Oregon City will take the lead on planning the future of Willamette Falls, marking a new phase in the efforts to develop the former Blue Heron site.

With today's growing preference for walkable communities and locally owned and operated businesses, historic streets and districts are re-emerging as the heart of the community that draw people together and help rebuild local economies. Learn how Metro's Development Center acts as a public partner in two programs for revitalizing downtowns and main streets that offer strategies from small – such as lighting and window display techniques – to grand, such as a comprehensive revitalization curriculum for a commercial district.

Metro has been looking at the site for about a year, shortly after the Blue Heron Paper Company mill shuttered amidst bankruptcy proceedings. The regional government could use money from its 2006 natural areas bond measure to buy the site, if it can reach an agreement with a bankruptcy court on the price.

Seanette Corkill photo.

Metro's Get Street Smart series offers main street business and property owners the tools and strategies for implementing low-cost high-impact projects that will polish their retail presence and help boost sales – in six free one-hour sessions.

In order to reach its full potential, downtown Lake Oswego has to tell a compelling story. Preferably, says urban strategist Michele Reeves, one that can be enjoyed by pedestrians at three miles per hour, the average walking pace.Reeves offered her recommendations for how best to create that story to the Lake Oswego City Council on May 29 as the final chapter of a four-part revitalization curriculum. Learn what more color and less parking can do for Lake Oswego's downtown story.

Communities in the Portland metropolitan region are seeing streetscapes and skylines change with multifamily, mixed-use developments located near transit that not only provide needed rental housing, but create jobs and generate economic activity. Two transit-oriented projects tell a story repeated throughout the Portland region and the nation: the smart money is on development projects that push economic recovery.

Every downtown and Main Street has a unique story to tell, claims Michele Reeves of Civilis Consultants. Reeves works with business and property owners in the region's downtowns and Main Streets to help stakeholders develop their district's civic identity by uncovering its unique story. Through her revitalization curriculum, Reeves analyzes the business mix, grid and circulation, vacancies, infrastructure, zoning, design review, parking and retail execution of a district and develops recommendations for increasing sales per square foot and enhancing ties with the community.

Learn about recent research on the impact of the built environment on health at a free presentation at Metro, 600 NE Grand, Portland, on Friday, Nov. 4, from 7:30 to 9 a.m. Dr. Lawrence Frank, the author of Health and Community Design: The Impact of the Built Environment on Physical Activity, will present information from his book and lead a discussion on public health, land use and transportation.

Today the Metro Council voted 6-0 to add 1985 acres to the region’s urban growth boundary for future housing and jobs. (Councilor Rex Burkholder was excused.) This represents less than a one-percent expansion of the region’s urban footprint to accommodate thousands of additional households and workers over the next 20 years.

Metro won't be locked in to buying the property even if it is the winning bidder. Project partners envision a park-like setting that honors the region's history and also provides economic redevelopment opportunities for Oregon City.