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Hagerstown and Washington County governments said this week they are unaware of federal government plans for an immigration detention facility in the Hagerstown area.

The Washington Post reported on Dec. 24 that the Trump Administration is seeking contractors for a plan that includes renovating industrial warehouses to hold more than 80,000 immigrant detainees at a time, according to a draft solicitation The Post reviewed.

The plan includes processing sites where newly arrested detainees would be booked into for a few weeks before being sent to one of seven large-scale warehouses that could each hold 5,000 to 10,000 people — a staging area for deportation, according to Post reporting.

Among the sites The Post listed where the federal government is looking to establish a processing site, with 500 to 1,500 beds, is Hagerstown, Maryland.

It was not clear if that means within the city limits or the greater Hagerstown area.

The Post reported that a Department of Homeland Security spokesperson said she "cannot confirm" The Post's reporting and declined to answer questions about the warehouse plan.

The Herald-Mail emailed ICE, on Dec. 30, and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, on Dec. 31, inquiring about The Post's report, but had not heard back by press time.

The State of Maryland already has three state prisons off Roxbury Road south of Hagerstown. The Washington County Sheriff's Office has a detention center off Western Maryland Parkway near Hagerstown's West End.

Hagerstown government responds to Post report about planned immigration facility

The City of Hagerstown, on Dec. 30, issued a statement about The Post report, that also was posted on the city's Facebook page.

"The City of Hagerstown is aware of the article published in the Washington Post over the last week naming Hagerstown as a possible site to utilize warehouse space to house those detained on immigration violations. The City of Hagerstown has no awareness of any such plans, and no city staff or city officials has been contacted by the government as to any future plans of utilizing space within Hagerstown for such a purpose."

Washington County government response regarding potential immigration detention facility

The Herald-Mail reached out to Washington County government, asking if county officials were aware of a plan for an ICE facility in the Hagerstown area.

County spokesperson Danielle Weaver, on Dec. 30, responded via email:

"The County does not comment on US Government/Department of Homeland Security initiatives and is unaware of any actions currently to convert local warehouses for the purposes of immigration detention."

U.S. Sen. Chris Van Hollen comments on report of proposed ICE facility in Washington County

The following comment from Sen. Chris Van Hollen, D-Md., was provided via email on Dec. 31 through Van Hollen's office, regarding the proposed ICE facility in the Hagerstown area.

"The Trump Administration's cruel mass deportation agenda has not focused on 'the worst of the worst,' but instead has swept up thousands of people that DHS admits pose no threat to our communities — including small business owners, community leaders, pastors, and more. Trump's ICE has already been locking up scores of people without respect for their due process rights — and contracting for massive private warehouse prisons marks another step in their assault on our communities. While we need secure borders and across-the-board reform, upholding our immigration laws can and must be done safely, smartly, and humanely — but clearly those are not the priorities of this Administration."

Congresswoman April McClain Delaney issues statement regarding report of proposed ICE facility in Hagerstown

U.S. Rep. April McClain Delaney, D-6th District, released a statement on Dec. 30 regarding reports of a proposed ICE detention facility in Hagerstown.

"I am outraged by reports that the Trump Administration may be considering the construction of an ICE detention facility in or near Hagerstown. If true, this proposal is unacceptable — and I will fight it with every tool available to me.

"The mass detention of human beings without due process is a profound moral and constitutional failure. Detaining people — like asylum seekers and families — far from legal counsel, their support systems, and meaningful oversight creates a grave risk of unlawful detention and irreversible harm.

"Hagerstown is not a dumping ground for a broken federal system — it is a proud community built on fairness, decency, and the rule of law. I will not quietly accept a facility that threatens civil liberties, undermines due process, and contradicts our values.

"Let me be clear about what I am doing, and what I will continue to do, to stop this:

"This is about values and who we are, and that begins with protecting our neighbors. A government that detains people in bulk, behind walls and razor wire, without transparency or accountability, is a government that has lost its moral compass.

"I will not allow Hagerstown to become a symbol of that failure. I will fight this proposal publicly, relentlessly, and unapologetically — and I will keep the people of this community informed every step of the way."