Is ICE Building A Detention Facility in Milwaukee?

11925 W. Lake Park Dr. Photo by Jeramey Jannene.

A Tuesday evening press release triggered a wave of concern, activism and, possibly, a game of telephone. It comes as fear grows over what President Donald Trump might do with regards to deporting millions of undocumented immigrants.

“Statement on proposed detention facility in the 9th Aldermanic District” was the headline on Alderwoman Larresa Taylor‘s press release. The Immigration & Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency was said to be building a detention facility in the Park Place business park.

By the time her Wednesday afternoon press conference started, several dozen people had gathered outside the building, 11925 W. Lake Park Dr., and were opposing ICE’s proposal with signs and chants.

But the alderwoman had already moderated her tone.

“We are not here to sound an alarm or raise anxieties. We are here to inform the people,” said Taylor.

In response to a question, she said she learned there would be no overnight detention and that the facility is a relocation of an existing operation downtown, 310 E. Knapp St. The downtown facility is becoming part of the Milwaukee School of Engineering campus and the federal agencies in U.S. Department of Homeland Security building have been emptying out for the past several years, as Urban Milwaukee previously reported.

“There are no ICE detention facilities listed or planned for the location in question,” said a spokesperson Wednesday in a request for comment about the Lake Park Drive location.

A trail of city permit records and council files back up the statement.

A zoning change was first introduced in early 2023 to relocate the existing downtown facility to the Lake Park Drive building, part of the Park Place business park. The request says the facility would be used from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. to process “non-detained report-ins and to process detainees for transport to holding facilities.” The latest request mirrors that, though an email from a Department of City Development official to Taylor suggests the federal government intends to invoke its authority to supersede the city’s zoning power.

But Taylor says residents of her district deserve to have a voice in the decision. Her initial press release referenced the 2022 circumstance where a new state youth prison was approved for the district while the area did not have a council representative.

While Taylor said her effort was just about making sure people have a voice and the right information, other speakers on Wednesday offered broader opposition.

The issue of immigration first became a campaign wedge issue and now is a flashpoint, with millions of people at the risk of deportation. Trump and his incoming administration have pledged to use the military to deport undocumented immigrants starting on day of his tenure, Jan. 20.

“I am firmly opposed to any expansion of any ICE-type detention facilities in the City of Milwaukee. People are scared, kids are scared, this is the time to push back hard… we will push the envelope as far as we can ensure families are treated fairly,” said Common Council President José G. Pérez. He said he would ensure that the Milwaukee Police Department only cooperates with ICE when a warrant has been issued. “Federal facilities simply popping up with no notice simply isn’t fair to the citizens of Milwaukee.”

Area business leaders and other politicians also spoke, raising concerns that the district was just being used as a dumping ground for society’s ills and that ICE had no place in the city.

Taylor said she had a meeting scheduled for next week with the property owner.

But plenty of other groups have come forward to offer opposition to what they continue to call a “detention facility.”

The majority of the Milwaukee County Board of Supervisors signed onto a press release, issued Wednesday, opposing a relocated ICE facility. The Milwaukee Area Labor Council sent out its own release in opposition to the “detention facility.” Several state legislators have also opposed a “detention” facility.

On Thursday, a majority group of the Common Council issued a press release relating to a “detention facility expansion” and vowed to protect Milwaukee families. Taylor wasn’t included as a signer.

The new 17,000-square-foot facility would be larger than what it is replacing. Unlike the urban facility downtown, it would be protected by a privacy fence, something Taylor cited in her initial release. But operationally, according to Taylor, it would be the same.

ICE’s lone Wisconsin detention center is the Dodge Detention Facility in Juneau. It was built in 2001 and is operated by Dodge County as its primary jail, in addition to being used by ICE and the U.S. Marshals. A Kenosha facility is no longer used.

According to the agency’s website, “ICE detains noncitizens who are subject to mandatory detention or those that ICE determines are a public safety or flight risk during the custody determination process.”

But Trump has pledged to dramatically broaden the scope of who is detained, and use the U.S. military to do so.

On Friday, Taylor announced that she intends to host a discussion of the Milwaukee proposal during a Steering & Rules Committee meeting.

Though her communication briefing is currently unscheduled, the next Steering & Rules Committee is scheduled for Jan. 27.

“I recently stated my intention to make sure the community, particularly those in the 9th District, are fully aware of what is happening and when in regards to the possible relocation of an ICE facility to the 9th District. Opening this communication file is part of that promise so my colleagues and I can ensure we are open with the public and all working with the same information,” said Taylor in a statement. “This situation remains fluid, but as I know more, so too will my constituents. Their voices deserve to be heard on this issue that effects our district and city.”

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