[1] The garden was designed by Kuang Zhen[2] and built by 65 artisans from Suzhou on land donated by NW Natural on a 99-year lease;[1] groundbreaking occurred in July 1999, and construction was completed 14 months later at a cost of about $12.8 million.

[1] The name derives from the combination of the characters Lan from the Chinese translation of Portland and Su from Suzhou and is a representation of both cities being present in the garden.

[3] In 2024, Portland City Officials erected a security fence around the Lan Su Chinese Garden to stop repeated vandalism and hate crimes.

[4] Incidents include an axe being thrown through one of the tea house windows, the smearing of feces on a door, people engaging in drug use in-view of the gardens, racist pamphlets and their welcome sign being struck with a bottle full of red paint which have caused some employees to quit.

[1] Water covers 8,000 square feet (20%) of the garden's total area, its visual impact makes it feel much more widespread and dominant throughout the space.