Every project must be accessible to the public, and a Metro grant can foot the bill for a maximum of one-third of the total cost. Recipients typically buy land, restore it, improve neighborhood livability or fuel an urban transformation – and this year’s six projects represent all those categories. Recipients will expand Lily K. Johnson Park in Beaverton and the Baltimore Woods corridor in North Portland, develop Cully Park in Northeast Portland and Nadaka Nature Park in Gresham, replace a stone bridge at Tryon Creek State Park and restore a creek in central Beaverton.

Methodically piled heaps of steel and cement mark a block in downtown Cornelius under development. In the coming months, an informal parking lot and alley in downtown Cornelius will be transformed into a full-service medical campus, complemented with a green ribbon of a walkway funded by a Metro Nature in Neighborhoods capital grant.

Beaverton develops blueprint for downtown redevelopment with community help, and will work with Metro and community leaders to implement its vision.

If you were inspired by Metro's recent Nature in Neighborhoods grant recipients, who are transforming an alley into a green parkway, restoring fish habitat and more, why not join them? It's time to fine-tune your own idea to protect and enhance nature. Metro staff needs to know how many viable projects are brewing to anticipate the next full application period. If you have a project ready for consideration, submit your letter of interest as soon as possible.

A transformation will begin soon in the heart of Cornelius, as gray asphalt turns green. A project by the Virginia Garcia Memorial Health Center to turn an alleyway on its property into a linear parkway is one of three in Washington County awarded Nature in Neighborhoods grants by the Metro Council on May 19.

Envision standing underneath a magnificent old oak and looking down into the Willamette River to see salmon and trout making their way into the mouth of Johnson Creek. Now imagine watching an invasive weed new to the Portland metropolitan area clog ponds at the Blue Heron Wetlands and make its way to nearby waterways including Smith and Bybee lakes. Efforts to protect, restore, promote and celebrate nature throughout the Portland metropolitan region received a nearly $1.6 million boost from Metro on Thursday. The Metro Council awarded 17 Nature in Neighborhood grants to a variety of worthwhile projects.

Kaiser Permanente awarded Metro Regional Travel Options a $75,000 grant to support a new project currently called “Vámanos! Let’s explore Cornelius, Forest Grove and Hillsboro by bike and foot.” The goal of the project is to increase awareness of places to bike and walk among families in Cornelius, Forest Grove and Hillsboro. The project will have a specific focus on connecting with Latino families.

Wondering how to install bike lockers in your community? Interested in encouraging your community to walk, bike or ride transit? If so, your city, public agency or nonprofit may want to apply for a Metro grant, but you will want to act fast. The application due date of Oct. 15 is rapidly approaching. A total of $533,000 in federal transportation funds is available.

This week Metro will host two free grant workshops for its Nature in Neighborhoods capital grants program. The capital grants provide funding for innovative projects that improve the ecological functions of neighborhoods and enrich people’s experience of nature as a fundamental element of their community’s character and livability. Funded by a 2006 voter-approved bond measure, $3.3 million in capital grants have been awarded since 2008.

Join Metro this week for a rare tour of Smith and Bybee Wetlands to find out how Metro and its partners are working to restore and enhance the unique habitat at Smith and Bybee Wetlands. If marshy adventures aren't your cup of tea, watch for birds at Cooper Mountain or explore the natural beauty of Clear Creek. The best part is, most of the events are low-cost or free, and registration can be completed online. Follow the links below for more information.