Romulus mayor says city opposes possible ICE detention facility; council weighs limited jurisdiction
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Summary
Mayor McCray told the council Feb. 9 the city has received rumors about a potential ICE detention facility and is working with legal counsel and state and federal representatives to determine options; residents and a commercial real estate speaker raised economic and community concerns during public comment.
Mayor McCray addressed circulating reports that an ICE detention facility might be proposed for Romulus and told the council the administration is investigating.
"We've all heard the rumors around right now around a possible ice detention center come to the city of Romulus," he said, adding staff have "looked at them" and driven potential sites. The mayor said the city is "working with our state legislators as well as our federal legislators trying to confirm or deny, any of this" and consulting legal counsel to understand the city's jurisdiction.
McCray emphasized local concern: "This is not something we wanna see in our community... We worry about public safety... [and] the drain on public safety that would tax us." He also noted there are limits to local authority where federal preemption applies.
During public comment Mohammed Elte Habawi, a commercial real estate professional with Lee & Associates, told council that converting warehouse space to a federal detention use could reduce scarce industrial inventory and harm Romulus’s economic brand. "Every warehouse used for detention is one less site available for creating jobs," he said.
The mayor said the city has not been officially approached by any source and will continue to monitor, coordinate with legal counsel and federal/state representatives, and report back to council and residents.
No formal council action was recorded on the matter at the Feb. 9 meeting; the mayor and several members urged continued monitoring and outreach to representatives.
