'We won't let this happen:' Proposed plan to move ICE processing center in Milwaukee raises concerns
MILWAUKEE (CBS 58) -- City and county leaders in Milwaukee say the U.S. Department of Homeland Security is looking to move an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) facility from downtown to the city’s northwest side and it's causing an issue for the people who live there.
On Wednesday, Jan. 15, Milwaukee Alderwoman Larresa Taylor, with elected leaders from around the Milwaukee area, addressed a crowd of dozens of people about the situation. She said an ICE office located near Broadway and Knapp in Milwaukee has plans to move to a location in her district to empty warehouse park on W. Lake Park Drive.
Taylor acknowledged that the proposed facility would not be used as a detention center one day after releasing a statement identifying the facility as a detention center. She and the immigrants she represents in her district were not involved in the process of selecting the location of the new space, Taylor said.
“We are a district that has tremendous potential. That doesn’t mean that we’re going to accept any and everything and it certainly doesn’t mean we are going to let someone or something come into our district without knowledge," Alderwoman Taylor said.
“We just don’t need ICE to be in communities like this one, or anywhere for that matter," said Deisy Espana, daughter of immigrants.
An ICE spokesperson told CBS 58 over email that there are no ICE detention facilities listed or planned for the location in question. However, some of the people gathered outside of the proposed new facility said they don't trust the department given Former President Donald Trump's return to office next week.
“We just don’t need ICE to be in communities like this one, or anywhere for that matter," said Espana. “I think this is going to be used for more than what’s going on already."
Representatives from the Milwaukee Common Council and the Milwaukee City Attorney's Office say they are looking into how they can prevent the move. However, they tell CBS 58 the federal department could potentially overrule them.
Wisconsin's only detention center is the Doge County Detention Facility in Juneau.