Tanner Springs Park facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Tanner Springs Park |
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Tanner Springs Park in 2009
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| Type | Urban park |
| Location | Portland, Oregon |
| Area | 0.92 acres (0.37 ha) |
| Created | 2005 |
| Operated by | Portland Parks & Recreation |
| Status | Open 5 a.m. to midnight daily |
Tanner Springs Park is a cool city park located in Portland, Oregon's Pearl District. It's known for its peaceful, natural design that brings a bit of wild nature back into the city. The park is a great spot to relax and enjoy a quiet moment.
Park History
The idea for Tanner Springs Park came from a plan for the Pearl District in 1999. At first, it was going to be called North Park Square. But in April 2005, its name was changed to Tanner Springs Park.
A famous artist named Maya Lin was originally going to design the park. She had an idea for a large sculpture called "Playground." However, people living in the Pearl District were worried. They already had Jamison Square, another park just for kids, only two blocks away. They wanted Tanner Springs Park to be different and offer something new for the neighborhood.
Park Design and Features
Tanner Springs Park is connected to the busy Jamison Square by a wooden boardwalk. This boardwalk is made from a strong wood called ipê. While Jamison Square is lively, Tanner Springs Park is designed to be quiet and natural.
The park was created by Atelier Dreiseitl and GreenWorks PC. They wanted to remove the old industrial look of the area. Their goal was to bring back the feeling of the wetlands that were there before factories and buildings. This included bringing back the spirit of Tanner Creek, which used to flow through this spot.
The New York Times described the park as a mix of an Italian piazza (a public square) and a wild, wet area with lots of benches. You can sit by gently flowing streams. The way the water flows and sounds was carefully planned by architect Herbert Dreiseitl. He worked hard to make sure the rushing water made a perfect, calming sound.
The park is filled with tall, native grasses. It also has trees like Oregon oak, red alder, and bigleaf maple. These trees were found and moved from other parts of the region. They were planted in the park as already grown trees.
The Artwall
On the east side of the park, there's a cool art display called Artwall. It's mostly made from old railroad tracks that were found in the area. These tracks stand upright along the wall. The Portland Terminal Railroad gave these rails to the park. Some of the rails are very old, dating back to 1898!
A local glass company called Bullseye Glass provided 99 pieces of see-through blue glass. These glass pieces are placed among the old rails. Herbert Dreiseitl, the park's water designer, painted pictures of native animals on these glass pieces.
