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Eugene turns an old golf course into a neighborhood park

The new park is on 12-acres that used to be part of River Ridge Golf Course.
Rachael McDonald
/
KLCC
The new park is on 12-acres that used to be part of River Ridge Golf Course.

The City of Eugene recently acquired new parkland on the northeast edge of town at the intersection of Delta and Ayres Roads. It’s in a fast growing residential area that has lacked a neighborhood park.

The 12-acre addition is one of the largest neighborhood park sites in the city’s system. Phillip Richardson with Eugene Parks and Open Space said it encompasses the southernmost three holes of what used to be River Ridge Golf Course.

“Because it was part of the golf course, you know there’s mature trees, there’s actually a loop path that’s already there,” he said. “There’s some remnant sloughs, Dodsen Slough is the name of the slough. And, there’s some little bridges over it. So, it’s a really nice new park.”

Richardson says there’s not yet an official name for the park, though he’s been referring to it as Osprey Hollow because of an Osprey platform there.

He said that part of Eugene had been identified in the Parks and Recreation System Plan as in need of a neighborhood park.

The sale closed on February 28, 2022 for the purchase price of $211,530. City funding for the purchase came from the 2006 Parks and Open Space bond measure.

The site is designated as a future neighborhood park. Currently, there are no identified development funds.

There’s no adjacent parking. Richardson said it’s meant to serve people in nearby residences.

Copyright 2022 KLCC.

Rachael McDonald is KLCC’s host for All Things Considered on weekday afternoons. She also is the editor of the KLCC Extra, the daily digital newspaper. Rachael has a BA in English from the University of Oregon. She started out in public radio as a newsroom volunteer at KLCC in 2000.