UPDATE (2:21 p.m. June 19):
The Town of Marana issued a statement Friday saying the town did not support a capacity expansion of the former Arizona State Prison to 1,300 when the prison is converted into an ICE detention facility.
Full statement below:
"The Town of Marana is aware of community questions following a recent Department of Homeland Security (DHS) public notice regarding the proposed use of the existing prison in Marana as an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detention center.
"Following the DHS notice, the Town contacted Management Training Corporation (MTC) to seek clarification regarding the facility’s proposed operational capacity. MTC confirmed that operations are expected to hold approximately 500 individuals with the potential to increase to a maximum of 775 within the existing facility.
"MTC has further stated that they have no plans to expand the facility to accommodate 1,300 individuals, despite references to that figure in the DHS notice. According to MTC, a 1,300 capacity is not part of their proposal to DHS or ICE and is not included in any plans they submitted for the facility.
"The DHS notice states that the modifications would not result in construction of new buildings or the addition of large, permanent, paved areas and that any modifications to the existing facility would remain within the current footprint and would not extend into previously undisturbed areas.
"Mayor Jon Post has emphasized that the Town’s position regarding the facility’s capacity has remained consistent.
'Our conversations with MTC have always been clear that the Town does not support expanding the facility beyond the 775-person capacity,' said Mayor Jon Post. 'The reference to a potential capacity of 1,300 in the DHS notice was the first time we heard of that number. MTC has since confirmed that they are not seeking to expand the facility to 1,300 and that no such expansion is included in their proposal.'
The existing facility is already appropriately zoned for correctional use. As a result, the Town does not have authority over whether the facility is operated as a prison or an ICE detention center.
UPDATE (3:30 p.m. 6/18)
U.S. Rep. Adelita Grijalva is calling on DHS to extend the public comment period, which closes today, by at least 30 days, saying the agency is "rushing through" the process to avoid scrutiny.
She's also calling on DHS to abandon the Marana project entirely, citing capacity expansion plans and conditions at other ICE facilities.
Grijalva's office also pointed to a separate report indicating DHS is selling seven of eleven warehouses it had purchased for detention use nationwide. However, it's unclear how that relates specifically to plans for the Marana site.
“Once again, DHS is rushing through a public comment period to avoid public scrutiny and expedite Trump’s mass deportation agenda. Our community has already made its concerns clear. DHS should extend the review period by at least 30 days to give the public a meaningful opportunity to review this report and provide feedback. Apart from the environmental impacts, DHS’s plans to double the occupancy capacity of this facility, especially when we have seen the sub-human conditions at the existing facilities it oversees, is a bright red flag.”
“Human beings are not cargo to be warehoused in detention facilities, where far too many are denied even the most basic medical care and treatment. DHS should abandon its plans for this facility, just as they have done with others around the country. This endeavor has proven to be a giant waste of taxpayer dollars – but a giant windfall for private detention companies that have gotten paid millions of dollars for empty beds."
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The federal government is moving forward with plans to turn the former Marana prison into an immigrant detention center, according to a public notice posted by the Department of Homeland Security.
The notice says Immigration and Customs Enforcement wants a contract to renovate and run the facility at 12610 W. Silverbell Road.
The prison was bought last summer by Management and Training Corporation (MTC), a private prison company, according to Pima Resists ICE (PRICE), a local advocacy group tracking the project.
Neither ICE nor MTC has announced a contract or released details about the site's future.
The notice was required because the property sits in a 100-year floodplain.
Buried in it is a key detail: the facility's capacity could grow from 506 detainees to 775, with room for 600 more temporary beds — for a total of over 1,300.
Other planned upgrades include expanded medical areas, a new 12-foot security fence and improvements to the facility's water system.
ICE says the work won't add new buildings or significantly affect the floodplain or local wildlife.
PRICE organizer Daniela Ugaz called the planned expansion alarming.
"This unprecedented ramp-up in mass detention and mass deportations is chaotic and dangerous," she said, adding that she sees the lack of public information from ICE as part of a broader loss of oversight.
The public has until Thursday, June 18, to comment.
Comments can be emailed to icesustainability@ice.dhs.gov.
KGUN 9 will have the latest updates.
