Willamette Falls Legacy Project Cultural Landscape/Cultural Resource Report Request for Proposal

Willamette Falls Legacy Project (www.rediscoverthefalls.com)

For the first time in 150 years, Oregonians have the opportunity to rediscover a cultural and scenic treasure: Willamette Falls. A public vision and master plan are taking shape, with the goal of transforming a 23-acre industrial site nestled along the Falls in historic Oregon City. This former paper mill could someday serve as an economic engine, a waterfront destination, a unique habitat, a window into Oregon’s past – and a bold step into our future.

In cooperation with the new owners (Falls Legacy LLC), Willamette Falls Legacy Project partners (Oregon City, Metro, Clackamas County, and the State of Oregon) brought together thousands of Oregonians to help shape the future of Willamette Falls. This fall the framework planning and visioning process concluded and successfully rezoned the site to provide needed flexibility and certainty for a new generation of investors while reducing and removing barriers to redevelopment. The next step – and the centerpiece – of the project is a publicly accessible Willamette Falls Riverwalk providing visitors with up-close views of the majestic site in the heart of historic Oregon City, Oregon.

The purpose of this Request for Proposal is to select a consultant to complete a Cultural Resource/Cultural Landscape Report to assist the City of Oregon City, in cooperation with the project partners, to create a product that will allow the Riverwalk to express its cultural history along with other goals for the site, which are outlined in the Willamette Falls Framework Plan. This early work will be essential for the Riverwalk design as the draft report is scheduled to be completed just as the Riverwalk design process commences. This deliberate approach is intended to ensure that information on historic resources and interpretation is easily accessed and understood by the design team at the beginning of the process and is not rushed or put off to a later phase after the initial design work is completed. The Cultural Resources/Cultural Landscape Report will stay in draft form and is intended to be a working document for the design team and will be published when appropriate through the Riverwalk Design process.  

A Request for Proposal for a consultant team to provide a schematic design for the Riverwalk will be released in mid-January 2015. The chosen consultant for this project will be integrated into the larger schematic design process.

Please direct all questions through the bid site.