We, neighbors and transit riders in Southeast Portland, are requesting that the City of Portland deny Fred Meyer’s application to permanently close or limit its Hawthorne pedestrian entrance. We also request that the City enforce the Transit Street Zoning Code 33.130.242 which requires the pedestrian entrance to be open for entry and exit during all store hours.

The Hawthorne Fred Meyer’s store has had pedestrian entrance doors on Hawthorne since the 1950s. But now Fred Meyer has closed or allowed exit only from this pedestrian entrance, noting theft and vagrancy concerns which could be addressed through a posted security guard. This closure creates serious pedestrian safety problems, encourages more car traffic, and closes a pedestrian entrance which helps maintain a vibrant neighborhood character on a busy pedestrian/transit street. 

There is a busy bus stop next to the Hawthorne pedestrian entrance. This entrance is critical for seniors and those with disabilities who ride transit. Without this pedestrian entrance, bus riders and pedestrians will have to walk several blocks around the building and enter the store through the parking lot. The pedestrian entrance encourages neighbors to walk, rather than drive to the store which reduces air pollution and climate impacts.

Portland’s Comprehensive Plan envisions Hawthorne as a Main Street in an Urban Center, and regulations require doors facing a Transit Street, that people can enter and leave. Promoting pedestrian activity on a Main Street is crucial to a vibrant business district, and locked doors hinder that success. We ask City Council members to support the Bureau of Development Services in enforcing city code and to deny Fred Meyer’s application to permanently close this critical pedestrian entrance/exit.