Northern Wasco County Parks & Rec awarded $2.6M for Mill Creek Greenway construction

Last year, ODOT allocated $15.5 million for the Oregon Community Paths Program, which aims to improve access to active and public transportation. The Oregon Transportation Commission identified Wasco County and the Mill Creek Greenway as its number one priority out of 17 funded projects throughout Oregon this year.

“We are thrilled that ODOT, the City of The Dalles, the Urban Renewal Agency and the Park District could work together to achieve something none of us could have done on our own,” said Scott Baker, executive director for NWCPRD. “This is a great win for our community, and the first step towards developing a system of multiuse trails that will connect our downtown, parks and pool, and Westside residential areas.”

The Mill Creek Greenway will provide not only a bike and pedestrian corridor, but will facilitate equitable access to parks and commercial areas for all residents of The Dalles. Currently, residents on the west side of The Dalles have a need for transportation alternatives: There are simply no safe pedestrian and bike routes connecting this residential area to the downtown district. The speed limit on W. Second Street is 35 miles per hour, and there is no shoulder. If you don’t drive or have a car, it’s both challenging and unsafe to get downtown.

The Mill Creek Greenway was identified as a project for the Urban Renewal Agency in The Dalles in 1990, and for several decades, it lacked a champion. When Baker be-came executive director November 2016, he joined the board of the Columbia Gateway Urban Renewal Agency, and took on this project.

“I immediately wanted to champion this,” said Baker. “I reached out to folks and explained I felt personal connection and wanted to see it happen.”

In 2018, the Urban Renewal Agency committed $94,000 to begin design and engineering of the Mill Creek Greenway. Baker managed this project on behalf of the Agency, and by 2020, the design and engineering was complete. This preliminary work, which was incorporated in NWCPRD’s Master Plan, showed ODOT that the district had set the foundation for the greenway and could hit the ground running once it received funding.

Baker also realized that it made sense to divide the Mill Creek Greenway, which will be three miles long when complete, into manageable portions. The $2.6 million through the Oregon Community Paths Program will cover the construction of the central part of the greenway. This part will be the most challenging and expensive piece to build, be-cause the basalt cliffs on either side of the streambed will necessitate a raised board-walk. Once this section is built, NWCPRD is confident that local resources will be able to cover the construction of the rest of the greenway.

NWCPRD is actively working to pursue many other projects, including improving Sorosis Park, building a dog park, and expanding Thompson Park Skatepark. The district plans to engage community members over the summer and learn about what new features they would like to see at a revitalized Sorosis Park, with the goal of applying for funding through the American Rescue Plan and the Land and Water Conservation Fund by this fall.

There is no lack of collaborative community efforts in The Dalles, and the recent Mill Creek Greenway grant shows how years of planning and cooperation among partners is now benefiting the community at large. The greenway is a big step toward establishing greater connectivity among neighborhoods and enhancing quality of life for all residents in The Dalles.