Portland Botanical Gardens Signs Purchase and Sale Agreement of McCormick and Baxter Site

PORTLAND, OREGON, USA, April 30, 2024 /EINPresswire.com/ -- On Earth Day (April 22, 2024), Portland Botanical Gardens (PBG) secured an option to purchase the 59-acre McCormick & Baxter (M&B) superfund site at 6900 N. Edgewater Road in North Portland. The Purchase and Sale Agreement (PSA) gives PBG one year to conduct due diligence. PBG’s conceptual plans include the garden (pavilions, outdoor pathways, greenhouses, offices, research and interpretive collections), open gathering space (semi-public), and the Willamette River Greenway along the waterfront and public access to the longest stretch of clean river beach in the Portland Harbor.

A former creosoting wood treatment plant for railroad and telephone poles, the McCormick & Baxter property was designated a Superfund site in the early 1990s, with cleanup and remediation completed in 2005. Situated on the Willamette River in the Portland Harbor, the site includes 18 acres of submerged land and roughly 42 acres of riparian and upland habitat. More than 30,000 tons of contaminated soils were removed, and the entire site was re-landscaped with 3-6 feet of clean soil and native plantings throughout. If purchased, PBG will assume the ongoing environmental conservation, monitoring, and maintenance duties in collaboration with the Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and demonstrate the potential for natural healing and native habitat restoration on formerly polluted lands.

The site faces south along the Willamette River and is backed by rare savanna bluffs. It sits between Metro’s Willamette Cove property and University of Portland’s new Franz River Campus and includes 2,000 feet of Willamette River waterfront. Central to PBG’s plan is continuous public access to the property’s entire stretch of waterfront, giving Portland residents a much-needed increase in access to its waterways.

“This allows us to begin engaging with Portland’s communities and neighborhoods to find out what they want to see at PBG. We want them to be on the ground floor of designing what we hope will be one of the great botanical gardens of the world.” - Sean Hogan, Executive Director of PBG

Portland Botanical Gardens (PBG) was formed in 2020 as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit by a passionate group of botanists, conservationists, and horticulturists. Devoted to the creation of a community-serving botanical garden in the city of Portland, PBG’s mission is to bring plants and people together to provide an immersive space for knowledge, community, and collaboration.

The vision for PBG revolves around Oregon’s diverse landscapes and Portland’s celebrated culture of gardening. PBG imagines a centrally located garden accessible to all, composed with a mix of outdoor pathways, pavilions, and greenhouses to showcase Pacific Northwest botanical diversity, biogeographic exhibits, and endangered and significant plants of the world. Educational components include facilities to support research, learning, and vocational training.

PBG is led by Sean Hogan (Executive Director), with a core team including Matt Taylor (Project Director), Dan Pogust (Marketing Director), and Natalie Myers-Guzmán (Administrative Assistant). The organization recently moved to an office space in the Pearl District. PBG maintains a mailing list of more than 1,000 individuals and relies on a legion of volunteers and supporters. PBG’s eight-member board of directors is led by Karl Rapfogel (President), and is actively recruiting new leaders.

Opening a downtown office, growing its board and staff, and securing an option on this property mark major milestones in PBG’s continued development. Over the next year PBG will work with public agencies, neighborhood groups, tribal authorities, conservation organizations, and other stakeholders throughout the city to co-create a unique botanical garden with and for the residents of Portland.

PBG welcomes new volunteers and all inquiries, and can be reached through email (info@portlandbg.org). For ongoing stories, sign up for PBG’s email updates or follow its ‘Plant of Week’ on Instagram or the website: www.portlandbg.org.

ABOUT PORTLAND BOTANICAL GARDENS
Portland Botanical Gardens aims to cultivate a community where people connect, discover, and celebrate the beauty, strength, and resilience of plants. In a city known for its gardens, PBG celebrates the diversity, resilience, and importance of plants, striving to create a collaborative, cooperative, and immersive experience for organizations and individuals in Portland, the United States, and across the globe to connect to the natural world. Built on the foundation of “nature for all,” PBG will be a leader in horticultural training, research, and environmental justice and equity. Through educational programs and innovative facilities and collections, visitors will get a unique glance into the planet’s diverse flora and the effects humans have on it for a one-of-a-kind botanical experience.

Barrie Cohen
BC Public Relations
+1 303-900-7505
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