Updated to include comments from Portland's parks director Mike Abbate:

Portland parks officials released test results Monday that showed elevated levels of lead in drinking water at three city facilities, including the Portland Children's Museum.

Seventeen of the 180 samples taken at Portland Children's Museum, Multnomah Arts Center, Fulton Community Center and the Mt. Tabor Annex had levels above 20 parts per billion - the action level set by the Environmental Protection Agency for drinking water at schools and day-cares.

The testing followed an announcement June 5 that officials didn't take immediate corrective actions after testing in 2011, 2012 and 2013 found high lead levels in 11 samples collected at the Multnomah Arts Center. Portland Parks and Recreation's disclosure about the arts center came days after a spokesman told The Oregonian/OregonLive the bureau hadn't been testing for lead system-wide.

Portland's parks director Mike Abbate called the results "quite encouraging" during a press conference. The parks bureau oversees "hundreds of drinking fountains, hundreds of restrooms with sinks," but doesn't have "a regular system of testing all of our fixtures, nor do we have a regulatory mandate to do so."

"That'll be something we'll be talking about going forward," he said.

The Oregonian/OregonLive was first to ask parks officials about lead testing, questions that arose in the wake of a public-relations crisis over test results showing higher levels of lead in water at Portland Public Schools.

At the Multnomah Arts Center, 11 fixtures had elevated lead levels, including one as high as 447 parts per billion. The affected sinks and faucets have either been labeled "do not drink" or shut off since June 4. The fixture showing 447 parts per billion is in a storage area, and hasn't been used recently, the bureau said in a statement.

Between February 2011 and June 2013, five rounds of testing took place at the arts center, which offers art and preschool classes for children, and high lead levels were found each time.

The department is "still reviewing information regarding steps that were taken at Multnomah Arts Center between 2011 and now," Monday's statement said.

None of the 12 samples at Fulton Community Center showed levels above 20 parts per billion. At the Mt. Tabor Annex, one drinking fountain exceeded the limit, and was already off.

At the Children's Museum, four sinks and one drinking fountain showed levels between 20 and 115 parts per billion, according to the newly released test results. The sinks are labeled "do not drink," and the fountain was already turned off.

Portland's parks director Mike Abbate called recent lead test results "quite encouraging" during a press conference.

"Our next step is to evaluate each of the 17 samples that yielded higher results and determine how to remediate the problem," Abbate said, noting the bureau has hired a certified industrial safety expert to advise on fixes.

The sites were chosen as "priority sites," because they met two of three criteria:

* There is a likelihood for prolonged access to drinking water by vulnerable populations (specifically children younger than 6 and pregnant mothers).

* The building or its plumbing was built or updated from 1970 to 1985, indicating the use of lead solder.

* Previous tests showed lead levels at or greater than 15 parts per billion, the overall "action level" the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency sets for public water systems.

Mt. Tabor was not included on the parks bureau's initial priority list, but was added because it houses a preschool.

Portland Public Schools has been dealing with fallout over high lead levels since last month, leading districts across the state to test their water.

But when marking problem fixtures, many districts, including Portland Public Schools, use the lower 15 parts per billion level rather than the 20 parts per billion allowed for schools.

"Our understanding from the Oregon Health Authority is that 20 parts per billion is the threshold we should be testing for," Abbate said.

After being selected for testing, the Fulton Community Center and the Children's Museum began flushing out fixtures before they were used. After the recent tests, Fulton will no longer be required to flush fixtures. The Children's Museum is flushing only at problem sites.

The Oregon Health Authority recommended all schools, including preschools and day cares, test for lead this summer. Now, Abbate said, the parks bureau will next test more than a dozen facilities that meet just one of their three criteria, including all sites that contain preschools.

"This next round of testing will likely take most of the summer to complete," he said.

Portland Parks and Recreation found records of previous testing at the Community Music Center (2001), Pittock Mansion (2005), Buckman Field (office and fieldhouse in 2010), and Mount Tabor Yard (2000 and 2016). All showed lead levels below federal guidelines, according to Monday's press release.

Abbate emphasized that of the 15,000 people Multnomah County's health department screened in the past three years, only 188 children showed enough lead in their blood to cause concern. No case was connected to lead in drinking water.

"We're talking about taking precautions with an eye on public health," he said, "but I wanted to set that as the general frame."

- Talia Richman

trichman@oregonian.com

@TaliRichman