HAGERSTOWN, Md. – Washington County officials on Tuesday provided their first detailed public update on a controversial federal plan to convert a Williamsport warehouse into an Immigration and Customs Enforcement processing facility, while also approving a 25-cent increase in the county’s monthly 911 fee after public criticism tied the two issues together.
At its regular meeting, County Administrator Michelle Gordon told the Board of County Commissioners that the facility at 16220 Wright Road, purchased by the federal government for $102 million with another $113 million planned for renovations, is not intended to be a long-term detention center.
“DHS officials indicated that the facility is a processing facility and not a detention center,” Gordon said. “It is essentially a booking facility where detainees will be brought for intake processing. Detainees would stay at that facility for an average of three to seven days, after which they would be transferred to a detention center for long-term needs out of the state to another state.”
Gordon said federal officials told the county the site is expected to house about 500 people on a typical day, though it will be outfitted for as many as 1,500 beds. She said the federal government would pay any costs tied to water and sewer upgrades, with contractor KVG LLC of Gettysburg handling engineering and future contact with local utilities.
She also said the facility would have its own 24-hour medical staff, including doctors and nurses, to reduce strain on local emergency services.
“As far as impact on medical and EMS, they do not believe they will need a lot as they will handle medical needs in-house, so as not to overburden our local resources,” Gordon said.
She added that DHS officials said the site would be subject to monthly and annual audits by an independent third party that would review food, medical, religious, recreational and legal services.
The update came amid ongoing legal challenges, including a temporary restraining order issued earlier this month halting construction for at least two weeks while Maryland’s lawsuit alleging environmental review violations proceeds.
Gordon reiterated that county officials had no role in the site selection or warehouse sale and said they held their first meeting with DHS representatives on March 16.
“That meeting marked a significant step towards enhancing knowledge sharing and opened the lines of communication regarding the Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility in Washington County, Maryland,” she said.
She also drew a distinction between Washington County’s situation and recent actions in Howard County, saying Howard had acted against a private company, while the Wright Road site is now federally owned. Any Washington County response, she said, would require legal analysis of county, state and federal authority, as well as potential liability for both the county and individual officials.
The county adopted a resolution Feb. 10 expressing general support for DHS, ICE and local law enforcement in their public safety roles.
Public ties ICE facility to 911 fee increase
The commissioners later held a public hearing on raising the county’s monthly 911 fee from $1.75 to $2, a change county staff members said was needed because the emergency communications system continues to operate at a significant deficit.
Chief Financial Officer Kelsey Mace said fiscal 2025 911 revenue totaled $2.7 million, while operating costs reached $6.3 million, leaving a $3.6 million shortfall. For fiscal 2026, the county budgeted $3.2 million in revenue against $7.2 million in costs. In the proposed fiscal 2027 budget, revenue, including the fee increase, would total $3.7 million, while costs are projected at $7.4 million.
County Attorney Zachary Kiefer said Maryland law allows counties to exceed the standard 75-cent fee when necessary to cover a county’s projected 911 operating costs.
The proposed increase is expected to generate about $500,000 in additional revenue in fiscal 2027, but it would still not fully cover the system’s costs.
Much of the hearing, however, focused on the planned ICE processing facility.
Taj Smith, president of the Washington County NAACP, argued that the tax-exempt federal property would worsen the county’s fiscal pressures and increase strain on emergency services.
“You are presiding over a massive loss of tax revenue,” Smith said. “DHS purchased this site for $102 million and is spending $113 million to convert it. If this were a private asset valued at $215 million, it would generate $2 million in annual property taxes or $20 million over the next decade.”
Smith said the county’s lack of jurisdiction over the property was itself part of the problem.
“This lack of jurisdiction is exactly why we are in a fiscal crisis,” she said. “It is physically reckless for this board.”
Commissioners ruled that much of Smith’s testimony was outside the scope of the public hearing. When she continued, a sheriff’s lieutenant was called to escort her from the room.
Another speaker, Curtis Ray of Hagerstown, supported the fee increase but said commissioners were not going far enough because the higher charge still leaves the 911 system underfunded.
“It makes no sense why you are planning for a deficit,” Ray said. “There’s no reason that you shouldn’t” raise the fee to cover the full budget.
After the hearing closed, commissioners held little discussion before voting 4-0 to approve the increase. Staff members told them action was needed that day to meet the state’s April deadline.
Budget, salaries and public safety spending
Commissioners also reviewed a proposed $355.7 million balanced general fund budget for fiscal 2027, up $32.6 million from the current year. County officials said 91% of the budget is funded by property and income taxes.
Education accounts for 36% of the general fund, or 41% when the Board of Education, Hagerstown Community College and the public library system are combined. Public safety accounts for 28%.
The proposed budget includes a 1% cost-of-living adjustment and a one-step increase for employees, along with a 1% retiree cost-of-living adjustment.
Commissioners also approved an 8.14% salary increase for county commissioners, Board of Education members, liquor license commissioners and Orphans’ Court judges, effective with the next term of office after the 2026 election.
Richard Wilson, chair of the Salary Study Commission, said the increase was based on comparisons with similar jurisdictions and reflected compounded annual adjustments over four years, not a single-year raise of more than 8%.
“To cap the commissioner’s salary at the present level does not allow citizens that would like to be engaged in public service to depend upon their other employment income,” Wilson said.
The board also approved an $11 million budget amendment based on stronger-than-expected property and income tax revenue and redirected about $9.2 million of that toward accelerating work at the Public Safety Training Center, including a high-bay storage training facility intended to improve hands-on training for volunteer responders.
Other business
Commissioners issued a proclamation recognizing National Surveyors Week.
They also approved a stream restoration easement on the Anthony Arena property in Clear Spring, a $437,000 culvert replacement bid for Kretzinger Road, $75,000 in design work tied to wastewater treatment upgrades in Smithsburg, transit capital and operating grants and a grant application for the county’s problem-solving courts program.
In opening remarks, commissioners also paid tribute to community figures and milestones.
Board President John F. Barr noted the recent death of Sarah Woodson, a 100-year-old member of Zion Baptist Church who served the Jonathan Street community for decades.
“Wonderful woman. She served the Jonathan Street community for decades, and she will be missed,” Barr said.
Commissioners also recognized Zion Baptist Church’s 130th anniversary and the 10th anniversary of the Washington County Senior Center, while highlighting recent volunteer fire company banquets, emergency communications graduates and the county’s Lifesavers Award ceremony.
