Acquired in 2014 by the City of Sutherlin for municipal needs, the property, long a favorite with locals for fishing and birding, is also quickly becoming a regional attraction.
Located in southwestern Oregon, the park consists of the 95-acre Ford’s Pond and 107 acres of open space, bordered on the west side by an oak-savanna hillside.
The site was first commercially used as a wheat field, then converted to a log storage pond, and then left natural for many years.