Where Things Stand
The city cancelled the August 18 council meeting. The last formal meeting was August 5, where the city launched an information page at surpriseaz.gov/DHS but took no formal action on the facility. No resolution has been introduced. The first DHS status report to the court, required under the July 8 stipulated order, is due the same week the council returns.
16000 N. Civic Center Plaza, Surprise. Council Chambers.
On May 7, Axios reported that DHS has paused the entire warehouse detention program. A DHS spokesperson confirmed on the record that the warehouse project has been paused and that the department is evaluating how to proceed. None of the 11 warehouses purchased nationwide are functioning as detention facilities. On June 30, DHS and Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes jointly filed a stipulated order asking the federal court to pause litigation in Arizona v. Mullin. Judge Susan Brnovich signed the order on July 8, and the case is now stayed. Under the order, DHS commits to completing a NEPA environmental assessment before taking any steps to convert the warehouse or detain anyone at the facility. DHS will file status reports with the court every 60 days, with the first due in early September 2026. After the study concludes, Arizona retains the right to seek a preliminary injunction.
On May 5, DHS permanently closed the Office of Immigration Detention Ombudsman, the congressionally created watchdog that investigated detainee deaths, medical care, and misconduct. The office had been reduced from over 100 employees to five. DHS blamed a funding lapse, but the appropriations bill signed into law did not mandate the closure. At least 18 people have died in ICE custody through the first four months of 2026, following 31 deaths in 2025. The agency is dismantling its own oversight infrastructure while simultaneously seeking to open new detention facilities.
On June 1, Project Salt Box reported that the Surprise Fire-Medical fire marshal had confirmed in writing that his department was never given a plan for how the detention center would handle a chemical accident at the Rinchem facility directly across Sweetwater Avenue. Rinchem's own EPA filing models a release of 20,000 pounds of hydrogen chloride that could carry a toxic cloud up to 2.7 miles, across an area where 73,642 people live, taking in the detention site and several schools. On May 29, Northwest Valley Indivisible filed a public safety briefing asking the city to press DHS, ICE, and GardaWorld for answers before the facility opens.
The Surprise City Council has taken no formal action on the facility. No resolution has been introduced. No vote has been taken. On April 21, Councilmember Judd proposed a letter requesting DHS honor local zoning and Luke AFB restrictions. The city attorney intervened publicly when Judd attempted to discuss the contents of the city's legal review. On April 15, Mayor Sartor told KTAR he would not pursue legal action. The mayor holds one of seven votes.
Five Findings
Each of the findings below is documented in a council record, a federal agency statement, a news outlet, or a public filing. Each links to the fuller account on the main site.
On April 22, DHS issued a stop work order to GardaWorld Federal Services, the contractor on the $313 million retrofit. Two days later, Attorney General Kris Mayes filed suit in federal court, alleging violations of NEPA and the Immigration and Nationality Act. The stop work order was rescinded on May 6, and site work resumed. On May 7, DHS confirmed the entire warehouse program is paused nationwide, even as work continued in Surprise. On June 30, DHS and the state jointly filed a motion to pause litigation while DHS completes a NEPA environmental assessment. Under the agreement, DHS commits to not converting the warehouse or detaining anyone at the facility until the study concludes. DHS must file status reports with the court every 60 days. After the assessment is issued, Arizona has 10 days to decide whether to seek a preliminary injunction. If it does, DHS must hold off on conversion activities for 21 days or until a judge grants permission.
Read the April 22 and April 24 record →The Surprise City Council has met four times since the facility was announced. On April 7, Judd committed on the record to bringing the facility as a formal action item. On April 21, he proposed a letter instead. On May 5, the council met again with no formal action taken. No resolution has been introduced. No vote has been taken. Other cities have passed formal resolutions, withheld water hookups, and filed lawsuits. Surprise has done none of these.
Read the April 21 and April 7 records →Senators Kelly and Gallego have sent two formal letters to DHS demanding transparency and a halt to Arizona detention expansion. The first, dated February 10, asked for immediate answers about the Surprise warehouse purchase. DHS never responded. The second, dated April 16, set a May 1 deadline for a briefing on plans, funding, procurement decisions, and community impact. That deadline passed. DHS has not responded. The April 16 letter specifically names students at Dysart High School and Dysart Middle School and cites 16 deaths in ICE custody in the first months of 2026. Two formal demands from both of Arizona's U.S. Senators have produced no answer from the Department of Homeland Security.
Read the April 16 letter →Nine weeks after the DC trip (March 15 to 19), none of DHS's verbal commitments are in writing. The 542-bed cap, the facility tour, the school and senior center protections, the community relations board, the $300,000 annual property-tax reimbursement. None of it is enforceable. The AG's complaint makes the same point at the federal level: DHS has not followed required process. On May 5, DHS permanently closed the Office of Immigration Detention Ombudsman, the only independent oversight body that could have monitored conditions at a facility built on unwritten promises.
Read the full record →Surprise passed a high-water-use ordinance requiring council approval for any facility using more than 100,000 gallons per day. The detention facility could use nearly 270,000 gallons per day at full capacity. The city's highest current user consumes 80,000 gallons per day. The ordinance is a concrete point of local authority the council has not yet exercised.
Read the water analysis →For Your Email to the Council
Councilmember contact forms are at surpriseaz.gov/732/City-Council. A single sentence, copied and pasted into the body of the email, is enough to be counted.
One-line email
“DHS has confirmed it has paused the warehouse detention program and is now required to complete a NEPA environmental assessment before converting the facility. I am asking each councilmember to introduce a formal resolution opposing the facility when the council returns September 1, and to exercise every tool available, including the water ordinance, before any conversion work resumes.”
Two Things You Can Do
- Email every councilmember now, before September 1. The August 18 meeting has been cancelled. The council returns Tuesday, September 1. Put your questions in writing before then. The warehouse program is paused and DHS is now required to complete an environmental assessment. Ask whether they will introduce a formal resolution when the council returns September 1. Ask whether they will enforce the water ordinance. Find contacts →
- Sign the 3-Mile Buffer petition and share this page. A Dysart High School student started a petition calling for a federal buffer zone between ICE facilities and schools. Sign at 3milebuffer.com →. Then share this page on Nextdoor, Facebook, or text it to a neighbor.
For the full record, every documented development with primary sources, and the talking points for harder conversations, see the main site. For the letter template addressed to all seven councilmembers, see the letter section.