City of Portland officials have upheld a land use violation issued to the property owner of an Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility in the South Waterfront, giving him just over a month to correct violations before beginning to rack up monthly fees.
The city said Friday that Portland Permitting & Development upheld the violation in an administrative review decision.
Portland first issued the violation in September, in part due to public complaints that detainees were being kept at the facility for more than 12 hours, which violates a security plan included in the original 2011 land use review decision which allowed ICE to operate the facility.
Representatives for the property owner, Stuart Lindquist, requested a review of the violation. According to the city, they presented information contesting the notice at a Dec. 30 meeting with city staff. But upon further review, PP&D determined that the violation «was not issued in error and there was adequate documentation to support the issuance of the Notice.»
Under city procedure, Lindquist has until March 16 to take corrective action. Failing that, the city will levy a $934 fee per month as a lien on the property until violations are corrected, followed by a reinspection and verification by city staff that violations have been corrected.
«As we continue with this land‑use case, it’s essential that we allow the established process to unfold as intended,» said City Administrator Raymond Lee in a statement. «Each step in the review is part of a framework designed to ensure outcomes that are grounded in evidence, consistent with City code, and defensible over time.»
Lindquist can appeal to the city hearings office within 10 business days.
A group of anti-ICE protesters have been pushing for months for the city of Portland to revoke the facility’s land use permit entirely, which city officials have said they do not have the ability to do.
Portland City Council has, however, adopted a new ordinance which prescribes fines for «detention facilities» in the city which prove disruptive to the surrounding neighborhood. Mayor Keith Wilson’s office has thus far failed to meet the timeline for rulemaking so the ordinance can be enforced, however.
‘The tools of a police state’
In a joint statement issued Friday, Wilson joined mayors from some of America’s largest cities in calling for Congress to rein in the U.S. Department of Homeland Security before passing the agency’s budget — currently a sticking point which could result in a partial government shutdown.
The mayors invoked the deaths of Renee Good and Alex Pretti at the hands of federal agents in Minneapolis during the Trump administration’s recent surge in the city.