More than 10,000 people have signed a petition circulated by Rep. Pat Ryan to voice opposition to ICE buying a warehouse space in the Orange County town of Chester, according to a statement by the lawmaker.
The flood of responses comes after ICE said in a public notice that it plans to buy a large warehouse facility on Elizabeth Drive in Chester, about 60 miles north of New York City. The notice and the Department of Homeland Security do not explicitly say the space will be used as a detention facility, but several news outlets have reported about the agency’s plan to use warehouse space as detention centers across the country. The Washington Post reported in December that the agency is planning a warehouse “processing site” in Chester.
In a public notice published on Jan. 8, ICE said it plans to purchase the 35.9-acre property and make a number of alterations to it. Those will include creating a small guard building, an outdoor recreation area and “fenceline modifications.”
“In just one week, more than ten thousand members of our community have come together with a clear message for this Administration – we will not stand by and let ICE move into Chester,” said Ryan, a Democrat representing parts of the Hudson Valley.
The purchase of the facility would mark a significant increase in the physical presence of ICE in the New York City area, which so far has escaped the same level of immigration enforcement as other large cities during President Donald Trump’s second term in office.
In a statement, Department of Homeland Security Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin wouldn’t say if the facility will be used as a detention center.
“Every day, DHS is conducting law enforcement activities across the country to keep Americans safe,” McLaughlin said in a statement. “We have no new detention centers to announce at this time.”
The proposed ICE facility has touched off broad opposition by community members and elected officials, including by the Orange County Executive, Republican Steven Neuhaus. His assistant, Rebecca Sheehan, said in an email that the county took legal action to oppose the purchase on Friday, but did not say if it had filed a lawsuit or provide further details.
Since Trump took office, ICE and Border Patrol have stepped up enforcement in cities across the country, which at times has led to confrontations between federal law enforcement and Americans who oppose their tactics.
ICE has conducted at least one large-scale immigration raid in New York City in that time, but has largely focused on detaining migrants who show up to immigration courts in the city.
“The responses I’m receiving here from our community are among the strongest and most unified I’ve seen during my time in office,” Ryan said. “And it’s for very good reason – we’re seeing law-abiding members of our community snatched off the streets with no due process, and whether that’s at facilities in NY or across the country, we will not accept it.”