Social Circle, Georgia sues DHS and ICE over proposed 10,000‑bed detention mega‑center

The city of Social Circle, Georgia, a town of about 5,000 residents, filed a federal lawsuit against the Department of Homeland Security and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. The suit, filed in the Middle District of Georgia, challenges the agencies’ plan to convert a former warehouse at 1365 East Hightower Trail into a 10,000‑bed detention facility that would require roughly 2,500 employees.

Social Circle argues the federal government violated the National Environmental Policy Act and the Administrative Procedure Act by failing to conduct required environmental reviews and by not consulting the town before purchasing the property for $128 million. The town says the project would overwhelm water and sewer capacity, threaten a nearby elementary school serving 1,100 children, and create a public nuisance for residents. The complaint seeks a court order to vacate the purchase and halt any construction of the “mega center.”

The detention center is part of a $38.6 billion ICE initiative funded by the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, which aims to build eight similar facilities nationwide. Local officials have protested, even placing a lock on a utility box at the site, and have called on the court to stop the project.