2025 Accomplishments
A summary of projects & events brought to you by the Roseway Neighborhood Association
The Roseway Neighborhood Association (RNA) continued to build in its successes and accomplishments this year! Throughout the year, we have worked to keep our neighbors informed, connected, and inspired about the future of our neighborhood. Here are some of our main accomplishments so far in 2025. Check back for updates between now and the end of the year. Please Join us and help us to determine how best to devote our energy and resources in 2026!
Community Meetings
The Roseway Neighborhood Association has quarterly community meetings with a curated program of speakers and topics that neighbors want to hear about. We’ve gotten positive feedback that these meetings are engaging and informative. They are well-attended with between 50 and over 100 attendees between in-person and on Zoom.
RNA is committed to reaching as many neighbors as possible with our meetings. Our community and board meetings are all hybrid. While we encourage attendees to join in person, we understand that mobility, child care, work constraints, and language barriers are more conducive to joining remotely.
In particular, connecting to our community meeting via Zoom makes it possible for non-English speakers to join and have the presentations automatically translated to their preferred language. RNA uses a Zoom feature that lets an attendee add a closed caption with the language of their choice.
In 2025, we presented on a variety of topics of interest to neighbors.
January Meeting - District 3 Town Hall
In January 2025, we kicked off the year with a District 3 Town Hall featuring our newly elected city councilors; Tiffany Koyama Lane, Angelita Morillo, and Steve Novick. The event brought together neighbors from Roseway, Rose City Park, and Madison South, both in person and online, for a great discussion about the future of Portland, including topics like public safety, housing, and transportation.
It was a great evening that gave residents the chance to hear directly from their representatives, ask questions, and share what matters most to our community. We asked that the councilors put it on their calendars for January 2026!
Roseway architect Haley Wallace also presented her design concepts for future monuments in the Roseway Parkway.
April Meeting - Emergency Preparedness
Did you know? In the case of a wide-spread emergency such as a major earthquake, over 90% of the first response will be from your neighbors. We all need to pull together in the case of an emergency, and much of that work can be done through preparation and education.
In April, RNA hosted a community meeting focused on Emergency Preparedness. Kathy Reese from the Portland Bureau of Emergency Management (PBEM) presented about how to be prepared for an emergency, and in particular a major Cascadia Subduction earthquake.
This meeting was also the kickoff of RNA’s collaboration with Roseway Prepares, a group of Neighborhood Emergency Team members (NETs) that provides supplies, logistics, and expertise in the case of an emergency.
Visit the Roseway Prepares web page for more information, to receive the newsletter, and to get in touch.
July Meeting - Summer Picnic
We hosted our Community Picnic on Tuesday on July 22, at the site of the new Roseway Plaza. It was an evening for neighbors to connect, enjoy some ice cream, play games, and hear a few quick updates about neighborhood projects.
Please let us know if you like the idea of a casual picnic in July, or would prefer a formal community meeting.
Roseway Plaza and Street Mural
In January of 2025, NE 72nd Ave and Mason looked about as it has for years: a basketball hoop invited kids and adults to shoot hoops, and a concrete bench welcomed people to stop and sit.
Over the next nine months, this section of NE Mason was transformed into a beautiful gathering space and Portland’s newest plaza. The plaza is an example of an outstanding partnership between the Portland Bureau of Transportation and the Roseway Neighborhood Association. The neighborhood association planned the major design elements and cares for the plaza. The plaza is PBOT right-of-way and PBOT provided many of the plaza's features, including redwood seating and planter boxes.
In February, PBOT installed the bollards and curbs that now protect Mason between the lanes of 72nd Ave from motor traffic. The work is part of the Mason/Skidmore Greenway project, providing safe passage for cyclists and other nonmotorized users. Over the following months, the city provided picnic tables and a city-supported trash can.
The centerpiece of the new plaza is a street mural painted by 80-100 volunteers from Roseway and surrounding neighborhoods. The mural was designed by a local business owner, Megan Blossom, and funded by a grant from the Regional Arts and Culture Council. Representatives of the City Repair Project were also instrumental in completing the mural. The mural represents the flow of water through our area, native plants and wildlife, and a ribbon that invites strolls along its path.
On September 6, the neighborhood association hosted a grand opening celebration for the plaza. The Roseway Plaza is distinct since it is in a residential area rather than a commercial corridor. It is a gathering place for friends, families, and kids, to enjoy a car-free space and Roseway Parkway.
The Roseway Plaza celebration included free food, drink, and entertainment thanks to a Community Grant from SE UPlift. City officials walked and danced around the street mural with neighbors, spoke about their support of community spaces, and helped cut the ribbon that marked the official opening of the plaza to the community.
In 2026 the RNA Placemaking Committee will be working on developing shade structures that work within PBOT guidelines. Another component we’d like to incorporate in or near the plaza are information stations to keep everyone updated on plaza events, and educate regarding parkway and plaza needs and usage. In addition, we plan to host a number of work parties to maintain and improve the space. All volunteer assistance is welcome!
Roseway Plaza in the news
Roseway Parkway
Pollinator Pathways
Neighborhood volunteers planted four 72 sq ft Pollinator Patches with 17 native herbaceous species to attract bird and insect pollinator species to the Roseway Parkway. The patches are found at the four corners surrounding our new street plaza at NE 72nd Ave and Mason St. Volunteers were involved in growing and planting many of the species, and are needed for ongoing care of the patches, and potentially for new patches in the future.
Tree Pruning
Volunteer pruners trained by Portland Urban Forestry were granted a “Street Tree Pruning Permit” for minor pruning of Roseway Parkway trees. Over 100 parkway trees were pruned to improve structure. Dead, dying, and damaged trees were reported to Urban Forestry along with recommendations for site appropriate replacement trees. Urban Forestry will be planting approximately a dozen new trees along the parkway this fall and winter.
Tree Weeding, Mulching and Watering
Neighborhood volunteers, along with Recovery Café members, weeded and mulched 135 Roseway Parkway trees this past season. This work benefits trees during dry months and provides a reasonably mulched border around each tree to facilitate mowing. Neighbors were also recruited to water nearby trees during the summer months.
Roseway Parkway Arboretum
We currently have 50 species of trees on the parkway representing 17 plant families. In the coming year, RNA will apply for arboretum status for the parkway through arbnet.org, the Interactive Community of Arboreta. We are seeking volunteers to join an organizational group for the arboretum, and for parkway tree care.
Mowing
The Portland Bureau of Transportation mows the parkway once or twice a season. Roseway neighbors have self-organized to mow and trim the five parkway blocks as needed using a mower owned by a resident of 72nd Ave. Neighbors contribute to a mower fuel and maintenance fund.
General Maintenance Tasks
The concrete bench on the north side of the Plaza at Mason Street is an occasional target for graffiti. RNA board members repaint the bench as needed and remove trash and debris from the area. New redwood picnic tables and a bench at the Roseway Plaza were sealed and stained by an RNA board member prior to the fall rainy season.
Roseway Prepares
In April, Roseway Neighborhood Association and Roseway Prepares collaborated on an emergency preparedness themed community meeting at the Roseway Heights middle school. Roseway Prepares has also been a semi-regular contributor to Roseway.org offering helpful and detailed information to the sites emergency preparedness resources page. RNA receives regular updates from Roseway Prepares and the two groups are always looking for ways to come together to support Roseway neighbors having the information and knowledge they need should a major disaster strike.
Visit the Roseway Prepares web page for more information, to receive the newsletter, and to get in touch.
Events & Projects
The Roseway Neighborhood Association was proud to bring numerous events and projects to the neighborhood this year. It was great to see so many familiar faces, and to meet new neighbors and friends of Roseway! Here’s what we were up to in 2025:
Earth Day Event
Earth Day is one of Roseway’s community rituals! The neighborhood gathered once again in April this year to salute all things spring, soil and sky. The plaza and parkway were abuzz with native seed starts, pollinator patch chats, salmon hats, face painting, chalk drawings and tabling from our friends at Rose City Bluff Restoration and Rocky Butte Farmers Market. Thanks to donations from Blossom Landscaping and offerings from everyone’s gardens, neighbors worked together to create another beautiful living mandala. A living spontaneous piece of art, the mandala takes a different form every year. This year it smelled like sage harvested from a nearby yard, with piles of pink cherry blossoms sprinkled by kids in the corners.
Sunday Parkways
In June, the NE Portland / Cully Sunday Parkways event rolled through the Roseway neighborhood, including a stop at the Roseway Plaza. RNA board members and volunteers made streamers for the cyclists and provided a spot to rest and enjoy the parkway.
Roseway Dumpster Day
Roseway Neighborhood Association’s annual neighborhood clean-up day was held at Glenhaven Park on Saturday, June 28 th from 9:00 am to 3:00 pm. Once again fiscally supported by a $5,000 grant from Metro and capably coordinated by Ronda Johnson of Central Northeast Neighbors, Dumpster Day 2025 brought in over $4,000 for the association. Almost 10 tons (9.85 tons to be precise) of trash was handled by over 30 volunteers and hauled away by Portland Disposal and Recycling. Nearly 2 tons of material was recycled.
Additionally, hazardous waste materials were collected and disposed of properly. Neighborhood Emergency Team volunteers shared their knowledge and resources with neighbors as they drove through. The 2025 event benefitted from a beautiful day and proximity to the Rocky Butte Farmer’s Market.
Winter Solstice Celebration
The RNA will host a Winter Solstice celebration on Saturday, December 20th from 4-6pm. We will gather as a community on the Roseway Parkway at the site of our street plaza on NE Mason St and 72nd Ave to celebrate the longest night of the year, and the onset of winter. Hot cocoa and apple cider will be provided. Please bring a song, poem or intention you’d like to share with the community to welcome the return of the light after the darkest night. Cookies and other sweet treats to share are welcome.
Communication & Outreach
Communication and outreach is a critical part of our volunteer organization. Without it, we wouldn’t be able to put on such amazing events or grow the size of our community meetings. Here’s how we “got the word out” this year:
Roseway Monthly eBulletin
Through our monthly electronic bulletin, RNA provides information about upcoming meetings, exciting news about goings-on in the neighborhood, and important updates about what’s happening in the city.
We have 455 email subscribers (up from 350 a year ago). Our average open rate for bulletins over the past year is 75%. The high engagement shows that neighbors are very interested in what’s going on in Roseway and are interested in what we’re doing. It’s a good sign to keep the effort up and keep growing!
If you haven’t already, please subscribe so you get the bulletin every month! Note that the bulletin is in quiet mode while our intrepid editor is on parental leave from this volunteer position. For the remainder of 2025, the bulletin will provide brief reminders of other ways to connect with RNA, including the web site, social media, and meetings.
Outreach and Education through Social Media
In 2025, RNA kept the neighborhood informed and inspired through frequent social media posts. The posts covered upcoming events organized by RNA, events organized by others, information about staying safe and healthy, needs-based services, updates on the plaza design, and calls for volunteers. We post news to both Instagram and Facebook, so you can follow us on either platform for the latest!
On Facebook, we now have over 1,500 followers. We have created over 100 posts with a total of 100,000 views.
We sometimes post major news and events to the unaffiliated Roseway PDX Facebook community group, but please also follow our official Roseway Neighborhood Association page for news specific to our neighborhood and the association’s work.
On Instagram, we have over 650 followers, up over 60% from last year. We have also created over 100 posts with 50,000 views.
Follow us on Instagram and Facebook for the latest!
The Roseway Neighborhood Association is happy to support school and nonprofit efforts that help make the neighborhood a wonderful place to work, live, and play.
In 2025, RNA continued to sponsor the Rocky Butte Farmers Market. The market continues to grow and thrive at its location on NE 80th and Siskiyou in Roseway. We are proud to support this neighborhood treasure, which provides fresh produce and local products to our neighbors.
RNA also sponsored the Scott School Kermés Festival, which is a multi-cultural festival and celebrates Scott School’s Spanish-English immersion program.
Other Endeavors
In addition to community meetings, events, projects, and communication efforts, the board was busy at work in 2025. Here are some of the other projects we worked on this year.
Community Sponsorships
Other Important Engagement
Liaised with Portland Police (via PEMO), which helped encourage their missions targeting human trafficking, shootings, car theft, and street takeovers.
Connected with Portland Parks and Recreation on a planned walking trail through the Rose City Golf Course (planned for later in 2025 or 2026).
Improved volunteer signup capability and tracking so that anyone who wants to make the neighborhood better knows what opportunities are available.
Monitored development notices, which ensured that new developments are responsible and benefit the neighborhood.
Responded to hundreds of emails to <rosewayneighborhood@gmail.com>. The inquiries range from questions and concerns from neighbors to community news that organizations wanted to share with Roseway. We try to be responsive so that we know best how to support the neighborhood.
To everyone on our 2025 board… THANK YOU!!!
2025 RNA Officers
President: Chris Hansen
Vice President: Ash Hester
Secretary: Rachel Anderholder
Treasurer: Catherine Clark
2025 RNA Board Members
Bob Price
Sarah Gibney
Ted Carlston
Ava Williams
Erika Abdelatif
Miller McCobb
Joan Miller
Chris Hansen
Charles Froelick
Calvin Bair
Catherine Clark
Ash Hester
Ken Garrard
Chris King
Rachel Anderholder
