North Park Blocks

Description and history

Captain John H. Couch deeded the five blocks to the city in 1865, and they were officially platted for a municipal park in 1869. An ordinance was passed in 1904, setting aside one park block for women and children. In 1906, another block was added for a children's playground. The playground was divided into a boys' playground and a small children's and girls' playground. Use of the North Park Blocks declined, especially as the 1924 zoning code did not preserve residential uses near them.

By the 1940s, the North Park Blocks area was decidedly neglected. A problem with the homeless and aggressive panhandlers led to Daisy Kingdom and the U.S. Customs House to hire security guards, and park sprinklers were set to intermittently spray sleepers. In 1989, the problem was worse; that year the local Montessori School found drug users and discarded needles in the city playground.

In 2002, Chinese foundry owner Huo Baozhu donated Da Tung and Xi'an Bao Bao, full-size bronze reproductions of Shang dynasty elephant statues, to Portland. The city placed them on the North Park Blocks where children could interact with them.

In recent years, the North Park Blocks have experienced a renaissance. Upscale condominiums and creative commercial buildings have replaced vacant or underutilized buildings. One major project was the 2014–15 major renovation of the historic 511 Federal Building, a former federal post office built in 1916–18, to become the new main campus of the Pacific Northwest College of Art (PNCA).

Situated in front of the PNCA, the sculpture Memory 99, designed by Lee Kelly, was the first step in a plan to expand the North Park Blocks to include the block between NW Glisan St. and NW Hoyt St. The Broadway Corridor Project, which began construction in 2024, includes the addition of a second new North Park Block between NW Hoyt St. and NW Lovejoy St. Updating the North Park Blocks would include a two way bike lane along the west side, as part of the Green Loop.

References

References

1. {{cite gnis
2. "North Park Blocks". [[Portland Parks & Recreation]].
3. Pickett, Nelson. (March 20, 1992). "North Park Blocks improvements under way". [[The Oregonian]].
4. Nicholas, Jonathan. (December 24, 1991). "Setting straight the crooked record". The Oregonian.
5. Mackenzie, Hilary. (1988). "The Portland Park Blocks: their origin and development". [[University of Washington]].
6. Lane, Dee. (May 27, 1990). "Running out of patience". The Oregonian.
7. (May 11, 2002). "Elephant in bronze will grace Portland". The Oregonian.
8. (February 5, 2015). "Art school tries on a grown-up building: PNCA moves into the spectacularly renovated old Federal building on the North Park Blocks". [[Portland Tribune]].
9. . (October 30, 2012). "Future Park: Sculpture marks addition to Portland’s North Park Blocks". *[[Advance Publications]]*.
10. "USPS Master Plan".
11. "USPS SITE FAQ".
12. "Central City in Motion PROJECT 16 NW PARK 9TH".