Local officials were unaware of ICE detention facility plans in West Valley

PHOENIX – Local officials were taken off guard when the Department of Homeland Security purchased a West Valley warehouse to convert into a large immigration detention facility.

“The city was not aware that there were efforts underway to purchase the building, was not notified of the transaction by any of the parties involved and has not been contacted by DHS or any federal agency about the intended use of the building,” the city of Surprise, where the building is located, said in a statement on Friday.

The statement noted that federal projects are not subject to local zoning regulations. The Surprise City Council’s first meeting since the building sale made news is set for Tuesday at 6 p.m.

The address of the warehouse is 13290 W. Sweetwater Ave., near Dysart and Thunderbird roads. Dysart Road in that area is the boundary between Surprise and El Mirage, which has taken notice.

“While this facility is not located in our city, its presence has raised concerns with residents. Due to its proximity, the city is working to understand what impacts could affect our community,” El Mirage Mayor Alexis Hermosillo said in a statement Monday.

El Mirage officials said they haven’t heard from the federal government about its plans and will keep the community updated when additional verified information is available.

What do we know about ICE detention facility plans in West Valley?

Rockefeller Group reportedly purchased the 25-acre site in April 2023. Construction of the 418,400-square-foot warehouse, formerly known as the Surprise Pointe Commerce Center, was completed in 2024.

DHS paid $70 million in cash for the property on Jan. 23, according to the document obtained by Bloomberg. The seller is listed as RG Surprise AZ LLC, an entity connected to the New York-based Rockefeller Group.

A U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) spokesperson told the Phoenix Business Journal that the detention facility will hold about 1,500 beds.

The Surprise project is part of a wider Trump administration initiative to increase ICE detention capacity. DHS has already purchased warehouses for this purpose in Maryland and Pennsylvania.

“These will not be warehouses — they will be very well-structured detention facilities meeting our regular detention standards,” an ICE spokesperson said in a statement last week.

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