You’re invited to a community celebration of Portland’s newest car-free bridge! Join us for pop-up block parties on nearby streets, design tours, pedestrian and bike parades, and meet local vendors and community organizations all gathering to celebrate the bridge’s opening day.
The Portland Bureau of Transportation’s (PBOT) Congressman Earl Blumenauer Bicycle and Pedestrian Bridge will provide a critical car-free connection between two of the Rose City’s fastest growing neighborhoods, the Lloyd and the Central Eastside.
In the spirit of how this bridge will bring us together, PBOT will host a family-friendly community gathering to celebrate the formal opening of the new crossing.
Schedule
8 – 10 a.m. Breakfast on the Bridges
North Plaza, along NE Lloyd Boulevard
One morning each month, Shift2Bikes volunteers offer free coffee, pastries and good cheer to bike commuters at several Portland bridges. They’ll welcome early risers to Portland’s newest car-free bridge!
10 a.m. – 3 p.m. Milagro Theater and The Street Trust welcome you to Milagro Plaza
Milagro Theater, 525 SE Stark St. (at SE Sixth Avenue)
Arrive to the ceremony in style! Join Milagro Theatre and The Street Trust for a south-side biking/walking/rolling parade. Join us beginning at 10 a.m. for bike decorating, bow-tie crafting, refreshments, and music before the half-mile parade to the Opening Ceremony! After the festivities on and around the new Blumenauer Bridge, return to Milagro anytime between 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. for more music, snacks, and to see artists at work. Milagro is the premier Latino arts and culture center of the Pacific Northwest and has provided extraordinary Latino theatre, culture, and arts education for the enrichment of all communities since 1985.
10:30 a.m. – 3 p.m. Go Lloyd welcomes you to Hassalo Plaza
Off-street plaza at NE Eighth Avenue and Hassalo Street
Join us for a celebration of the Lloyd neighborhood in Hassalo Plaza, a car-free public space. Arrive at 10:30 a.m. to participate in the bike and pedestrian parade to the Opening Ceremony at the Blumenauer Bridge. Prior to the parade, we will decorate our helmets and make flags while enjoying coffee and snacks. After the parade, we will keep the community celebration going. Enjoy music from a live jazz band, a chalk drawing contest, or get a free bike tune-up or repair. All are welcome!
11 a.m. – 3 p.m. Community celebration!
North Plaza, along NE Lloyd Boulevard
South Plaza, along NE Seventh Avenue between NE Everett and Flanders streets
Pop-up block parties, food and beverage vendors and more!
12 – 12:30 p.m. Official Opening Ceremony and Celebration
South Plaza, just south of the bridge
Hear directly from U.S. Rep. Earl Blumenauer, Portland Transportation Commissioner Jo Ann Hardesty and leaders of the local community organizations that helped fund Portland’s newest car-free bridge. See the unveiling of the brass plaque that will forever memorialize the new bridge.
1 p.m. Bridge architecture and design tour
Starts at 1 p.m. in the North Plaza, ends at the South Plaza
During this tour of the bridge, members of the design team will be on hand to answer questions and explain why the bridge takes its particular form: how it was shaped by specific engineering requirements, how it was constructed within its tight urban setting, and how the plazas are designed to knit the bridge elegantly into the neighborhoods on both ends.
1:30 p.m. – 3:30 p.m. — Blumenauer Bridge Celebration Ride
Starts at 1:30 p.m. in the North Plaza (plan for two hours)
Join us for an 8-mile bike ride highlighting the bikeway system in the central city. We’ll cross bike-only bridges, use bike-friendly streets, lanes, and paths, and see some of the ways we make bike routes more comfortable in a dense urban environment.
3 – 10 p.m. Block party with Depave
SE Seventh Avenue and Sandy Boulevard
After the bridge opening, come celebrate with Depave a few blocks away as we reimagine our urban landscape through re-greening and community placemaking. This block party will demonstrate the potential of a “green street” project in the Central Eastside, one that amplifies greenspace by depaving and rethinking intersection safety. We’ll have food trucks, lawn games, artisan vendors, and live music from Friends of Noise!
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