About the Master Plan

The Western Promenade Master Plan was commissioned (RFP bid process) with the landscape architecture firm KZLA in 2019, its commissioning the result of the collaborative efforts of the City of Portland, specifically the Parks, Recreation and Facilities and Historic Preservation departments, and Friends of Western Promenade.

Given the Western Promenade’s listing on the National Register of Historic Places, the Master Plan followed the U.S. Department of Interior Standards for the Treatment of Historic Properties and the Guidelines for the Treatment of Cultural Landscapes. A historic landscape master plan typically includes statements of historical significance and integrity, the identification of a relevant period of significance and the identification of landscape’s character-defining features. Its ultimate goal is to inform stakeholder improvements, ensuring they are consistent with the original intended design, character and materials, as much as is possible. The Western Promenade Master Plan identifies the Period of Significance for the park to be 1836 to 1938 and the appropriate preservation philosophy to be Rehabilitation with elements of Restoration and Reconstruction.