At least 100 people marched Friday evening to the home of Portland Mayor Charlies Hales, protesting forced evictions earlier this week from City Hall and chanting "Charlie resign now!"

Several of them erected 15 tents near the home -- half on the grass strip between Hales' house and the street, the other half on a grass strip next to the sidewalk bordering Eastmoreland Golf Course across the street.

The march, the makeshift camp and the nearby presence of Portland police officers - coming on the heels of Wednesday's raucus clash -- presented a potent mix for a volatile confrontation. But calm prevailed, perhaps propelled by a city staple: steady rain that pelted the scene starting about an hour after the protesters arrived.

Before the rains came, the protesters looked prepared for an extended presence in front of Hales' house. The mayor didn't make an appearance and tweeted later in the night from an event at the Asian Health & Services Center.

"We are here to tell Mayor Charlie Hales we do have a reason to protest," march organizer Gregory McKelvey said through a megaphone in front of the house. "Since he didn't want us at City Hall, we took it to his house. If we can't be comfortable you can't be comfortable."

On Wednesday, police officers pushed protesters out of City Hall and pepper-sprayed some of them after City Council members voted to approve a three-year contract with police officers during a session closed to all but media and few others. At least two protesters went to the hospital, Don't Shoot Portland leaders said. One police officer had injuries that weren't serious, police said. Ten protesters were arrested.

Don't Shoot Portland leaders said on Facebook that they were shut out of the democratic process when the mayor moved the council meeting, largely closing it to the public.

Starting about 4 p.m. Friday, protesters left a gathering area a half-mile north of the mayor's house. Before departing, they loaded an SUV with water and food, listened to a detail-rich description of how to deal with pepper spray and wrote down the phone number to call if they were arrested.

They marched onto Oregon 99 East, blocking traffic for a few minutes, before marching onward into a neighborhood, eventually arriving in Eastmoreland and its stately homes. Lead organizers McKelvey and Teressa Raiford said the group decided to walk through residential areas so everyone in the city would know that they need to demand change from the city -- and not just click "like" on social media posts.

Organizers refused to divulge the destination - wanting to preserve an element of surprise. For whom, it wasn't clear: No one appeared to be at the mayor's house when they arrived, and police weren't in sight hours before the march and when the tent-setting began.

A drumbeat of community progress: tonights's celebration for the Asian Health & Svcs Ctr soon to rise in Lents! pic.twitter.com/mzLaHiOJY6 — Mayor Charlie Hales (@CharlieHalesPDX) October 15, 2016

By 7 p.m. - the two-hour mark of the occupation -- a police SUV was parked near the protesters. But for the most part, the police presence was minimal from the time the march started through the evening.

Earlier, two police officers on motorcycles were waiting about a block away from Hales' house next to a public garden at the intersection of Southeast Bybee Boulevard and 27th Street. A truck carrying at least 10 officers in riot gear also staged for a time in a parking lot near the garden, but eventually sped away from the scene.

When rumors of police officers arriving swept through the crowd, shouts of "Film the police!" erupted.

At one point, McKelvey urged the crowd, "Do not provoke the police."

A proposed body camera policy for police was the source for some protesters' disapproval of the police union contract. While the camera policy wasn't part of the contract, its details were discussed between city and police negotiators at the same time as the contract.

At Hales' home, as the rain began, organizer Micah Rhodes said the group could stay camped out for a couple of days if necessary. "We won't leave if a storm comes," he said.

In addition to seeking resignation of Hales - whose term is set to expire in less than three months -- McKelvey said the group, which also is affiliated with #BlackLivesMatter, wants to recall Commissioner Nick Fish.

Shortly before 8 p.m., with rain continuing to fall, Rhodes succinctly described protesters' immediate plan: "We're staying."

--Allan Brettman

503-294-5900

@allanbrettman

-- Samantha Matsumoto

--Dillon Pilorget | dpilorget@oregonian.com

503-294-5927 | @dillonpilorget