Portland officials plan to sweep a sprawling encampment along Laurelhurst Park that has long inflamed some nearby residents, galvanized homeless advocates and served as a high-profile case study in the city’s ongoing struggle to find a balance in the face of an humanitarian — and politically contentious — crisis.
Mayor Ted Wheeler and all four city commissioners made the announcement Monday morning in a joint statement. They said the decision to evict campers came as public safety and health concerns continued to mount despite the city pouring resources into the encampment, which is located in one of Southeast Portland’s most affluent neighborhoods.
Those tensions came to a head this month when a city contractor cleaning the camp’s portable toilets witnessed a man draw a handgun on a person during an altercation and saw a third person holding a rifle, according to the elected officials and Portland police. The episode prompted the sanitation company that provided the toilets to remove them from the area.
“Our goal has been to compassionately support the people living near Laurelhurst Park until we had a better solution beyond just moving people from one part of Portland to another,” said the statement signed by Wheeler as well as commissioners Jo Ann Hardesty, Mingus Mapps, Carmen Rubio and Dan Ryan. “[The] City Council is unified in our decision to act immediately.”
The city will work with campers, most of whom live near Southeast Oak Street and 37th Avenue, to find shelter and other services, the statement said. Workers with Portland’s Homeless and Urban Camping Impact Reduction Program posted notices at the encampment Monday morning, notifying those living there they have 72 hours to vacate.
David Tunley, chair of the Laurelhurst Neighborhood Association, called it “a decision that’s long overdue.”
“Residents have expressed very serious and valid concerns for their safety and security over the past several months,” he said.
Benjamin Donlon, from Stop the Sweeps PDX, said people who have to move will need help relocating their homes and possessions, especially those who were living out of broken-down vehicles.
“Most campers feel very upset and despondent about what is happening,” he said. “Some cars will have to move but some of the cars don’t work, so we will have to figure out how to address that, so cars don’t get towed.”
Sue Palen of Defense Fund PDX, which provides support to individuals experiencing homelessness near Laurelhurst Park, said the challenge in forcing many individuals to leave an encampment is addressing each of their vastly different needs.
“It is a very large encampment that has a large variety of different people, including those who are medically fragile and those who are elderly,” she said. Palen said no outreach workers have been deployed to help campers since they were notified of the sweep.
Tents and other makeshift dwellings began cropping up last year along Southeast Oak Street, which divides the two sections of Laurelhurst Park. The encampment persisted and grew during the extended period in which the city eased its street camping restrictions due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Chronic reports of drug use and inadequate hygiene and social distancing and nearby residents’ complaints prompted city officials to evict campers in November. The sweep drew dozens of protesters to gather at the park on multiple days, decrying the city’s attempt to displace those living there.
Despite being forced to leave Laurelhurst, many people experiencing homelessness soon returned. Others joined them.
City workers attempted to force campers out from beside the park again at the end of March. That time, however, anti-homeless-sweep activists blocked the road, evoking the possibility of a violent confrontation. To avoid one, the city took a step back.
Even after the city and homeless advocacy groups worked to help campers keep the area tidy, resolve disputes and find alternative housing options, the encampment continued to generate problems and complaints.
Since late May, city officials have conducted 13 risk assessments of the Laurelhurst encampment, according to a memo obtained by The Oregonian/OregonLive. The assessments look at factors such as the size of the camp, the presence of used needles, reports of conspicuous drug use, environmental impacts and reports of violence or crime.
All but two of the assessments generated a score above 80 and five of them produced a score of 90 or higher. City policy shows that any homeless camp with a risk assessment of 65 or higher is considered a “priority” for sweeping.
In a 10-day period that concluded Thursday, Portland police arrested three people living at the encampment on charges of public indecency or related to possessing stolen bikes or tools, according to bureau memo provided to City Hall staff. And they are investigating what may be other criminal incidents, three of them gun-related.
Last week, a city of Portland contractor who was cleaning the camp’s portable toilets said they witnessed two people holding firearms during a fight, one of whom pointed the weapon at his opponent, according to police, residents and city records.
The United Site Services worker told officers an altercation erupted between two people the morning of July 17 near Southeast Oak Street and 37th Avenue, said Sgt. Kevin Allen, a Portland police spokesman.
During the fight, one person pulled out a handgun and pointed it at the other, the worker told officers, Allen said. A third person later entered the fracas with a rifle of their own. There were no shots fired and police do not know of any injuries, according to police. The case remains under investigation.
Police said a Laurelhurst resident also reported seeing two people displaying firearms near the encampment in a separate incident on July 16.
Several days later, on Wednesday, the sanitation company removed its portable toilets from the area, citing the gun episode witnessed by its employee and other factors. The decision forced campers to use makeshift toilets for more than 24 hours until the city of Portland placed new portable toilets in the park.
A spokeswoman for United Site Services declined to comment.
Laurelhurst residents flooded City Hall with angry emails.
“Over the past 48 hours, it has become clear that the homeless encampment in Laurelhurst Park has morphed from an issue of homelessness to an issue of potential gun violence in our community,” Tunley, the neighborhood association chair, wrote to the mayor and City Council on Tuesday evening. “The imminent threat poses an increased risk of life and death to Laurelhurst residents and Laurelhurst Park-goers.”
Hardesty, who has been the council’s most vocal critic of homeless sweeps, wrote back early the next morning.
“You have been more than patient as we continue to seek the most humane and safe resolution to rising health and safety issues in your community,” Hardesty wrote. “You will see significant action on this matter within the next week.”
Donlon, of Stop the Sweeps PDX, said he doesn’t believe the encampment is a danger or threat to the surrounding neighborhood. While some individuals at the encampment might have knives or gun for protection, just as housed individuals do, Donlon said most do not.
Donlon said his organization is not yet announcing how it plans to respond to the sweep that could take place as soon as Thursday. He said he and other volunteers are still trying to understand campers’ wants and needs first.
The Oregonian/OregonLive’s Nicole Hayden contributed to this report.
-- Shane Dixon Kavanaugh; 503-294-7632
Email at skavanaugh@oregonian.com
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