Yareliz Mendez Zamora, with the American Friends Service Committee, reports a rise in arrivals at the Miramar Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) facility she frequents to assist families with their cases. This was noted during her visit on July 29, 2026.
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is currently looking for a new immigration detention facility in the Miami region. A procurement request, issued earlier, specifies the need for a contractor-operated facility with at least 700 beds, located within 50 miles of the ICE Miami Field Office. DHS is seeking similar facilities nationwide for ICE detainees.
The new facility must offer comprehensive services, including medical care, mental health services, transportation, food service, and security. The contractor will handle all aspects of detention management, covering personnel, equipment, supplies, and services.
Besides Miami, DHS requests facilities with 1,800 beds in the Philadelphia area and at least 1,500 beds each in Seattle and Denver.
This request follows the closure of the controversial Alligator Alcatraz detention center in the Everglades. It also coincides with expected increased ICE enforcement after ending Haiti’s Temporary Protected Status (TPS). Last month, the U.S. Supreme Court allowed DHS to proceed with plans to terminate TPS for over 300,000 Haitians, while legal challenges continue.
Immigration advocates and Haitian communities in places like South Florida, New York, and Springfield, Ohio, voice concerns over potential ICE raid surges and a need for more detention space.
On Wednesday, advocates gathered outside the Miramar ICE facility to protest increased arrests across South Florida and local government involvement in federal immigration enforcement. The American Friends Service Committee activists shared concerns about heightened activities at the facility.
Billy Botsch, also with the American Friends Service Committee, noted the presence of a company known for setting up temporary structures. Company representatives were seen speaking with field office officials. “It’s unusual,” Botsch remarked.
Botsch observed additional portable toilets in the rear parking lot, hinting at insufficient indoor facilities for planned activities. He noted changes in how people are processed, with a temporary setup replacing the use of the standard garage entry.
The ICE field office did not provide a comment on the situation. A DHS spokesperson stated the agency does not discuss future operations but conducts daily enforcement nationwide.
Yareliz Mendez Zamora added that families are often transferred from Miramar to hotels before deportation. “Families are held here briefly before being sent to a hotel, where they’re not allowed contact,” Mendez said. “We can go over 24 hours without hearing from them, only to learn they have been deported.”
Morgan Mullings from the Miami Herald contributed to this report. Jacqueline Charles, covering Haiti and the Caribbean for over a decade, is a Pulitzer Prize finalist and Maria Moors Cabot Prize winner for her coverage.
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