WASHINGTON COUNTY, Md. (7News) — As plans to turn a mega-warehouse into an immigration detention center near Hagerstown, Maryland, make their way through the court system, 7News obtained documents showing how ICE plans to transform a larger warehouse in Georgia.
The first floor plan of the Social Circle, GA detention center showing the bed count. (Courtesy: Social Circle Government)
The city manager for Social Circle, Georgia, sent 7News an outline including wastewater treatment plans and a floor plan for more than 8,000 beds. The proposed Hagerstown facility would house as many as 1,500 people.
Court records show the federal government paid more than $100 million for the Maryland building, which is around 800,000 square feet.
“What they are doing, we believe, is not legal,” Gov. Wes Moore said Monday. “It is not the process that they have gone by in terms of trying to acquire it. The lack of transparency, the opaque nature of it, and frankly not being able to work with either the state or the local jurisdictions to be able to make this happen. And so my response to their decision is very clear. We’re going to see you in court.”
SEE PREVIOUS COVERAGE | Emergency order seeks to stop Washington County ICE detention facility construction
“ICE purchased a facility in Hagerstown, Maryland. These will be very well-structured detention facilities meeting our regular detention standards,” an ICE spokesperson told 7News. “Sites have undergone community impact studies and a rigorous due diligence process to make sure there is no hardship on local utilities or infrastructure prior to purchase.”
The U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland issued a temporary restraining order on Wednesday, immediately pausing any construction or retrofitting of the warehouse.
“We will not let DHS and ICE rush through the proper legal process in their haste to ramp up deportations,” Maryland Attorney General Anthony Brown said in a statement. “We will keep fighting to make sure the law is followed and Marylanders are protected.”
7News has reached out to the Washington County Commissioners for their response, but has not received a response at the time of publication.
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