PORTLAND, Ore. -- Portland kids look forward to their neighborhood summer playground programs and parents depend on them. But that century-old parks service is in jeopardy.
Without a solution Portland leaders will have to cut the program from the parks budget. The Parks Bureau says it may be forced to cut $1.7 million from it's budget.
Craig Montag has supervised the summer parks program at Brooklyn Park in SE Portland every summer since the 1970s.
During that time, he has amassed a collection of kids art, photo books of memories and numerous toys. He considers the kids and their parents his extended family.
"You really can't explain to somebody what it's like after 32 summers. How can you explain that? It's hard," said Montag.
He says it's hard to consider losing the program with so many families depending on it. Daniel Gaard and his son Ellis participate at Brooklyn Park. They've seen kids lives turned around by the program.
"Maybe they wouldn't have finished high school; wouldn't have gone onto college. But they had a safe place to come and learn feel respected," said Daniel Gaard.
The Brooklyn Park summer playground program and others like in Portland dating back a hundred years are on the chopping block during one of the worst recessions in decades.
Parks Commissioner Nick Fish says he'll do all he can to protect kid-related programs.
But he and other bureau leaders are under orders from the mayor to cut budgets.
"Do we cut a program in parks? Do we close a fire station? Do we reduce the number of police officers on the street? I mean, these are terrible choices that we have to make," said Fish.
Montag hopes to rally advocates of the summer playground program to City Hall. Commissioner Fish promises to listen to their concerns.
April 1st is when the Parks Bureau will announce it's final budget.
The public will get a chance to testify about these cuts at that city hall meeting.
