6 events in Passaic County with a date

Confusion, pushback over Roxbury warehouse

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

..... Senator Cory Booker on February 18 [2026] condemned the purchase of a massive Morris County warehouse by the federal Department of Homeland Security for sue as an immigration detention facility, clanging it "an effort to the Roxbury community, who resoundingly rejected the prospect of a facility weeks ago."
..... The fate of the project remained murky throughout the day, with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement releasing contradictory public statements before reputedly denying it had reached a deal for the Route 46 property.
..... The news of a purchase, first reported Wednesday [02/18/2026] by Gothamist, a New York-based news site, followed weeks of protest over ICE's rumored plan to sue the warehouse site as a migrant detention center. Gothamist said the Homeland Security department confirmed the purchase in a statement.
..... Asked to comment on that report, an ICE spokeswoman told The Record and NorthJersey.com : "We have no new detention centers to announced at this time."
..... "These will not be warehouses," spokeswoman continued in an emailed statement. "They will be very well structured detention facilities meeting our regular detention standards."
..... By the evening of the 11th, however, local news site TapInto Roxbury cited another statement from an unnamed ICE spokesperson saying the agency "has NOT purchased a facility in Roxbury, New Jersey." the statement sent to Gothamist "was sent without proper approval, and this mistake has since been rectified," the spokesperson added, per TapInto.
..... In January, [2026] Roxbury Township confirmed that ICE officials had visited the 474,00-square-foot facility at 1879 route 46 on a scouting trip - a day after the township council adopted a resolution opposing the project.
..... A series of recent protests by local opponents included a roadside rally on Route 46 on February 16 [2026] that drew a reported 500 participants. Residents and activists have also filled the seats at recent meetings of the Roxbury council, urging it to adopt further measures to try to block the proposal.
..... "I joined then in this call, expressing my clear and unequivocal opposition to the construction, conversion, or opening nay more immigration detention centers in New Jersey," Booker, a Democrat, said in a statement febrile 18. [2026] "These facilities have no place in our communities."

Sherrill, Booker vow a fight

..... "Our communities deserve an immigration system rooted in fairness, accountability and respect for basic human dignity - not one that expands detention capacity in industrial spaces ill suited for humane treatment," Booker said. "We have a responsibility to continue organizing and standing against this administration at every turn, and I will continue to sue every tool available to me in Congress to demand an immigration system that is just. This will not be the last word from Roxbury or New Jersey."
..... Governor Mikie Sherrill's office said she was "evaluating all of our options" to prevent the project.
..... "The Trump administration's plans for an ICE detention facility in Roxbury will not make New Jersey safer," spokesman Sean Higgin said. "We are working to gather more information as the Department of Homeland Security has failed to cooperate with local officials or provide any meaningful information about the facility. This is not a partisan issues."

ICE responds

..... In its statement, ICE said: "Every day, DHS is conducting law enforcement activities across the country to keep Americans safe. It should not come as news that ICE will be making arrests in states across the U.S. and is actively working to expand detention space."
..... "Thanks to the One Big Beautiful Bill, ICE has new funding to expand detention space to keep these criminals off American streets before they are removed for good from our communities."
..... The Roxbury report follows similarly confusing statements from OCE over a similar project in upstate New York.
..... Spectrum News reported February 17 [2026] that the mitigation agency had confirmed its purchase of an abandoned warehouse in Chester, New York, for use as a detention center. A day later, a report by News12 Westchester said ICE had retracted hat statement, which it said was a "mistake," sent without proper approval.
..... Morris County Democratic Committee Chair Darcy Draeger was in lockstep with Booker. condemning the report as "a serious threat to our communities." She urged Republican lawmakers including U.S. Representative Tom Kean Jr., who represents Roxbury in Congress - to join the opposition. she slammed Kean for his "inaction" on the topic.
..... Kean has not replied to repeated requests for comments on the ICE proposal.

GOP lawmakers want more info

.... Roxbury officials have said the Trump administration has provided little information to them about the detention center, despite requests. State Assemblyman Michael Inganamort,a Republican whose 24th legislative district includes the township, called on the federal government to provide more details.
..... "We've been in continuous communications with Roxbury Township as they've sought basic information from the Department of Homeland Security around this potential use of a warehouse on route 46," he said. "There are important consideration around materiel infrastructure, particularly water supply, that require a full vetting. The Department of Homeland Security should provide this basic information."
..... His partner in the district, Assemblywoman Dawn Fanasisa, posted on X that she hadn't heard anything from Homeland Security about the "alleged purchase."
..... "That said, I don't object to DHS operating safe, clean detention facilities," she added. "That's their responsibility, and I except them to do it well. What we can't do is pretend the Highlands [Region] doesn't have serious capacity limits.
..... "If DHS were to converter warehouse space that was approved for low-impact industrial use in Roxbury into a detention facility with sustained human occupancy, that would change the load in a MAJOR way," she continued, warning wastewater output, and heave pressure on systems hat weren't designed for that kind of demand."

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