Eugene residents are welcome to attend the Mariposa Woodland Management Plan Open House on Monday, June 1 from 3:30 pm to 6:30 pm at the Amazon Park Community Center. City of Eugene staff will be on hand to share goals and details of the plan, and to answer questions.
Mariposa Woodland is located within the City of Eugene. Totaling 29.5 acres, the site extends from the parking area at 52nd Avenue and Willamette Street along a narrow corridor, following a well defined ridgeline to the lower north slope of Spencer Butte. The site contains an area of unique habitat including areas of oak-pine woodland, savanna, and prairie.
According to the plan, “these habitat types have declined significantly in the Willamette Valley over the past century and are vulnerable…without significant management intervention. The oak-pine woodland includes numerous ancient Willamette Valley ponderosa pine, Oregon white oak, and California black oak trees….”
Some of the ponderosa pine on the site are thought to be 500 years old. In 2007, the Eugene Tree Foundation acknowledged the significance of these trees by designating one of the largest ponderosa pines on the site as a “Legacy Tree.”
The City has identified Mariposa Woodland for immediate habitat enhancement and management due to the high quality and diversity of the existing habitat and the odds of significant decline in quality if no actions are taken.
