PORTLAND Ore. (KPTV) - We're getting a first look at a brand new feature of Portland's Washington Park that's been under construction for nearly 10 years.
It's the reservoir supplying Portland's entire west side with its water, but at first glance, you may not know it.
Portland Water Bureau engineers Daniel Hogan and Thomas Gilman have dedicated much of their careers to the Reservoir Improvement Project- they call it a "once in a generation" undertaking. The Bureau began in 2009 with the goal of updating the reservoir to withstand a Cascadia Subduction Zone earthquake, while creating a new and beautiful public space.
This was no easy feat.
"Right at the start we knew we'd have challenges," said Hogan, who managed the project's design from its very beginning. "We had to accommodate this landslide that starts at the Japanese Gardens and extends all the way down here."
Washington Park is the site of an "ancient" landslide that continues to move slowly down the hill to this day; its movement monitored and mitigated by the Water Bureau. However, the risk of disruption complicated building the underground concrete shafts the reservoir sits on.
"So going through and constructing those while making sure we weren't doing anything to trigger the landslide is a very challenging and complicated project," Gilman said.
That meant building within 50 foot segments at a time, while constantly monitoring the slide. They also worked with several local groups, including the Historic Landmark Commission, to preserve the past.
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"It was built as a park, there was a horse trough down below, a tram ran up here at one point," Hogan said.
The fencing and stonework currently looping the reservoir, for example, are restored from 1894. When you walk the loop, you'll be standing on 12.4 million gallons of water held in a reservoir built to last another 200 years.
The reflecting pools- which do not contain drinking water- are the result of community input sourced more than a decade ago when the project got its start. Today, they put the typically unseen work of the Water Bureau in the spotlight.
"I've been working on this for almost 10 years. It's been a third of my career at the Water Bureau," Hogan said. "Seeing those renderings of what this was going to look like at the design stage from the architect and coming out here now, I think it's even more beautiful and impressive than what those renderings actually showed."
"This park will always be in my heart. This is the job of my career," Gilman reflected. "Words don't explain."
The reflecting pools will be open to the public starting with a community-wide celebration on Saturday, June 14. There will be food, vendors, live music, educational tours, and more all atop the reservoir from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.