration Project: A two year project that included the removal of two culverts along Boeckman Creek in Memorial Park that restricted the movement of Chinook salmon, steelhead and cutthroat trout from the Willamette River. The culverts were replaced with pedestrian bridges and restoration of the stream and riparian habitat was accomplished through bioengineering.

•  Memorial Park Restoration Project: Memorial Park, the city’s oldest and largest park (120 acres), includes one-half mile of frontage along the Willamette River with forested areas, stream and river riparian corridors, and an extensive upland meadow area. A city-sponsored restoration project includes new plantings of bigleaf maple, black cottonwood, red alder, and other native plant species within the river’s floodplain.