Access to public green spaces like Sacajawea Park and neighborhood bike routes is essential for the health, safety, and connectivity of our Cully neighbors. Parks are not just recreational amenities. They’re critical infrastructure that support physical activity, safe routes to school and work, community connection, and mental well-being.
For many years, access to the park from the north and the west has been gated shut. This leaves neighbors on those borders only two options for accessing the park:
- Entering through the Head Start early learners school parking lot, which is understandably closed off during school hours; or
- Walking or biking a half mile to the next nearest entrance via Prescott Street, a high-traffic corridor that lacks a bike lane and is unsafe for families and children.
As such, the currently gated entrance at 74th Avenue & Alberta Street represents a significant and unnecessary barrier to the park for a large swath of the neighborhood, discouraging use of, and reducing equitable access to this vital green space.
In addition, the gate serves as an abrupt end to the Alberta Greenway, and therefore a glaring gap in the bike infrastructure connecting East Portland to the rest of the city. Not to mention, per Portland Bureau of Transportation (PBOT), Alberta Street leading to the gate is a public right-of-way. It is not a private road or driveway, as it appears.
The neighbors of Cully and residents of Portland at large urge Portland Parks & Recreation and the Portland Bureau of Transportation to take immediate and effective action to create access to Sacajawea Park from west of 74th Ave. We specifically propose that:
- Portland Parks and Recreation secure funding for a gate design that provides access for pedestrians, cyclists, and park maintenance vehicles but prevents other vehicles from entering the park
- PBOT install no-parking signage between 73rd and 74th on Alberta Street to address prior neighborhood concerns
Following restoration of access, we propose that Portland Parks & Recreation monitor usage and community impact, and develop a long-term master plan for the park.
Future improvements could include:
- A paved multi-use path connecting the Alberta Greenway through the park
- Picnic tables and awnings
- Play structures
The Cully community deserves safe and equitable access to public green spaces and safe alternative transportation commuter routes. Let’s work together to push for sensible urban planning that takes into consideration the safety and needs of all Portland residents.
Sign this petition to restore access to Sacajawea Park at Northeast 74th Avenue & Alberta Street!
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