The legal maneuver comes two weeks after county and state officials announced a lawsuit<\/a> targeting the project located on rural, unincorporated county land near Gilroy. Revelations<\/a> about the facility, first reported by San Jos\u00e9 Spotlight in May, have sent shockwaves<\/a> throughout the Bay Area, fueling concerns that ICE may be laying the groundwork for more extensive immigration enforcement operations in the region.<\/p>\n \u201cThis attempt to construct an ICE facility without complying with the applicable laws is dangerous for the environment and for our people. California refuses to stand idly by,\u201d Bonta said in a statement announcing the injunction Thursday. \u201cToday, we\u2019re asking the court to pause this development and ensure the interests of our communities are properly protected.\u201d<\/p>\n The court has set an Oct. 7 hearing date to consider the injunction, though LoPresti said the county is exploring options to move that date up.<\/p>\n Representatives for ICE and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) did not immediately respond to a request for comment.<\/p>\n The 25-acre parcel, located at 7240 Holsclaw Road, is thought to contain hazardous materials due to its history of use for agricultural research. Given the risk development work at the site poses to the surrounding ecosystem, as well as to the agricultural value of land, the injunction asserts the federal government is legally required to conduct an environmental review before proceeding.<\/p>\n In addition, the complaint warns that the planned 20,0000 square-foot facility could overwhelm the area\u2019s septic system, which was designed for much more limited use.<\/p>\n With visible construction work already taking place at the site, LoPresti said the federal government has blown past the environmental requirements, and also disregarded federal laws mandating consultations with state and local authorities.<\/p>\n \u201cThey haven\u2019t done any of that,\u201d LoPresti told San Jos\u00e9 Spotlight. \u201cInstead, they have moved forward in secrecy and are trying to literally bulldoze their way to completion.\u201d<\/p>\n An 111-page blueprint document<\/a>, obtained by this news outlet, provides detailed plans for the site. The document, dated Sept. 17, 2025, outlines an ICE facility that includes detention areas, detainee processing areas, interview and holding rooms, spaces for mothers with infants, as well as office space. Certain pages of the document bear the logos for ICE and DHS.<\/p>\n County leaders who studied the blueprints said the facility appears to be designed to hold detainees before transporting them to larger detention centers.<\/p>\n ICE previously denied it had plans to create a facility at the location. But after San Jos\u00e9 Spotlight asked about the project blueprints, an agency spokesperson described the project as an \u201cICE office.\u201d The official continued to deny the agency intends to build a detention facility at the location.<\/p>\n The lawsuit announced earlier this month names ICE, DHS and the property\u2019s owner \u2014 an LLC belonging to development firm Elmwood Capital Group \u2014 as the defendants. In addition to the arguments advanced in the injunction, the lawsuit also contends the facility is unlawful because the land is zoned exclusively for agricultural uses.<\/p>\n The lawsuit is just one of several dozen brought by Bonta against the federal government, as part of a broader legal campaign that he has said is intended to end the mistreatment of detainees at ICE facilities across California.<\/p>\n
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