ICE looks to sell Romulus warehouse initially planned for detention center

The federal government is seeking to sell a Romulus warehouse that was purchased for use as an Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention center, along with six other warehouses nationally that were similarly intended for use as detention facilities before those plans were scrapped over the summer.

The intent to sell was first reported by Project Salt Box, a public records-based investigative newsletter reporting on ICE and Department of Homeland Security contracts. Cushman & Wakefield, a commercial real estate firm headquartered in Chicago, is marketing the properties, offering the seven buildings individually or as a package.

Along with the facility in Romulus, the facilities up for sale are in Hamburg and Tremont, Pennsylvania; Social Circle and Flowery Branch, Georgia; Socorro, Texas; and Salt Lake City, Utah.

The Department of Homeland Security paid $34.7 million for the warehouse, according to city land records, 57% more than the property’s previous sale price. The asking price for the warehouse now, either individually or alongside the other warehouses, is not publicly available. 

DHS scrapped its plans for the detention facility in June, planning that the detention center in Romulus would be “offloaded” — sold or given away. The specific fate of the warehouse, however, was unclear at the time. 

The Cushman & Wakefield listing, through a website called the Federal Warehouse Portfolio, describes the properties as “an institutional-quality collection of seven industrial properties totaling more than 5.3 million square feet.”

“The Portfolio is currently vacant. Given the tenant demand for modern, high-quality bulk distribution buildings, the Portfolio offers investors the rare opportunity to capture substantial value creation through the lease-up and stabilization of the properties,” the website continues, noting that the warehouses are being sold free and clear of existing financing, which means that the buyer will have full ownership of a property with no mortgages, debt or liens attached.

The Romulus facility garnered major pushback from local community members and elected officials after it was purchased in February. Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel also filed a lawsuit in March to halt its development, alleging that DHS violated the National Environmental Policy Act by failing to conduct an environmental review of the area, as well as the Intergovernmental Cooperation Act by failing to consult with local and state officials when making decisions about the detention center.