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Immigrant-rights attorneys and residents urge extra SB 29 hearings before permitting of CoreCivic facility
Summary
An attorney from the Immigrant Legal Resource Center and other residents urged the council to require additional SB 29 hearings and discretionary review for the CoreCivic detention facility, saying earlier hearings lacked notice and the facility's scale requires more oversight and time for public input.
Jaheen Lehner, a senior staff attorney at the Immigrant Legal Resource Center, urged California City's decisionmakers to require an additional SB 29 hearing before further permit action on the CoreCivic detention facility, arguing that recent planning-commission hearings did not provide adequate notice and therefore did not reflect the transparency and public-participation intent of SB 29.
Lehner said, "Based on the current record, we believe there should be an additional SB 29 hearing before any further action is taken," and urged the city to require a discretionary conditional-use permit rather than treat the project as ministerial given its size and long-term impacts. The attorney cautioned that the facility could affect the city as far out as 2040 and urged local oversight and meaningful opportunities for public comment.
Other public commenters referenced recent investigative reporting and watchdog reports describing alleged poor conditions at facilities run by CoreCivic and urged stricter review. Council received the public comment and did not take immediate action on permits during the meeting; staff and legal counsel did not announce any final decision at this session.
Next steps: Community advocates asked the council to schedule additional SB 29 hearings and evaluate whether a discretionary permit process is required; councilmembers indicated they would consider further review in coordination with planning staff.
