Overview
- ICE posted a public notice seeking about 250 "surge parking" spaces in Boston on July 21, 2026, prompting city scrutiny of potential sites.
- On August 18, 2026 Mayor Michelle Wu sent letters to parking garage and lot owners urging them to refuse ICE requests and the city filed a FOIA to identify any private responses to the agency's notice.
- Wu has said she lacks legal power to stop private owners from allowing federal agents onto their property but said her office will use outreach and transparency to discourage cooperation.
- ICE’s Boston office and the Department of Homeland Security publicly denounced Wu’s actions on social media, accusing her of intimidating property owners and exceeding municipal authority.
- The request remains active and it is still unclear whether ICE will lease spaces, open a new facility, or only expand its existing Boston operations, a dispute that tests private property rights against local sanctuary policies and could affect business owners and public-safety planning.