NARA NW
Smudging incense from ceremony at beginning of October 22, 2022 depave.
Leaders from NARA NW reached out to us in 2019 with the vision of transforming this huge parking into a healing space for their community. After years of planning, we were finally able to Depave in October 2022. On October 22, 2022, we worked alongside over 60 volunteers in the pouring rain to rip up the asphalt. It was a beautiful Saturday, which included an opening blessing ceremony led by NARA NW, a drum circle led by NARA NW members, and a DJ set by Roots and Beats Project, which kept volunteers moving and motivated. We removed 5,000 square feet of asphalt with the volunteers, and had a contractor remove the remaining 5,000 square feet. By removing a total of 10,000 square feet of asphalt we are reducing the annual stormwater runoff by 100,000 gallons annually!
What once was a huge parking lot, has now been transformed into a healing garden and a ceremonial space equipped with a sweat lodge and fire pit for the indigenous community at NARA NW.
There have been hundreds of native plants including ceremonial tobacco, added to the space by the NARA NW community.
Date: Depaved October 22, 2022
Location: NARA NW – Portland, OR
Size: 10,000 square feet
Special thanks to our project funders and partners:
