There is a lot of excitement building over a little park in Tualatin.
The Tualatin City Council voted unanimously 5 to 0 on Jan. 27 to award a $1.999-million contract to PHK Construction, LLC, dba ARTIS, to build Las Casitas Park.
Rich Mueller, parks planning and development manager, recapped the long road to this point, starting with the adoption of the city’s Parks & Recreation Master Plan in 2019. In 2020 the process to create Las Casitas (called Stoneridge Park at the time) began with extensive community and neighborhood involvement using a Spanish-first approach (“Reimagina El Parque Stoneridge”) followed by a site assessment and community-identified park amenities.
The process included 23 onsite and online engagement opportunities with more than 950 community members involved, according to Mueller. “This led to a concept development and finally narrowing down to the preferred design selected by community members,” he said.
Renaming the park was a separate four-month process started by a neighborhood initiative that involved 420 community members involved through events, online and surveys. The community supported naming the park Las Casitas Park or Parque Las Casitas, which the City Council adopted in November 2023.
The name, Spanish for “little houses,” is also a nickname for the Stoneridge neighborhood, which is comprised of mostly multi-family units. The neighborhood surrounding the park is multilingual, with a large number of Spanish speakers, and a smaller contingent that speaks Chuukese, native to the mid-Pacific Caroline Islands, and parts of Guam and Hawaii.
According to Mueller, construction on the park will run from March 2025 through winter 2025, with the park expected to open to the community during the 2025-26 winter.
The .35-acre park site concept plan, which includes a planted area, a mural and “seatwall,” a water feature, playground equipment and an accessible ramp between the park and the Rolling Hills Apartments, can be viewed on the city’s website. A future phase will include a shelter.
Following Mueller’s presentation, Councilor Octavio Gonzales said, “This is very exciting for our community” and asked if there would be grass in the park. “Yes, there will be formal grass and a synthetic playground surface,” Mueller answered.
Gonzales said that he hoped the care and watering of the grass would be in line with the city’s sustainability program, which aims to conserve water. He added that he hoped the city was considering the labor demands of the plants and trees placed in the park, noting that in the past the city had planted trees too large for sites that need ongoing pruning. “We need the right plants for the right locations,” he said.
Mueller answered that the park would use a smart irrigation system that is used in other parks and that the landscaping underwent a parks maintenance review. Gonzales asked if he could take a look at the landscaping plan, and Mueller said it would be sent to him.
Councilor Maria Reyes wondered about public outreach with the park’s opening a year away.
“The city staff already has engagement opportunities set up to provide information on the project,” Mueller said. “That will go out electronically, and there will be physical signs posted. We can connect with the neighborhood and let them know.”
Councilor Valerie Pratt added, “It’s pretty exciting since the Parks Master Plan passed to get to this point. We’re really excited to see this move forward this year.”
Las Casitas is located at 19489 S.W. 68th Avenue in Tualatin.
