New course on Portland's west side

[spindoctor]

Send a one or two sentence email to the local decision makers saying it's time for a new course over here! All their email addresses are here:

http://discspindoctor.org/help.html

And then ask your disc golfer friends to send an email.

[Flash]

Are you looking for something specifically in the Hillsboro area?

Maybe a better plight would be to ask Washington County if we could re-design a better flowing 18 hole course on land that would not be flooded if the county won a 6 billion dollar lottery to install the new levy.

We also have 18 hole courses further out: Stub Stewart in Buxton and Hornings in North Plains. We also have the 15 hole course at Lunchtime.

Originally Posted by spindoctor

Send a one or two sentence email to the local decision makers saying it's time for a new course over here! All their email addresses are here:

http://discspindoctor.org/help.html

And then ask your disc golfer friends to send an email.

[spindoctor]

Originally Posted by Flash

Are you looking for something specifically in the Hillsboro area?

Maybe a better plight would be to ask Washington County if we could re-design a better flowing 18 hole course on land that would not be flooded if the county won a 6 billion dollar lottery to install the new levy.

We also have 18 hole courses further out: Stub Stewart in Buxton and Hornings in North Plains. We also have the 15 hole course at Lunchtime.

Hornings is great. I haven't played Stub. And Hagg Lake is pretty good too. But I'm looking to get something built closer in. These are all 35+ minutes away. Which is about as far as Pier Park. I work 10 minutes from Lunchtime, so I play there a lot when it's nice. It's interesting that 2 of the most accessible course on the west side (Hornings and Lunchtime) are private! I think the parks people should step up here. Disc golf continues to grow, so more courses are needed.

I hope I'm not the only one who thinks we need another course on the west side...

[Scott]

Originally Posted by spindoctor

Hornings is great. I haven't played Stub. And Hagg Lake is pretty good too. But I'm looking to get something built closer in. These are all 35+ minutes away. Which is about as far as Pier Park. I work 10 minutes from Lunchtime, so I play there a lot when it's nice. It's interesting that 2 of the most accessible course on the west side (Hornings and Lunchtime) are private! I think the parks people should step up here. Disc golf continues to grow, so more courses are needed.

I hope I'm not the only one who thinks we need another course on the west side...

Nobody would turn down the opportunity for more courses, but where exactly are you proposing a course? It's not like the cities of Hillsboro and Beaverton are sitting on huge unused chunks of park space. Land on the west side is far too valuable to just be sitting around un-used. If we're going to see more courses close in they will likely be on private land.

[spindoctor]

Originally Posted by Scott

Nobody would turn down the opportunity for more courses, but where exactly are you proposing a course? It's not like the cities of Hillsboro and Beaverton are sitting on huge unused chunks of park space. Land on the west side is far too valuable to just be sitting around un-used. If we're going to see more courses close in they will likely be on private land.

So true. I recently spent 2 hours with Hillsboro Parks people looking at maps and locations. There are lots of regulations (environmental, land use, water rights, wetlands, nature preserve, etc...) that make it very difficult. They do have some space that may be able to host a 9 hole course, but probably not an 18 hole course. We discussed public/private partnerships (private land but publicly funded baskets, signs and tees) and looked at properties for that.

All that said, my impression was that there was no urgency on their part to want to tackle a new course. But they were open to it. So that's why I'm trying to get disc golfers to send emails to encourage them in that direction. They recognize there's a need, but it's up to us to help them prioritize it. If we don't, it may be 2, 3 or more years before a new course get's on their project plate. Citizen support could greatly shorten that timeline.

[Mcw5378]

Is the area where the 9 hole course is possible large enough to make 2 tee pads per hole so 18 could be played on a slightly varied hole?

[Scott]

Originally Posted by Mcw5378

Is the area where the 9 hole course is possible large enough to make 2 tee pads per hole so 18 could be played on a slightly varied hole?

I think I know which land he's referring to. I've spoken with a planner with the Hillsboro Parks deptartment and it's on our to-do-list after Orchard Park is finished. I haven't walked the land yet, but my impression is that it would be 9 holes only.

[spindoctor]

Originally Posted by Mcw5378

Is the area where the 9 hole course is possible large enough to make 2 tee pads per hole so 18 could be played on a slightly varied hole?

Very likely no. Here's a link to a map of that site I mentioned.

http://maps.google.com/maps?hl=en&ll=45.516512,-12...21458&t=h&z=16

I mentioned this location in our meeting and if I remember correctly, HPR owns a portion of it, which was a pleasant surprise. The problem with this site was that Turner Creek runs through it, so there are lots of restrictions for its use.

I'll post the others shortly so anyone can look at them.

[spindoctor]

Originally Posted by Scott

I think I know which land he's referring to. I've spoken with a planner with the Hillsboro Parks deptartment and it's on our to-do-list after Orchard Park is finished. I haven't walked the land yet, but my impression is that it would be 9 holes only.

And this was one of the best properties we looked at. 9 holes would be a squeeze there due to all the restrictions.

[spindoctor]

Here's another site:

http://maps.google.com/maps?hl=en&ll=45.523736,-12...10729&t=h&z=17

Not the best for a disc course, but could comfortably fit 9 holes, even some long ones. There are LOTS of plans for this space; they're just waiting for money to break ground on them. So this was a dead end.

[spindoctor]

This site is on the PCC Rock Creek campus:

http://maps.google.com/maps?hl=en&ll=45.569427,-12...21265&t=h&z=16

It would be a joint effort between HPR and PCC, but those 2 organizations have a good working relationship. This site has plenty of parking and could easily host 18 holes; it's the 2nd largest site we discussed. Once again, due to the creek, there are restrictions.

[spindoctor]

This property is just north of the Valley Memorial Cemetery. I believe the city owns some property adjacent to this lot.

http://maps.google.com/maps?hl=en&ll=45.506828,-12...21265&t=h&z=16

This could be another public/private joint venture. Once again, there's a creek running through it, so some restrictions apply.

[spindoctor]

Last one! This property is just off Brookwood between Costco and the airport. It's owned by the Port of Portland, so another joint venture. I don't think they can build on it because of the air traffic. It's very heavily wooded, but there's a large open space. So throwing into and out of the woods could make for a nice 9 hole course.

http://maps.google.com/maps?hl=en&ll=45.535814,-12...21265&t=h&z=16

And there's another set of restrictions associated with this property. I don't remember all the details, though.

[Flash]

Originally Posted by spindoctor

Hornings is great. I haven't played Stub. And Hagg Lake is pretty good too.

Hagg lake is an 18 hole course but its in need of some help to make it better and more user friendly. I think it presents the greatest opportunity to finish a solid 18 hole course on the west side. It could also lead to maybe a second course across the road.

[spindoctor]

Originally Posted by Flash

Hagg lake is an 18 hole course but its in need of some help to make it better and more user friendly. I think it presents the greatest opportunity to finish a solid 18 hole course on the west side. It could also lead to maybe a second course across the road.

The front side of the course at Hagg Lake is pretty good. The back side is pretty rough. I have been in discussions with Washington country, who suggested that there's an obstacle course tree park in Gaston that could host a course. Does anyone know those people?

Mary O. from HPR also mentioned that Hagg Lake has a ton of property and there might be an opportunity there for another course, so you're not the only one who has considered that. I'll be following up on that over the next several weeks.

[tmk]

The airport/Costco land seems like a prime candidate. What else would the it be good for?

Looking at the map, it appears like more than nine holes would easily fit. For example, put a basket & the next tee into the open area near the Airport & 48th intersection. I'd guess parking could be a problem if Costco's lot were used by discers.

Heard any more about additional restrictions?

[PDX_Stu]

FYI,

I ran into a guy last night that just retired from the water district in Washington County . The Hagg Lake Dam raising is dead. There were federal government conflicts. The water district options to get more H20 to Washington county is in limbo for the indefinite future. At least, until the world end later this month..

[spindoctor]

Originally Posted by tmk

The airport/Costco land seems like a prime candidate. What else would the it be good for?

Looking at the map, it appears like more than nine holes would easily fit. For example, put a basket & the next tee into the open area near the Airport & 48th intersection. I'd guess parking could be a problem if Costco's lot were used by discers.

Heard any more about additional restrictions?

This lot is excellent. We discussed the space across 48th (near Triquent) for parking too. Lots of opportunities for throwing into and out of the woods. The restrictions have to do with how much underbrush can be cut. This wooded area is VERY heavily wooded. If you've walked through it, it's pretty thick. To make a good course, brush and some trees would very likely need to be removed. This land isn't useful for building on since it's too close to the airport or something like that. Since it's owned by the Port of Portland, I'm trying to get in touch with someone there. Maybe HPR will fund the baskets if PoP will let us use the land. It's worth a try.

[SMOKIN JOE]

Originally Posted by Flash

Hagg lake is an 18 hole course but its in need of some help to make it better and more user friendly. I think it presents the greatest opportunity to finish a solid 18 hole course on the west side. It could also lead to maybe a second course across the road.

Solid is a good review. My favorite local course. Tee pads, back to original form, a restroom on fairway 16 right(easy to get to), someone to empty the trash cans, a bigger parking lot to the right, another restroom there. The best time of year to play is when the park is closed. The brush and grass are down. It's quiet. The lake is still. Me and Fritz had an eagle checking us out yesterday. Yes, fixing up Hagg and building more around it sounds like the best Idea to me as well.

[discdog]

Hagg Lake, Milo McIver west.