Harbor Drive
Encyclopedia
Harbor Drive is the name of a street in Portland, Oregon
, which was formerly a freeway that carried U.S. Route 99W along the western shore of the Willamette River
in the downtown area
. While a segment of the road still exists today, the majority of the route (the stretch between the Steel Bridge
and the Riverplace Marina) was demolished in 1974, to make way for the Tom McCall Waterfront Park
. In doing so, the city of Portland became the first major city in the United States to actually remove an existing freeway; the removal of Harbor Drive is widely considered a milestone in urban planning
.
on the Broadway Bridge
towards Interstate Avenue, where it headed north to the Interstate Bridge
and the city of Vancouver, Washington
.
In 1950, a controlled-access highway, though crude by modern standards, opened and was at least partly known as Harbor Drive. It started with an interchange with Barbur Boulevard, joined the Willamette shore near an interchange with Clay and Market streets, and then ran along the shore to the Steel Bridge
. US 99W then crossed the Steel Bridge, and turned north on a controlled-access extension to Interstate Avenue, until it resumed its old routing at an interchange with the Broadway Bridge. It was the first freeway to be completed in Portland, and the only north–south freeway for over a decade.
One block west of Harbor Drive was Front Avenue, then a minor street, and one block west of that was 1st Avenue. Many industrial and commercial buildings, including the Portland Public Market
building, were located between Harbor and Front. Harbor Drive connected to the downtown streets, the Hawthorne Bridge
and the Morrison Bridge
via a series of interchanges.
In 1961, the Baldock Freeway (which at the time extended from Eugene
to Tigard
) was completed to downtown Portland, and signed as Interstate 5 and (temporarily) as U.S. Route 99. The Baldock Freeway connected with the existing Harbor Drive. In 1966, the Marquam Bridge and the Minnesota Street Freeway were completed, thus making I-5 a contiguous freeway from the California
to Washington borders, and making Harbor Drive obsolete as a long-haul thoroughfare.
governor Tom McCall
to study options for replacing Harbor Drive with a public place. The task force recommended closure and conversion to a park. (In addition to the decision to close Harbor Drive, other freeway revolts were brewing in Portland against several proposed freeways). Proponents gained leverage for freeway removal
when, in 1973, the Fremont Bridge
opened, completing Interstate 405
and resulting in a second Interstate through the downtown area.
In 1974, Harbor Drive was permanently closed north of Market Street, specifically effective May 23/24, 1974. Construction soon began on a new park, Waterfront Park
. In addition, the buildings between Front Avenue and Harbor Drive were demolished, and Front Avenue (since renamed Naito Parkway after Bill Naito
, a local businessman and philanthropist) was widened to a boulevard. The park opened in 1978. In 1984, it was renamed Tom McCall Waterfront Park
after the (now deceased) former governor.
s have been since constructed, providing access to the Riverplace Marina). If one drives northbound on I-5 towards downtown, and does not take the right exits to remain on I-5 or get onto I-405, one is deposited upon the remnants of Harbor Drive. Few signs identify it as such; the exit signs on the freeway indicate the route leads to Naito Parkway, and directional signs heading south all say "To I-5". One other remnant of Harbor Drive is a ramp stub from the Hawthorne Bridge
which is still standing. That ramp is now a pedestrian and bicycle access ramp so one does not have to ride or walk all the way down to First Avenue in order to access Waterfront Park.
; the first time a freeway had ever been removed and not replaced. It (along with the subsequent cancellation of Interstate 505 and the Mount Hood Freeway) cemented Portland's reputation as a model of pedestrian- and transit-friendly design. Since the completion of Interstate 205
in the mid 1980s, no new freeways have been built in the city, other than a short realignment of U.S. Route 30 near the Fremont Bridge.
Many other cities in the United States
have since demolished freeways as well, or are considering such action. San Francisco is well-known for the (earthquake-assisted) demolition of the Embarcadero Freeway; Boston demolished the elevated portion of Interstate 93
as part of the massive Big Dig project; and Milwaukee
removed the Park East Freeway. In addition, Seattle
is now considering removal of the Alaskan Way Viaduct
along the downtown waterfront.
Today, Tom McCall Waterfront Park is a popular destination for sightseers, picnickers, and joggers, and is frequently the site of major civic events such as the Rose Festival
fun center.
Portland, Oregon
Portland is a city located in the Pacific Northwest, near the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers in the U.S. state of Oregon. As of the 2010 Census, it had a population of 583,776, making it the 29th most populous city in the United States...
, which was formerly a freeway that carried U.S. Route 99W along the western shore of the Willamette River
Willamette River
The Willamette River is a major tributary of the Columbia River, accounting for 12 to 15 percent of the Columbia's flow. The Willamette's main stem is long, lying entirely in northwestern Oregon in the United States...
in the downtown area
Downtown Portland
Downtown Portland, the city center of Portland, Oregon, United States, is located on the west bank of the Willamette River. It is in the northeastern corner of the southwest section of the city and is where most of the city's high-rise buildings are found....
. While a segment of the road still exists today, the majority of the route (the stretch between the Steel Bridge
Steel Bridge
The Steel Bridge is a through truss, double lift bridge across the Willamette River in Portland, Oregon, United States. Its lower deck carries railroad and bicycle/pedestrian traffic, while the upper deck carries road traffic and light rail , making the bridge one of the most multimodal in the world...
and the Riverplace Marina) was demolished in 1974, to make way for the Tom McCall Waterfront Park
Tom McCall Waterfront Park
Governor Tom McCall Waterfront Park is a park located on the west bank of the Willamette River in downtown Portland, Oregon. It is , comprising 16 tax lots owned by the City of Portland....
. In doing so, the city of Portland became the first major city in the United States to actually remove an existing freeway; the removal of Harbor Drive is widely considered a milestone in urban planning
Urban planning
Urban planning incorporates areas such as economics, design, ecology, sociology, geography, law, political science, and statistics to guide and ensure the orderly development of settlements and communities....
.
Construction and evolution
Harbor Drive opened in 1943 and was the original route of US 99W (locally called "Highway 99W") into downtown Portland from the south. The highway came from Barbur Boulevard and ran through the downtown area via a couplet on 4th and 6th avenues. US 99W then crossed the Willamette RiverWillamette River
The Willamette River is a major tributary of the Columbia River, accounting for 12 to 15 percent of the Columbia's flow. The Willamette's main stem is long, lying entirely in northwestern Oregon in the United States...
on the Broadway Bridge
Broadway Bridge (Portland)
The Broadway Bridge is a bascule bridge that spans the Willamette River in Portland, Oregon, U.S. It was the first bascule bridge built in Portland and the longest in the world at the time of its completion. It is the longest Rall-type bascule bridge still in existence.-History and description:The...
towards Interstate Avenue, where it headed north to the Interstate Bridge
Interstate Bridge
The Interstate Bridge is a pair of nearly identical steel vertical-lift, through-truss bridges that carry Interstate 5 traffic over the Columbia River between Vancouver, Washington, and Portland, Oregon, in the United States...
and the city of Vancouver, Washington
Vancouver, Washington
Vancouver is a city on the north bank of the Columbia River in the U.S. state of Washington. Incorporated in 1857, it is the fourth largest city in the state with a 2010 census population of 161,791 as of April 1, 2010...
.
In 1950, a controlled-access highway, though crude by modern standards, opened and was at least partly known as Harbor Drive. It started with an interchange with Barbur Boulevard, joined the Willamette shore near an interchange with Clay and Market streets, and then ran along the shore to the Steel Bridge
Steel Bridge
The Steel Bridge is a through truss, double lift bridge across the Willamette River in Portland, Oregon, United States. Its lower deck carries railroad and bicycle/pedestrian traffic, while the upper deck carries road traffic and light rail , making the bridge one of the most multimodal in the world...
. US 99W then crossed the Steel Bridge, and turned north on a controlled-access extension to Interstate Avenue, until it resumed its old routing at an interchange with the Broadway Bridge. It was the first freeway to be completed in Portland, and the only north–south freeway for over a decade.
One block west of Harbor Drive was Front Avenue, then a minor street, and one block west of that was 1st Avenue. Many industrial and commercial buildings, including the Portland Public Market
Portland Public Market
The Portland Public Market was a public market in Portland, Oregon, United States, built in 1933 at a widely-advertised cost of $1 million. Controversial and ambitious, it was never as successful as the Central Public Market, centered at southwest Fifth and Yamhill Streets, which it was intended to...
building, were located between Harbor and Front. Harbor Drive connected to the downtown streets, the Hawthorne Bridge
Hawthorne Bridge
The Hawthorne Bridge is a truss bridge with a vertical lift that spans the Willamette River in Portland, Oregon, joining Hawthorne Boulevard and Madison Street. It is the oldest vertical-lift bridge in operation in the United States and the oldest highway bridge in Portland...
and the Morrison Bridge
Morrison Bridge
The Morrison Bridge is a bascule bridge that spans the Willamette River in Portland, Oregon.The original Morrison Bridge was a wooden truss swing span bridge completed on April 12, 1887 as the first Willamette River bridge in Portland and the longest bridge west of the Mississippi River...
via a series of interchanges.
In 1961, the Baldock Freeway (which at the time extended from Eugene
Eugene, Oregon
Eugene is the second largest city in the U.S. state of Oregon and the seat of Lane County. It is located at the south end of the Willamette Valley, at the confluence of the McKenzie and Willamette rivers, about east of the Oregon Coast.As of the 2010 U.S...
to Tigard
Tigard, Oregon
Tigard is a city in Washington County, Oregon, United States. The population was 48,035 at the 2010 census. As of 2007, Tigard was the state's 12th largest city. Incorporated in 1961, the city is located south of Beaverton and north of Tualatin, and is part of the Portland metropolitan area...
) was completed to downtown Portland, and signed as Interstate 5 and (temporarily) as U.S. Route 99. The Baldock Freeway connected with the existing Harbor Drive. In 1966, the Marquam Bridge and the Minnesota Street Freeway were completed, thus making I-5 a contiguous freeway from the California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
to Washington borders, and making Harbor Drive obsolete as a long-haul thoroughfare.
Removal of the freeway
In 1968, a task force was created by OregonOregon
Oregon is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is located on the Pacific coast, with Washington to the north, California to the south, Nevada on the southeast and Idaho to the east. The Columbia and Snake rivers delineate much of Oregon's northern and eastern...
governor Tom McCall
Tom McCall
Thomas Lawson McCall was an American politician and journalist in the state of Oregon. A Republican, he was the 30th Governor of Oregon from 1967 to 1975. A native of Massachusetts, he grew up there and in Central Oregon before attending the University of Oregon...
to study options for replacing Harbor Drive with a public place. The task force recommended closure and conversion to a park. (In addition to the decision to close Harbor Drive, other freeway revolts were brewing in Portland against several proposed freeways). Proponents gained leverage for freeway removal
Freeway removal
Freeway removal is a public policy of urban planning designed to create mixed-use urban areas with a concentration of residential, commercial, and other land uses. Also known as activity centres, cities have begun removing existing or incomplete infrastructure to create parks, waterfronts, and...
when, in 1973, the Fremont Bridge
Fremont Bridge (Portland)
The Fremont Bridge is a steel tied arch bridge over the Willamette River located in Portland, Oregon. It carries Interstate 405 and US 30 traffic between downtown and North Portland where it intersects with I-5...
opened, completing Interstate 405
Interstate 405 (Oregon)
Interstate 405 is a short Interstate Highway in Portland, Oregon. It forms a loop from Interstate 5 that travels through downtown Portland west of the Willamette River.-Route description:...
and resulting in a second Interstate through the downtown area.
In 1974, Harbor Drive was permanently closed north of Market Street, specifically effective May 23/24, 1974. Construction soon began on a new park, Waterfront Park
Tom McCall Waterfront Park
Governor Tom McCall Waterfront Park is a park located on the west bank of the Willamette River in downtown Portland, Oregon. It is , comprising 16 tax lots owned by the City of Portland....
. In addition, the buildings between Front Avenue and Harbor Drive were demolished, and Front Avenue (since renamed Naito Parkway after Bill Naito
Bill Naito
William Sumio Naito , better known as Bill Naito, was a noted businessman, civic leader and philanthropist in Portland, Oregon, U.S...
, a local businessman and philanthropist) was widened to a boulevard. The park opened in 1978. In 1984, it was renamed Tom McCall Waterfront Park
Tom McCall Waterfront Park
Governor Tom McCall Waterfront Park is a park located on the west bank of the Willamette River in downtown Portland, Oregon. It is , comprising 16 tax lots owned by the City of Portland....
after the (now deceased) former governor.
Harbor Drive today
The southernmost segment of Harbor Drive still exists, though it is no longer a freeway (several traffic lightTraffic light
Traffic lights, which may also be known as stoplights, traffic lamps, traffic signals, signal lights, robots or semaphore, are signalling devices positioned at road intersections, pedestrian crossings and other locations to control competing flows of traffic...
s have been since constructed, providing access to the Riverplace Marina). If one drives northbound on I-5 towards downtown, and does not take the right exits to remain on I-5 or get onto I-405, one is deposited upon the remnants of Harbor Drive. Few signs identify it as such; the exit signs on the freeway indicate the route leads to Naito Parkway, and directional signs heading south all say "To I-5". One other remnant of Harbor Drive is a ramp stub from the Hawthorne Bridge
Hawthorne Bridge
The Hawthorne Bridge is a truss bridge with a vertical lift that spans the Willamette River in Portland, Oregon, joining Hawthorne Boulevard and Madison Street. It is the oldest vertical-lift bridge in operation in the United States and the oldest highway bridge in Portland...
which is still standing. That ramp is now a pedestrian and bicycle access ramp so one does not have to ride or walk all the way down to First Avenue in order to access Waterfront Park.
The impact of Harbor Drive
The closure of Harbor Drive is widely considered a significant event in urban planningUrban planning
Urban planning incorporates areas such as economics, design, ecology, sociology, geography, law, political science, and statistics to guide and ensure the orderly development of settlements and communities....
; the first time a freeway had ever been removed and not replaced. It (along with the subsequent cancellation of Interstate 505 and the Mount Hood Freeway) cemented Portland's reputation as a model of pedestrian- and transit-friendly design. Since the completion of Interstate 205
Interstate 205 (Oregon-Washington)
Interstate 205 is a loop route that serves the Portland—Vancouver metropolitan area in the U.S. states of Oregon and Washington. I-205 is officially named the War Veterans Memorial Freeway, and is also known as the East Portland Freeway...
in the mid 1980s, no new freeways have been built in the city, other than a short realignment of U.S. Route 30 near the Fremont Bridge.
Many other cities in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
have since demolished freeways as well, or are considering such action. San Francisco is well-known for the (earthquake-assisted) demolition of the Embarcadero Freeway; Boston demolished the elevated portion of Interstate 93
Interstate 93
Interstate 93 is an Interstate Highway in the New England section of the United States. Its southern terminus is in Canton, Massachusetts, in the Boston metropolitan area, at Interstate 95; its northern terminus is near St. Johnsbury, Vermont, at Interstate 91...
as part of the massive Big Dig project; and Milwaukee
Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Milwaukee is the largest city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin, the 28th most populous city in the United States and 39th most populous region in the United States. It is the county seat of Milwaukee County and is located on the southwestern shore of Lake Michigan. According to 2010 census data, the...
removed the Park East Freeway. In addition, Seattle
Seattle, Washington
Seattle is the county seat of King County, Washington. With 608,660 residents as of the 2010 Census, Seattle is the largest city in the Northwestern United States. The Seattle metropolitan area of about 3.4 million inhabitants is the 15th largest metropolitan area in the country...
is now considering removal of the Alaskan Way Viaduct
Alaskan Way Viaduct
The Alaskan Way Viaduct, completed on April 4, 1953, is a double-decked elevated section of State Route 99 that runs along the Elliott Bay waterfront in Seattle's Industrial District and downtown Seattle. It is the smaller of the two major north–south traffic corridors through Seattle ,...
along the downtown waterfront.
Today, Tom McCall Waterfront Park is a popular destination for sightseers, picnickers, and joggers, and is frequently the site of major civic events such as the Rose Festival
Portland Rose Festival
The Portland Rose Festival is an annual civic festival held during the month of June in Portland, Oregon. It is organized by the volunteer non-profit Portland Rose Festival Association with the purpose of promoting the Portland region...
fun center.