Property owners in Portland sue over planned women’s shelter

PORTLAND — A group of property owners in Portland are suing over the location of a new women’s shelter.

The developers behind the city’s Electric Blocks, a cluster of five trendy office buildings in the Central Eastside industrial area, filed their lawsuit Tuesday in Multnomah County Circuit Court, Oregon Public Broadcasting reported.

They say elected leaders botched the public engagement process and flouted zoning rules. Their millions in investments will be wiped away if the shelter for women experiencing homelessness opens as planned in April, the lawsuit said.

Multnomah County and Portland’s Joint Office of Homeless Services opened the location as a severe weather shelter twice this winter. Earlier this month, county officials said they would permanently use the former warehouse for a 125-bed shelter.

A spokesperson for the Joint Office declined to comment, citing the county’s policy of not speaking on pending litigation. The county is leasing the property from Summit Properties Inc.

The Central Eastside Industrial Council, a coalition of businesses and property owners, is also rallying against the shelters.

“The legal filing is really trying to say ‘Please slow down and take a pause,’” said Adam Tyler, the president of real estate firm Killian Pacific, the parent company for the plaintiffs and owner of the five office buildings.