Will ICE sell the Tremont warehouse?

According to NBC News, ICE is considering selling several of the warehouses it purchased earlier this year. This comes two months after DHS indicated that the warehouse purchases were under review.

Read the NBC News article here.

Clearly, selling the warehouse in Tremont Township would be more cost-effective than entering a quagmire of impossible infrastructure upgrades funded by our tax dollars. We hope that ICE agrees. We're cautiously optimistic.

ICE appealed DEP's administrative orders

On April 8, ICE appealed DEP's administrative orders preventing ICE from using water or sewer at the Tremont Township and Upper Bern Township warehouses.

ICE wants access to the water and sewer capacity that was permitted when the Tremont Township warehouse was a Big Lots distribution center. ICE also wants water and sewer access to the Upper Bern Township warehouse at previously-permitted levels, but that warehouse never had a permit for public water use.

The appeal process has a November 4 deadline, but the actual timeline depends on a variety of factors.

To learn more about the appeal, check out the following news articles:

Visit the PA EHB Docket page to keep track of updates in the appeal.

Listen to ICEd Out

Pennsylvania Capital-Star released a three-part podcast called "ICEd Out" about the proposed detention center in Tremont Township. Reporter Emily Previti spent a lot of time in Schuylkill County and spoke to local officials, Tremont residents, and business owners who will be affected by the proposed detention center.

It's a really great piece that centers locals' voices and concerns.

Listen and share with your friends and neighbors!

What you can do

Attend a commissioners meeting at the Schuylkill County courthouse.

Wednesday, June 3 - 10:00 AM
Wednesday, June 10 - 6:00 PM (evening meeting!)

Can't make it? Submit your comment through this form and we'll find someone to read it on your behalf at the meeting. Include your name and the town you live in. You can also watch the livestream on YouTube if you can't be there in person.

Call our Congressman and Senators
Tell them to urge ICE to sell the Tremont warehouse!

U.S. Rep. Dan Meuser: (570) 871-6370
U.S. Senator John Fetterman: (570) 820-4088
U.S. Senator Dave McCormick: (570) 941-0930

Wildly irresponsible and outrageous

In a letter to new DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin, Senator Fetterman reaffirmed his opposition to the proposed warehouse detention centers in Tremont and Upper Bern Townships. This is Fetterman's second letter to DHS, and this time, the language is more pointed: It is wildly irresponsible to place these

Should the county speak for the township?

Last Monday, April 6, we attended the Tremont Township supervisors' meeting. We learned that the township wasn't invited to the second meeting between Schuylkill County officials and DHS, and the township hadn't been involved in the "negotiations" with DHS. Although the township was

Quick updates: NYT story + DEP response to DHS

The New York Times published a story today on the proposed Tremont Township detention facility, and our March town hall is at the center of it. At Tuesday's Tremont Township Supervisors meeting, we learned of DEP's March 24 response to DHS's request for modifications

An awkward position

This past week, new DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin ordered a pause on buying any more warehouses for the ICE Detention Reengineering Initiative. An anonymous DHS official said that DHS will also scrutinize recently-purchased warehouses, which includes the former Big Lots Distribution Center in Tremont Township. Coal Region Canary reached out