Woodbury is being considered for a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention center in a new program that could speed up deportations, according to internal ICE documents reviewed by the Washington Post.
The news outlet reported on Dec. 24 that Woodbury is one of 16 cities that ICE is looking at to create smaller facilities that would hold up to 1,500 people.
Locations like Woodbury would be used as processing sites to hold newly arrested detainees for a few weeks before feeding to larger detention centers.
The plan, which the news outlet said was outlined in an ICE draft solicitation, would build a network of warehouses across the country to feed to larger hubs in Virginia, Texas, Louisiana, Arizona, Georgia and Missouri. The hubs would hold up to 10,000 people at a time. The news organization also said the plans are not finalized and are still being refined.
Woodbury officials say they were unaware of any plans to build an immigration detention facility in the city.
“City staff has not been contacted by anyone regarding the acquisition and/or use of property in Woodbury by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement,” Woodbury City Planner Eric Searles said in an email.
A Washington County official said they also had no knowledge about discussions over placing a potential detention center in Woodbury.
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security did not immediately respond to questions from the Minnesota Star Tribune, but Tricia McLaughlin, a DHS spokeswoman, told the Washington Post that she “cannot confirm” the Post’s reporting.
