Residents and councilors urge Pueblo City to resist ICE use of Pueblo Memorial Airport after staff outreach

Susie Jade, representing a coalition of local organizations, told the Pueblo City Council on Oct. 27 that she and allies are alarmed by an email she said was sent Sept. 4 by the city's director of aviation, Greg Perdoza, to the administration in Walsenburg. According to Jade, the message asked whether Walsenburg had a contact at a proposed detention facility who could speak with Freeman Jet Center about providing services for ICE transportation flights. "We do not want our tax dollars used to facilitate the transportation of people unlawfully detained," Jade said, and asked the council to ensure the outreach did not reflect the city's policy.

Heather Barton, who said Pueblo Memorial Airport is a small community facility, described national reporting of abuse in ICE custody and said airport use for deportation flights would harm the city's image and residents. Several other speakers during the public comment period echoed opposition to any local facilitation of ICE transport.

Councilors took the concern seriously but repeatedly noted legal limits. Councilor Dennis Flores said he will draft a resolution "indicating that the city of Pueblo will not be a party to transportation" arrangements with private detention operators such as CoreCivic and that the city should not enter contracts that would facilitate transport to nearby facilities. Flores also said that if a formal contract were proposed, the city should insist on terms that prevent use of municipal facilities for deportation flights.

City staff and other councilors warned of legal constraints at public airports. Staff noted that federal authorities retain broad powers over immigration enforcement and that denying use of an airport to a federal agency may be limited by federal law when federal funds or authority are involved. Mayor Heather Graham and other members said they had not been contacted directly by ICE and that they rely on staff to provide full information if outreach occurred.

Councilors and public speakers asked the administration to clarify who in aviation and the airport's private partners had communicated with outside parties and to return with possible policy options that stay within legal authority. Councilor Roger Gomez urged the city to look for administrative or contractual levers that would make the Pueblo Memorial Airport less convenient for ICE transport if the city wished to discourage it.

Next steps: Councilor Flores said he would prepare a resolution for a future meeting; staff said any direct city funds or contracts would require council approval and that, according to staff, no funding has been committed. The council did not vote on a formal prohibition at the Oct. 27 meeting.