Plans for a federal immigration detention center in Romulus appear to be dead.
The Department of Homeland Security planned to house up to 500 detainees at a warehouse. But local residents and immigrants rights groups opposed those plans.
The New York Times is reporting the Romulus location is one of seven nationwide ICE is looking to sell. The agency spent more than $700 million buying warehouses to house detainees rounded up as part of a nationwide crackdown on undocumented individuals.
Back in March, Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel filed suit to block the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility.
“Together we showed the federal government that they cannot come into Michigan, break our laws, disrupt our communities and expect us to sit on our hands,” Nessel said in a video statement on Thursday.
ICE's decision to scrap its plans for a Romulus detention is being greeted warmly by local officials.
“We want to thank DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin for listening to us and taking into consideration the issues that would have made this the wrong location for a detention facility,” said Romulus Mayor Robert McCraight in a press release.
“The City’s position should not be confused with opposition to responsible enforcement of our country’s laws. Instead, the facility’s proximity to residential neighborhoods, schools, and wetlands made it the wrong location. Locating a facility like this in our community would have been an incredible burden on our already limited public safety resources and a violation of our zoning ordinance,” McCraight said.
Nessel said the AG’s office will keep the lawsuit against ICE active until the paperwork for the sale of the property is complete and it’s official that DHS and ICE will not use the property for a detention center.
In Michigan, there are four county jails that hold federal detainees and one large privately owned facility.
State Representative Dylan Wegela represents Romulus. He says this is a win for are residents, but the fight isn’t over.
“We are still seeing increased funding. We are still seeing ICE operate in ways that we do not want to see. They're taking illegal actions, repeatedly losing in court, and we got to keep fighting back,” he said in an interview with WDET on Thursday evening.
