Portland Japanese Garden Recloses Following Two Positive Cases of COVID-19 Among Staff

The two cases occurred roughly two weeks apart, with the second being confirmed yesterday.

IMAGE: Courtesy of Portland Japanese Gardens.
By Matthew Singer

The Portland Japanese Garden, one of Portland's major tourist attractions, is temporarily shutting down after two staff members tested positive for the coronavirus.

CEO Steve Bloom made the announcement in a press release Tuesday night, revealing that the two cases occurred roughly two weeks apart, with the second case being confirmed yesterday.

"[A]s the number of daily cases are on the rise in Oregon, we believe it is prudent to act with an abundance of caution and temporarily close the garden again," Bloom said. "The safety and well-being of our staff and community is paramount to us."

The Japanese Garden initially closed due to the pandemic March 19, and subsequently laid off 90% of its employees. It reopened June 11, ahead of Multnomah County entering Phase 1, after Gov. Kate Brown announced that public gardens across Oregon could return to welcoming guests.

According to The Oregonian, the first employee to test positive went into quarantine last Thursday, along with all other staff members who had contact with them. The second positive test came from an employee who had not had contact with the first, and was said to be "100% confident" the disease was not contracted at the garden.

The garden will shut down through at least Friday, July 17, for cleaning and to determine further measures.

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