The warehouse in the city of Social Circle which is now the focus of inquiries by both Democrats and Republicans after rumors it was being considered for a role in federal immigrant detention.

This warehouse in the city of Social Circle is in 2026 the focus of inquiries by both Democrats and Republicans after rumors it was being considered for a role in federal immigrant detention.

Credit: Grant Blankenship/GPB News


The Department of Homeland Security appears to moving ahead with plans to purchase a warehouse in the town of Social Circle for use as an Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention facility.

In a post on the city’s official Facebook page, that’s what city leaders say their representative in the U.S. House, Republican Mike Collins, told them Wednesday.

The post said city officials were told DHS has analyzed local infrastructure and has done economic impact studies for the center, slated to hold between 8,000 and 10,000 people less than a mile from an elementary school.

The city said it neither played a role in those studies nor has had its own conversation with DHS.

In his own Facebook post, Collins said while he fully supports the current mission of ICE, the lack of sufficient city infrastructure means he does not support the Social Circle facility. 

"I have asked DHS to continue evaluating the impacts that the facility would have on Social Circle and to ensure we can accomplish the mission without negatively impacting this community," Collins said in the post.

The post said Collins told the city to expect the center to be up and running as soon as April. 

This is a developing story.

Tags: Immigration and Customs Enforcement  Georgia  Georgia Politics  Social Circle  Walton County  ICE