Brookside Wetlands Natural Area (Portland, Oregon)

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This is a good birdwatching and occasional beaver spotting. The inline stormwater detention pond is silting in, but still provides wildlife habitat- especially off-channel rearing habitat for juvenile salmon during high water events.

Taken from a Bureau of Environmental Services brochure:

The Brookside Wetland, located just south of SE Foster Road at 111th, was +City of Portland Environmental Services’ first major flood mitigation project along Johnson Creek. Project design began in 1995 and the project was constructed in 1997. The project site covers 14 acres and includes an overflow pond for flood storage, swales for stormwater management and a public park viewing area.

Project Goals Brookside was constructed to achieve the following goals:
Provide public access to Johnson Creek
Create flood storage to lessen flood impacts on local streets, homes and businesses
Restore habitat for fish and wildlife
Stormwater and Flood Mitigation

Many local residents were involved in the project design. During the process, they asked that the site become both a restoration site as well as a park with trails, picnic tables, and a wildlife-viewing platform.

Brookside Wetland Project JUNE 2009 working for clean rivers, healthy watersheds, and a livable, sustainable community Brookside Wetland south of Foster Road Brookside provides public access for recreation, as well as flood storage and wildlife habitat

Construction included removal of 90,000 cubic yards of fill to hold 35-acre feet of floodwater in the wetland. Swales on the east side of the project receive stormwater from the housing development to the south. Previously, this runoff drained directly to Johnson Creek. After constructing the pond and swales, Environmental Services planted about 30,000 native woody plants, more than 10,000 native wetland plugs, and 100 pounds of native grass seed. These plantings enhance habitat for native fish and wildlife.