Clackamas County approved a petition that could pave the way for voters to
decide the fate of a proposed Hoodland Park District on the May 17, 2022
ballot. The petition, in the works since before the coronavirus pandemic
began, will now be circulated through the Mountain community as organizers
hope to secure 1,000 signatures before the Thursday, Nov. 18 deadline.
“It feels very gratifying,” said Marci Slater, one of the organizers of the effort,
noting the petition requires 788 valid signatures but they have a higher target
to provide a margin of error. “We are looking forward to just getting it on the

ballot. We want to get it on the ballot so that everybody has a voice in
whether this goes through. I feel like there’s a lot of momentum in the
community for this.”

The proposed district, which had originally been considered for the November
2020 election, 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. If formed, the district would
receive three parcels along Salmon River Road gifted by Clackamas County,
including the site of the former Dorman Center, which features the current
community garden.

The district would 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).

Organizers and up to 25 volunteers were expected to begin collecting
signatures at various sites throughout the community starting on Friday, Oct.
29 (a full list of sites and times is available at the end of this story). Slater
added that she expects another 20 volunteers to be trained on Tuesday, Nov. 2.

A full copy of the petition will be on hand at every site, but Slater encourages
people to visit www.hoodlandparkdistrict.us to read it beforehand.

Slater added that she was expected to take part in a Zoom call with the
members of the Government Camp Community Planning Organization on
Thursday, Oct. 28 to answer questions and concerns.

She noted that there is some resistance in that community to being included
in the district’s boundaries, but that she hopes people there see the potential
for the district developing recreational activities there in the future, as 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.

“I’m glad that they are paying attention and engaged,” Slater said. “This is
really important.”

She added that if enough signatures on the petition are approved, the
Clackamas County Board of County Commissioners will have a hearing where
people can share their thoughts on the proposed district. If the district fails to
form, organizers noted the parcels of land will be sold by Clackamas County.