Calls intensify to stop ICE detention facility

Leaders of Morris County town face protests over proposal

By: William Westhoven
Morristown Daily Record
USA Today Notwork - New Jersey

..... The fight over a proposed ICE immigrant detention center in Morris County isn't cooling down.
..... Activists and local residents continue to pressure Roxbury Township officials to adopt ordinances they say could block U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement from leasing a massive Route 46 warehouse. The proposal, which has spurred rallies and heated council meetings for weeks, is part of the Trump administration's effort to ramp up its deportation campaign.
..... The Township Council is already on record opposing the project. After an overflow crowd pleaded with officials in late January [2026] to take further steps, protesters returned too the council's February 3 [2026] Budget to push the issue again.
..... Roxbury's seven-member council unanimously approved a resolution on January 13 [2026] that opposed placing a federal immigration processing or detention facility inside warehouses. It cited facilities that may "disregard" the township's land use and regulatory ordinances and place "unanticipated burdens" on local infrastructure and services.
..... But that was not enough for some of the most ardent protesters.
..... "That is not a solution. it is an avoidance," a woman from neighboring Hopatcong said during a 30-minute public comment session on February 3. [2026]
..... Word of the proposal first leaked in a Christmas Eve report in the Washington Post that said the U.S. Department of Homeland Security plans to build a nationwide network of detention and proceeding centers. Roxbury was among the locations, listed as a proposed processing site potentially with 500 to 1,500 beds.
..... On January 14 [2026] - the day after the council approved its resolution - ICE representatives visited the Route 46 warehouse, town officials confirmed. The site at 1879 route 46, a 474,000-square-foot property known as the Roxbury Logistics Center, is owned by the Dalfen Industrial Group, according to an Online listing that says it has "all space available."
..... At the latest council meeting, Casey Miller of Washington borough in Warren County read two prepared ordinances she asked the town to adopt. One would declare a moratorium on applications for detention centers and similar operations. Another would make such facilitate prohibited use of land.
..... Mayor Shawn Potillo read a statement at the start of the meeting, telling the audience, "Our opposition is unwavering."
..... "Our top priority remains the safety and protection of Roxbury's people, property and resources," Potillo said. "our approach should not be mistaken for empty silence or inaction. It reflects deliberate, steady leadership, focused on achieving the outcome, which is opposing a federal processing center in Roxbury Township."
..... The mayor noting that local officials have been deluged by emails opposing an ICE center, also pleaded for patience with "the residents, Roxbury businesses, township staff and members of this council who did not ask to be placed in this current situation."
..... "During the last few weeks, the council has tired to accommodate the large public turnout, and we have instructed the staff and police to cooperate, provide information that they are able to said "Spam emails, calls to disrupt our town, or to boycott businesses in Roxbury, just don't make sense. Suggestions for law and attorneys for review.
..... Township Hootenanny Anthony Bucco, who is also a state senator, said at an earlier meeting ht it was his understanding that a detention center is not authorities in the township. But he cautioned that the federal government has "immunity form a lot of the laws and regulations of smaller agencies, especially a municipality."
..... Some speakers took issue with the mayor's referring to their email campaign as "spam." Roxbury resident Dinane MAy noted that "protest calls and over 1,000 public comments led to a company halting the sale of a Virginia warehouse to DHS taught was going to be used for an immigration detention center."
..... "What was earlier referenced as spam emails and calls and disrupting our town is actually advocacy," she said. "And it is our right and our responsibility as American citizens to speak out for the causes we believe in."

Pressuring warehouse owner

..... A similar email campaign, May said, has been aimed at the owner and leasing agents for the Roxbury warehouse. "It would be helpful to the cause if this council also contacted them to discourage selling or leasing to DHS on the basis of unpermitted use of the property, if nothing else,' she said.
..... Reached by telephone last week, [02/04/2026] Chris Hile, listing agent for the property with Jones Lang LaSalle in East Rutherford, declined to comment. Warehouse owner Dalfen, based in Dallas, has not responded to repeated messages seeking comment.
..... Not everyone at the meeting opposed the plan. One man who identified himself as a Roxbury resident and union bricklayer, supported ICE's entry into Roxbury. "I want to get as many illegals out of our area as possible," he said during the public session. "These guys come in, they take our jobs.""Am I right?" he asked the crowd, which responded with jeers. "I think that you guys should let the federal government come in. "we'll get more federal funding, and you'll also be able to keep union brothers like me working. and that means more taxpaying money going to our state and to our town."

State, Morris Democrats react

..... The anti-ICE sentiment in New Jersey also continues to pick up steam among elected officials, including Morris County Democrats who are echoing Governor Mikie Sherrill's public push-back against the federal agency's activity in the state.
..... During an appearance last week [02/04/2026] on comedy Central's "The Daily Show," Sherrill endorsed a new approach to keep an eye on ICE operations: an Online video log.
..... "If you see an ICE agent i the street, get your phone out," Sherrill said.
..... The Morris County democratic committee followed up with an email to its members detailing ICE operations in the country, including a January [2026] raid that led to the arrest of 11 immigrants in Morristown.
..... The email identified one detainee as Morristown High School student Juan Daniel Mendoza, adding that he was later released by a federal judge on January 15. [2026] The judge "ruled his detention violated his due process rights and ordered that ICE not re-arrest him without showing he poses a flight risk or danger," the Democrats said.
..... The Department of Homeland Security said the 11 arrested in Morristown were "illegal aliens, several with felony offenses." Others "took advantage of the Biden administration's open border crisis," Tricia McLaughlin, a DHS assistant secretary, said in an email. The same email described Mendoza, 17, as "an illegal alien from Honduras" and "an adult."
..... Advocates also plan a "Freeze Out ICE" event in Trenton on February 12 [2026] to urge state officials to adopt legislation curtailing the federal agency's operations in New Jersey. A really is scheduled to begin outside the Statehouse at 9 AM. with participants then moving inside for an "information session" to Lobby lawmakers.

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