City Of Scottsdale: Temporary Immigration Facility In Scottsdale

Press release from the City of Scottsdale:

June 1, 2021

On Friday, May 28, the city was formally notified by U.S. Homeland Security/U.S. Customs and Immigration Enforcement that a federal contractor would begin operating a temporary hotel facility for immigrant families beginning Saturday, May 29. 

According to ICE officials in that meeting, this site is for intact families seeking political asylum who are being processed and taken to transportation as they continue their journey to a sponsor family or organization. The vast majority of people travel outside Arizona after processing. 

According to an ICE statement, “The families that come into ICE custody will be housed in a manner consistent with legal requirements for the safety and well-being of children and their parents or guardians. Custody is intended to be short term, generally less than 72 hours, to allow for immigration enforcement processing and establishing appropriate terms and conditions of release while their immigration proceedings continue. All families will be tested for COVID-19 and receive a health assessment at these Emergency Family Staging Centers.” 

A hotel has been rented to provide temporary hotel stays to these families during their immigration processing. Scottsdale has no current authority to prevent the hotel from being rented for these immigrant families. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the contractor who will operate the facility have provided assurances that they will be able to address any operational concerns that may arise.

Immigration is a federal matter, over which the city of Scottsdale has no responsibility or oversight. If you have further concerns, please contact your federal government representatives:

• Rep. David Schweikert
• Sen. Kyrsten Sinema
• Sen. Mark Kelly
• Pres. Joseph Biden

This press release was produced by the City of Scottsdale. The views expressed here are the author’s own.