Portland ICE facility land-use violation upheld due to public pressure

Portland, OR – On July 10, the city of Portland dismissed an appeal by Portland ICE facility landlord Stuart Lindquist to overturn land use violations issued in September 2025, following months of public pressure by immigrant rights activists.

This latest victory for the immigrant rights movement follows a mass mobilization to a court hearing on the same day, where Multnomah County judge Steffan Alexander ruled the enforcement process could move forward following another legal challenge by Lindquist.

The ICE facility has been embroiled in a convoluted back-and-forth legal battle over the past year since an initial land use violation was issued, for holding detainees past a 12-hour limit and boarding up windows. Activists placed pressure on the city to move forward with not only enforcement but to revoke the permit for the Portland ICE facility entirely. In response, the city dragged its feet, and the landlord was granted multiple appeals in different jurisdictions regarding the same case.

After a year of voluntary delays of enforcement by the city, a hearings officer was set to give a ruling on an appeal filed by Lindquist on June 5. However, Lindquist then appealed to Multnomah County to delay this process further, arguing the hearings officer in Portland was biased. A Multnomah County judge sided with Lindquist and allowed a temporary stay on this ruling until a later court date in August 2026.

The city of Portland filed a motion to dismiss this stay, which was heard in court on July 10. Activists with PDXCD launched into motion and led an email and call-in campaign to the judge overseeing the July 10 hearing, sending hundreds of emails, holding a press conference outside the hearing with multiple news outlets, and mobilizing so many people to the hearing that the court room was filled and people were forced into overflow rooms.

The judge acknowledged the public pressure, stating he received many emails regarding this case. He then ruled against Lindquist and removed the stay. Almost immediately after, the city of Portland rejected Lindquist’s appeal.

The battle is not over yet. On August 14, Lindquist’s motion to dismiss the land use violation entirely will head to Multnomah County court once again. His argument rests on an accusation that the city of Portland is biased against the ICE facility.

Activists find this argument to be ludicrous, and instead argue the city has shown preference to the ICE facility over the greater Portland community.

“Over and over, the city stalled enforcing obvious violations by the ICE facility of both city code and human rights,” said activist Bailey Ullom, “An immigrant was held for 47 days in that building, an entire neighborhood was gassed, and yet a year later, it is still allowed to operate. It is clear the city has a bias towards wealthy developers and landlords, and the community is expected to just put up with it.”

Lindquist’s lawyer argued during the July 10 hearing that, if the land use violation was upheld, the Portland City Council would immediately revoke the permit, but even the most “progressive” city councilors have stated their opposition to revoking the permit. One councilor, Angelita Morillo, who identifies as a democratic socialist, went so far as to create a website to convince the people of Portland that the council should not revoke the permit.

Now that the land-use violation is upheld, the city can move forward with fining the landlord for $934 a month. Activists say this is not enough and demand the city moves forward with the process to revoke the permit for the facility entirely.

Lindquist’s attorney agreed the fine was not an issue for the ICE facility, stating during the hearing that “the $934 is not the problem.”

“The real problem for the ICE facility is if we get it shut down,” said PDXCD member Beatriz Ibarra, “that’s why Lindquist is fighting so hard to stall this in court, and why the city is giving him so many allowances. The city also does not want to shut down the facility.”

PDXCD vows to continue putting pressure on the city. They will be continuing with their email campaign for Lindquist’s motion on August 14 to be struck down, and also for the Portland Permitting and Development Bureau to begin the reconsideration process to revoke the permit.

#PortlandOR #OR #ImmigrantRights #ICE #DetentionCenter

Source: https://fightbacknews.org/portland-ice-facility-land-use-violation-upheld-due-to-public-pressure?pk_campaign=rss-feed