Several residents who said they or their neighbors had been affected by recent immigration enforcement urged the Oregon City Commission on Wednesday to take a visible stand and to provide clear municipal support for impacted families.

At the start of public comment, Amy Mitchell read a letter from a family that said ICE activity forced them to close a food-truck business in October 2025 and left their 14-year-old son depressed and isolated. Rick Pillar, a longtime resident, asked the council to adopt a resolution condemning what he called unconstitutional detentions. Jen Mess cited a Portland Immigrant Rights Coalition (PIRC) hotline report saying community-collected data showed hundreds of detentions across Oregon in November, with 20 reported in Clackamas County that month.

Commissioners discussed options during the general business portion, noting statutory limits on declaring a municipal emergency under Oregon Revised Statutes (ORS). Mayor Denise McGriff said she had reviewed the ORS language and did not believe the city met the threshold for an emergency declaration at this time. Several commissioners nonetheless said the city could still use its platform to communicate solidarity and provide resources.

The commission voted to direct staff to prepare a draft resolution on the topic for future consideration. The motion as recorded in the meeting passed on a roll-call vote with all commissioners voting Aye. The commission did not adopt a resolution at the meeting; staff were instructed to return with a draft.

The next steps are procedural: staff will prepare the draft resolution for future commission review, and the commission may schedule additional public discussion or a formal vote once the draft is posted and noticed.

Provenance: Topic first introduced in public comment (SEG 110–SEG 184 and SEG 249–SEG 313) and formally moved into general business discussion and direction to staff (SEG 606–SEG 666).