Funding boost from grant slated to assist St. Helens Riverwalk Project

The city of St. Helens is announcing an almost three-quarters-of-a million-dollar boost in grant funding for the city’s ambitious Riverwalk Project.

The grant funding from the state of Oregon will help along construction in the project’s Phase One.

The city was initially awarded $500,000 from the Oregon Parks and Recreation Department ‘s Land and Water Conservation Fund grant.

Because of cost increases, OPRD and the city of St. Helens worked together to boost project funding by $710,823 for a total grant award of just over $1.2 million.

Phase One construction of the riverwalk broke ground in May, 2024.

“Phase One will build approximately 300 feet of a riverwalk path along the banks of the Columbia River inside Columbia View Park,” the city said in a news release. “This phase will also expand the park’s footprint to the south and connect to the county’s riverfront walkway to the north.”

The city announced that additional project components include associated park pathways, water and storm drain utilities, lighting, retaining walls, railings, furnishings and signage.

“Future phases of the Riverwalk Project include approximately a half-mile of riverwalk trail from Columbia View Park to Plymouth Street and Nob Hill Nature Park,” according to the city. “This will include a combination of paved pathways, boardwalks, and overlooks along the banks of the Columbia River.”

Plans are for the riverwalk trail to connect to the interior Bluff Trail that is now being built as part of the Streets and Utilities Extension Project.

It’s anticipated that when the two trails connect, a complete one-mile walking loop will be created.

The city started to seek grant money in early 2020 for Phase One of the Riverwalk Project. The city’s plan was to fund the Phase One project using grants and fund the new stage and playground using the city’s Park System Development charges. A portion of the design and construction would also be funded with a contribution from the city’s Urban Renewal Agency.

The OPRD grant was awarded in 2021, but contracts were delayed until Sept. 2022, in part because of the COVID-19 pandemic and staff shortages at the federal level. This, the city says, slowed the construction and project costs increased during the delay.

There has been over a decade of community-supported planning and two years of focused community feedback during the Riverwalk design process.

Once completed, the project will improve and ensure public access along the Columbia River in the St. Helens Riverfront District.

For the project, the city secured two other state grants for Phase One of the Riverwalk.

One was a Travel Oregon Competitive Grant for $100,000, “to improve accessibility and inclusive tourism for the Riverwalk Project by constructing an accessible pathway access connecting the city docks to the new Riverwalk pathway and the Columbia County Courthouse’s existing riverfront walking path in their lower parking lot.”

The city also received a $338,500 Oregon Parks and Recreation Local Government Grant.

Phase One is expected to be finished by next April.

For more information, visit the city’s Riverwalk Project website at www.sthelensoregon.gov/waterfront/page/riverwalk-project.