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The Gateway Green park is envisioned to occupy the space between Interstates 205 and 84, east of Rocky Butte Natural Area.

(ANNE LAUFE/SPECIAL TO THE OREGONIAN)

Efforts to build a nature-friendly bike haven in east Portland moved forward Wednesday as the City Council agreed to buy 25 acres for a future park.

Portland Parks & Recreation will buy the landlocked property – tucked between Interstate 84 and Interstate 205 – from the Oregon Department of Transportation for $19,300.

Known as "Gateway Green," the proposed park could open in 2017 if fundraising efforts by parks advocates prove successful.

"This property is going to be custom built and could eventually be a jewel in the crown" of biking connections extending from downtown to Powell Butte near Gresham, said city Commissioner Amanda Fritz, who oversees Portland Parks & Recreation.

Portland will tap development fees to buy the land from the state. Fritz this year pledged an estimated $12.4 million to build two other parks in east Portland, the city's most-park deficient area, where nearly two out of five residents don't live within a half-mile of a useable park.

Neighborhood activists have been pushing for nearly a decade to turn the freeway property into a park. They launched a crowdsourcing campaign that raised nearly $125,000 last year to pay for schematic designs.

The group leading the effort, Friends of Gateway Green, has already secured up to $1 million from regional government Metro to develop the park. To secure the full amount of the matching grant, proponents are now trying to raise an additional $2 million by December 2015 through other government contributions, foundation donations and private gifts.

"We're really in fundraising mode at this point," said east Portland resident Linda Robinson, who began pushing the effort in 2005.

"I'm pretty confident," she added.

With funding secure, Portland Parks & Recreation hopes to open the park in 2017, said Brett Horner, who manages parks planning.

Horner said the first phase of development is expected to run $3 million, with future estimates at least $2 million. The new park would include a 1 ½ mile bike route and a nature play area, among other things.

While other city parks, such as Powell Butte and Forest Park, offer biking opportunities, the Gateway project would be "really focused toward biking experience," Horner said.

Jocelyn Gaudi, who moved to Portland six years ago to embrace a bike-centric lifestyle, said she recently joined the Gateway Green board and is excited about the prospect of sharing mountain biking with friends in an otherwise urban setting.

Gaudi told the City Council she currently has to drive to find the best trails, but that'll change if and when the new park is built.

"This is just going to be such a cool thing," she said.

-- Brad Schmidt