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Merrimack council agrees to send letter to federal officials on possible ICE processing center
Summary
Councilors agreed in principle to send a town-council letter to U.S. Department of Homeland Security and federal/state delegation expressing fiscal and public-safety concerns about a potential ICE processing center and requesting prompt communication with the town manager; staff will prepare the letter and post it on the town website.
Councilors on Jan. 22 said they were alarmed by uncertainty about reports that a federal ICE processing center might be located in town and agreed to prepare and circulate an official letter to federal DHS and the town’s federal and state delegation.
A councilor who proposed the letter said the council’s concern is primarily fiscal: if the federal government acquires a local warehouse, the town could lose tax revenue (a draft figure cited in discussion was roughly $529,000–$590,000 depending on sale/lease assumptions), which would increase the tax burden on residents. He told the council the draft would also note potential demands on police and fire-rescue resources if an ICE facility were established.
Speakers told the council the town had not received official confirmation from DHS, and that congressional and gubernatorial offices similarly reported no definite government confirmation. The councilor said he had received correspondence indicating there was not yet official confirmation and that smaller communities on lists had received letters while Merrimack had not.
The council agreed in principle that the council chair should sign the letter on town letterhead; staff were tasked with preparing the letter, finalizing addresses (to federal DHS with Boston-area offices copied), and posting the final letter on the town website.
No formal vote opposing a facility was recorded in the meeting minutes; the record shows agreement to send the letter and to publicize the council’s concerns. Councilors asked that the letter focus on urgent fiscal and procedural questions and request direct communication with the town manager as decisions are made.
