Just Do It. Welp, Nike just did it.

Nike is reportedly permanently closing its store in northeast Portland, Oregon, citing safety and security issues for leaving the crime and drug-infested area. 

The Soul Business District, a 501(c)3 nonprofit membership organization that promotes economic and business development in inner and north/northeast Portland, said in a press release that the community will be "dealt a major economic blow."

This news has landed like a lead balloon in our district. We had all been holding our breath since last November when the store quietly shuttered its doors due to internal and external theft and safety issues. But, like so many of us riding out the fallout of the pandemic and protests, we held out hope that Nike, city officials, and community leaders would recalibrate and realign order. But it looks like it's game over.

Is it any wonder?

Not to be cynical right off the bat, but one — a sane one, that is — wonders how the Soul Business District and residents of Portland felt about the multiple major economic blows wreaked by Black Lives Matter and Antifa riots, out-of-control public drug abuse, and rampant homelessness. 

Anyway, Nike confirmed the store's closing in a statement to The Oregonian/OregonLive:

We are reimagining Nike’s retail space, permanently closing our current location at 2650 NE Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard, and considering future locations as part of this community’s long-term revitalization plan.

"Reimagining Nike's retail space"? Oh, please. 

Nike is getting the hell out of Dodge to stop the bleeding, which is a direct result of left-wing Democrat policies, spearheaded by Ted Wheeler, one of the worst mayors in the country.

Speaking of Mayor Ted, he said in a ridiculous statement he was "very disappointed” with the news of the store's closure while claiming his team and city staff “have worked tirelessly and in good faith with Nike for almost a year to offer creative solutions to their safety challenges.”

Uh-huh. Um, Ted? How about cleaning up your city's streets? Cracking down on crime and rampant public drug usage? Clearing out the tent cities? Stop releasing repeat offenders back to the streets?

Wheeler all but donned a BLM cheerleader uniform and took to the streets to cheer on week after week of violence — AKA: "peaceful protests" — following Georg Floyd's death in Minneapolis. Yet, the guy is still in office. 

Again, not to be a cynic, but #protip for Nike and the residents of Portland: You get what you vote for.

Here's more from The Oregonian:

In February, Nike made a request to Mayor Ted Wheeler and city officials to detail off-duty police officers to provide security at the community store. Wheeler’s office, however, nixed the request for police attendants.

The Nike Community Store had been a staple in its Portland neighborhood, once the core of the city’s Black population, since it opened in June 1984.

Wheeler addressed his denial of Nike's security request on Friday, as well.

Ultimately, the city cannot offer Nike, or any other private business, with dedicated off-duty (Portland Police Bureau) officers due to PPB’s staffing shortage.

You can cut the irony with a dull knife. I mean, I thought the "Defund" movement was going to be the magic elixir to peace and tranquility in Portland. Again, you get what you vote for. 

The Bottom Line

OK fine, I'm being cynical, but here's the deal. If it had to happen, how karma-esque that it happened to Nike? 

From berating its customers upset by the company's Dylan Mulvaney bra ads to being in bed with communist China to backing former NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick, Nike is as woke as they come. 

While Nike's far from broke, the closing of its factory store in Portland stands as a stark reminder that "Go woke, go broke" is alive and well. In this case, perhaps the only ones going broke are the community and Nike employees who'll be out of a job.