Some of the attendees at the Pier Park Pool Party on August 13, 2024
Recently, staff from the City of Portland have responded to posts on the Friends of Pier Park website, including:
Responses
Adina Long, Director of Parks
The first response was from Adina Long, Director of Portland Parks and Recreation, on September 4th. She wrote,
Thank you for your continued stewardship of Pier Pool. My team has passed on several questions that your group has inquired about and my responses are attached. If you are interested in meeting in person, please reach out to so I can schedule a meeting.”
These are her “responses” in a 9-page PDF. It is titled, To the Friends of Pier Park.
Kellie Torres, Chief of Staff
The second response was from Kellie Torres, Chief of Staff, Vibrant Communities Service Area, on September 5th. We should note that Kellie Torres attended the Pier Park Pool Party on August 13th. She wrote,
Thank you so much for reaching out and sharing you and your neighbor’s concerns about the issues in Pier Park, particularly regarding Pier Pool. I completely understand how disappointing it must have been for you and the community to have the pool out of commission for the entire summer. Please know that your voices are important, and we truly appreciate your passion and investment in improving the park.
Attached to this email, you’ll find a PDF that provides detailed information about the status of Pier Pool, the repairs needed, and Portland Parks & Recreation’s (PP&R) ongoing efforts to address these challenges. We also tried to address all the questions we heard asked during the community meeting on August 13th.
Please don’t hesitate to reach out if you have any further questions or if I can assist you in any other way. I am always happy to provide updates or discuss how we can best support the neighborhood in the future.
Thank you again for your continued advocacy.”
Kellie Torres’ response included a 4-page PDF file. It is titled Friends of Pier Park Blog Post Response and addresses primarily the Pier Park’s Missing Funds: An Injustice to Our Park and People post.
Where We Go From Here
Friends of Pier Park is working on next steps, crafting a response, and ensuring an equitable solution for our Park and Pool. We will be scheduling meetings with Adina Long and others at the City of Portland and will keep you informed.
Remember to vote!
Candidate for Mayor, Keith Wilson, sent a representative to the Pier Park Pool Party who spoke emotionally about his own children needing to learn to swim and said, “Social infrastructure is infrastructure.”
District 2 candidates who attended included:
- Debbie Kitchin who wants to focus on parks and equitable access, restoring pools, parks and equitable development.
- Laura Streib who suggested we get in contact with Kidz Outdoors who has worked with George Park on installing a new and improved playground/park. She also suggested contacting the Portland Parks Foundation.
- Tiffani Penson who is committed to accessible and accountable budgets and said, “Part of an answer to our question is that an accessible and accountable budget should clearly illuminate where the money is going, and potentially direct more to Pier Park.”
- Bob Simril said that because of his childhood and background he is focused on equity issues and, if elected, will approve funding for disadvantaged neighborhoods first.
While he was not in attendance, District 2 candidate, James Armstrong commented on the Pier Park’s Missing Funds post saying, “This was a very well put together explainer and budget analysis. Thank you for putting this summary together and for advocating for your community park.”