Eastbank Esplanade

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The Eastbank Esplanade

The Eastbank Esplanade (officially Vera Katz Eastbank Esplanade) is a pedestrian and bicycle path along the east shore of the Willamette River in Portland, Oregon, United States.[1] Running through the Kerns, Buckman, and Hosford-Abernethy neighborhoods, it was conceived as an urban renewal project to rebuild the Interstate 5 bicycle bypass washed out by the Willamette Valley Flood of 1996. It was renamed for former Portland mayor Vera Katz in November 2004[1] and features a statue of her near the Hawthorne Bridge.

The project, designed by landscape architects Mayer/Reed, cost $30 million,[2] of which $10 million built a lower deck on the Steel Bridge. Construction began in October 1998, and the walkway was dedicated in May 2001.[1]

The esplanade extends 1.5 miles (2.4 km) from the Steel Bridge (45°31′37″N 122°40′13″W / 45.526871°N 122.670403°W / 45.526871; -122.670403 (Esplanade north end at Steel Bridge)) to the Hawthorne Bridge (45°30′46″N 122°40′05″W / 45.512804°N 122.668059°W / 45.512804; -122.668059 (Esplanade south end under Hawthorne Bridge)).[1] The south end connects to the Springwater Corridor, a rail trail that runs south to Sellwood, then east to Gresham, then south to Boring. The esplanade includes a 1,200-foot (370 m) floating walkway, the longest of its kind in the United States.[1] Connected to this is a 120-foot (37 m) public dock.[1] Thirteen markers along the esplanade correspond to the eastside street grid.

Downtown Portland as seen from the Eastbank Esplanade, with The World cruise ship docked at the waterfront

The esplanade was closed for 21 days due to high river levels in 2011, the first time it has been closed since built.[3]

A large section of the esplanade

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 "Eastbank Esplanade". City of Portland. 2008. Retrieved 2008-04-07. 
  2. ↑ "$30M pedestrian walkway project opens Friday". Daily Journal of Commerce. May 24, 2001. Retrieved 2008-04-07. 
  3. ↑ John Tierney (2011-06-20). "Eastbank Esplanade reopens after river levels drop". KATU. Retrieved 2011-06-20. 

External links

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Coordinates: 45°31′25″N 122°39′58″W / 45.523718°N 122.666149°W / 45.523718; -122.666149 (Eastbank Esplanade midpoint)

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