March 12, 2012

By David Nguyen

On Friday, a beautiful sunny afternoon, Nick was joined by Parks Director Mike Abbaté in welcoming Portland Development Commission Chair Scott Andrews for a tour of Leach Botanical Garden. Special thanks to Leach's Executive Director David Porter and his team for providing a wonderful lunch and tour.

Opened to the public in 1983, Leach Botanical Garden is a partnership between Leach Garden Friends and Portland Parks & Recreation. The Garden is the only public, botanical garden in the Metro area and relies heavily on volunteers who donate countless hours to help with the daily operation. 

Today, the Garden has grown to nearly seventeen acres. A Master Plan approved in 2010 provides direction for new facilities, botanical interpretation, and spaces for community activity.

During the visit, Nick and Chair Andrews discussed the important role of the Garden in East Portland, the value of continuing PDC’s $1.1 million funding from the Lents URA, and the opportunity to leverage additional private investment through the Leach Garden Friends capital fundraising campaign.

Check out this slideshow to learn more about the Garden, and watch this great video Leach created to showcase the Garden's value to our community.