Florida Seizes Land Owned By Miami-Dade To Build 'Alligator Alcatraz' To Detain Migrants
Miami-Dade Mayor Daniella Levine Cava has said the project would be environmentally "devastating"
Demian Bio Demian Bio @bio_demian / Published Jun 24 2025, 11:05 AM EDT
The federal government will help fund an initiative from the Florida government to build immigration detention centers in the state, including one in the Everglades that has been dubbed "Alligator Alcatraz."
Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said that the facilities will be funded "in large part" by the Federal Emergency Management Agency's (FEMA) shelter and services program, which supports groups and cities receiving migrants and asylum-seekers released from federal custody close to the southern border.
"Under President Trump's leadership, we are working at turbo speed on cost-effective and innovative ways to deliver on the American people's mandate for mass deportations of criminal illegal aliens," Noem told CBS News. The Miami Herald noted that construction began on Monday.
One of the proposed centers dominated headlines due to its remote location in the Everglades. Attorney General James Uthmeier pitched the facility, saying it represents "an efficient, low cost opportunity to build a temporary detention facility because you don't need to invest that much in the perimeter. If people get out, there's not much waiting for them other than alligators and pythons." He stated the site could be operational within 30 to 60 days of construction. It will aim to hold 1,000 beds.
https://www.latintimes.com/florida-seizes-land-owned-miami-dade-build-alligator-alcatraz-detain-migrants-585528
