2 arrested after protest at Society Hotel, security guard assaulted, police say

PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — The Portland Police Bureau said a protest outside the Society Hotel in Old Town on Thursday night unraveled into violence and vandalism.

Police said two people were arrested, with one of them now accused of assaulting a security officer.

Police said they learned through social media posts about a planned demonstration near a business in the 200 block of Northwest 3rd Avenue. KOIN 6 News confirmed this is the location of the Society Hotel.

“The event was advertised as a gathering to ‘make noise’ in opposition to the business and its owner,” PPB said in a press release. “Due to concerns about possible property damage, officers monitored the demonstration but did not initially engage with the group.”

Police said officers “observed an assault in progress” after a private security officer was attempting to assist workers in closing the entrance to the building that demonstrators were allegedly trying to force open.

“During the effort, one security guard was assaulted by multiple individuals,” police said. “The security team successfully disengaged and relocated to a safe area before contacting police to report the assault.”

Police said officers also saw someone vandalizing the front window of the business, writing a message with a paint marker. Due to safety concerns and in the interest of de-escalation, arrests were made at a later time, police said.

It’s unclear why the demonstration took place.

On Thursday, KOIN 6 News reported some members of the business community in Old Town have been complaining about a local outreach group, Community Free Store PDX, for allegedly blocking roadways and taking over parking lots without permits. During that report, KOIN 6 spoke to Jessie Burke, who is the co-owner of the Society Hotel. Burke said she had been fielding complaints about the outreach group for months via her role as the chair of the Old Town Community Association.