Big Week for Willamette Falls as Designs Discussed, Funds Secured

There were two big events this week that showed the continuing importance of Willamette Falls, an iconic symbol not just of Oregon City but of Oregon, a part of the history of the area going back thousands of years.

On Monday, Governor Kate Brown signed a bill that allocated $500,000 to help support the repair and eventual reopening of the canal and navigation locks, which guided ships by the falls for decades.

On Tuesday, the Willamette Falls Legacy Project, which has been focused on developing the former 22-acre Blue Heron plant and the land on the Oregon City side, held an open house to show off ideas and proposals for the area.

The locks and canal, which have been operated by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers since 1915, were declared non-operational in 2011.

The main issue was a lack of funding.

That same year, the Blue Heron Paper Mill on the river closed. It was the last vestige of an industry that had been operating on the falls for more than 100 years.

The year after that, the locks and canal were selected as a National Treasure by the National Trust for Historic Preservation.

That allowed more funding and support to be garnered for the falls.

Scores of people showed up to share ideas.

It's a big moment for the falls, which is the second most powerful waterfall in North America, has long been a gathering place for Native American tribes including the Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde, the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs, the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation, the Confederated Tribes of Siletz Indians, and the Confederated Tribes and Bands of the Yakama Nation.