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Achievement in Community Engagement

Each year, the Community Involvement Advisory Committee (CIAC) accepts applications for the Achievement in Community Engagement (ACE) Awards. The ACE Awards recognize excellence in engaging communities in the land use planning process. In 2025, two of six applicants were recognized with an ACE Award for their thoughtful engagement. Envision Sandy 2050 and the tumata Village Master Plan are two examples of successfully connecting with and gaining feedback from their local communities.

2025 ACE Award Recognized Projects

Envision Sandy 2050

Summary

With support from a $50,000 DLCD Technical Assistance Grant, the City partnered with 3J Consulting, ECOnorthwest, Geos Institute, and Veritas Collaborations to deliver a robust and inclusive planning process. A central goal of the project was to elevate community voices, especially those historically underrepresented in local decision-making. The process included a particular focus on addressing economic development, wildfire resilience, housing affordability, and infrastructure redundancy. 
The planning process officially began in early 2022. By Fall 2024, it culminated in unanimous adoption by City Council of a new Comprehensive Plan grounded in community values and a shared vision for Sandy’s future. The Envision Sandy 2050 project exemplifies excellence in inclusive, intentional community engagement. It not only resulted in an actionable, forward-looking Comprehensive Plan but also strengthened civic relationships and institutionalized more equitable planning practices. Lessons learned from this effort are already informing new phases of work and will continue to elevate Sandy’s approach to community-centered planning.

Methods

Over the course of two years, the Envision Sandy 2050 process reached more than 1,000 community members through a wide range of engagement methods. Highlights included:

  • A community advisory committee selected through an open application process.
  • “Community conversations" with over a dozen civic groups, commissions, and Spanish-speaking residents.
  • Surveys, focus groups, and classroom workshops with over 250 high school students.
  • A family-friendly “Future Fest" community meeting held at a local Sandy business, providing food, drinks, kids' open play, and free childcare.
  • Spanish-language outreach through trusted local leaders, including radio and social media outreach.
  • Resiliency workshops addressing natural hazards and climate vulnerability across various sectors, which directly shaped new policy content.

The outreach prioritized inclusivity by identifying and engaging key populations — especially youth and Hispanic/Latino residents. Materials were bilingual, outreach was grassroots, and digital access barriers were addressed through direct mail and in-person events.

Highlighted Practices

  • Impressive engagement of community members from all sectors, particularly youth
  • Undertaking a comprehensive plan update through the lens of community preparedness and resilience
  • Reflecting past and potential changes, challenges, and opportunities throughout the process

Project Outcomes

Community input informed every aspect of the new comprehensive plan, from land use and housing to transportation and climate adaptation. The resulting plan reflects the aspirations of the community:
  • Strengthening community trust and civic participation
  • Preserving Sandy's small-town character while preparing for continued growth
  • Expanding housing affordability and diversity to address the rising cost burden
  • Enhancing climate resilience, especially related to wildfire risk and extreme heat
  • Improving parks and infrastructure in stride with development


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tumwata Village Master Plantumwata2023-1536x1187.png

Summary

From time immemorial, the lands surrounding Willamette Falls-recognized as tumwata-have been a place of abundance, gathering, and spiritual significance for indigenous communities. The founding of Oregon City, followed by industrial expansion, displaced Indigenous communities and transformed the landscape. The 1855 Willamette Valley Treaty forcibly removed Tribal people from tumwata to the Grand Ronde Reservation, severing their connection to this sacred site.

When the Blue Heron Paper Mill closed in 2011, the site was left abandoned and contaminated. In 2019, the Confederated Tribes of the Grand Ronde Community of Oregon (Grand Ronde Tribe) re-acquired this 23-acre site at the base of Willamette Falls.

Although initial planning for the site began with the 2014 Willamette Falls Legacy Project (WFLP) Master Plan, that effort focused on celebrating the area's industrial past. It lacked meaningful engagement with Tribes and communities most affected by that legacy. The Grand Ronde Tribe, with deep ancestral ties to this place, led a new process to amend the original plan. Community engagement and planning informed the tumwata village Vision 1.0 document completed in March 2021 and then further engagement and refinement resulted in the tumwata village Vision 2.0 document completed in Winter 2022. Both efforts were then incorporated into the tumwata village Master Plan. In January 2025, following years of inclusive outreach and cultural visioning, the tumwata village Master Plan was formally adopted by Oregon City.

Methods

The project team engaged Grand Ronde tribal members at community meetings, with a compensation model used to provide incentive. Those who participated in community meetings, in person or online, were entered into a drawing for three $100 awards and five $50 awards.

Grand Ronde tribal elders and cultural practitioners were actively engaged throughout the process to ensure the cultural values were respectfully and authentically integrated into the planning process.

Highlighted Practices

  • Expanding community engagement in Oregon City to recognize intergenerational relationships and deeply engaging the community
  • Creating a compelling vision for cultural healing and a unique approach to economic development in Oregon City

Project OutcomesTumwata_master_plan_01-2048x1101.jpg

The planning process resulted in the adoption of the tumwata village Master Plan — a 23-acre planned development. The tumwata village Master Plan, was an amendment to the Willamette Falls Legacy Project Master Plan originally adopted by Oregon City in 2014. Changes to the original master plan were proposed to better reflect Tribal values and vision for site redevelopment, and to better meet the needs identified by the community through community engagement.

The site will become a modern mixed-use destination that includes retail, residential, event space, and open green areas. Additionally, it will be a Grand Ronde Tribal village — a place where the Tribe can once again host guests, conduct ceremonies, and celebrate the continued presence of the Grand Ronde community on their homelands.

Native plants and wildlife habitat will reestablish the site's natural systems. Water, always central to the history of the Falls, will be integrated into the site's design visually, audibly, and spiritually.

2025 ACE Applicants

Although the CIAC could not recognize all applicants with an ACE Award, they were very impressed with all applicants. The following are more examples of community engagement successes.

​In 2024, the City of Monmouth, in partnership with University of Oregon (UO) School of Design faculty and staff, led the Monmouth Alley Activation Project to transform an underutilized alleyway into a new community gathering space. The project fulfilled a need to create more outdoor eating spaces as identified through community input received during the city's recently completed Downtown Plan. The Monmouth Alley Activation Project created an attractive and inclusive space downtown, and the city is already experiencing the social and economic benefits of this new community space.

“The Monmouth Alley Activation Project is a testament of what can happen when you turn community driven plans into action with a group of dedicated partners that are motivated to make a difference in their community by rolling up their sleeves and getting their hands dirty. It was a gratifying and humbling experience to work alongside community members of all ages and backgrounds to transform an unremarkable car-centric space into a beautiful and welcoming downtown destination that the whole community can be proud of," noted Monmouth Community Development Director, Suzanne Dufner. 

Monmouth Alley, which cuts through the southern block of 100 Main Street West in Downtown Monmouth, was historically used by cars accessing parking or conducting drive-through business. The alley crossed the sidewalk mid-block in order to connect with main roads, creating dangerous situations for pedestrians, especially in a heavily used pedestrian corridor that connects community buildings such as, the Monmouth Senior/Community Center, City Hall, restaurants and stores to the campus of Western Oregon University.

Upon receiving a Community Challenge Grant from AARP, the city partnered with UO faculty and staff, who kickstarted the project by interviewing community members, local business owners, and city staff. The project team obtained input from a diverse representation of community members and organizations including, the Monmouth Senior Center, the Monmouth Arts & Culture Commission, the Monmouth Business Association, several student groups at Western Oregon University, including the Freedom Center representing BIPOC voices, staff from the American Sign Language Department, the Stonewall Center representing LGBTQIA+ community, and the Art Department. Community members were asked about their needs and desires in creating an inclusive, accessible, and welcoming space. These conversations inspired and informed initial plans for the alley, which were implemented as a pilot project in the summer of 2024. The pilot project model allowed the project team to adapt the alleyway design to ongoing community feedback.

The first design incorporated outdoor games and a free Little Library to offer play features in the alley. To bring together people of all ages, the space was designed to be adaptable to a variety of events and activities such as, corn hole, checkers, tai chi, arts and craft activities, story time and others. The project team also considered material usage and layout from an accessibility standpoint to avoid tripping hazards, wear and tear, and make it accessible to navigate for the wheeled folks and visually impaired individuals. The second iteration of the design focused on the inclusion of temporary and semi-permanent art added by local community members and professional artists

Throughout the process, the community was invited to participate in multiple multi-media surveys so that they could share what they liked and what they felt was still missing. Volunteer events, featuring free food from local vendors, also encouraged community members to test out the space. This culminated in a final design responsive to the community's desire for more greenery, accessible seating, lighting, and improving the pavement markings with a more durable installation.

Learn more about the project on the City of Monmouth's website​.

​In 2023, the City of Portland adopted a Housing Needs Analysis (HNA) to understand current and future housing needs in Portland. Following this, the city needed to adopt a Housing Production Strategy (HPS) to identify specific actions (policies, programs, development regulations, financial incentives, etc.) to be implemented over the next six years to meet those needs. While there has been robust engagement around housing issues across land use and other projects in the City, Black, Indigenous, People of Color (BIPOC) communities are still most impacted and priced out of housing market and wealth building opportunities. Staff wanted to provide an opportunity for BIPOC communities to give their input on housing issues and identify strategies that would be most impactful to create better living conditions and stable housing. The City of Portland received a grant from DLCD to engage with historically marginalized communities in developing their Housing Production Strategy.

Over the course of the project, the team hosted or attended 25 community meetings, reaching over 250 participants. These meetings, along with a citywide survey, gave Portlanders the opportunity to provide feedback on engagement efforts and proposed housing production strategies at every stage of the project.

Additionally, the City of Portland partnered with Community Engagement Liaison Services and LatinoBuild to facilitate six BIPOC focus groups and an East Portland BIPOC community meeting, including translation of materials into five different languages. The City reached an additional 108 community members belonging to Latinx, Vietnamese, Chinese, Ukrainian, Russian, Pacific Islander, Burmese, Cambodian, and African communities. Participants were compensated for their time and meals were included at some meetings.​

Participants identified a number of key housing issues in Portland, including affordability, access to services, outdoor space, and programs supporting homeownership and housing stabilization. They also identified a need for increased neighborhood safety, accessible units, and community education for BIPOC homeowners.

The Housing Production Strategy identifies 35 actions that the City of Portland will take in the next six years to remove barriers to housing.​

​The Prismid Sanctuary Rebuild project arose from a community-identified need for Black and Indigenous led arts, performance, land-tending, and gathering spaces that are cultivated by Black and Indigenous people, vision, and values.

Prismid Sanctuary is located in the St. John's neighborhood of Portland, a predominantly low-to-moderate income area that is undergoing processes of rapid Black, Indigenous, People of Color (BIPOC) displacement. St. Johns and the surrounding neighborhoods are disproportionately underserved with access to arts and creative performance programming, especially for BIPOC communities. Prismid, Inc. purposely purchased land in this neighborhood to reclaim Black and Indigenous community space for those they serve.

Prismid is the sole Portland-area organization focused on Black and Indigenous relationships, land and space sovereignty, in tandem with support/space for artistic and cultural practices. They used their deep, existing relationship with the community to envision and realize a fully remodeled, net-zero building and grounds sanctuary. To achieve community-led design of the rebuild, Prismid Co-Directors Mick Rose and esperanza spalding, alongside Allied Works, led workshops with community members who regularly visited the Sanctuary.

They received input from seven small community meetings (5-15 people), individual conversations, and one all-day workshop. A group of 40 intergenerational BIPOC community members attended the workshop, which included sessions on listening to the land and visually mapping with multi-media onto a site plan. All participants were compensated for their time and creative labor.

From listening to the expressed needs and visions of historically disenfranchised community members, Prismid realized that deep community healing is needed to sustain long term wellness and economic and environmental sustainability.

The team responded to this need with programs, gathering space, and regenerative outdoor environments, designed to support restorative cultural practices.

As a placemaking project that centers the needs of historically marginalized communities, the Sanctuary Rebuild will transfer in ownership from Prismid to be community owned and reclaim Black and Indigenous community space.

This project was recently featured in Oregon Artswatch​.​​

​The Sunrise Corridor Community Visioning project began in 2021 with $4 million from the Oregon Legislature to address development pressures, safety challenges, and infrastructure gaps around the industrial area in northwest Clackamas County. While the corridor has been the focus of extensive planning and engagement work in the past, those efforts focused solely on transportation improvements. The Sunrise Corridor Community Visioning project built upon past projects to create a holistic community vision, with deep community engagement not only on the topic of transportation, but also on land use, public health, the natural environment, housing, and economic competitiveness. This project aimed to center historically underserved voices and local lived experiences in creating this vision.

More than 2,000 community members participated in a wide variety of engagement activities including open houses, multilingual surveys and meetings, youth workshops, walking tours, and small group interviews. The project met people where they were by hosting pop-up events in manufactured housing communities, on bus shuttles, and at farmers markets. Children's activities, food, transportation support, and stipends helped working families participate.

At the heart of this process was the creation of a Leadership Cohort, a diverse team of residents, service providers, and business leaders who co-developed project themes, reviewed feedback, and crafted vision plan language.

Throughout the process, the project team consulted with the Leadership Cohort to adapt materials in real-time in response to community input, and track participation demographics, engagement format effectiveness, and topic resonance. By approaching this engagement project as an opportunity to build lasting relationships, not just collect feedback, Sunrise Corridor Community Visioning established a trusted network of community leaders and public agency staff who will continue to partner on implementing the vision plan.

The final Vision Plan identifies four overarching themes for implementation that were developed and supported by the community: Jobs and the Economy; Neighborhoods and Places; Transportation; and Public Health and the Environment. These themes are supported by 16 specific, implementation-ready goals and more than 100 detailed community-informed actions. These actions include “Quick Wins" – actions that can be advanced relatively quickly and with modest amounts of investment – and “Big Moves" – actions that require sustained regional coordination and investment.

For decades, many Sunrise Corridor Community residents felt left out of planning decisions that shape their daily lives. This project created new opportunities for inclusion, by meeting people where they are, compensating them for their time, and reflecting their ideas directly in the Sunrise Corridor Community Vision Plan. More than just a vision, this project has resulted in a blueprint for action and accountability shared by the community and agency partners. Clackamas County is already using this project as a model for other planning initiatives.


Previously Recognized Projects











At a Glance

Who?
  • City of Sandy
  • 3J Consulting
  • Geo Institute
  • Veritas Collaborative
  • ECOnorthwest
Where?

City of Sandy

City of Sandy pinpointed on a county map of Oregon.

What?

An intentional community engagement project to inform updates to the city's outdated 1977 comprehensive plan

Why?

Between 1977, when the city adopted its previous comprehensive plan. and 2022, Sandy's population nearly tripled. Demographics changed, housing costs surged, and transportation and infrastructure challenges grew more complex.

Learn More

Check out the Envision Sandy 2050 project report for more information.

Anaïs Mathez AICP, Senior Associate at Cascadia Partners, LLC, is the project contact. She can be reached at anais@cascadia-partners.com.

















At a Glance

Who?
  • Confederated Tribes of the Grand Ronde Community of Oregon
  • GBD Architects
  • Winterbrook Planning
  • DOWL Engineering
  • Walker Macy
  • Historic Research Associates
  • Catena
  • Global Transportation Engineers
Where?

Oregon City

OregonCity_Oregon_Map.png

What?

Engaged the historically marginalized voices of the community to plan a multi-use area — including housing, retail, community event space, and green space — that centers cultural and ecological restoration and recognizes the intergenerational needs of the Grand Ronde community.

Why?

The founding of Oregon City, followed by industrial expansion, displaced indigenous communities and transformed and contaminated the landscape.

Learn more

Kristen Svicarovich, P.E., community development manager for the Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde, is the project contact. She can be reached at kristen.svicarovich@grandronde.org or 503-879-2070.