Springfield, OR: Arts, eats, and laid-back discovery

A part of the Springfield Public Library, the Springfield History Museum officially opened to public in 1981 in the restored Pacific Power and Light transformer station. The mission of the Springfield Museum is to foster an awareness of the Springfield history, to link past and present, and to promote an appreciation of the diversity of the local communities. The museum features rotating art and historical exhibits, the display of the museum’s permanent exhibits, and provide additional educational programming. The Springfield Museums is part of a cluster of five world-class museums, including the Amazing World of Dr. Seuss Museum and the Dr. Seuss National Memorial Sculpture Garden. The Dr. Seuss National Memorial Sculpture Garden is surrounded by a library, five museums, a lush park, and a cathedral. There is one more cathedral on the periphery of the Quadrangle.

590 Main St, Springfield, OR 97477, Phone: 541-726-3677

Located in a historic building in downtown Springfield, Emerald Art Center is a place where new and established artists work together to create and show their art. It is also a place where the community can come and see local and national art shows and attend classes and other events. The Emerald Art Association was established in 1957 when a group of artists and art lovers decided to build an art league. The first building the group bought in 1974 was at 421 A Street and was used to exhibit fine art to the community. It became a center for teaching and learning art. The center moved to its new building in 1990 in the former Gerlach Drug Store. After extensive renovation, the new space could house the center’s growing collection, to have more space for community participation, to sponsor more exhibits, and to encourage children’s interest in the arts.

500 Main St, Springfield, OR 97477, Phone: 541-726-8595

The Shoppes at Gateway, formerly Gateway Mall, is a shopping center located in Springfield, Oregon owned and managed by Balboa Retail Properties. It has 820,000 square feet of retail space. The mall opened in 1990 and is located next to Interstate 5, which runs between the cities of Eugene and Springfield. Located at the mall are a 17-screen Cinemark theater and 58 retail stores. In 2015, during the redevelopment the mall was renamed The Shoppes at Gateway and was partially converted to an outdoor mall. A few stores that were open during the time of the Gateway Mall and are still part of the mall: Cabela's, Cinemark, Kohls, Sears , Target, Oregon Sports and Ross Dress For Less.

3000 Gateway St, Springfield, OR 97477, Phone: 541-747-6294

Ta Ra Rin is a warm, spacious traditional Thai eatery in Sheldon Plaza mall in Springfield, Oregon. Ta Ra Rin serves classic authentic Thai menu with a range of noodle and rice dishes. To maintain the highest quality, the menu does not rotate and there are no experiments with classic recipes since each recipe is tried-and-tested. All menu items are available for carry-out. Ta Ra Rin's founder and head chef Arna ”B“ Khongkhaning claims that authenticity is the secret behind her delicious dishes, cooked to perfection completely by hand and elegantly presented. Exotic flavors full of fragrant spices, healthy, fresh ingredients and friendly service have earned Ta Ra Rin great reputation and a loyal following.

1410 Mohawk Blvd, Springfield, OR 97477, Phone: 541-505-8987

Coburg Pizza Company is a cozy, spacious pizzeria in Springfield, Oregon, famous for pizzas with unusual and unexpected toppings (New York City Ruben with corned beef, Swiss Cheese, sauerkraut, Sriracha-1,000 Island sauce and pickles or The Route 66 with cream cheese, fresh spinach, herbed chicken, bacon, onion, garlic, tomatoes, provolone, romano, asiago, parmesan and balsamic vinegar.) The pizzeria is warm and inviting, with bright colored walls and a giant brick wood fire oven in its heart, where the magic happens. They also have great calzones, pastas and wings, but there are so many wacky pizza toppings to try, why bother with anything else. There is simply nothing like it.

1710 Centennial Blvd, Springfield, OR 97477, Phone: 541-484-6600