This weekend is the annual closure of the roads in River View Cemetery. While the bicycling and driving public is usually allowed to use the paved thoroughfares between the Sellwood Bridge and the Collins View neighborhood, Memorial Day weekend is a time when mourners need extra space and quiet.
As we respect the closure this year, it’s a good time to reflect on what access to the cemetery means, because we should never take it for granted.
River View is a private nonprofit managed by an executive director who answers to a board of trustees. They don’t have to allow bicycle riders on their property; but for decades now they’ve gifted us access. And it’s a good thing they do, because the roads provide a vital link in the bicycle network. There is no other viable route for bicycle riders between Sellwood and SW Terwilliger Blvd. SW Boones Ferry Road (to the north) is a fast and busy arterial with zero shoulder space, and the River View Natural Area (to the south) offers only steep, dirt trails.
I’ve covered safety concerns from cemetery leaders since as far back as 2006. Even after threats to restrict bike access in 2009, 2012, and 2017; I’ve been impressed by their patience and dedication to maintain access. Last fall, the executive director and members of the River View Board of Trustees reached out to me again; but something was different this time: They didn’t share a specific concern, they talked about a growing unease with the burden of full legal liability if and when a bad crash or collision was to happen on their grounds.
River View also reached out to Lewis & Clark College, whose campus practically borders the cemetery and whose faculty and staff rely on the safe route to work. Lois Leveen is one of them. She’s also the university’s director of public relations and has met with cemetery leaders over the past few months.
“Recently, River View Cemetery has begun to curtail access through their property, in part due to concerns about liability,” Leveen testified at a recent Portland City Council meeting this week when a Vision Zero resolution was being heard. “These changes have already had a chilling impact on bicycle commuters.” “It’s disturbing to consider how many more deaths and serious injuries might have occurred during the first ten years of Portland’s commitment to Vision Zero, if this route were not available,” Leveen added.
Leveen and the cemetery are now spreading the message that it’s time for the City of Portland to step up and share load when it comes to legal responsibility for the roads. “The City of Portland needs to recognize that a private entity should not be expected to continue to carry the full responsibility of providing safe bicycling and walking routes to the public,” she said in her testimony.
The idea is for Lewis & Clark, the Portland Bureau of Transportation, and River View Cemetery to work more closely on a short-term approach that changes the legal framework of public access (such as an official public easement), while the City commits to finding a permanent solution. At the very least, this issue needs to be on the local political radar.
River View Cemetery is in Council District 4, could it be a candidate for one of the “alternative pathways” Councilor Olivia Clark envisioned being built with funds from the new Sidewalk Improvement and Paving Program (SIPP)? Or perhaps Portland Parks and Metro can collaborate on a paved bicycle path through River View Natural Area? It might also be worth exploring a protected bike path on the SW Boones Ferry corridor.
Whatever the ultimate solutions are, the City of Portland can no longer afford to sit back and rely on this generous gift from a private entity. If we lose access to River View and there’s no viable alternative, it would be a massive setback for our transportation system and would impact thousands of lives.
So while cemetery visitors mourn lost loved ones this weekend, the City of Portland and bicycle riders should take time to reflect on what would be lost without access to the cemetery.