Fair Complex/Hillsboro Airport station

Fair Complex/Hillsboro Airport is a light rail station on the MAX Blue Line in Hillsboro, Oregon, United States. It is the 16th stop westbound on the Westside MAX, and the last westbound stop prior to crossing the Main Street Bridge. The station is located close to the Washington County Fair Complex and Hillsboro Airport, a major general-aviation facility in Hillsboro, and the location of the Oregon International Airshow in the summer. Bus line 46-North Hillsboro serves the station.

Fair Complex/Hillsboro Airport
MAX Light Rail station
Location601 Northeast 34th Avenue
Hillsboro, Oregon
USA
Coordinates45°31′37″N 122°56′46″W
Owned byTriMet
Platforms1 island platform, 1 side platform
Tracks2
Construction
Parking396 park and ride spaces
Disabled accessYes
History
OpenedSeptember 12, 1998
Services
Preceding station   MAX Light Rail   Following station
Blue Line
toward Cleveland

History

Construction of TriMet’s Westside MAX project began in 1994, with the Fairplex station opening on September 12, 1998, along with the rest of the line west of Downtown Portland.[1] A person was struck and killed by a MAX train at the station in April 2001.[2] In June 2004, the station was the site of a failed armed robbery where the robber's gun failed to fire.[3] In 2007, plans for redesigning the county fairgrounds were announced and included a proposal to create a large exhibition hall that would connect to the MAX station via a public plaza.[4][5] In March 2011, TriMet received a federal grant to pay for the installation of security cameras at the station.[6]

Amenities

Located south of northeast Cornell Road on northeast 34th Avenue, the station is adjacent to the Washington County Fairplex and directly south of the Hillsboro Airport.[7][8] Passengers can travel west to downtown Hillsboro or east to Portland and Gresham from the stop. The station has a park-and-ride lot and bus connections to the number 46 line.[7] Designed by architectural firm OTAK Inc., the station features an island platform and a side platform along the two tracks, with a third track to the west used for parking extra trains utilized for increased capacity during special events such as the county fair and the Oregon International Airshow.[7][9] The station also includes bike lockers and bike racks, is compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act, and has a seasonal concessions stand.[7]

Artwork
"World's Greatest" in the foreground and the station shelter behind

As with all stations along the Westside MAX line, the Fair Complex station includes public artwork, with the theme of pride in achievement for this stop.[10] One item is a weather vane featuring five model airplanes designed by Glen Geller and Curt Oliver.[11] These planes have a wingspan of approximately 2 feet (61 cm), are based on real historic aircraft, and include a Longster III, a dirigible named Gelatine, the George Yates Geodetic, a Curtiss Pusher, and Van's Aircraft RV-3.[11] An additional piece of art at the station is a large metal sculpture of a trophy designed by Bill Will.[12] Entitled "World's Greatest", the wire cup is a topiary covered in ivy sitting atop a cement block base.[12] Additionally, historic photographs featuring the county fair are etched into the glass of the windscreen, while tree rooms create shade.[10]

References
  1. Mapes, Jeff. Gore walks tight line on Clinton. The Oregonian, September 13, 1998.
  2. Frank, Ryan. Man struck by Westside MAX train was a suicide, officials say. The Oregonian, October 23, 2001.
  3. Danks, Holly. Jammed gun gives robbers a break. The Oregonian, August 30, 2004.
  4. Home. Archived 2008-07-23 at the Wayback Machine Fairgrounds Revitalization Task Force. Retrieved on July 17, 2008.
  5. Gorman, Kathleen. Committee tosses around ideas for Fair Complex. The Oregonian, June 28, 2007.
  6. Rose, Joseph (March 31, 2011). "TriMet gets federal grant to install security cameras at 10 final MAX stations". The Oregonian. Retrieved April 2, 2011.
  7. Fair Complex/Hillsboro Airport MAX Station. Archived 2008-06-03 at the Wayback Machine TriMet. Retrieved on July 12, 2008.
  8. How to get to the fair. The Oregonian, July 27, 2006.
  9. Colby, Richard N. Tracking art plans. The Oregonian, August 3, 1995.
  10. Art on Westside MAX Blue Line. TriMet. Retrieved on July 12, 2008.
  11. Hamilton, Don. Sculptures will let riders know which way wind is blowing. The Oregonian, July 23, 1997.
  12. Gragg, Randy. A platform to reveal the art of the journey. The Oregonian, September 9, 1998.
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