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A U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer listens during a briefing, Jan. 27, 2025, in Silver Spring, Md. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon, File)
Portland, Ore. — The City of Portland is set to issue a formal land use violation notice this Thursday to the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) facility located in Southwest Portland, citing repeated violations of conditions tied to the site’s land use approval.
An investigation by the city’s permitting bureau, launched in late July, found that the facility violated a key restriction that prohibits holding detainees for more than 12 hours or overnight. Federal records show 25 such violations between October 1, 2024, and July 27, 2025. The most recent instance occurred on May 20, 2025.
“This facility made clear detention limitation commitments to our community, and we believe they broke those policies more than two dozen times,” said Portland Mayor Keith Wilson. “I am proud of our team for conducting a thorough, thoughtful investigation and referring the matter to the next steps in the land use violation process.”
In addition to the detention-related violations, the notice also references a separate issue concerning boarded-up windows at the site, although that is not related to the land use conditions.
The ICE facility at 4310 S. Macadam Ave. has operated under a conditional land use approval since 2011, shortly after the property owner secured a long-term lease with the General Services Administration for ICE-affiliated agencies. The site serves as a processing center where individuals are interviewed to determine their legal immigration status.
The investigation was prompted by complaints and data from the Deportation Data Project, a nonprofit organization that used the Freedom of Information Act to obtain records from ICE facilities nationwide.
Under Portland’s land use rules, the site’s operator will have 30 days from receipt of the notice to correct the violation. If evidence supports the city’s findings, civil penalties may be imposed. Additionally, Portland Permitting & Development could schedule a hearing to reconsider the site’s land use approval, typically held at least 60 days after the notice is issued. Any decision made by the hearings officer may be appealed to the Portland City Council.
For now, the ICE facility is allowed to continue operating under its existing land use approval while the process unfolds.
As a sanctuary city, Portland does not use local resources to enforce federal immigration law. City employees, including Portland Police Bureau officers, only cooperate with ICE when required by federal law.
More information is available here.
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Jordan Vawter
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