Pouring concrete at #18 reservoir Tigard Oregon.

Video of backfilling a 4 million gallon fully buried reservoir in Tigard Oregon.

Buried Tigard reservoir designed to meet future western water needs, blend in with natural setting Published 3:59 pm Wednesday, September 3, 2025 By Ray Pitz A photo taken from an overlook at Sunrise Park shows the completed reservoir. (Courtesy photo/Tigard Public Works) Tigard held an Aug. 28 ribbon-cutting ceremony to recognize the city’s newest water infrastructure — a $33.2 million project that features a 4.5-million-gallon reservoir. The new structure will provide water not only for existing western Tigard neighborhoods but also for the ongoing River Terrace planned community development. What’s unique about the new 202-foot-diameter reservoir in Sunrise Park — located at Southwest 150th Avenue and Sunrise Lane — is that after the 12-foot-tall structure was completed, workers buried it with dirt. “Throughout the community engagement process for this project, we consistently heard from the advisory committee and neighbors that they want to preserve the natural feel of Sunrise Park,” said Jessica Love, Tigard Public Works Department communications program coordinator. “By building a fully buried reservoir, we helped maintain the park’s natural character and enhanced its unique viewpoints.” Keeping the initially removed soil onsite to help bury the reservoir saved the city from having to haul away an estimated 2,085 dump truck-loads of dirt, Love added. Future park features could be added The project also includes a new pump station to get water into the reservoir, along with 17,447 feet of various-sized water pipes. As part of the project, wood-chipped walking trails were added along with strategically placed park benches, with the top of the reservoir graded to support any future features. “In 2027, we will be updating our Park System Plan. At that time, we will be looking at Sunrise Park and other parks for consideration of adding additional park amenities,” Love said. With neighbors previously stating that they like Sunrise Park for its passive recreation opportunities such as birdwatching and dog-walking, some area residents have suggested that the top of the reservoir include a nature play structure or picnic tables, officials have previously said. Meanwhile, beginning Sept. 2 and continuing through October, the project’s contractor will be completing stormwater drainage improvements to the southern portion of Sunrise Park. That includes installing irrigation, final landscaping and more — work that will require portions of the park to be closed intermittently to the public.

Read more at: https://valleytimes.news/2025/09/03/buried-tigard-reservoir-designed-to-meet-future-western-water-needs-blend-in-with-natural-setting/

Buried Tigard reservoir designed to meet future western water needs, blend in with natural setting Published 3:59 pm Wednesday, September 3, 2025 By Ray Pitz

Tigard moves forward with 4.5-million-gallon reservoir off Bull Mountain Road Published 6:00 pm Friday, April 26, 2024 By Ray Pitz

Rick Gruen, Tigard’s parks and recreation manager, and Shasta Billings-Beck, reservoir project manager and senior project engineer, prepare to head to the top of the new Tigard reservoir. Work is underway on Tigard’s newest reservoir, a behemoth 4.5-million-gallon concrete drinking water structure in Sunrise Park. Located at 155005 S.W. Sunrise Lane, Reservoir 18 will be the second largest of the city’s 12 reservoirs. The $34 million project will support future growth, specifically in River Terrace. “This is actually a reservoir that is to support the westward growth of Tigard. So it’ll support existing neighborhoods where they didn’t previously have a reservoir and it also supports the development (of) River Terrace,” Shasta Billings-Beck, reservoir project manager and senior project engineer, said. The top of the property will eventually feature a park as it slopes down to meet the reservoir. “So we’ll have a larger flat area — open space area — on top, and then there’ll be a switchback trail that comes down the slope and then the top of the reservoir will also be flat and open for (vegetation),” Billings-Beck said. At the same time, the city is adding 17,000 feet of main transmission piping throughout the surrounding neighborhoods. “The other portion of the project is we’re building a new pump station because we need to pump water up to fill the reservoir,” said Billings-Beck. “The pump station is at what we call Water Site 13. It’s the southernmost end of 154th Avenue.” Once completed, the reservoir will be fully backfilled/buried. It is expected to meet peak water demand periods in the future. A recent tour into the reservoir tank itself revealed something of a dark subterranean world with the structure supported by massive columns. Billings-Beck said the city previously received an overwhelming response from neighbors who said they liked Sunrise Park for its passive recreation such as exercise opportunities, birdwatching and dog walking. With that in mind, once completed, the city will ask the community what type of park they would like above the reservoir. Some possible ideas include adding a nature play structure or picnic shelter, said Rick Gruen, Tigard’s parks and recreation manager. Gruen said specifics will be hashed out as part of a future parks plan. Aligning with the city’s goal of embracing sustainability resiliency, instead of removing fill dirt from the site — in this case the equivalent of 1,500 truckloads of dirt — the city opted to keep it onsite and will spread it upwards to the site’s higher elevations, said Gruen. He said the city has also seen extensive support for “pollinator planting” (which attracts bees, birds and butterflies and the like) in Cook Park, which they will replicate at Sunrise Park. In addition, the city plans to create walking paths throughout the perimeter of the property with a future goal of connecting to nearby trails. “So, think of a Forest Park-type network of trails,” said Gruen, referring to the park west of downtown Portland, which stretches for more than eight miles. Gruen said the new reservoir is a good example of the city’s parks department working in conjunction with the engineering department to come up with a joint plan. Since the reservoir construction called for the removal of 280 native trees, those trees will be replanted, said Billings-Beck. Additionally, terrace walls will be installed on the north side of the structure and the city will build a stormwater retention and treatment facility, which will then discharge that treated water into a nearby creek, she said.

Read more at: https://beavertonvalleytimes.com/2024/04/26/tigard-moves-forward-with-4-5-million-gallon-reservoir-off-bull-mountain-road/