Jamison Square

At a cost of $3.6 million, this urban green space was designed and built during the 12-year tenure of Mayor Vera Katz.{{cite news|title=Plan Spares Historic Buildings|last=Rivera|first=Dylan|date=September 26, 2004|newspaper=The Oregonian|publisher=Advance Publications|issn=8750-1317}}

Designed by PWP Landscape Architecture,{{cite web|url=http://www.portlandonline.com/parks/finder/index.cfm?action=ViewPark&PropertyID=1140|title=Jamison Square|access-date=February 26, 2010|publisher=Portland Parks & Recreation}}{{cite news|url=http://portlandtribune.com/component/content/article?id=77203|title=Oops! Portland's good intentions often have unexpected results|last=Korn|first=Peter|date=October 30, 2008|newspaper=Portland Tribune|publisher=Pamplin Media Group|access-date=September 1, 2013}} the park was initially intended as an outdoor art gallery, with square rocks and steps at the center, but no water.{{cite news|title=Fountains of life|last=Hyams|first=Juliet|date=July 27, 2007|newspaper=The Oregonian|publisher=Advance Publications|issn=8750-1317}} Water, running at random times over the rock, was added to keep skateboarding teenagers from using them. The water on the rocks ended up turning the park into an urban beach, attracting children and families who use it as a wading pool, with the intermittent nature making it a "manmade tidal pool", also called "the community pond" by locals.{{cite news|title=Pack your bags -- and take off for downtown|last=Daniels|first=Lisa|date=August 23, 2009|newspaper=The Oregonian|publisher=Advance Publications|issn=8750-1317}}{{cite news|url=http://www.portlandtribune.com/news/story.php?story_id=122350310044816500|title=How do you spell relief? T-O-I-L-E-T|last=Korn|first=Peter|date=October 19, 2008|newspaper=Portland Tribune|publisher=Pamplin Media Group|access-date=February 27, 2010}} A wooden boardwalk, made of ipê, connects Jamison Park to Tanner Springs Park, two blocks away, and is intended to eventually connect to the Willamette River.{{cite news|title=Standing Tall in the River District a Reassessment of Goals is Needed Before Moving Onward (and Upward) in Northwest Portland|last=Gragg|first=Randy|date=January 16, 2005|newspaper=The Oregonian|publisher=Advance Publications|issn=8750-1317}}{{cite news|title=The urge to splurge|last1=Sarasohn|first1=David|author-link1=David Sarasohn|first2=Michael C.|last2=Zusman|first3=Grant|last3=Butler|date=June 15, 2007|newspaper=The Oregonian|publisher=Advance Publications|issn=8750-1317}}

File:Jamison Square, NW Portland, OR 2012.JPGs that also function as support poles for the Portland Streetcar's overhead wire.]]

The park design includes three main elements: a fountain, a boardwalk, and an outdoor gallery. The stone fountain metaphorically expresses the idea of an "aquifer," as water pours out of the stone steps, filling up the gently sloping ground until the water is about 12 inches deep, at which point the water drains back out and the ground is dry.{{Cite web|url=http://www.pwpla.com/projects/jamison-square/&details|title = Jamison Square | PWP Landscape Architecture}}

The square includes four 30-foot modern totem poles, created by Kenny Scharf and Paige Powell in 2001, named Tikitotmoniki Totems.{{cite news|title="Portlandia" by Raymond Kaskey|last=Row|first=D. K.|date=August 11, 2005|newspaper=The Oregonian|publisher=Advance Publications|issn=8750-1317}}{{cite news|url=http://www.portlandtribune.com/neighborhoods/story.php?story_id=119290692145463600|title=Body blogger builds community through art|last=Gallivan|first=Joseph|date=October 23, 2007|newspaper=Portland Tribune|publisher=Pamplin Media Group|access-date=February 27, 2010}}{{cite news|title=Sara Perry profiles the eclectic interests of Portlander Paige Powell an advocate for art and animals|last=Perry|first=Sara|date=March 1, 2009|newspaper=The Oregonian|publisher=Advance Publications|issn=8750-1317}}{{cite news|title=Balancing new, familiar|last=Libby|first=Brian|date=March 14, 2008|newspaper=The Oregonian|publisher=Advance Publications|issn=8750-1317}}{{cite news|title=Footsteps lead from fountains...|last=Dworkin|first=Andy|date=December 16, 2007|newspaper=The Oregonian|publisher=Advance Publications|issn=8750-1317}} The Oregonian lampooned the art in late 2002, saying "the Pearl Arts Foundation commissioned '80s art star Kenny Scharf to put up goofy Tiki Totems" in the park.{{cite news|title=In the Pearl, not even best gems make cut|last=Mitchell|first=S. Renee|date=September 18, 2002|newspaper=The Oregonian|publisher=Advance Publications|issn=8750-1317}} However, the totem poles are also functional, as they hide steel support poles for the overhead trolley wires that supply power to the Portland Streetcar, which began operation in 2001. The Portland Streetcar passes on two sides of the park.{{cite news|title=Parking Places|last=Hill|first=Lisa|date=February 25, 2005|newspaper=The Oregonian|page=DM3|publisher=Advance Publications|issn=8750-1317}}

The Pearl District kept a cancer survivors' memorial from being placed in the park.{{cite news|title=Pearl District votes against park for cancer survivors|date=June 18, 2001|newspaper=The Oregonian|page=E02|publisher=Advance Publications|issn=8750-1317}} The park also features an orange steel sculpture called Contact II by Alexander Liberman.

The park, considered a pocket park, opened in May 2002, based on a 1999–2000 master plan for parks in the Pearl District, all connected by a water theme.{{cite news|title=Choice Seats|last=Bondarowicz|first=Marv|date=May 21, 2002|newspaper=The Oregonian|publisher=Advance Publications|issn=8750-1317}}{{cite news|title=Briefly: Tanner Springs Park will open this weekend|last=Green|first=Susan|date=August 4, 2005|newspaper=The Oregonian|publisher=Advance Publications|issn=8750-1317}}{{cite news|url=http://www.portlandtribune.com/news/print_story.php?story_id=125495156186033500|title=Park Blocks gain one more piece|last=Redden|first=Jim|date=October 8, 2009|newspaper=Portland Tribune|publisher=Pamplin Media Group|access-date=February 27, 2010}}{{cite news|url=http://travel.nytimes.com/2006/12/17/travel/17dayout.html|title=Visiting Asia Without Crossing the Pacific|last=Laskin|first=David|date=December 17, 2006|newspaper=The New York Times|access-date=February 27, 2010|issn=0362-4331|oclc=1645522}} It was named for William Jamison (1945–1995), an art gallery owner who was a proponent of the Pearl District and died of AIDS-related illness.{{cite news|title=Going with the Flow|last=Gragg|first=Randy|date=June 10, 2002|newspaper=The Oregonian|publisher=Advance Publications|issn=8750-1317}}

Many events are held at the park, including the Kids Marching Band, Kids in the Pearl Block Party, Movies in the Pearl, weekly Splashdance "movement-based storytelling" by BodyVox, Pedalpalooza, and Portland Bastille Day festival, complete with the French-inspired Portland Waiters Race.{{cite news|title=Performance/classical|last=Stabler|first=David|date=August 24, 2007|work=The Oregonian|publisher=Advance Publications|issn=8750-1317}}{{cite news|title=Art in the Pearl|last=Sommer|first=Joshua|date=August 24, 2007|newspaper=The Oregonian|publisher=Advance Publications|issn=8750-1317}}{{cite news|title=Neighborhood News Updates|last1=Koffman|first1=Rebecca|first2=Holly|last2=Carpenter|date=July 10, 2008|newspaper=The Oregonian|publisher=Advance Publications|issn=8750-1317}}{{cite news|title=Neighborhood News Updates|last=Green|first=Susan|date=August 7, 2008|newspaper=The Oregonian|publisher=Advance Publications|issn=8750-1317}}{{cite news|title=Downtown Calendar|date=August 22, 2008|work=The Oregonian|publisher=Advance Publications|issn=8750-1317}}{{cite news|title=Neighborhood News Updates|last=Koffman|first=Rebecca|date=July 31, 2008|newspaper=The Oregonian|publisher=Advance Publications|issn=8750-1317}}{{cite news|title=Head out|date=June 15, 2008|newspaper=The Oregonian|publisher=Advance Publications|issn=8750-1317}} The Portland Bastille Day festival attracted 5,500 visitors in 2007.{{cite news|title=Scene & Heard|date=September 29, 2007|newspaper=The Oregonian|publisher=Advance Publications|issn=8750-1317}} A form of boules, Pétanque, plays in a court at the park.{{cite news|title=Home-field advantage|last=Balmer|first=Kay|date=August 13, 2009|newspaper=The Oregonian|publisher=Advance Publications|issn=8750-1317}}{{cite news|title=Mix Magazine|last=Butler|first=Grant|date=November 23, 2008|newspaper=The Oregonian|publisher=Advance Publications|issn=8750-1317}} The park has also been home to portions of Portland Institute for Contemporary Art's Time-Based Art Festival, beginning in 2003 with a performance by Eiko & Koma, and Anna Halprin's "Blank Placard Happening" in 2008.{{cite news|title=Move into the moment, then hold it in your hand at Time-Based Art festival|last=Cirillo|first=Joan|date=August 22, 2008|newspaper=The Oregonian|publisher=Advance Publications|issn=8750-1317}}{{cite news|title=TBA '08: The 'here' was here|last=Butler|first=Grant|date=September 15, 2008|newspaper=The Oregonian|publisher=Advance Publications|issn=8750-1317}} Fenouil, a well-regarded local French brasserie, had a special "picnic in the park" menu and delivered lunch to the park until it closed in 2011.{{cite news|title=Sampling the 'Neighborhood of Dreams'|last=Puro|first=Emily|date=September 9, 2009|newspaper=The Oregonian|publisher=Advance Publications|issn=8750-1317}}{{cite news|url=http://www.oregonlive.com/dining/index.ssf/2011/04/fenouil_restaurant_in_pearl_di.html|title=Fenouil restaurant in Pearl District to close Sunday, the Dussin Group announces|first=Michael|last=Russell|work=The Oregonian|access-date=May 6, 2012|date=April 1, 2011}}

File:Jamison Square.jpgThe park has been very popular with locals, and has been considered a modern success in the vein of Pioneer Courthouse Square.{{cite news|title=Portland, Ore.|last=Solomon|first=Christopher|date=November 6, 2005|newspaper=The New York Times|issn=0362-4331|oclc=1645522}}{{cite news|title=Halprin plazas tell story of city plan|last=Johnson|first=Barry|date=December 14, 2009|newspaper=The Oregonian|publisher=Advance Publications|issn=8750-1317}} The Oregonian called it "Portland's biggest kid magnet".{{cite news|title=Fancy feasts, pure kid stuff|last=Cole|first=Katherine|date=August 25, 2006|newspaper=The Oregonian|publisher=Advance Publications|issn=8750-1317}} Architect Laurie Olin remarked "I was astonished over the social conflicts there. They seem savage and uncivil, the poor behavior between the two groups: parents with kids and people with dogs. It seems like a health hazard. I find it puzzling in its sociology, not in its design."{{cite news|title=Sight Lines - Of parks and plazas|last=Gragg|first=Randy|date=November 8, 2006|newspaper=The Oregonian|publisher=Advance Publications|issn=8750-1317}} It's been observed that it's a "water park for kids" that is "nestled among the Pearl's poshest pads and toniest boutiques".{{cite news|title=In the Mix|date=July 29, 2008|newspaper=The Oregonian|publisher=Advance Publications|issn=8750-1317}} The park has also been criticized for being a "missed opportunity to produce something visionary".{{cite news|title=Memorial Coliseum emerges as a crucible for Portland creatives Cultural interests coalesce into a movement to assert a leadership role in the city Coliseum: Forces to save the building were strong Crucible for creatives|last=Row|first=D. K.|date=May 31, 2009|newspaper=The Oregonian|publisher=Advance Publications|issn=8750-1317}} Joe Fitzgibbon of The Oregonian calls Jamison Square "just another symbol of the Pearl District's transformation from industrial neighborhood to sleek, 21st-century community."{{cite news|title=Out with the Kids Night on the Town|last=Fitzgibbon|first=Joe|date=February 22, 2007|newspaper=The Oregonian|publisher=Advance Publications|issn=8750-1317}}

The popularity of the park with children led to requests and plans for a public restroom as early as spring 2009, but the idea encountered resistance from residents concerned about the noise and crime it might bring, due to its being planned to be open 24 hours a day.{{cite news|title=Jamison Square's restroom put on hold|last=Mayer|first=James|date=December 3, 2009|work=The Oregonian|publisher=Advance Publications|issn=8750-1317}}{{cite news|url=http://www.portlandtribune.com/news/story.php?story_id=125149824381106900|title=Flush with a new contract, more Portland Loos are coming|last=Harden|first=Kevin|date=August 29, 2009|newspaper=Portland Tribune|publisher=Pamplin Media Group|access-date=February 27, 2010}}{{cite news|title=City's new public toilet is open for business, with more on way|last=Beaven|first=Stephen|date=December 9, 2008|newspaper=The Oregonian|publisher=Advance Publications|issn=8750-1317}} A 24-hour public restroom called Portland Loo opened at the park in December 2010.{{cite news|last=Hottle|first=Molly|title=Northwest Portland: Portland Commissioner Randy Leonard to christen city's fourth loo today|date=December 16, 2010|newspaper=The Oregonian|url=http://www.oregonlive.com/portland/index.ssf/2010/12/northwest_portland_portland_co.html|access-date=October 6, 2013}}

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Category:2000 establishments in Oregon

Category:Parks in Northwest Portland, Oregon

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Category:Urban public parks