‘Her legacy still lives on’: Portland community excited for forthcoming Darcelle XV Plaza
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PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — The Portland community came together Wednesday evening to discuss the plaza named in honor of an icon of the city, Darcelle XV.
The City of Portland closed the former O’Bryant Square back in 2018 due to structural issues. It’s been fenced off and unused ever since. Until now — when it’s scheduled to make a comeback — and officially redubbed Darcelle XV Plaza.
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“It’s such a historic piece of property in downtown Portland and to have a wonderful way and a unique way to honor our dear Darcelle in another part of town,” said Poison Waters, a co-host at Darcelle XV Showplace.
Friends and family of Darcelle gathered at the nightclub named after her on Northwest 3rd Avenue to talk about the new park. The former O’Bryant Square at Southwest Park and Harvey Milk Street will get a much-needed $4.5 million makeover.
“It’s a really amazing time to be a part of the energy that’s going on to both public spaces, internal city government and making Portland a safe space that other areas in the country can hopefully look to and model,” said Cayla McGrail, an associate planner with the City of Portland’s Bureau of Planning and Sustainability.
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The plaza sits on the edge of Portland’s pink triangle, an area that has historically been home to the city’s gay bars and clubs.
Walter Cole, also known as Darcelle, died last year at 92. City leaders then chose to rename the square after the late drag queen and icon. She headlined the longest-running drag show in the world for more than 50 years.
“Darcelle was, of course, such an active member of the LGBTQ community, but also the entire community at large and so they’re so in love that there’s a park, a public space that’s open for the community to come and enjoy in her memory in her honor,” Poison Waters said. “It’s just fabulous.”
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Renderings show the plaza will feature a dog park, event stage, string lights and a “Walk of Fame” — in true Darcelle fashion. But it’s still in the planning stages.
McGrail said an important part of the process is striving to “be innovative” and trying out different things to see what will work best.
“It’s really exciting to think about how we can interpret the built environment and add queer history into the physical space,” she said.
There’s a hope that the plaza will be a draw to bring more people back into the city.
“We’re awakening. Downtown is busy. The hustle and bustle is so engaging to that space, it’s going to be like like a beacon,” Poison Water said. “Her legacy still lives on.”
The legacy square is slated to be demolished later this month. Construction for the plaza that will replace it will start this summer and is scheduled to be finished by the end of fall.
It’s not too late for community members to give input. In fact, the City of Portland has a survey people can complete online to give their feedback, found at this link.
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