UPDATE: ICE Retracts Claim It Bought Chester Warehouse, Calls Statement a ‘Mistake
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) said the federal agency has not purchased any facility in Chester after stating Friday that it had bought a warehouse in Orange County.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has purchased a facility in Chester, New York, according to an ICE spokesperson.
Thousands of people have opposed the facility at the former Pep Boys warehouse over the past month, with bipartisan support from local and county lawmakers opposing the plans.
“The Chester facility and its construction are expected to bring more than 1,246 jobs to the area and would contribute $153.4 million to GDP. It’s also projected to bring in more than $37.2 million in tax revenue,” said an ICE spokesperson in a statement to Radio Catskill.
Located at 29 Elizabeth Drive, the 401,000-square-foot warehouse is located in an industrial area in the Village of Chester. It’s the only facility proposed in New York state outlined in the Trump administration’s latest plans to open new detention centers across the country to detain more than 80,000 immigrants.
“These will be very well-structured detention facilities meeting our regular detention standards,” said the ICE spokesperson in a statement. “Sites will undergo community impact studies and a rigorous due diligence process to make sure there is no hardship on local utilities or infrastructure prior to purchase.”
No deeds have been filed with the Orange County Clerk’s Office as of Friday afternoon, and it’s unclear when the building was purchased and for how much. The Orange County Clerk’s Office confirmed that the most current information on the property still shows a 2022 deed to IEP Chester LLC as the owner.
“It is possible that if a sale took place, the documents have yet to be filed here,” said Erika Brownley of the Orange County Clerk’s Office.
Lawmakers across party lines oppose ICE facility
Jess D’Amelia, a spokesperson for New York Governor Kathy Hochul, said that Governor Hochul was aware of reports that ICE has purchased property in Orange County “for the purposes of converting the space into a detention facility.”
“At a time when masked ICE agents are running roughshod over the constitutional rights of Americans, ICE has commenced a secretive, rushed process to build a detention facility that community leaders—Democrats and Republicans alike—do not want, and may violate federal, state and local law. My administration will not stand for it,” said D’Amelia.
County lawmakers have also said they have not received any information about the purchase.
“We aren’t getting any information, and this is extremely problematic, right?” said Orange County District 6 Legislator Genesis Ramos. “ If the [U.S. Department of Homeland Security] is going to come and put a center, this detention facility, in our backyard with no communication, no line of sight, it makes it really hard for government leaders, elected officials to know the right course of action at any given time.”
Orange County Executive Steven Neuhaus said in a video statement on Friday that he’s awaiting the deed filing to “start filing legal actions” to block the ICE detention facility in Chester.
“ I represent 400,000-plus Orange County residents, have gotten zero communication from [ICE] on this, and they want to be a partner?” said Neuhaus. In his statement, Neuhaus also requested from New York Governor Kathy Hochul support from New York State Police and the National Guard to assist with expected protests and growing public opposition.
Orange County legislators unanimously passed a bipartisan resolution opposing the facility earlier in February. New York Congressmember Pat Ryan also strongly opposed the facility, launching a petition that garnered more than 20,000 signatures.
ICE has quietly expanded its footprint in the Mid-Hudson Valley in the past few months. Town of New Windsor Supervisor Stephen Bedetti confirmed on Wednesday that ICE has been operating out of an office building in New Windsor for more than four months through a General Services Administration (GSA) contract.
Ramos says that she and other elected officials will be closely monitoring the situation but it’s unclear what the next steps are at this time.
“At least to my knowledge, no level of government can stop a private purchase or sale of property,” said Ramos. She’s hopeful other legal issues with the building – such as the building’s location in a 100-year FEMA floodplain or the lack of sewage capacity – could stop the project from moving forward.
ICE has purchased several large warehouses across the U.S. in 2026, including in Pennsylvania, Arizona, and Maryland.
Radio Catskill reached out to Pyramid Brokerage Company, the real estate company listed for the property, for additional information but did not hear back.
This is a developing story and will be updated with more information.
Update: This article was updated on Feb. 17 to include comments from New York Governor Kathy Hochul and Orange County Executive Steven Neuhaus.
Image: A view of 29 Elizabeth Drive, the proposed facility in Chester, N.Y. (Google Maps)