On Saturday, June 2 the City of Gresham Parks & Recreation Division, will kick off the event with a formal dedication at 10 a.m. to celebrate the grand opening of Phase I of the Gresham-Fairview Trail, held in conjunction with the American Hiking Society’s National Trails Day.
The formal dedication will be followed by festivities along the trail at Northeast Holladay Street and Northeast 201st Avenue in
Gresham. Visitors are asked to park nearby the trail at Reynolds Middle School. Activities include exercising on the trail, free
trail mix, and bottled water.
The newest trail in Gresham has something for everyone, whether walking, running, biking, skateboarding or taking dogs for a
leashed walk. The first completed section of trail is 1.24 miles long and features a whole lot of green, from drought resistant
trees and native shrubs from Northeast Halsey Street to Northwest Burnside Road, to the trail’s permeable pavement – a low impact
development technique that allows rainwater to drain through the pavement back into the ground, helping prevent muddy runoff to
local water sources.
The 12-foot wide, 5.2 mile-long multi-use recreational trail will link neighborhoods to schools, parks, natural areas and businesses.
The Gresham-Fairview Trail will serve as a major north/south connector between the Springwater Trail and the 40-Mile Loop at
Marine Drive, two regionally significant and heavily used trails. The future Gresham-Fairview Trail will provide the missing link
between neighborhoods and these two regional trails. It will also connect with the Columbia River Slough Greenway walking/hiking
trail; the 1-84 multi-use bike/pedestrian path; the Salish Ponds Trail; the MAX Trail; and will help connect with Metro’s Blue Lake
Regional Park.
The City of Gresham confirmed in December 2006 that the 5.2-mile multi-use Gresham-Fairview Trail project now has the funding to
construct the next 2 miles of the trail, from Northwest Burnside Road south to the Springwater Trail, years ahead of what would have been possible otherwise.
The City will receive $2 million in federal transportation funds to design and construct Phases 2 and 3 of the Gresham-Fairview Trail;
the funding was secured by Oregon Congressman Earl Blumenauer and is available from the federal Safe, Accountable, Flexible,
Efficient Transportation Act – Legacy for Users.
When Phases 2 and 3 are opened for public use in fall 2009, citizens will be able to walk, jog and bicycle 3.28 miles from
Northeast Halsey Street south to the Springwater Trail.
Phase 1 opened to the public for recreational use in November 2006