Social Circle sues DHS, ICE over planned detention facility
Social Circle attempts to block ICE detention facility
The City of Social Circle has filed a federal lawsuit against the Department of Homeland Security and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement to block the conversion of a local warehouse into a detention facility.
MACON, Ga. - The City of Social Circle is suing the Department of Homeland Security and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement over a planned detention facility in the town.
Lawsuit over Social Circle ICE facility
What we know:
The city hired San Francisco-based law firm Keker, Van Nest & Peters LLP to represent them in the suit, which was filed Wednesday in federal court for the Middle District of Georgia. The lawsuit names both agencies and their leaders—Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin and ICE Director Todd M. Lyons—in their official capacities.
Social Circle suing ICE
What they're saying:
The town argues that the agencies broke the law when they purchased and began converting a former warehouse at 1365 East Hightower Trail into a "mega center" to detain people. It alleges the federal government failed to perform legally required due diligence to ensure the site would not negatively impact Social Circle’s 5,000 residents. The lawsuit specifically cites violations of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and the Administrative Procedure Act (APA).
Read the full lawsuit
According to the filing, the facility—designed to house 10,000 people and requiring 2,500 employees—would effectively triple the town's population. The city argues this would lead to severe infrastructure risks, including dry water taps and raw sewage spills. Additionally, the facility would be located less than 1,000 feet from a residential subdivision and less than a mile from an elementary school, raising safety concerns for the 1,100 enrolled children.
In the suit, the city asks a federal judge to declare that the purchase violated the NEPA and APA. Furthermore, it seeks to vacate the purchase of the facility and prevent the federal government from building any other detention centers within the town limits.
The city met with Department of Homeland Security officials in February to discuss the project, but local leaders claim those discussions did not yield results. While the detention center is scheduled to open by June, the city reports that it has not received confirmation from the federal government on whether that timeline remains in place.
Social Circle locks utility box
The backstory:
Social Circle officials have been speaking out against the facility since it was first proposed, at one point even placing a lock on a utility box at the site to hinder progress.
What they're saying:
City Manager Eric Taylor stated that the legal filing is a necessary step for the community's survival. "So, the city feels like we have to take action and take steps to continue to protect ourselves, so this action was an attempt to do that," Taylor said.
Taylor expressed specific concerns about the suitability of the warehouse for so many people. "There, you know, you put 10,000 people isolated in one facility into a building that wasn't built for human habitation. They, you know, their usage demands go from 25,000 gallons a day to over a million gallons a day," he said.
Taylor said they met with the Department of Homeland Security in February, but that during the meeting, the city felt ignored.
Taylor added, "We feel like our concerns were not adequately addressed, nor did we feel like they were making attempts to understand what our concerns are." He characterized the federal government's approach as an attempt "to steamroll all the smaller communities across the country, and I'm glad we are moving forward and trying to put a stop to this."
ICE response
The other side:
DHS told FOX 5 that the department is reviewing all proposals now that Sec. Mullin is in charge.
"As with any transition, we are reviewing agency policies and proposals. As Secretary Mullin said in his confirmation hearing: ‘I will work with the community leaders and make sure that we are delivering for the American people what the President set out… We want to work with community leaders. We want to be good partners."
ICE lawsuit hearing
What we don't know:
It's unclear when a judge will hear the case.
The Source: Information in this article came from the lawsuit filed by the City of Social Circle and previous FOX 5 reporting.