Luuwit View Park

In an area of NE Portland, still surrounded by working farms, sits 16 acres of land on the edge of the Columbia River’s historic flood plain that represents Portland’s newest generation of parks. Luuwit View Park – Luuwit, the Native Cowlitz word for Mt. St. Helens – features commanding views of the distant mountains and opportunities to reach a neighborhood that has been historically deficient in recreational open space.

The neighborhood, a mix of post-war ranch housing and a rapidly changing demographic, is home to scores of spoken languages resulting from a recent influx of young immigrant families to the area. This mixture of young and old and its resultant ethnic diversity sets the theme for a new generation of parks that must navigate these cultural changes and bring new ideas about recreation to the City. Through an extensive public outreach effort and a dynamic set of site challenges, Luuwit View Park has emerged from the existing farm fields as a dynamic new neighborhood gathering place in the Argay Neighborhood.