Organizers of the proposed Hoodland Park District, a new entity that could
receive three parcels of land on Salmon River Road from Clackamas County
and oversee community projects from Wapinitia to Sleepy Hollow, expect the

county to verify enough signatures on a petition to put the potential district on
the May 2022 ballot. The petition required 788 signatures to be submitted to
the county before Nov. 18 to be verified, and Regina Lythgoe, co-chair of the
effort, reported 1,077 signatures were obtained.

“It was a relief to finally get them done in such a short amount of time,” she
said, adding that 34 volunteers participated in the drive to get signatures. “It
feels good to get everybody involved and all the help we got from the
volunteers.”

The county has 10 days to verify signatures and certify the petition, which
Lythgoe expected to be done in the early days of December. Once certified,
the county commissioners will have 50 days to hold a public hearing, but no
date has been set as of yet.

Lythgoe noted that organizers expect to hold a number of community forums
and other outreach following the hearing.

The proposed district would encompass approximately 20,000 acres, including
the communities of Sleepy Hollow, Brightwood, Wemme, Welches, Zigzag,
Rhododendron, Government Camp and Wapinitia, and feature a board of
directors that will be elected on the same ballot. District organizers hope to
develop the Dorman Center site as a community park, with possible amenities
including a pavilion, playground, walking trails, extended community garden,
bike pump track, skate park, dog park, space for farmers market, restrooms
and onsite security.

The district would be funded by a local property tax, proposed to be at
approximately 67 cents per $1,000 of assessed value (resulting in
approximately $200 per year on a house with an assessed value of
$300,000).
The district could acquire other land in the community (either by purchase or
a gift) and secure different methods of funding (such as grants) to create
trails connecting Mountain communities, an ice-skating rink or other
amenities.

If the district fails to form, the parcels of land on Salmon River Road will be
sold by Clackamas County.

One Mountain community expressed some reservations about the proposed
district, as the Government Camp Planning Organization formed a
subcommittee to gauge interest in it.

The subcommittee created a survey, which showed 84 percent of the 156
responses were opposed to the district (76 percent of 33 registered voters
who participated were opposed).

The survey was conducted over three days in October and was limited to one
response per household.

In a document outlining the survey, the subcommittee recommended that
petitioners should reconsider the proposal and exclude the communities of
Government Camp, Summit Meadows and Wapinitia.

Lythgoe noted the district’s aim is to improve livability throughout the
Mountain and that many of the people who work in those three areas live in
Welches, Rhododendron and other Hoodland communities.

“We’re in this together,” she said.

For more information, visit the district’s website, www.hoodlandparkdistrict.us
or email hoodlandparkdistrict@gmail.com.