Veterans Home Care Funding in Williamsport, MD

A federal district judge has ordered construction to stop for at least the next two weeks at the massive Washington County warehouse that Immigration and Customs Enforcement wants to convert into a detention center for up to 1,500 immigrants.

U.S. District Judge Brendan Hurson issued the emergency order at 5 p.m. Wednesday, stopping ICE from “proceeding with renovation and/or construction activities required to build, retrofit, or otherwise convert the Williamsport Warehouse … into an immigration detention facility.”

The emergency order was in response to a request from the state of Maryland, which has sued to block the detention center project but feared ICE would begin construction while the suit was pending. That would have caused irreparable damage to the local environment and to water and sewer infrastructure, the state said. In its request for an emergency injunction, the state said ICE has moved with “unrelenting speed” to convert the 825,000-square-foot warehouse into a processing and detention center capable of holding up to 1,500 immigrants, with little public notice and little input.

After buying the warehouse in January for $102 million, ICE quietly performed a historical review of the site and invited public input on the fact that the facility sits in a 100- to 500-year floodplain. But it has not held public hearings and has not met with local officials on the project.

ICE last week awarded a $113 million contract to KVG LLC of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, “to immediately retrofit the warehouse into this massive immigration detention facility,” the state said in its petition. Hurson noted that the KVG contract was awarded the day after the public comment period closed on the floodzone, and it had a start date of March 6: “Presumably, then, the renovation has already begun.”

Maryland Attorney General Anthony Brown, in a statement released by his office Wednesday evening, called the emergency injunction “a critical victory” in the state’s fight to force a closer environmental review of the project.

“Though temporary, this ruling stops the construction of this massive immigration detention center while our lawsuit continues to play out in court,” Brown’s statement said. “We will not let DHS [Department of Homeland Security] and ICE rush through the proper legal process in their haste to ramp up deportations. We will keep fighting to make sure the law is followed and Marylanders are protected.”

Brown’s office filed suit in late February against ICE and DHS, charging the agencies failed to follow proper notice and hearing requirements and did not perform required environmental reviews on the Williamsport project. The state said the project could threaten nearby creeks that are home to several state-designated endangered species.

In his order Wednesday, Hurson said an emergency injunction is merited because the state is likely to prevail on its claims that ICE failed to meet standards of the National Environmental Policy Act, which would require an environmental impact statement or an environmental assessment of the project, neither of which has been done.

“On the record before the Court at this time, the State has shown that Defendants likely failed to comply with their obligations under NEPA,” Hurson wrote. “Defendants do not appear to have taken a ‘hard look’ at the potential environmental consequences of their plans for the Williamsport Warehouse.”

Hurson also said the state would likely “suffer irreparable harm” if work was allowed to proceed before the state’s lawsuit can be heard.

“The State contends that ‘once construction begins and Maryland’s natural resources and environment are threatened, there is no turning back,'” Hurson wrote. “Indeed, the State identifies a number of grave environmental risks from potential renovation and construction at the Williamsport Warehouse, including pollution of three waterways adjacent to or downstream of the property — Semple Run, Conococheague Creek, and the Potomac River — and the corresponding ecosystems that rely on such waterways.”

The U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland issued a Temporary Restraining Order immediately pausing any construction or retrofitting of a warehouse near Williamsport, Maryland, that the Trump administration is attempting to convert into an immigration detention facility.

The order called for a 14-day halt to the detention facility project.

“Today a federal court handed Maryland a critical victory, stopping construction that threatened our waterways, endangered species, and communities before irreversible harm could be done, said Maryland Attorney General Anthony Brown. "Though temporary, this ruling stops the construction of this massive immigration detention center while our lawsuit continues to play out in court. We will not let DHS and ICE rush through the proper legal process in their haste to ramp up deportations. We will keep fighting to make sure the law is followed and Marylanders are protected.”

On Feb, 23, Brown filed a lawsuit against DHS and ICE challenging the purchase and planned conversion of the warehouse near Williamsport as being in violation of federal administrative and environmental law. On March 10, Brown filed an emergency motion asking the court to immediately pause construction for up to 14 days while the court considers the State’s broader legal challenge. The court granted the emergency motion March 11.

Below are excerpts from the Temporary Restraining Order issued by the .S. District Court for the District of Maryland,

Court cites environmental concerns, more in Temporary Restraining Order

"For the reasons stated below, the Court will GRANT the State's motion for a TRO. Given the exigent circumstances identified in the motion, including the likelihood of irreparable harm resulting from the environmental concerns identified by the State, the Court has determined that an immediate order granting the TRO is warranted to maintain the status quo until a motion for a preliminary injunction can be filed and a hearing can be set."

"To obtain a temporary restraining order, a plaintiff must establish four factors: (I) that they are likely to succeed on the merits; (2) that they are likely to suffer irreparable harm if preliminary relief is not granted; (3) that the balance of equities favors them; and ( 4) that an injunction is in the public interest."

"Upon review of the materials filed, the Court determines that the. State has satisfied the four factors governing the issuance of a TRO. First, the State has shown a likelihood of success on the merits. The State brings two claims under the APA: (1) that Defendants' actions are contrary to law, specifically NEPA (National Environmental Policy Act); and (2) that Defendants' actions are arbitrary and capricious."

"The contract lists the start date as March 6, 2026, and the end date as May 4. Presumably, then, the renovation has already begun. Defendants' decision to refrain from issuing an EIS (environmental impact study) or conducting an EA (environmental analysis) and proceeding with the 'renovation; of the Williamsport Warehouse 'represents a determinative position on the matter.' "

MDE expert contributed to state's motion against detention center plan

"Specifically, the notice identifies that "[p]reliminary engineering indicates that limited upgrades to the existing sanitary lateral or connection point may be required to accommodate projected wastewater flows." The State attached to its motion a declaration from Walid Saffouri, a program manager with the Maryland Department of the Environment.

"Saffouri states that based on his review of Defendants' plans and his knowledge of the Williamsport Warehouse, there are "significant concerns that the existing infrastructure is insufficient to support a population of 1500 detainees." Saffouri asserts that '[u]pgrading the system so that it has the capacity to meet expected needs would require significant excavation along the length of the 6-inch lateral line and likely the 8-inch sewer main,' and failure to upgrade the system 'will likely result in sewage backups and overflows creating public health hazards and environmental harm.' "

"The State contends that 'once construction begins and Maryland's natural resources and environment are threatened, there is no turning back.' Indeed, the State identifies a number of grave environmental risks from potential renovation and construction at the Williamsport Warehouse, including pollution of three waterways adjacent to or downstream of the property - Semple Run, Conococheague Creek, and the Potomac River - and the corresponding ecosystems that rely on such waterways."

"Accordingly, on this day of March 11, 2026, at 5:00 p.m., it is ORDERED that the Plaintiffs motion for temporary restraining order is GRANTED. Defendants are temporarily restrained, for a period of fourteen (14) days, from proceeding with renovation and/or construction activities required to build, retrofit, or otherwise convert the Williamsport Warehouse, located at 16220 Wright Road, alternatively identified as 10900 Hopewell Road, Williamsport, Maryland 21795, into an immigration detention facility."

How long do defendants have to respond to order?

Defendants must file a status report within forty-eight (48) hours describing all steps Defendants have taken to comply with this order. The State shall also pay a nominal security bond of $100. The Clerk shall promptly send a copy of this order to the Civil Division of United States Attorney's Office for the District of Maryland.

That means they have until 5 p.m. Friday to file a status report.

Gov. Wes Moore became the latest to criticize a potential Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention facility in Hagerstown on Friday, expressing “grave concerns” about the project in an open letter to Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem.

“I have grave concerns about any holding facility that denies basic human needs and dignity,” Moore said in the two-page letter. “Public safety is my top priority and we must protect the public by upholding all Constitutional rights.”

The letter came the same day that Moore gathered with other state, federal and local officials in Howard County, where County Executive Calvin Ball signed emergency legislation to block the conversion of a building in an Elkridge office park into a privately run detention center for immigrants.

That legislation was rushed through in less than a week, after county officials learned of the project, revoked its permit and introduced a bill clarifying that only the government could operate a detention facility. County officials said the planned conversion of an office building into a 29,000-square-foot immigration detention center failed to give notice and hold proper public hearings, and was impermissibly close to schools, parks and shopping centers.

“This legislation was not about speed alone,” said Ball in a statement where he noted that it took less than a week from introduction through emergency hearings to signing. “It was about principle. It was about drawing a firm line between public safety and discrimination rooted in fear. It was about affirming that what we allow to be built in our neighborhoods impacts the public health, safety, and welfare of our community.”

While the Elkridge center appears to have been blocked, the future of the Hagerstown facility is less clear.

Washington County officials said in a Jan. 28 statement that they were disappointed by ICE’s announcement that it was considering the purchase of a warehouse in Williamsport for development of a “new ICE Baltimore processing facility.” Plans call for the “construction of holding and processing spaces, office space, public-facing visitor space and installation of amenities, such as cafeterias, bathrooms, and health care spaces,” among other changes.

County officials only learned of the project when the county’s Historic District Commission received a letter from ICE indicating that the project would have no impact on local historic properties. That appears to be the federal government’s only obligation under the law, said county officials, who said they may be powerless to stop the project.

“It is Washington County’s position that decisions about land use are best made locally. However, the legal reality when property is owned by the Federal Government is clear,” the county statement said. “Washington County is not able to legally restrict the federal government’s ability to proceed. DHS has not notified Washington County that a purchase has taken place.”

Viral videos surfaced in January of the current ICE facility in Baltimore that showed detainees crowded into a single room. Advocates condemned the facility, calling the conditions “inhumane.”

Moore cited a “troubling” lack of transparency from the department over the Williamsport facility in his letter to Noem. He wrote that he views actions like this acquisition as continuous attempts to “sacrifice federal-local collaboration.”

U.S. Rep April McClain Delaney (D-6th), who has been an outspoken critic of the conditions at the current ICE facility in Baltimore, echoed Moore’s human rights concerns in a statement Friday.

“People are not packages. Team Maryland cannot allow Noem’s ICE to establish a detention center in Williamsport to hold people without due process, transparency, or accountability – in violation of the constitutional and human rights of Maryland’s residents,” McClain Delaney wrote.

“The Supremacy Clause does not give the federal government authority to override the fundamental rights of my constituents and our neighbors,“ her statement said.

She said in a statement from her office last week that “ICE’s covert acquisition of a warehouse in historic Williamsport – carried out without transparency, community input, or accountability – is unacceptable,” and she planned to work with state and federal officials to demand answers.

Moore also wrote that the Williamsport facility may lead to significant economic troubles. The warehouse, which originally opened during the COVID-19 pandemic, is one of many that contribute to over “about 4,000 jobs, hundreds of millions in wages, and more than $450 million in combined capital investment.”

He said that economic loss from the ICE facility could undermine the county’s water and sewage systems. As the county is already reaching capacity with these systems, Moore wrote, a lack of financial support from a commercial distribution site will only excacerbate the problem.