ANNAPOLIS, Md. – The leaders of three Maryland state agencies have condemned as “deeply flawed” the Trump administration’s proposal to convert a large warehouse near Williamsport into a 1,500-bed immigration detention center, warning of risks to local wildlife, waterways and infrastructure.
In a 10-page letter to the Department of Homeland Security, Natural Resources Secretary Josh Kurtz, Environment Secretary Serena McIlwain and acting Transportation Secretary Kathryn Thomson said the project is advancing in a “secretive and rushed manner” that will harm the state. Maryland Matters first reported details of the Thursday letter.
The criticism is the latest from top state officials opposing U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s plan to repurpose the 825,000-square-foot facility on a 54-acre site on Hopewell Road, purchased by DHS on Jan. 16 for $102.4 million. The property, built between 2021 and 2023 as a commercial warehouse, has minimal office space, four toilets and two water fountains.
On the same day as the agency letter, all nine Democrats in Maryland’s 10-member congressional delegation sent a joint letter urging DHS and ICE to “immediately and completely halt” work on the project.
It followed a Feb. 23 federal lawsuit by Attorney General Anthony Brown seeking to block the facility, alleging violations of environmental review requirements under the National Environmental Policy Act, lack of public input and failure to consult state officials.
The state agencies’ letter responded to a DHS “Early Notice and Public Review” posted around Feb. 25 for a proposed activity in a 100- to 500-year floodplain. The notice gave the public roughly eight days to comment, which the secretaries called inadequate.
DHS had reviewed three other Maryland sites – two in Baltimore City and one in Sparrows Point – before selecting the Williamsport location as the preferred alternative.
The secretaries described the notice as unable to “paper over the significant procedural and substantive deficiencies” in ICE’s purchase-and-conversion decision. They requested at least a 30-day extension of the comment period.
Among their concerns: the site’s floodplain location could endanger nearby waterways, including tributaries to the Potomac River and threaten state-listed endangered species.
They also highlighted potential overload on Williamsport’s sewer and water systems from the demands of 1,500 detainees, which could produce more than 187,000 gallons of wastewater daily in a town of about 2,000 residents.
Due to limited details from DHS on environmental effects, engineering plans and changes in water and waste flows, the secretaries said it is “impossible to fully evaluate” the project’s impacts.
The coordinated opposition reflects broader friction between Maryland leaders and the Trump administration over the rapid expansion of immigration detention, with critics arguing the Williamsport plan disregards environmental safeguards, local infrastructure limits and community needs.
