BY JAKE THOMAS, CONTRIBUTING WRITER
Portland Parks and Recreation’s contract for downtown security services is coming up for renewal. And with the season’s change is in the air.
Currently, a subsidiary of the Portland Business Alliance holds the $530,000 contract with the parks bureau for downtown security services. The PBA then contracts through the private security firm, Portland Patrol Inc., or PPI, for actual patrols.
Under this arrangement, 38 armed and 22 unarmed PPI guards patrol Portland’s Business Improvement District, 213 square blocks of downtown. Guards in the district operate between the hours of 7 a.m. and 11 p.m. on weekdays and 10 a.m. and 6 p.m. on weekends in the district. PPI guards also patrol 12 parks in the downtown as well as the Vera Katz Eastbank Esplanade as part of the current contract with the parks bureau. Continue reading
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