State Democratic lawmakers and community advocates held a news conference Wednesday to express strong opposition to a planned “mega” migrant detention center in Hutchins right before city leaders held a private meeting to discuss what actions the city could take.
Last week, The Dallas Morning News revealed that Immigration and Customs Enforcement plans on using a 1 million square foot warehouse as a detention center that could hold as many as 9,500 individuals.
Hutchins Mayor Mario Vasquez has repeatedly said he opposes such a facility, planned for a warehouse off of Interstate 45, an internal ICE document shows. Some state lawmakers who represent Dallas showed up Wednesday to support the city’s efforts.
“The city of Hutchins did not seek this project and the city of Hutchins has made it clear that it does not support it,” said state Rep. Linda Garcia, D-Mesquite.
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The specifics of what was discussed in the meeting, held at Hutchins City Hall in executive session, were not immediately disclosed.. After the meeting, Vasquez said the council took no official action. Steve Nichols, the mayor pro tem, read a statement saying federal officials have not contacted any city officials about the detention center.
“City staff will continue to inquire through all proper channels so they can diligently stay abreast of this issue,” Nichols said.
The planned detention center, one of four slated for Texas, would be the largest detention center in the country and would hold more people than the population of Hutchins, about 8,000. The other detention centers are planned for El Paso, San Antonio and Los Fresnos.
Officials with ICE or the Department of Homeland Security, the immigration department’s parent agency, have not confirmed the purchase of the Hutchins warehouse. There are no Dallas County records that show the federal government has purchased the facility, which is owned by PS Hutchins Phase Two, a limited liability company registered in Delaware.
Federal immigration officials have said converting large warehouses into detention centers near major hubs will allow the agency to handle rising arrests more efficiently and avoid shuttling detainees around the country in search of space.
Hutchins Mayor Mario Vasquez (left) talks with Mayor Pro Tem Steve Nichols during a special meeting of the city council on Wednesday, Feb. 4, 2026. The council met to discuss plans for a “mega” ICE migrant detention center in the community.
Smiley N. Pool / Staff Photographer
Democratic lawmakers and other community activists who spoke Wednesday at the news conference said that having such a large detention center could put a strain on resources like water use and emergency services that may need to respond to the facility.
“This facility will strain schools, emergency services, local resources and offer no real benefit to the families that live and work here,” said Roman Palomares, the national president of League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC), the largest Latino civil rights organization.
The lawmakers also spoke of the lack of communication they’ve received from the federal government – echoing what Hutchins city officials have said.
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Rep. Aicha Davis, D-Dallas, whose statehouse district includes Hutchins, said she’s not heard from officials at DHS despite multiple efforts to reach them.
“We’ve been trying to figure out what’s going on,” Davis said.
U.S. Rep. Jasmine Crockett, who also represents Hutchins, said Wednesday her calls to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement have gone unanswered. She was not at the news conference, however.
“We do not need a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility in our backyard,” Crockett has previously said.
ICE has been searching for new locations across the country for the purposes of housing individuals it has arrested and seeks to deport. The agency’s Dallas office dramatically increased enforcement in 2025, when compared with 2024, according to an analysis by The News.
The increased enforcement has resulted in the detention centers already in use reaching their capacity. Migrants have repeatedly spoken of overcrowding at the facilities.