ICE’s Bid for Office Space in Portland and Roseburg Sparks Backlash Across Oregon

Several contract opportunities have been listed for Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) offices across Southern Oregon, including in Roseburg and Portland, as well as in many other states. The agency wants to rent office space for a year.

ICE Wants Office Space to Rent in Roseburg & Portland

A national government website, the System for Award Management (SAM), advertised for ICE office rentals in Roseburg and Portland on March 20. on March 20.

The agency is seeking “flexible workspace (private offices and/or workstations) for assigned ICE personnel at approved coworking locations” across 40 states in dozens of cities.

Critics have panned the request after ICE agents came under fire and have been the subject of several court cases.

Two killings of US citizens in Minneapolis at the hands of ICE agents also triggered a harsh backlash, and protests have sprung up regularly. For the most part, Oregon communities have been vocal that they don’t want ICE in their cities, and feel that the Trump Administration’s authoritarian agenda is being foisted on them.

The procurement request. A preliminary stage of the federal government seeking locations indicates that the agency is seeking space for more than 300 full-time equivalent ICE agents across 90 locations for one year.

Although the federal government owns several properties, private landlords are being sought to provide office space with a mix of private offices and desk space, which includes Wi-Fi and printing privileges.

The SAM request does not guarantee that ICE will rent office space in those locations. Responses to the solicitation are due by the end of March.