Debate over a controversial U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention center proposed in Orange County continues after the agency revealed details about their plan.
Elected officials from the local to federal levels say they’ve had no direct communication with ICE or federal officials around the proposed village of Chester detention center to be built from an abandoned warehouse.
The agency did send out a release but some of the language was unclear. It said, in part, that the facility was purchased, but later said that a review of community impact will be done before purchase.
Republican Orange County Executive Steve Neuhaus has described the proposal as something that would “create chaos.”
“I have not had one elected official in New York state, in the Hudson Valley, in Orange County call me and say they’re for this,” Neuhaus said. “Every Republican, my legislature, my partners there voted 21 to 0 last week against this.”
The release from ICE also claims this would contribute over $150 million in GDP and bring in $37.2 million in tax revenue.
Town of Chester Supervisor Brandon Holdridge pushed back on the validity of the numbers, saying federal buildings don’t pay property taxes.
“[ICE] has yet to talk to us about anything,” Holdridge said. “They haven’t shown us any documentation proving any of these wild claims. I can’t imagine if a prison is being put in my community that property values are going to go up. I have to imagine they’re going to go down.”
The full statement released by ICE reads as follows:
“ICE purchased a facility in Chester, New York. These will be very well-structured detention facilities meeting our regular detention standards. Sites will undergo community impact studies and a rigorous due diligence process to make sure there is no hardship on local utilities or infrastructure prior to purchase. The Chester facility and its construction are expected to bring more than 1,246 jobs to the area and would contribute $153.4 million to GDP. It’s also projected to bring in more than $37.2 million in tax revenue. These economic benefits don’t even take into account that removing criminals from the streets makes communities safer for business owners and customers. ICE is targeting criminal illegal aliens including murderers, rapists, pedophiles, gang members and more. 70% of ICE arrests are of illegal aliens charged or convicted of a crime in the U.S. Thanks to the One Big Beautiful Bill, ICE has new funding to expand detention space to keep these criminals off American streets before they are removed for good from our communities.”
Spectrum News 1 has reached out to ICE regarding the claims and concerns over clarity in this release but did not immediately receive a response.