Tualatin Parks & Recreation Master Plan

Costumed characters sitting in and paddling 1,000-pound pumpkins on a lake? Oh yes! For 30 years the visionary leader of this small Portland suburb’s park and recreation system led this national Giant Pumpkin Regatta, as well as the nationally recognized Ice Age Tonquin Trail, and the award-winning Ibach Park playground that interprets Tualatin’s prehistoric and Native American history through play. Plus 317 acres of parks, natural areas and trails.

When he retired, the City needed a legacy plan for additional planned big projects that also addressed aging amenities and changing funding and operational realities.

We combined our ability to engage residents, stakeholders and community leaders in supporting a common vision and goals, with our in-house expertise in ADA transition planning, park maintenance and operations, recreation trends, natural resource management, sports and community park design, non-motorized transportation, asset management, arts, and recreation programming.

With outreach in Spanish and English and 2,850 community and business members participating, the Master Plan helped the City pass a new Parks System Development Charge (SDC) that doubled funding for capacity-enhancement projects in both residential and non-residential areas. It recommended trail and park development in three new annexation areas. And it coordinated trail and greenway development citywide to strongly position Tualatin as a regional trail hub. We also evaluated park access, with both a 5-minute and 10-minute travel distance, to clarify where residents needed more park land versus greater development of a variety of indoor and outdoor facilities. The plan also identified how art, riverfront parks, event venues and sports parks could enhance placemaking and attract visitors, wisely applying revenues from a new tourism tax to increase the economic impacts of park and programs.