Another Hayden Island restaurant closes citing ‘safety and security’ concerns

PORTLAND Ore. (KPTV) - Due to what the establishment referred to as “safety and security” concerns on social media, Stanford’s Restaurant and Bar on Jantzen Beach has closed. The announcement comes about two months after the nearby Cracker Barrel abruptly closed citing similar reasons.

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On Saturday, Stanford’s posted on Facebook page that it would be closing “due to recent incidents” in order “to ensure the safety and security of our guests and our team.”

The webpage for the Jantzen Beach location of the business now includes the same notice.

“Kind of surprising but it doesn’t shock me just because the crime has been so bad. I wouldn’t say it’s as bad as it’s been in the past but I see why,” says Mahogani Upton.

Upton works down the road from Stanford’s as shift lead at JayBee’s Chicken Palace, in the building previously occupied by Hooters, and says business has been going really well since they opened in August though she was sad to see Hooters close after working there for years.

“We kind of made the executive decision to close it when COVD hit. They just didn’t want to reopen it,” Upton says. “When we took down the Hooters sign then put up the JayBee’s, we were getting calls every single day, but we weren’t even open yet so when we finally opened it was floods and floods of people coming in.”

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While she’s disappointed to see restaurants in the area closing, she still thinks the island is a good place to set up shop, especially as they plan to expand.

“Things are closing but people are still seeing we’re open and we have another business coming so I think people, they’re getting excited,” Upton says.

FOX 12 reached out to mayor Wheeler’s office, asking if he might consider adding extra patrols in the area. They say all options are on the table and sent us a statement reading in part:

“The businesses in this area on our radar and we are working to get into contact with the Stanford’s team to see how we can help.”

Despite stating that the closure is only temporary, the notification made no mention of how long it will likely last. FOX 12 has reached out to the restaurant for more information.

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