State Legislature Unanimously Passes Bill to Resolve Parks Dispute between the City of Happy Valley and Clackamas County/NCPRD
Earlier this week, the Oregon State Legislature unanimously passed House Bill 4106 which removes the City from NCPRD. As a result, Happy Valley will become its own parks and recreation provider and NCPRD will move forward with certainty in its boundary and the ability to focus on providing services to its residents. House Bill 4106 was a shared priority for both the City of Happy Valley and Clackamas County. This was an important part of a settlement agreement reached last December.
The City of Happy Valley and Clackamas County would like to give special thanks to Representatives Bynum and Meek who were instrumental in helping the parties reach a settlement and bringing this legislation forward. The bill was also sponsored by Senators Thomsen and Taylor and Representatives Drazan, Lewis, McLain, Neron, Reardon, and Williams.
The City and NCPRD are looking forward to improving parks and recreation services for their respective residents. NCPRD can now focus its resources on important projects such as Milwaukie Bay Park and the future development of the Concord, Wichita and Clackamas elementary schools.
Likewise, Happy Valley recently completed a Parks and Recreation Master Plan that includes development of a new community park, future community center, all-weather turf fields at Happy Valley Park, and new trails.
For questions, contact:
Ben Bryant, Happy Valley Assistant City Manager, at [email protected] or 503-783-3840.
Tim Heider, Clackamas County Public Affairs Manager, at [email protected] or 503-742-5911