ROMULUS, Mich. (WXYZ) — City officials say it is now unlikely that a proposed U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility will be placed in Romulus.
They say ICE and the Department of Homeland Security will instead announce plans to sell the building. However, they also say a lawsuit filed by the city about the facility remains pending.
Romulus Mayor Robert McCraight said in a news release:
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.
Romulus will be in a better position to grow and continue to thrive with this decision.
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.
We thank Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel for assisting the City in taking this legal action. Attorney General Nessel worked side by side with Romulus from day one in our joint effort to resolve this matter.
And we thank the many citizens and leaders who stayed in regular contact with us during this time, including the Romulus City Council, State Representatives Miller, DeSana, and Wegela, State Senator Camilleri, U.S. Representatives Dingell and Talib, and U.S. Senator Slotkin.
While this situation is not completely resolved, we are optimistic that it will soon be complete.
7 News Detroit reported extensively on the controversy surrounding the proposed facility on Cogswell in Romulus. The former commercial warehouse at that location was purchased earlier this year with the intention of turning it into a detention center.
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The city, along with Attorney General Nessel, filed a federal lawsuit, seeking a preliminary injunction to pause the plan. According to the city, "The complaint alleged that the plan was not appropriate because the facility is located within a mile of multiple schools, abuts residential neighborhoods, lies within a floodplain, lacks the adequate infrastructure to support hundreds of detainees and staff, and violated the Administrative Procedure Act by failing to adequately consider alternative facilities."
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The proposed facility also sparked protests in the community.
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There has been no official comment on the facility from DHS or ICE.
