Spring 2025 Update

Posted on by Matthew Taylor

Happy Earth and Arbor Days!

We hope this finds you well and enjoying the beautiful spring weather. This update comes right between Earth Day (April 22) and Arbor Day (April 25), days of stewardship and celebration of the natural world, and a great time to share news about the Portland Botanical Gardens (PBG).

As many of you know, it has been a year since PBG signed a Purchase and Sale Agreement (PSA) to acquire the McCormick & Baxter site along the Willamette River. We have come a long way since then. Thank you again for your support, questions and feedback in that time! 

Following are key updates in the process and ways to get involved and learn more.

Extension through end of 2025

We are excited to announce that we have extended the PSA through the end of the year, hoping to close in December.

This additional time will allow PBG to conduct broader outreach and integrate the ideas shared with us.

It will also allow sufficient time to complete remaining due diligence and to finalize Prospective Purchaser Agreements (Superfund requirement) with the Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). 

Great Location for a Botanical Garden?

Over the past year we have intensively studied the feasibility of locating a major botanical garden at McCormick & Baxter, a 59 acre remediated Superfund site.

We worked on big questions around traffic and vehicular access, funding requirements, business and program models, construction options, access to the river, and productive synergies with immediate neighbors and the larger Portland community.

Many of the answers point to “Yes, this is a great location for a botanical garden.” As we continue to share information, we look forward to hearing your thoughts, ideas and questions.

Learn More

The PBG website (www.portlandbg.com) provides key information about the project, and we regularly publish short articles on Instagram. Upcoming are a number of in-person and online opportunities where you can learn more.

  • April 28th (Monday) University Park Neighborhood Association (UPNA) General Meeting: PBG will give a short presentation and answer questions. (Note: the McCormick & Site is located in the University Park neighborhood.) If you live in the neighborhood or nearby, please consider attending.
    • 7-8:30pm, in person at the Chiles Center, University of Portland, 5000 N. Willamette Blvd. Portland, OR 97203. 
    • RSVP at UPNA website
  • May 8th (Thursday) Community Informational webinar: DEQ will give a presentation about the Prospective Purchaser Agreement (PPA) process and the site’s cleanup history, and PBG will present its vision and proposal and answer questions. It is open to all.
  • Site Tours: We continue to give site tours to stakeholders, donors, and volunteers. If you are interested in joining a tour, please email info@portlandbg.org and we will add you to the invitation list as they are scheduled. 

Please Support Portland Botanical Gardens

PBG is fortunate that so many of you donate, volunteer, subscribe to the newsletter, follow us on Instagram, and support this effort in other ways. To date we’ve raised over $300,000, as well as a comparable amount in volunteer hours, pro bono services, and value-in-kind donations. Thank you all.

Donate

All contributions are tax deductible and go directly to the effort to secure the McCormick & Baxter site for a future botanical garden. Please visit the Donate page for ways to give. 

Volunteer

We know the lifeblood of a botanical garden is its volunteers. Please email info@portlandbg.org to be added to the volunteer list, and we will keep you posted on opportunities.

Advocate

Tell friends about the project! Encourage them to sign up for the newsletter, follow PBG on Instagram, volunteer, and attend information meetings, webinars, site tours and open houses.

With your help we can secure this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to establish a ‘Garden for All.’

Sincerely,

Matthew Taylor
Executive Director
mtaylor@portlandbg.org