SCHUMER, GILLIBRAND DEMAND TRUTH, TRANSPARENCY, AND PUBLIC ACCOUNTABILITY ABOUT PROPOSED ICE DETENTION FACILITY IN NEWBURGH

As ICE Refuses To Be Transparent On Its Plans For Orange County, Senators Say Enough Is Enough, Stop The Secrecy, Work With Local Leaders, And Give Assurances There Will Be No ICE Facility In Orange County

Earlier This Year, After Community-Wide And Bipartisan Opposition, ICE Backed Off Plans To Convert Another Orange County Warehouse - In Chester - Into An ICE Mass Detention Facility - After Schumer Sounded The Alarm With Local Leaders And Community Members

Schumer, Gillibrand: No ICE Facility In Newburgh

Amid confusion and broad community concern surrounding ICE leasing an abandoned warehouse in Newburgh, U.S. Senator Chuck Schumer and U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand today demanded answers about the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) plans for Orange County. Earlier this month, new publicly available records revealed that ICE leased a warehouse near Stewart International Airport, prompting broad, bipartisan concern among local residents, elected officials, and community members. Due to a lack of transparency surrounding the facility's intended use, the senators demanded answers from ICE about its plans for the site and made it clear that the community must be kept informed about future developments.

"Since day one, DHS management in the Hudson Valley has been secretive about its plans and dismissive of the local region's concerns. After weeks of confusion and ultimately backing off plans for a facility in Chester, ICE is now quietly trying to build a detention center in Newburgh, which is opposed by a broad cross-section of the region," said Senator Schumer. "Local leaders and community members can't get a straight answer on what ICE is planning, and that is just not acceptable. There is deep and bipartisan opposition to ICE's plan. That's why Senator Gillibrand and I are demanding concrete answers on what the facility will be used for and assurances that no plan will move forward without the community's support. I have said it before, and I will say it again: there should be no ICE mass detention center in Orange County, not in Newburgh, not in Chester, not anywhere."

"GSA and ICE officials have been withholding information about the development of this proposed facility and the effects that it will have on the local community in Newburgh," said Senator Gillibrand. "This is unacceptable, and disregards the overwhelming opposition from locals to the creation of an immigration detention facility in Newburgh. Senator Schumer and I will not back down until ICE gives us the answers we need and assures us that it will heed the concerns of all residents going forward. We will not stand for the continued unjust actions of ICE in our communities in New York and across the country."

Last month, the U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) awarded a $35.5 million, 15-year lease to a Texas-based contractor. GSA documents showed it was looking for a space for "detainee buses and vans" and 24/7 government access near Stewart International Airport. ICE has still not communicated with the Hudson Valley community about its plans for the facility.

Schumer and Gillibrand have both vehemently opposed proposed plans to build an immigrant detention center in Newburgh and are now demanding concrete and detailed answers regarding ICE's plan. Local leaders, both Democrat and Republican, have overwhelmingly opposed the plan. The Town of Newburgh unanimously approved a resolution opposing an ICE detention center, and hundreds of Hudson Valley residents have spoken out against this plan.

In February, Schumer demanded answers and an investigation into ICE's disastrous management and unacceptable lack of transparency in Orange County after weeks of chaos, secrecy, and changing stories surrounding ICE's plans for a mass detention facility in Chester. Ultimately, ICE announced there were no plans to convert the warehouse in Chester into a large-scale immigration detention center. The senators said this new lease is part of an alarming pattern of ICE purchasing warehouses without coordination with the local communities, fueling concerns that these facilities could ultimately be converted into detention centers.

Senator Schumer has led congressional efforts to strengthen oversight of ICE and advance reforms aimed at increasing transparency and accountability in immigration enforcement. Alongside his colleagues, he has called for commonsense guardrails, including prohibiting enforcement actions at sensitive locations such as schools and courthouses, requiring officers to display identification, banning the use of masks during enforcement operations, preventing racial profiling, mandating the use of body-worn cameras, ensuring access to counsel for individuals in detention facilities, and improving oversight and coordination with state and local authorities. Schumer has argued that federal immigration agents cannot continue to operate in communities without accountability and that Congress must act to protect constitutional rights while promoting fair and effective immigration enforcement.

Schumer and Gillibrand's letter to DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin and GSA Administrator Edward Forst can be found HERE or below:

Dear Secretary Mullin and Administrator Forst:

We write to get clarity and demand answers into the recent $35.5 million, 15-year lease purchase of a 42,377-square-foot industrial warehouse located at 800 Corporate Blvd, Newburgh, NY 12550, for U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) operations.

This purchase has generated significant concern among local residents, elected officials, and community stakeholders due to the lack of transparency surrounding the facility's intended use. Although U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) and ICE have publicly identified the tenant agencies and developer, they have provided few details about the operations that will take place at the site or the potential impacts on the surrounding community.

These concerns are reinforced by GSA's initial 2025 Request for Lease Proposals (RLP) Summary, which outlined requirements that go beyond a typical federal office lease and suggest a facility designed to support secure law enforcement operations. The RLP called for a dedicated sally port to accommodate "detainee buses and vans," a location away from residential areas, schools, religious institutions, and retail centers, as well as 24/7 access, an emergency generator, secured parking, and enhanced security features. Together, these specialized requirements indicate a facility intended for more than routine administrative office use.

Without clear information from GSA and ICE, the community has been left to interpret these requirements on its own, making it difficult for residents and local leaders to meaningfully assess the potential impacts of the proposed facility or engage in an informed public discussion about the project. This lack of transparency has alarmed leaders and stakeholders at every level, creating unease among those who are expected to deal with the reality of any upscaling of DHS and ICE operations in their communities.

This community has faced a similar proposal before in Chester, New York, and has been unequivocal and bipartisan in expressing its opposition to immigration detention activities within the area. That experience demonstrated the community's clear and consistent position: residents and local leaders do not support the establishment or expansion of immigration detention operations in their community.

Given this recent history, any purchase that raises similar concerns warrants meaningful transparency and engagement from federal agencies so that the public is fully informed about the intended use of the facility and its potential impact on the surrounding community.

To address these unanswered questions surrounding purchase, development, and potential impact on the surrounding community, we request responses to the following questions on the intended use of this facility located at 800 Corporate Blvd Newburgh, NY 12550:

1. What is the intended use of the facility located at 800 Corporate Boulevard in Newburgh, New York, and what operations will DHS and ICE conduct at this site? Please list every DHS component, contractor and program expected to use the property.
2. What is the expected timeline for the facility becoming operational, and what steps remain before DHS and ICE begin using the site? Please identify any remaining approvals, construction, tenant improvements, permits or other conditions that must be completed before occupancy.
3. Please provide the lease, occupancy agreement, solicitation, program of requirements, statement of work, improvement plans, security requirements, and all associated contracts and subcontracts.
4. Please identify the lessor and beneficial owners, all operating contractors, the appropriations accounts funding the lease and operations, the annual rent and improvement costs, and the total estimated lifecycle costs.
5. Who approved the project, when was it approved and what operational needs is it intended to address? Is the project aimed at increasing detention capacity in New York, supporting increased enforcement operations in New York, expanding the operations of ICE Air, or supporting a broader regional deportation plan?
6. Will the facility be used for the detention, temporary holding, processing, transportation, or transfer of individuals in federal custody? Please provide details regarding the scope and duration of these activities.
7. For each contemplated use, please provide the following:
8. 1. Maximum physical and operational capacity.
   2. Projected average daily population.
   3. Projected annual throughput.
   4. Anticipated opening date and hours of operations.
   5. Maximum intended length of stay.
   6. Whether people will be held overnight.
   7. Whether DHS will publicly report these specific statistics periodically.
9. Please confirm if the facility will hold the following:
10. 1. Families or children.
    2. Unaccompanied children.
    3. Pregnant or postpartum individuals.
    4. People with medical or mental health conditions.
    5. People with disabilities.
11. Please confirm if the property will provide:
12. 1. Free and confidential telephone access.
    2. Confidential attorney meeting rooms.
    3. Consular access.
    4. Visitation.
    5. Access to legal materials.
13. Please identify the precise detention standards governing the site. Have you contemplated, requested or granted any waiver, variance, or delayed compliance with any detention, safety, security, medical care, hygiene or other standard?
14. Will Members of Congress, congressional staff and DHS oversight personnel receive unannounced access to this facility? What access will be provided to state and local government, health or emergency officials?
15. Will the facility support ICE Air operations, domestic detainee-transfer flights, international removal flights, chartered or commercial flights, transportation contractors, staging of officers, restraints or other equipment? Please provide projected number of flights, passengers, destinations, transportation movements, and vehicles associated with this facility, including whether any flights would occur overnight.
16. What steps have been taken to assess the facility's impact on the surrounding community, including traffic, infrastructure, emergency services, and public safety? Will those findings be shared publicly?
17. Has GSA or DHS determined that any current certificate of occupancy authorize the temporary or overnight holding of people? Has DHS, GSA, the lessor or any contractor asserted that federal immunity or preemption exempts the property or its intended use from any local building, permitting, zoning or inspection requirement?
18. Before operation, will GSA or DHS obtain a certificate of occupancy and conduct fire, health, environmental or other inspections? Will you commit to providing us with the resulting reports, approvals and identified deficiencies?
19. Will DHS and ICE make an effort to keep community stakeholders and local leaders informed about its proposed activities in Orange County? What notice or consultation has occurred or will occur with Newburgh, Orange County, New York State, and nearby residents?

We request a written response by August 7, 2026. Thank you for your attention to this urgent matter.

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