Page 58 - RE-NJ

56 MARCH 2026
ICE BUYS VACANT WAREHOUSE
IN ROXBURY AMID BATTLE OVER
PLANNED DETENTION CENTER
U.S. Immigration and Customs
Enforcement reportedly has closed
on a 470,000-square-foot warehouse
in Roxbury that it will use as a
detention center, completing a deal
that sparked intense backlash and
confusion as rumors of the plan
swirled.
Multiple news outlets in late
February confirmed the transaction
at 1879 Route 46, citing statements
from the agency, the township
and multiple elected officials
who criticized the sale. The new
but long-vacant facility is now
slated to become an immigrant
processing center and at least the
third significant ICE facility in
New Jersey, part of what TAPinto
Roxbury described as a growing
network of staging locations
handling some 1,000 to 1,500
detainees at a time.
The Department of Homeland
Security reportedly paid $129.3
million for the property. The seller
was a partnership that included a
fund managed by Goldman Sachs as
its majority owner along with Dalfen
Industrial.
The prospect of ICE buying the
building emerged late last year in
a report by The Washington post,
setting off weeks of protests in
the township and surrounding
communities. Local officials have
also condemned the proposal, as
they did again on Feb. 20 after
being told days earlier that the sale
was not taking place and DHS gave
conflicting answers to media queries
about the transaction.
“Let us be clear: Roxbury Township
will not passively accept this
outcome,” Mayor Shawn Potillo and
councilmembers, all Republicans,
wrote in a statement issued to news
outlets. “The Township Council and
our legal team have been preparing
to pursue all available legal
remedies. We are ready to challenge
this matter in court and will act
swiftly and aggressively to stop the
development of a detention center in
Roxbury Township.
“We must reiterate in the strongest
possible terms that this property
is not an appropriate location for a
facility of this nature in a suburban
community and is an unapproved
use. Its placement within a
residential area, combined with
significant limitations in water and
sewer infrastructure, should have
been immediate and disqualifying
considerations.”
Dallas-based Dalfen Industrial
acquired the building, known then
as Roxbury Logistics Center, in
late 2023 as part of its fast-growing
portfolio in the state. The firm noted
that the warehouse was completed
just a year earlier, boasting coveted
features such as 40-foot clear ceiling
heights, 48 docks and abundant
parking for both cars and trailers in
a location less than a half-mile from
Interstate 80.
Still, the submarket and many
others in New Jersey have grappled
with an oversupply of newly built,
speculative industrial space at a time
in which demand had moderated
from its post-pandemic highs. That
likely contributed to the Roxbury
property becoming a potential ICE
facility as the agency moved to grow
its network of detention centers.
In February, DHS representatives
said the Route 46 site will be part
of a group of “very well-structured
detention facilities meeting our
regular detention standards.” The
agency, in a statement to media
outlets, added that the center and its
construction are expected to bring
1,300 jobs to the area and would
contribute $161.2 million to gross
domestic product, while generating
a projected $39.2 million in tax
revenue.
“Every day, DHS is conducting law
1879 Route 46 in Roxbury
enforcement activities across the
country to keep Americans safe,”
the agency wrote in the statement.
“It should not come as news that
ICE will be making arrests in states
across the U.S. and is actively
working to expand detention space.
Sites will undergo community
impact studies and a rigorous due
diligence process to make sure there
is no hardship on local utilities or
infrastructure prior to purchase.”
While the scale of Roxbury’s legal
challenge is to be determined,
Democratic state and federal
lawmakers lined up to blast the
transaction.
“ICE reportedly closed a deal
worth tens of millions of dollars
to warehouse human beings in
Roxbury, New Jersey,” U.S. Sen.
Cory Booker wrote on X. “It betrays
everything this community stands
for and then hands them the bill.
I’ve toured the site. I’ve met with
local leaders and residents. And the
opposition is unanimous — this is
wrong morally, fiscally, and for the
safety of this community. ICE has
ignored every concern. The agency
also ignored multiple requests from
my office to coordinate a meeting for
township leaders to express these
concerns. This agency doesn’t just
lack oversight, it lacks conscience.
The Roxbury community is united on
this, it is resolute, and it has said NO
to this ICE facility. We will not stop
until this fight is won.”
File photo