Our Beautiful City By The Lake...Lake Oswego

Our beautiful city by the lake....Lake Oswego, Oregon

City of Lake Oswego Names Newest Park – Sundeleaf Plaza On December 14, Lake Oswego City Council named the new park at 120 State Street “Sundeleaf Plaza.” The park naming process for the former US Bank property was kicked off by the Parks and Recreation Advisory Board (PRAB) in October. They received 47 different ideas and, after reviewing citizen’s suggestions, recommended the park be named after Richard Sundeleaf to recognize his contribution to the City’s architectural heritage.Richard Sundeleaf (1900-1987) was a prominent, local architect who did more than any other architect to influence the “village” atmosphere in Lake Oswego. He designed many homes and commercial buildings in Lake Oswego, nine of which are listed on the City’s Landmark Designation List - including his home on Phantom Bluff and the bridge and boathouse to Jantzen Island. He also designed some of the City’s oldest commercial buildings which line State Street. These buildings include the Lakewood Center, Oswego Lake House restaurant, Lake Theatre, Murphy Real Estate building currently leased to Starbucks, and the buildings housing Wan Fu and, previously, Hollywood Video. His design incorporated the Arts and Crafts and Tudor style that created the English Village atmosphere, which is today replicated in several designs in the community including Lakeview Village and Millennium Plaza Park.Richard Sundeleaf graduated from the University of Oregon’s School of Architecture in 1923. He was trained in the "Beaux Arts" style of design, and became well-known in the 1920s and 1930s for his imaginative work in industrial architecture. In the late 1940s, he was a leading local proponent of the "Streamline Moderne" style, in which the spirit of the machine age and the concepts of aerodynamics shaped the design of the building.