Oregon Zoo Takes Over Shuttered Children's Museum

The zoo will take ownership of the closed Portland Children's Museum building in Washington Park, which shares a parking lot with the zoo.

Updated on Nov. 5, 2026 in National Parks

Weathered brick civic building with boarded windows at the edge of an evergreen forest, beside an empty wet parking lot under overcast daylight. — The Oregon Zoo will take ownership of the shuttered Portland Children's Museum building in Washington Park for $3 million, expanding its campus. AI Illustration. Upload story photo >

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The Oregon Zoo will take ownership of the Portland Children's Museum building, which closed in 2021 citing devastating attendance and revenue losses. The city agreed in 2024 to sell the building to Metro, the agency that runs the zoo, for $3 million.

Why it matters

Nothing in the Portland area has replaced the museum since it closed, leaving a gap in family-oriented attractions for the city. The acquisition expands the zoo's campus, though the building has significant structural issues and was previously marked for demolition in the city's 2018 Washington Park master plan.

The sale price is $3 million, paid by Metro to the City of Portland under a 2024 agreement. The museum operated for 20 years as the Children's Museum, following its earlier life as the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry; the zoo's plans for the site remain undecided.

The players

Oregon Zoo

The Oregon Zoo is a zoo in Washington Park in Portland, Oregon, operated by Metro, the regional government for the Portland metropolitan area.

Metro

Metro is the elected regional government for the Portland, Oregon metropolitan area, which runs the Oregon Zoo and agreed to purchase the museum building.

The details

The Oregon Zoo director announced the acquisition in a news release on Thursday. The Portland Children's Museum in Washington Park closed in 2021, and the building shares a parking lot with the zoo.

2018: Washington Park master plan marked the building for demolition.
2021: Portland Children's Museum closed.
2024: City of Portland agreed to sell the building to Metro for $3 million.
November 5, 2026: Oregon Zoo announced it will take ownership of the building.

Seasonal Patterns

The 2018 Washington Park master plan had marked the museum building for demolition, but the 2024 sale to Metro shows the city moving that designation toward reuse. The change reflects how the park's site planning has shifted in the years since the museum closed in 2021.

Visitors to the Oregon Zoo may see the campus expand as the museum building is repurposed, though the zoo has not announced specific plans or timing for the site. Families who previously visited the Children's Museum should check the zoo's website for updates on any new attractions or changes to parking.

The takeaway

Closed public attractions can leave long gaps in a city's offerings, and their buildings often carry structural and planning questions that take years to resolve. Readers interested in the site should watch for the zoo's announced plans for the building.