San Antonio City Council members are pushing for an environmental study to stop the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement from opening a detention center. This effort comes after a $17.3 million renovation contract was granted to GardaWorld Federal Services.
The $66 million warehouse and the 1 ,500-detainee capacity
The conflict centers on a massive warehouse on San Antonio's southeast side, which the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) purchased in early February for more than $66 million. According to Breitbart Texas, the facility spans over 600,000 square feet and is intended to house up to 1,500 detainees who are awaiting deportation.
To prepare the site, ICE awarded a $17.3 million fixed-price contract to GardaWorld Federal Services on August 25. This agreement tasks GardaWorld Federal Services with renovating the warehouse and providing the full wraparound services necessary to operate the facility. The strategic location of the site—near a major international airport , 30 hospitals, and several U.S.-Mexico border ports of entry—makes it an ideal hub for ICE's processing and removal operations.
Mayor Gina Ortiz Jones' failed appeal to Secretary Markwayne Mullin
Local political leadership has attempted to block the project through diplomatic channels without success. In April, Mayor Gina Ortiz Jones sent a formal letter to Department of Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin, explicitly stating that her community had no interest in hosting an ICE processing facility.
Despite this direct objection from the mayor's office, the federal government proceeded with the GardaWorld Federal Services contract. This friction highlights a significant disconnect between San Antonio's municipal leadership and the Department of Homeland Security's operational goals, leaving the City Council to seek alternative legal or administrative levers to delay the project.
Earthjustice's 11-state strategy to challenge warehouse conversions
The current move by the San Antonio City Council is not an isolated incident but part of a coordinated national effort. As Breitbart Texas reported, the non-profit environmental law organization Earthjustice has been promoting the use of environmental challenges to obstruct ICE warehouse conversions across the United States.
Earthjustice has coordinated similar challenges in 11 different states. In Texas specifically, this strategy has been applied to four projects located in Baytown, El Paso, Los Fresnos, and San Antonio. The organization argues that these rapid conversions are a "public health disaster" in the making, specifically citing risks to local sewer and water systems. This legal strategy aligns with Earthjustice's broader claim that these facilities support a Trump administration goal of deporting one million people annually.
Will CPS Energy and SAWS find utility strains near Loop 410?
The latest attempt to halt the facility rests on a request submitted in late August by Council member Jalen McKee-Rodriguez and four other council members. They are calling on CPS Energy and the San Antonio Water System (SAWS)—both city-owned utilities—to conduct an independent assessment of the facility's impact on energy demand, wastewater systems, and customer utility rates for those living near Southeast Loop 410.
Several critical questions remain unanswered. It is currently unclear whether the federal government's own environmental impact assessment already addresses these utility concerns or if the city's request will be viewed as a legally binding requirement for the project to proceed. Furthermore, since the GardaWorld Federal Services contract is already active, it remains to be seen if a local utility study has the legal authority to override a federal contract awarded by the Department of Homeland Security.
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