Portland City Hall Occupy camp dispersed

Portland City Hall Occupy camp dispersed

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — Police dispersed protesters aligned with the 2011 Occupy movement who were camped out in front of Portland, Ore.’s City Hall this morning, five days after city workers hung eviction notices from nearby trees.

The encampment made up of a largely homeless population began after police ordered the removal of tents and other structures from the 300-person Occupy Portland encampment in late 2011.

The City Hall protest sought to focus attention on Portland’s homeless population. Homeless protesters say the city feeds them but doesn’t provide enough places to stay.

But Mayor Charlie Hales said the encampment deterred people from entering City Hall and intimidated those working inside.

The roughly 30 protesters left, some crossing the street to yell as workers hosed down the sidewalk.

Relatively lenient city policies and mild weather have long attracted the homeless to Portland.