DHS and ICE began occupying a Romulus, Michigan warehouse for a detention facility without notifying local or state officials

On February 13, 2026, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement began taking occupancy of a roughly 300,000-square-foot warehouse at 7525 Cogswell Street in Romulus, Michigan, moving to convert it into a roughly 500-bed immigration detention facility. DHS gave no formal advance notice to the City of Romulus, Wayne County, the State of Michigan, or Michigan's congressional delegation before beginning occupancy; federal signage appeared at the site before any formal local approval, and city officials first learned of the plan through leaked documents and social-media rumors rather than an official channel.

Four days later, on February 17, ICE publicly confirmed the plan for the first time, with a spokesperson telling Michigan Public the facility would be "well-structured" and would meet the agency's "regular detention standards," and that it was expected to bring 1,458 jobs and more than $33 million in tax revenue to the area. Romulus Mayor Robert McCraight said in a Facebook post that DHS representatives had verbally confirmed the agency had secured the building, and that "a detention center for any purpose is not permitted and will be opposed by the City of Romulus at all levels." State Rep. Dylan Wegela condemned DHS for "planning in secret and coming to our community without notifying anyone at the Congressional, state, or local level."

DHS had purchased the warehouse in early February 2026 for over $34.6 million as part of a nationwide expansion of ICE detention capacity, and moved directly into occupancy and conversion planning without first completing the community-impact review or the consultation with local and state officials that Romulus and Michigan officials say the Intergovernmental Cooperation Act and the National Environmental Policy Act required before converting a private commercial building into a detention facility of this scale.

Updates

2026-02-24 — Romulus City Council unanimously passed resolution opposing the detention center [1]

The Romulus City Council passed Resolution No. 26-044, formally opposing the "establishment, construction or operation" of an ICE detention center within city limits, after residents rallied against the plan.

2026-03-24 — Michigan and Romulus sued DHS and ICE over the facility [1, 4, 5]

Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel and the City of Romulus filed suit against DHS and ICE in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan, alleging the agencies violated the National Environmental Policy Act by failing to conduct an environmental review and the Intergovernmental Cooperation Act by failing to consult local and state officials before deciding to convert the warehouse into a detention center. The lawsuit noted DHS paid over $34.6 million for the site, more than $12 million above its 2023 purchase price, and sought to permanently enjoin the conversion.

2026-06-18 — ICE abandoned the detention-center plan and agreed to sell the facility [1, 6, 7]

DHS and ICE dropped the plan to convert the Romulus warehouse into a detention facility and moved to sell the property, roughly three months after Michigan and Romulus sued. Attorney General Nessel called it a "significant reversal," saying "less than three months after we filed suit, DHS and ICE appear to have folded." Romulus Mayor McCraight thanked DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin "for listening to the city in its opposition," citing the facility's proximity to schools, residential neighborhoods, and a floodplain as the reasons it was the wrong location.