Millennium Plaza Park

Music in the park!

Sunny Monday morning and the freshest air. Simple and stunning. Majesty of nature, the me within, distilling priorities. Meditative environment at 0730 today.

It’s a park… made from concrete? Definitely more of a plaza than a park. I could make all sorts of judgmental commentary about the fact that a suburb has a concrete park, but that’s really beside the point. As far as an open space that allows for public use (unlike the private lake right next door) Millennium Plaza Park probably serves some good purposes.
It has bathrooms, and some covered areas, and a fountain. And a whole bunch of open space. Open concrete space. The photo on the website shows a bunch of people laying on blankets on the concrete — likely to watch a movie in the park or something. Not sure how comfortable that would be. I definitely wouldn’t bring my crew here to post up on the grass and play Frisbee or have a picnic or anything. But I can’t say I wouldn’t take advantage of a park bench and maybe the longing view of the lake that you can’t swim in without permission.
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Update — After reading Jen K’s review, it seems I only visited ½ of this park. There is a grassy area! I’ll have to check it out next time I am in the area!

Lake Oswego is a classy lady and this park is one of the jewels in her crown. A few years ago the downtown area went through a massive renovation which included improvements to this park along with the creation of the Lake View Village retail complex.
My favorite time to visit is on a Saturday morning in the summer when the Farmer’s Market is open, but it is a gorgeous spot year round. You can pick up a pastry from St. Honoré Boulangerie or a latte from Peet’s and enjoy it on the park benches overlooking the lake. Bliss.
There are two levels. An upper plaza, complete with a fire pit, grassy area and old growth trees, next to the shops and restaurants of the village. There is a pergola, with kitchen, you can rent for private parties. This area is also used for many festivals and outdoor concerts throughout the year. The lower plaza is at lake level and has a water feature for the kids in the summer months under the wings of Fortuna (see photo).
In fact, there is wonderful public art throughout Lake Oswego, with at least ten pieces in this location. Pick up an art walk map from one of the shops and take a walking tour of the city’s ‘gallery without walls.’
Pioneer Square is Portland’s living room. Millennium Plaza is Lake Oswego’s great room.