Portland activists demand city action against ICE landlord Stuart Lindquist after fire at Centennial Mills Warehouse

Portland, OR – On August 2, smoke filled the air in downtown Portland. The historic Centennial Mills Warehouse was on fire. As firefighters poured water onto the building, all eight floors collapsed, sending debris into the air and onto the surrounding residential buildings, which would later test positive for asbestos.

The toxic air was reminiscent of similar scenes in the South Waterfront neighborhood over the past year at the Portland ICE facility, where ICE and DHS deployed large amounts of chemical weapons at immigrant rights protesters over a period of several months. The effects of those weapons were felt miles away.

The bad air quality is not the only similarity between the two environmental catastrophes. Both buildings are owned by real estate developer Stuart Lindquist.

Activists with Portland Contra Las Deportaciones (PDXCD), an immigrant rights organization leading a campaign to shut down the Portland ICE facility, were quick to make the connection.

“It’s not surprising to me that a man who makes $2.4 million annually off renting out a concentration camp to ICE is also the owner of a derelict building that burnt down and poisoned the neighborhood as a result of his negligence,” said Beatriz Ibarra. “The question I have is, when will the city finally step in and put an end to his dangerous investments?”

Lindquist was issued a land use violation by the city of Portland in September 2025 for violating the terms of the permit for the ICE facility, by holding detainees past a 12-hour limit numerous times. This came after months of public pressure and a petition of over 19,000 signatures.

Almost a year later, the city has yet to collect any fines for this violation. In fact, during the last year, Lindquist was granted more opportunities for real estate projects by the city.

In August 2025, when a school next to the ICE facility was forced to relocate due to all the chemical weapons nearby, City Councilmember Mitch Green stepped in fast track permit approval for the school to move into another building owned by Lindquist.

In October 2025, while Donald Trump was deploying the National Guard to “protect” the Portland ICE facility from protesters, the Portland Design Commission approved Lindquist’s plans to develop the Centennial Mills Warehouse into residential housing, despite public outcry, given Lindquist’s track history.

“Again and again Lindquist is given the green light by the city to make money off Portlanders, but when we ask for the city to hold him accountable, we’re told this is impossible,” said Blaire Glennon, another member of PDXCD.

In response to calls for the city to shut down the Portland ICE facility, officials made it clear they are not interested in acting. Councilors Mitch Green, Tiffany Koyama Lane, Angelita Morillo, Jamie Dunphy and Sameer Kanal put out a statement saying they will not revoke the permit for the Portland ICE facility. A video was leaked where City Administrator Raymond Lee let city employees know the city is “committed to keeping the facility open.”

Demolition orders were served to Lindquist for the Centennial Mills property, and the city states an investigation is ongoing into the cause of the fire. So far, the city has not pursued any repercussions for the release of asbestos into the air, or the fire-related shutdown of critical public transportation surrounding the property.

This clear pattern of allowing Lindquist to move forward with real estate projects despite evidence his investments cause harm to the city, and the refusal of the city to step in once this harm does occur, raises questions as to whether city officials are working for regular Portlanders, or wealthy and influential individuals.

“We remain committed in demanding the ICE facility is shut down,” said Glennon. “The Centennial Mills fire just makes it clearer that this is an emergency.”

On August 14, Lindquist will be back in court regarding the land use violation of the Portland ICE facility. Lindquist continues to challenge the ruling, and appealed to Multnomah County Court, claiming the city is biased against ICE. Given the city’s explicit commitment to keeping the facility open, PDXCD maintains this is simply an attempt to continue to stall. They will be mobilizing for the hearing to put pressure on the judge to strike down the case.

#PortlandOR #OR #ImmigrantRights #PDXCD

Source: https://fightbacknews.org/portland-activists-demand-city-action-against-ice-landlord-stuart-lindquist?pk_campaign=rss-feed