Make Way for the Orange Line and a Milwaukian Renaissance

Portland State University PDXScholar Metroscape Institute of Portland Metropolitan Studies Summer 2015 Make Way for the Orange Line and a Milwaukian Renaissance Ben Maras Let us know how access to this document benefits ouy . Follow this and additional works at: http://pdxscholar.library.pdx.edu/metroscape Part of the Transportation Commons, and the Urban Studies Commons Recommended Citation Maras, Ben (2015). "Make Way for the Orange Line and a Milwaukian Renaissance" Summer 2015 Metroscape, p. 6-12. This Article is brought to you for free and open access. It has been accepted for inclusion in Metroscape by an authorized administrator of PDXScholar. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Make Way for the Orange Line and a Milwaukian Renaissance by Ben Maras ilwaukie is undergoing major ther — appears poised to make a major changes: a new light rail line, a entrance into metro-area society. Mnew 8.5-acre waterfront park, “I believe the opening of the Orange a new two-mile neighborhood greenway, Line will be the beginning of a renais- two new bike trails, and increasing public sance for Milwaukie's downtown,” Wilda and private investment in its downtown. Parks, who served as Interim Mayor of Now, the former riverboat town and Milwaukie earlier this year, said. more recently, sleepy suburb of 20,000- Although the largest project by far is odd people — only six miles from down- the new MAX Orange Line, opening town Portland but qualitatively much far- September 12th, a number of smaller Page 6 Metroscape Milwaukie City Center Harrison investments have already begun to make significant impacts on the city. “Many projects have been or will Monroe Greenway soon be completed that will help shape the next period for Milwaukie,” Interim Mayor Parks said. “The Riverfront Park’s second phase has been completed and Park Riverfront many people are enjoying it daily.” The park was recently renovated with a Willamette River Milwaukie/Main new boat launch, paths and public rest- rooms. Phase III of the project will in- clude a playground and an open-air am- phitheater, encouraging residents to make use of the attractive bit of real estate. Kellogg Lake e Orange “The Orange Line is expected to bring Line is folks who normally reside in urbanized The Orange Line expected to areas of Portland and Oak Grove to the bring folks who Willamette River to enjoy a variety of normally live recreational activities and festivals that in urbanized are scheduled to take place in upcoming Union Pacific areas of years,” Mitch Nieman, assistant to the Portland and City Manager of Milwaukie, said. Oak Grove to In recent years, Milwaukie’s demo- the Willamette graphic make-up has been changing and River... the median age lowering. This is due, in part, to a new generation of families put- ting down roots in the area. The downtown district has been un- SE Park dergoing intense renewal over the past ten years, and is now home to a farm- ers market and numerous small shops. in Milwaukie. Despite bordering Port- The Orange Line will bring much needed land's Sellwood neighborhood, with its business and will help the city grow more many bike commuters, and Eastmoreland connected to Portland. (home of Reed College), Milwaukie has “Businesses will have an opportunity been sadly lacking in active transporta- to market to new target audiences: those tion. The Milwaukie City Center is already who commute to and from Portland and a hub for many bus lines that reach into those who are restricted by limited trans- Portland and the outer rings of the metro- portation options. Businesses like Zoe politan area, but the challenge of getting Outfitters will increase their market expo- people from surrounding neighborhoods sure because they will be able to connect to downtown Milwaukie has opened op- urban dwellers to water recreation activi- portunities for bikes. ties,” Nieman continued. The most direct route from Sellwood And the new MAX line won’t be the to downtown Milwaukie is a straight shot only project to overhaul transportation along 17th Avenue. It’s a narrow, two-lane Metroscape Page 7 road with a steep grade on one side. It’s than the Monroe greenway providing already a thoroughfare for drivers which cyclists with a safe, continuous east-west leaves little room for bikes. route through Milwaukie. Now, thanks to the Milwaukie City Eventually, the greenway could be ex- Council, there will be a new mixed-use tended further east to Highway 213 (bet- bike path on the west side of the road. ter known as 82nd Avenue) and connect The roadbed will be moved east to to Clackamas Town Center and the Green make room for the 12-foot wide path Line, completing a path that was dreamed — a feat of engineering considering the about some 40 years ago with the South- steep grade. When it opens, bikers and North Light Rail Project (see “How Light pedestrians will be able to travel between Rail Came to the Region” on the facing Sellwood and Milwaukie — and to and page). from the Orange Line — more easily. a Meanwhile, another mixed-use path has or the hundreds of people who already opened to the south. The Trolley commute between Portland and Trail, named after the abandoned interur- FMilwaukie every day, the new ban railroad grade it follows, extends six Portland to Milwaukie Orange Line will miles south to Gladstone. When the trail mean shorter trips and less congestion on along 17th Avenue is completed, these Highway 99E. two new trails will connect with the exist- Despite its proximity to Portland, tran- ing Springwater and Eastbank Esplanade sit to and from Milwaukie can be hit and trails to form a near-continuous path miss. With the exception of the #75 bus, parallel to the Willamette River from the which comes from southeast Portland Despite its Clackamas River to the Steel Bridge. via Caesar Chavez Boulevard and Wood- proximity Also on the horizon is a plan to turn stock, most lines run along McLough- to Portland, Monroe Street, which runs parallel to the lin. When traffic flows well, a trip from transit to car-heavy Harrison Street in downtown downtown Portland to the Milwaukie City Milwaukie Milwaukie, into a neighborhood green- Center can take as little as 20 minutes. But can be hit and way for bikes and pedestrians. The stretch increased traffic congestion during peak miss. of new greenway would run from 21st hours adds time and uncertainty to the Avenue across Highway 224 and out to trip and creates stress for commuters who Linwood at the city’s eastern boundary. are trying to catch connecting buses. For A “neighborhood greenway” is a low- these commuters, the Orange Line will traffic, low-speed route that provides a mean a quicker, more reliable and even safe, quiet environment for motorists, scenic trip, in relative comfort as well as pedestrians, and bicycles and reduces cut- fewer missed connections when they get through car traffic from outside of the to Milwaukie’s city center. neighborhood. Greenways reduce auto- The Orange Line will run from mobile speeds through the use of traffic- Portland State University to Portland’s calming measures (such as mini traffic eastside across the Tilikum Crossing. circles and speed bumps) to discourage From there it will continue to just south car trips. of the Oregon Museum of Science and When the Monroe Street greenway is Industry (OMSI), through the Brooklyn completed, it is expected that motorists neighborhood, then to Eastmoreland and will prefer to travel on the parallel arte- Westmoreland (at the S.E. Bybee Station), rials (Harrison and King streets) rather through the Ardenwald and Sellwood Page 8 Metroscape How Light Rail Came to the Region Courtesy of TriMet hen the Orange Line debuts, it will be almost Ten years after Fareless Square, the first Metro- W thirty years since the first MAX line opened and politan Area Express (or MAX) opened, connecting TriMet stepped into the spotlight to become a na- Portland to its easterly suburb of Gresham. The Blue tional leader in public transit. But it wasn’t always Line was eventually extended, tunneling under the that way. West Hills, out to Beaverton and Hillsboro. In the early 70s, it looked like public transit in In the 1990s, TriMet was looking to replicate its Portland was dying out. Ridership had been falling success with the Blue Line and launched a $2.8 bil- since the 50s, and Rose City Transit Company, the lion plan known as the South-North Light Rail Proj- primary transit service and one of 34 bus and trolley ect to connect Clackamas Town Center to Vancouver, companies to operate in the Portland region in the WA. It would have run from Clackamas Town Center past hundred years, was going bankrupt. through Milwaukie, along the Union Pacific right- In a last-ditch effort, the City took over Rose City of-way through Portland's Brooklyn neighborhood, Transit and called for the creation of a new transit to Portland's downtown and eventually north along authority to run it. In early 1969, state legislation Interstate Avenue to Vancouver. created the Tri-County Metropolitan Transportation In 1994, the plan was put to the region's voters, District of Oregon — TriMet for short — which im- and nearly two-thirds of voters on the Oregon side mediately took over the former Rose City Transit. of the river approved the $475 million bond. Clark Shortly after, in 1971, the “Transportation Plan County voters, however, rejected a $237.5 million for 1990” advised the creation of 54 highways and bond that would have provided Washington's share freeways, believing the bus system would only be of the funding.

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