SULLIVAN'S GULCH
NEIGHBORHOOD ACTION PLAN

Adopted 7/16/87 
by Portland City Council

 Introduction

The blackberry is the symbol of the Sullivan's Gulch Neighborhood because is represents something that is tenacious and attractive with its greenery, flowers and fruit, but it is not without thorns. The neighborhood has much to offer. Its location is convenient to downtown and Lloyd Center for jobs and shopping, and also to major transportation and transit routes which provide access to other areas of the city. Its narrow, shady streets are lined with gracious apartment buildings and large, comfortable homes. The neighborhood character is typified by the age and quality of its residences and the established landscaping and trees throughout the neighborhood core. Its neighborhood spirit is not only characterized by an active involvement in the Comprehensive Plan process and local land-use matters, but also its initiative in funding and creating a plan for the neighborhood. Its residents appreciate these positive aspects of the neighborhood.

However, living close to the center of the city and near the access routes which make the location so convenient is not without drawbacks. The freeway sends out substantial noise. The neighborhood streets carry much “through traffic.” The pressures to provide increased densities continue. As the homes age and need maintenance and repair, the wisdom of making the required investments is questioned if the stability of the neighborhood is in doubt.

The neighborhood worked hard during the Comprehensive Plan process to support the existing mix of residential development by having much of the area rezoned to lower densities. In the years since the Comprehensive Plan adoption, the neighborhood has seen stabilization in the percentage of home ownership and significant upgrading of both houses and apartments.  

The neighborhood is well-defined at its edges with a commercial strip on the north, a freeway overpass at N-E 33rd on the east, the Banfield Freeway on the south, and Lloyd Center on the west. Within its borders is a solid residential core of mixed housing types. There is very limited vacant land within the neighborhood core defined as. However, along the gulch there are opportunities to develop both residential and nonresidential uses. The neighborhood blocks adjacent to Lloyd Center provide opportunities for new high-density housing.

The Sullivan's Gulch Neighborhood Action Plan is a tool for the neighborhood to be involved with planning its future. It is a continuation of the work which was begun with the Comprehensive Plan. It is supportive of that plan and the city policies which support neighborhood preservation. It is as much a plan for growth, but growth that is sensitive to its neighbors. The following goal, policies and objectives are those which will enhance this part of the city and showcase how an inner-city neighborhood can thrive on its mix of densities, population, and promote growth that will make Sullivan's Gulch an even better place to live and work.

The purpose of bringing this neighborhood plan to the City Council is twofold: 1) to recognize the efforts of the citizens of Sullivan's Gulch and 2) to adopt the goal, policies and objectives of the Sullivan's Gulch Neighborhood Action Plan as a Neighborhood Plan under Portland Comprehensive Plan Policy 3.6.

The Planning Commission voted unanimously to recommend that City Council adopt the plan's goal, policies and objectives at a public hearing on May 12,1987. The City Council adopted the plan on July 16,1987.

Plan History

The Sullivan's Gulch Neighborhood Action Plan is the product of three distinct planning efforts. The first was a study done by Portland State University graduate students in 1982, Sullivan's Gulch Problems. Issues and Strategies. This document provided issue identification through a neighborhood perception survey, a land-use survey and statistical analyses of Census and other data.

The neighborhood residents, property owners, and business people produced the original Sullivan's Gulch Neighborhood Action Plan after securing a grant from the Oregon Communities Foundation and assistance from the Central Northeast Neighbors Office. This second, citizen-based effort was completed with adoption of their plan by the neighborhood association on June 28, 1986.

The third and present effort is a collaborative one with the neighborhood and the Bureau of Planning. In late fall of 1986, the Neighborhood Planning Section of the Bureau of Planning began work with the Sullivan's Gulch Neighborhood Association to refine their plan and assure its compliance with the City's Comprehensive Plan and other adopted policies. The City Council is asked only to adopt the plan's goal, policies and objectives. The Neighborhood Implementing Actions are those things that the neighborhood can take responsibility for that will help carry out the plan. The Planning Commission endorsed the plan for City Council adoption on May 12,1987. City Council adopted the plan on July 16,1987.

The Plan Process

In July, 1985, the Sullivan's Gulch Neighborhood Association (SGNA) applied for a grant from the Oregon Communities Foundation. In November, 1985, the SGNA Board hired a coordinator for the project and in December approved the selection of a steering committee to spearhead the project. The committee included property owners, renters, landlords and business people.

The committee met monthly from January through June to review other neighborhood plans, update the land-use map, brainstorm about issues and solutions, provide leadership for workshops and subcommittees, and review plan drafts. The Committee also helped put together an occupant mailing and distribute flyers, newsletters, and questionnaires door-to-door in the neighborhood and along NE, Broadway.

The first workshop was held March 22,1986 and was attended by 47 citizens and representatives from the Bureaus of Planning, Transportation, Parks and Buildings and the Portland Development Commission. The identification of issues and formulation of subcommittees came out of this workshop, which utilized both large and small group interaction. Four subcommittees were formed from loosely defined and frequently overlapping subject areas: 1) Neighborhood Safety and Security/Neighborhood livability; 2)Transportation/Traffic; 3) Housing/Land Use; and 4) Parks and Recreation/Environmental Design/Open Spaces.

These subcommittees, with assistance from various bureaus, reviewed and refined the issue areas and proposed recommendations for solutions, goals, and policies, which were the focus of a second workshop. They also identified owners of vacant land, contacted resource people regarding crime statistics and crime prevention programs, and walked the neighborhood in search of potential sites for community use. 

A second workshop was held on Saturday, April 26th. Draft issues, goals and policy recommendations were reviewed and discussed. Out of this workshop came the consensus from which the draft plan was produced.

The draft plan was presented to the membership of the neighborhood association at a general meeting on June 10, 1986. Most of its recommendations were directed to the neighborhood association. It was adopted by the association at a special meeting on June 25, 1986.

In October, 1986, the Bureau of Planning selected the Sullivan's Gulch Neighborhood to receive technical assistance under the bureau's new neighborhood planning process in order to bring a plan to City Council.

The neighborhood agreed to work within the city's neighborhood planning process guidelines which provide for continued neighborhood participation. The neighborhood plan steering committee was reconvened and met in November and January to setup a third public workshop.

The third workshop was held on January 28, 1987. Notice of the workshop was sent to all property owners in the neighborhood and announcements were distributed to apartments and businesses. Approximately 25 citizens attended the workshop. The purpose of the workshop was to explain the city's involvement in the plan process, provide another opportunity for citizen participation and endorse the neighborhood's original plan. Several areas of contention were identified at that workshop. Staff spent the following several weeks meeting with those individuals who were not supportive of the plan and the neighborhood association in an attempt to find consensus by reworking the neighborhood's plan to reflect a broader view of the issues and solutions.

Much of the month of March was spent coordinating the revised neighborhood plan with the other planning efforts affecting the neighborhood; the Central City Plan, the new convention center and the Sullivan's Gulch Neighborhood Traffic Management Plan. In April, the steering committee began meeting regularly to review ever-changing drafts of the plan being submitted to the Planning Commission. The plan policies, objectives and neighborhood implementing actions were presented to the neighborhood association at a general meeting on April, 29,1987. The plan was applauded at that meeting.

Notification of the May 12,1987 Planning Commission hearing and expected City Council hearing was mailed to all property owners thirty days prior to the hearing date. Notification was also distributed to apartments within the neighborhood.

The Planning Commission on May 12,1987 voted unanimously to recommend that City Council adopt the goal, policies and objectives of the neighborhood plan.

Notice of the City Council hearing scheduled for July 8,1987 was sent to those who had participated previously or had requested notification. The second reading of ordinances adopting the plan was held on July 16, 1987.

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