News The city’s Parks & Recreation Bureau wants to fix up one of Portland's dog parks—and it wants you to vote for which one gets the makeover.Parks spokesman Mark Ross says the Trail Blazers and Banfield Pet Hospital are footing the $10,000 cost of the park improvements.He says the idea for using a popularity contest—rather than the bureau deciding internally which park needs the most work or ...   More

Murmurs Occupy Portland reportedly did $85,000 in damage during its 39-day stay in Lownsdale and Chapman squares-—this according to the Parks & Recreation Bureau. But a retired Parks Bureau plumbe   More

News UPDATE: The Parks Budget Advisory Committee released its slightly revised list of proposed cuts Thursday afternoon. Notable changes include moving the closure of Hillside Community Center to the 6 percent-cut scenario and the cut to parks workers into the worst-case scenario.It’s possible that next August, when families flock to Portland’s parks to play, picnic and cool off, they may have to use ...   More

News The Portland Marathon donated $4,000 Wednesday to the city’s “Restore our Historic Squares Fund,” which has been set up to help cover the estimated $85,000 cost of restoring Chapman and Lownsdale squares after Occupy Portland’s eviction on Nov. 13.The marathon is the second group that felt victimized by the Occupy Portland movement to donate money to help the city clean up after the 39-day ...   More

News A 16-month experiment with single-sex swim sessions at Buckman Pool appears to be coming to an end. This month, as City of Portland bureaus head into their next round of budget cuts, Portland Parks & Recreation has prepared its proposal for eliminating 4 percent of costs from its 2010-2011 budget. On the chopping block? A women-only swim time that was created to accommodate the customs ...   More