The Ardenwald Johnson Creek Neighborhood Association represents a community that spans parts of both the City of Portland and the City of Milwaukie. It includes areas of Multnomah County and of Clackamas County. Its boundaries reach from the backyards of the homes along Crystal Springs Boulevard in Southeast Portland’s Eastmoreland neighborhood, to the heart of Milwaukie along Harrison and King roads, from the railroad tracks along McLoughlin Boulevard to 42nd Street and Johnson Creek Boulevard in Milwaukie.
In the heart of the Portland portion of our neighborhood sits Tideman Johnson Park, a wildlife area that’s home to coyotes, beavers, dozens of varieties of birds and waterfowls (including the occasional bald eagles), and the site of a comprehensive plan to recover salmon and steelhead runs. Tideman Park provides schools with an unmatched opportunity to study fish and wildlife habitat by spending time in it. The metropolitan region’s Springwater Corridor passes through Tideman Park, offering bicyclists, joggers and people just out for a stroll respite from more urbanized stretches of the corridor.
Ardenwald is a family-oriented neighborhood. Our local elementary school – Ardenwald Elementary – is the center of community life. People with families move here to send their kids to Ardenwald.
We have summer concerts in our little Ardenwald Park (built on land that was a gift from local residents, the same family that donated the land for Tideman Johnson Park) where kids can play while their parents relax until sunset, listening to jazz, marimba, blues, and even Polka music.
Ours is an old-fashioned community, where neighbors know each other. When we set up our summer reading in the park program, dozens of people come together over books and kids. When we walk over to the concerts, we can wave at our neighbors and often draw them along to join us. People stop to talk to each other. We share recipes. We sit down to coffee together in our kitchens and talk about what the neighborhood needs.
Our residents are actively engaged in the neighborhood association. It’s where we bring our issues, but it’s also where we work together to make ours a community we can be proud of.
Anyone who lives or works or owns a business in Ardenwald is welcome to participate in our monthly meetings, the fourth Monday of each month (except July and August). We meet at 6:30 at Milwaukie Cafe & Bottle Shop at the corner of SE 32nd Ave. and SE Olsen St. (9401 SE 32nd Ave. in Milwaukie).
Download Neighborhood Brochure (beta) (388 kb PDF)