Overview
- Salt Lake City and Salt Lake County filed a joint federal lawsuit in early June asking a U.S. District Court in Utah to halt the conversion of a west-side warehouse into an immigration detention facility.
- The complaint challenges ICE and DHS actions as unlawful for failing to follow required federal review and public-notice processes before moving forward with the project.
- ICE completed a $145.44 million purchase in March for the 833,000‑square‑foot site near the Salt Lake City airport and has discussed capacity estimates of about 7,500 to 10,000 detainees.
- City and county officials say the facility would worsen an already strained water supply, overload sewage and road infrastructure, increase traffic emissions, and pose public-health and safety risks for nearby residents.
- DHS paused implementation for review in April and federal agencies now face a court-ordered window to respond to the lawsuit, while local protests continue and the governor has expressed support for the facility.