Response to Field of Schemes

The following is a Letter to the Editor of Willamette Week by Linda Robinson, East Portland resident. It is in response to Field of Schemes, an article published last week about the Master Plan for Whitaker Ponds (pdf). Neither Linda’s letter nor one sent by Mike Houck of the Urban Greenspaces Institute appears in the online version of this week’s edition.

As a side note, I previewed Next Up at City Council for 3/21/07, when the Master Plan was on the Council agenda. The proposed Master Plan document was not posted on PortlandOnLine – it only went up after adoption. People (including journalists) generally make fewer mistakes when accurate information is readily available when it is needed.

To: Willamette Week Letters
From: Linda Robinson
Re: Response to “Field of Schemes” by Nicholas Deshais

“Nick Deshais missed the point in his “Field of Schemes” article. I see Whitaker Ponds as a wonderful example of “kids & nature”, not “kids vs nature”.

As a founding member of the Columbia Slough Watershed Council, I’ve spent a lot of time helping create environmental learning opportunities at Whitaker Ponds. Despite the limited facilities that exist at this time, the programs at Whitaker Ponds provide thousands of children and hundreds of adults every year with hands-on nature experiences — with the potential to serve even more in the future as the Master Plan is implemented.

While I did not serve on the Master Plan Committee, I attended several meetings during the master plan process. In every case, it was obvious that members of the Committee and Portland Parks staff were working diligently to address the concerns of the Little League. It was always clear that the ball fields would not be removed until a good alternative location is available.

As a volunteer who has been involved in parks at all levels — from chairing the park committee in my neighborhood to serving on the Portland Parks Budget Review Committee to serving on Metro’s Greenspaces Policy Advisory Committee — I am painfully aware that the Cully neighborhood is one of the most park deficient areas in the City of Portland. The Little League ball fields are one of the only (if not the only) ball fields in the neighborhood. Likewise, Whitaker Ponds is the only natural park in the neighborhood. The neighborhood needs both, and the City and the Watershed Council are committed to making sure that both will thrive — to meet the needs of the youth in the area.”