Abandoned Elks Lodge Burns Down

David Douglas School District had plans to demolish it.

ENGULFED The Elks Lodge in Gateway burns down. (Greg Muhr)
By Lucas Manfield

The abandoned Elks lodge in East Portland burned to the ground Thursday morning. Firefighters arrived at 2 am to find “heavy fire showing through the roof.” They brought the blaze under control two hours later, after a wall collapsed and the roof caved in.

The building, left vacant by the Elks eight years ago, was examined by WW last year. It was purchased by David Douglas School District in 2015. A spokesman for the district told WW at the time that plans to redevelop the lot were on hold due to a lack of funding.

But the project had moved forward in recent months. A $550,000 contract with Swofford Excavating to demolish the building was approved by the David Douglas School Board in February. City permits were requested shortly thereafter.

This isn’t the first time Portland firefighters have shown up at the property, which was ringed by tents when WW last visited in September.

“Due to previous fires and other incidents, there are many large holes in the floors of every level,” Portland Fire & Rescue said in a press release.

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