Cedar Hills, Oregon

Cedar Hills is a census-designated place and neighborhood in Washington County, Oregon, United States south of U.S. Route 26 and west of Oregon Route 217 and within the Portland metropolitan area. Constructed starting in 1946, Cedar Hills was the largest single housing tract development in the western United States at the time of its completion in 1961.

Cedar Hills, Oregon
Census-designated place (CDP)
Cedar Hills Boulevard and Walker Road, looking away from the Cedar Hills CDP area
Location of Cedar Hills, Oregon
Coordinates: 45°30′17″N 122°47′54″W
CountryUnited States
StateOregon
CountyWashington
Established1946
Area
 • Total2.3 sq mi (6.0 km2)
 • Land2.3 sq mi (6.0 km2)
 • Water0.0 sq mi (0.0 km2)
Elevation
282 ft (86 m)
Population
 (2010)
 • Total8,300
 • Density3,880.9/sq mi (1,498.4/km2)
Time zoneUTC-8 (Pacific (PST))
 • Summer (DST)UTC-7 (PDT)
ZIP codes
97005, 97225
Area code(s)503 and 971
FIPS code41-12050[1]
GNIS feature ID1136130[2]

Cedar Hills is located almost entirely in unincorporated Washington County. In the early 2000s, a small portion of the neighborhood was annexed by the city of Beaverton, mainly comprising one school property and an adjacent community center, and in a plan agreed to by the county and Beaverton the remainder is scheduled for annexation in the future.

The formal Cedar Hills neighborhood currently includes 2,114 homes,[3] whose owners are subject to the rules and covenants enforced by the area's homeowners' association, the Homes Association of Cedar Hills.[4]

The population was 8,949 at the 2000 census.

History
Cedar Hills in its early years

Plans to build the large new neighborhood were announced by the project's developers in April 1946, and construction of the first 50 homes had begun by then.[5] Along with roads and utilities, the plans included a shopping center, schools, parks and churches,[5] in a neighborhood of around 2,000 homes on about 800 acres (320 ha).[6] A writer for The Oregonian newspaper at the time called it "the most ambitious suburban housing development ever attempted in the Northwest".[6] The planned neighborhood was consistent with the Racism in Oregon at the time, as the 1946 restrictions stated that "only Caucasians shall use or occupy the properties, except in the capacity of domestic servants, chauffeurs or employees."[7]

Cedar Hills Shopping Center
Cedar Hills Shopping Center in 1997, when the Safeway store was closing after 43 years of operation[8]
The center in 2016, with a DMV office in the former Safeway space

Construction of the planned shopping center began in 1954.[9] Located immediately south of the Sunset Highway, at the northern end of the neighborhood, Cedar Hills Shopping Center opened in April 1955.[10] It originally included a Safeway supermarket (opened in August 1954, months earlier than the remainder of the center),[11] a Rodgers five-and-dime, a Sears catalog store, and several other shops, along with a bank and a gas station. The center's tall neon sign became a local landmark. In 1979, TriMet opened a bus transit center on Wilshire Street, behind the shopping center.[12] Cedar Hills Transit Center remained in operation for almost 20 years, until replaced by the Sunset Transit Center – located immediately across the Sunset Highway (US 26) freeway from Cedar Hills Shopping Center – in 1998, with the opening of the Westside MAX line. The Sunset TC's construction included a long pedestrian bridge over the freeway, to provide access between the TriMet bus and MAX station and the Cedar Hills neighborhood.[13] In 2009, the Oregon Department of Transportation opened a new Driver and Motor Vehicle Services Division (DMV) office in the Cedar Hills Shopping Center, serving as the DMV's Beaverton office, replacing one located on Allen Blvd. in Beaverton proper.[14]

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the neighborhood has a total area of 2.3 square miles (6.0 km2), of which 2.3 square miles (6.0 km2) is land and 0.43% is water.

Demographics
The neon sign tower at the Cedar Hills Shopping Center is a local landmark.

As of the census[1] of 2000, there were 8,949 people, 3,749 households, and 2,361 families residing in the neighborhood. The population density was 3,880.9 people per square mile (1,495.8/km2). There were 3,926 housing units at an average density of 1,702.6 per square mile (656.2/km2). The racial makeup of the CDP was 83.28% White, 1.32% African American, 0.57% Native American, 4.78% Asian, 0.35% Pacific Islander, 6.05% from other races, and 3.65% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 11.21% of the population.

There were 3,749 households, out of which 28.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 49.4% were married couples living together, 9.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 37.0% were non-families. 29.0% of all households were made up of individuals, and 9.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.39 and the average family size was 2.94.

In the neighborhood the population was spread out, with 23.0% under the age of 18, 7.7% from 18 to 24, 33.4% from 25 to 44, 23.4% from 45 to 64, and 12.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females, there were 98.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 96.8 males.

The median income for a household in the neighborhood was $48,200, and the median income for a family was $56,401. Males had a median income of $42,293 versus $29,922 for females. The per capita income for the CDP was $26,812. About 3.9% of families and 6.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 7.8% of those under age 18 and 3.0% of those age 65 or over.

Public services
The former Cedar Hills Elementary School remains in use as a community center and recreation center.

Schools

Cedar Hills is within the Beaverton School District. Cedar Park Middle School and Barnes Elementary School are the only public schools located within the Cedar Hills CDP, but the area's residents are also served by Sunset High School,[15] Meadow Park Middle School, Ridgewood Elementary and William Walker Elementary. At the high school level, boundary changes approved in October 2016 and scheduled to take effect with the 2017–2018 school year will make Cedar Hills part of Beaverton High School's coverage area, in place of Sunset High School.[16]

Previously, the area was also the site of Cedar Hills Elementary School, built in the early 1950s, at the intersection of Cedar Hills Blvd. and Parkway.[17] That school closed in 1983, due to declining student enrollment districtwide at the time,[18] and the building was leased to, and subsequently sold to, the Tualatin Hills Park & Recreation District, which repurposed it as the Cedar Hills Recreation Center.[19]

Other services
Commonwealth Lake

Fire protection and emergency medical services are provided through Tualatin Valley Fire and Rescue.

Cedar Hills is served by the Tualatin Hills Park & Recreation District (THPRD), which maintains several parks in the area – including the 20.8-acre (8.4 ha) Commonwealth Lake Park.[20] THPRD also operates the Cedar Hills Recreation Center, a community center (not limited to Cedar Hills residents) located in a former elementary school.

See also

References
  1. "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved 2008-01-31.
  2. "US Board on Geographic Names". United States Geological Survey. 2007-10-25. Retrieved 2008-01-31.
  3. Homes Association of Cedar Hills Retrieved May 6, 2013.
  4. About Us. Homes Association of Cedar Hills. Retrieved May 6, 2013.
  5. "2000-Home Community Rising Here; Two Firms Launch $25,000,000 Town In Beaverton Area" (April 28, 1946). The Sunday Oregonian, p. 1; also section 2, p. 1.
  6. Shoemaker, Mervin G. (September 29, 1946). "Cedar Hills: Something New in Building". The Sunday Oregonian, Sunday magazine section, p. 2.
  7. "Local Color". www.opb.org. Retrieved 2019-05-22.
  8. Colby, Richard N. (August 6, 1997). "Safeway store says quick goodbye". The Oregonian (West Metro ed.). p. C2.
  9. "$1,000,000 Cedar Hills Shopping Project Started; Second Phase of Big Center to House 27 Shops" (June 20, 1954). The Sunday Oregonian, section 2, p. 8.
  10. "Cedar Hills Shop Center Opening" (April 3, 1955). The Sunday Oregonian, section 2, p. 7.
  11. "Outlet Added By Safeway: $250,000 Store Opens in Cedar Hills" (August 22, 1954). The Sunday Oregonian, p. 48.
  12. Bodine, Harry (June 19, 1979). "Tri-Met west side transfers pass muster". The Oregonian, p. B4.
  13. "Sunset Transit Center: Pedestrian Bridge". TriMet. August 1997. Archived from the original on February 18, 1999. Retrieved August 25, 2018.
  14. "DMV to open new Beaverton office April 28". Oregon Department of Transportation. April 14, 2009. Archived from the original on May 10, 2013. Retrieved February 8, 2015.
  15. Apalategui, Eric (November 4, 2015). "Beaverton School District releases early high school attendance map". Beaverton Valley Times. Retrieved 2017-02-10.
  16. Kaur, Ravleen (October 18, 2016). "Beaverton School District finalizes high school boundary changes". Beaverton Valley Times. Retrieved 2017-02-10.
  17. "Cedar Hills Starts Work On New Grade School" (May 7, 1950). The Sunday Oregonian, Section 1, p. 9.
  18. Thompson, Carla (May 17, 1983). "Two Beaverton grade schools to close in fall". The Oregonian. p. MW1.
  19. Ostergren, Jack (November 18, 1986). "District 48 OKs sale of schools". The Oregonian (West Metro ed.). p. B6.
  20. "Commonwealth Lake Park". Tualatin Hills Park & Recreation District. Retrieved 2017-02-10.
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