Summer fun is seriously scaled back at Blue Lake Park, our city’s biggest attraction.
We can thank COVID – and construction. Due to safety concerns from the persistent pandemic, the swim beach and the paddle boats will be closed this summer. So too will the kids’ splash pad, play areas, basketball and volleyball courts, and horseshoe pits. Restrooms will also be shuttered, although port-a-potties will be available near the parking lots.
Some closures, though, are due to good stewardship by Metro, the owners of the park, and good investments by voters. Metro, our regional government, is putting in a new water line, and also replacing aging park structures like the fishing pier, park office, maintenance building, and Lake House. The work comes courtesy of the 2019 parks and nature bond measure, which was championed by Metro leaders like East County Councilor Shirley Craddick. Our investment is paying off, right here in Fairview.
But the bug and the backhoes leave only a few activities available at Blue Lake.
This summer, we can visit the park to:
· Walk
· Bike
· Picnic in the grass
· Fish from the shoreline
· Play disc golf
· Visit the Nichaqwli Monument
· Launch a private kayak or canoe
· Launch a private board with horsepower less than 3.0
We'll get a say in amenities to be built at Blue Lake. Later this summer, Metro will ask the public what future priorities should be for the park – structures, special spots, etc. Kelsey Wallace at Metro reports that public outreach will be virtual (thanks again, COVID) most likely in the form of online surveys. To sign up for Blue Lake updates, and find out about the surveys, sign up here.
Meantime, learn more about the Blue Lake closures and construction on the Metro site here, and also in this story in the Gresham Outlook.
