As you may know, CNA has been involved in a critical local land use issue: preventing the rezoning of Colwood Golf Course from open space to industrial. There are many reasons to ensure that Colwood does not become an industrial area. One of the biggest is that Colwood is the one of the last areas on the Columbia Slough that has not been contaminated or abused by industrial development.
If you would like an example of our history of industrial development along the Columbia Slough, just take a look at Johnson Lake. The Oregonian just did a story on the latest plan to clean-up the lake. Johnson Lake is part of the Columbia Slough system. For decades the lake was a recreational retreat for Portland residents. The lake boasted a beach house to serve the public and a dance hall. People swam, fished, and enjoy the serenity of this special area.
The Owens-Illinois Glass Factory set up shop on the land adjacent to the lake in the 1950’s. They soon began dumping industrial waste into Johnson Lake, much of it containing PCBs (a known carcinogen). Needless to say, Johnson Lake has not been open to swimming for the past 50 years and fish caught in the lake is unsafe for human consumption.
Colwood has been zoned open space as long as it has been in the city and was zoned agricultural before that. It makes no sense to open of Colwood to industrial development and risk repeating the past. Let’s learn from the past for a change. Let’s Keep Colwood Green!
Send in your testimony to Keep Colwood Green today!