I'm not arguing with you. I asked you questions. You feel threatened by those questions. It's ok. I'm not attacking you or trying to convince you of anything. I was actually trying to understand your thinking as an Oregon resident and how your view might differ from the business owner interviewed as part of the story. But you can't even do that. You can't even say whether you agree or disagree with crime stats from your own community.
Walmart and other stores often don't trash the communities when they close locations. For example, Walmart recently closed a location in downtown Honolulu. Everyone knows it was because of shoplifting.
Here is what Walmart said about the closure:
A company spokesperson said the decision to close the store was difficult but necessary after a thorough review process was conducted. The spokesperson did not identify a specific reason for the closure, but said several factors are considered, including historic and current financial performance.
https://www.kitv.com/news/business/walmart-store-in-downtown-honolulu-closing-in-april/article_fd2a9b04-c83f-11ed-89da-43bbf9638632.html
Here is what people in the know said about the closure:
“When you have a boarded up space, it brings in bad elements. Not only homeless, but drug problems, gangs -- it’s not a safe place,” said real estate expert Stephany Sofos.
Sofos also said the bad elements include shoplifters.
“There’s so much shoplifting, and the way the laws are written in Hawaii, that if you shoplift, you’re not going to go to jail, and so people are doing it,” she said.
https://www.hawaiinewsnow.com/2023/04/22/walmarts-closure-leaves-big-empty-box-downtown/
It's pretty naive to rely on public statements by Walmart and ignore statements by actual business owners and residents.
You wrote, “You feel threatened by those questions.” You don’t know what I feel; you may think you do, and you are mistaken. I am not threatened by your questions or anyone else’s.
I previously agreed that the Lents neighborhood has a high crime rate when I posted “…according to what I have read, the Lents neighborhood unfortunately, has a high crime rate.”
The Eastport Plaza Walmart shuttered the store in March 2023. The two-year-old video in the link from X you provided was posted on December 2025. Governor Greg Abbot lives in and is the governor of Texas. The Walmart being discussed is in Oregon, why not interview Tina Kotex, Oregon’s governor?
I assume the business owner from Darrel's Economy Mufflers was interviewed in 2023. He spoke about crime in general in the area. Darrell’s Mufflers opened in 1984. If he is the original owner, he has been there for 41 years. A lot has changed in the last 41 years in Lents, including a rise in crime.
Below is the Portland Police crime chart for East Portland in 2023 as shown in the video you linked. I agree with them. But I also have no way of knowing if they are accurate.
https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/55019170162_444971d8c8.jpgWhile the information about the Walmart in Hawaii is interesting, it has little to do with the closed Portland Walmart and Portland crime rates.
I started working in retail in display and as a home furnishings coordinator when I was 18 years old . I worked at Meier & Frank for 20 years. Shoplifting was a problem in 1964 and is still a problem today. Meier & Frank’s security team had a large staff, some of whom were and still are friends. Shoplifting is not a new crime. The first documented shoplifting started to take place in 16th century London.
Shoplifting laws vary from state to state. In Oregon it is treated as theft, with penalties based on the value of stolen goods, ranging from a Class C misdemeanor for items under $100 (up to 30 days jail, ~$1,250 fine) to felonies for higher values (like $1,000+ being a Class B Felony). Charges involve concealing or removing merchandise without paying, and can result in jail time, fines, restitution, or civil lawsuits, with newer laws targeting organized retail theft with stricter penalties. Enforcement intensity varies by location.
