Central Waterfront Redevelopment

As part of its waterfront redevelopment efforts, the City of St. Helens has been working to provide the community with increased riverfront access and public amenities along the St. Helens waterfront. The Central Waterfront property offers the opportunity to connect the City’s downtown Riverfront District to the north and the St. Helens Industrial Business Park property to the south.

The Central Waterfront Property is approximately 50 acres and the current location of the City’s 39-acre wastewater treatment plant facility. The facility’s secondary lagoon was built in 1972 as a partnership with Boise Cascade. Today, the facility is oversized, expensive to maintain, and is not the best use of a large stretch of Columbia River waterfront property. The 50-year-old lagoon also creates environmental permitting challenges due to its age and outdated technology.

The City of St. Helens is currently exploring options to repurpose part or all of the wastewater treatment plant facility. By doing so, the City will be able to:

1. Provide cohesive connection along the St. Helens waterfront, linking the historic St. Helens Riverfront District to the City’s Industrial Business Park, McCormick Park, and residential areas. This will unite two miles of waterfront property for additional public amenities.
2. Improve the St. Helens environment and health of the Columbia River by creating a properly sized wastewater treatment plant facility that uses modern technology to meet today’s environmental standards.
3. Promote the economic health of St. Helens by opening prime waterfront land for possible marine and industrial development, additional public amenities, and easier connection to Riverfront District businesses.
4. Help keep utility costs in check by creating an appropriately sized wastewater treatment facility with modern technological efficiencies.

Next Steps

The City of St. Helens was recently notified that it will receive almost $1.4 million in state and federal funding to assist with the Central Waterfront Project. The Oregon Legislature approved House Bill 5202 which allocates $984,000 to the City of St. Helens for the Central Waterfront redevelopment efforts. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) also approved $387,000 through its Hazard Mitigation Grant Program for the City of St. Helens to study wastewater treatment resiliency.

Community input, including the creation of a Central Waterfront Advisory Committee, will be an early step in the process. With community feedback, the City of St. Helens will work with professional consultants, Oregon Business Development Department, and Oregon Office of Emergency Management to develop scopes of work for how the state and federal funding will be spent. Work will focus on technical studies, assessments of the site, and research into site repurposing.

If repurposing the wastewater facility site can be done safely, St. Helens will be in a unique position to create a waterfront that attracts development, improves resiliency, generates tax revenue, creates jobs, and builds a community asset for residents and visitors alike. 

If you are interested in serving on the Central Waterfront Advisory Committee or have questions about the Central Waterfront Project, please contact Government Affairs Specialist Rachael Barry at rbarry@sthelensoregon.gov.