10
S moke S ignals
JANUARY 15, 2016
Photos by Michelle Alaimo
The Tribe recently purchased the former Multnomah Greyhound Park site in Wood Village.
Tribal track tract
Greyhound Park showing
signs of disuse, neglect
By Dean Rhodes
Smoke Signals editor
WOOD VILLAGE – Visiting the
Tribe’s newest land holding in Mult-
nomah County, the former Mult-
nomah Greyhound Park, is like being
dropped into an episode of “Life After
People” on The History Channel.
Despite its location next to a
Lowe’s and busy shopping center,
the park shows obvious and poten-
tially dangerous signs of disuse and
neglect since its closure in 2004.
Four stories of grandstand seat-
ing are littered with shards of glass
from fallen and broken panes.
Graffiti mars much of the interior
while old editions of the “Mult-
nomah Greyhound Park News” can
be found lying next to seats where
they were left behind more than a
decade ago. One park attendee from
June 30, 2004, picked Yukon Cook-
ie to win the first leg of the Pick-3.
Copies of the Oregon Greyhound
Covenant are posted throughout
the facility, guaranteeing, among
other things, that all greyhounds
will be placed in a nationally recog-
nized adoption program when their
racing and/or breeding careers end.
The only sign more prevalent is one
that instructs attendees on how to
place a bet.
The 1,382-foot track still retains
its cushion; it was laid with sand
dredged from the Columbia River.
However, the once plush infield
has been overtaken by blackberry
bushes. Greyhounds could traverse
the track 1.5 times in less than 40
seconds while chasing a mechanical
rabbit.
Other outbuildings, such as the
former kennels and a scale room,
also are in disrepair and show signs
of housing transients. Two fire hy-
drants still stand in the scale room
and prompt chuckles from those
touring the site.
The Tribe closed on the 31-acre
site in December and plans for it
are still being developed. The land
is zoned “town center” in Wood
Village, meaning potential uses can
include a regional entertainment
facility, commercial retail, housing
and office buildings.
Tribal Council Chairman Reyn
Leno said that the Tribe will use
the land in its efforts to create a
diversified economy that will help
the Grand Ronde Tribe prepare for
the future.
One of the first steps in preparing
for that future will be demolishing
the grandstands. Currently, a se-
curity firm provides 24/7 patrols
of the property to prevent further
vandalism and ensure that no one
is injured. No firm date has been
set for beginning demolition of the
grandstands.
Until then, the park will continue
to stand eerily in Wood Village, a
testament to a recreational option
Above, graffiti mars
the walls of a betting
terminal of the former
Multnomah Greyhound
Park. At left, the
current state of the
grandstand of the
former Multnomah
Greyhound Park.
that attracted more than 611,000
spectators in 1987.
To see what the park looked like in
its heyday, visit youtube.com and type
in Multnomah Greyhound Park. n
Racing forms, like this one dated
Aug. 6, 2004, can still be found on the
floor of the grandstand of the former
Multnomah Greyhound Park.