SAN ANTONIO – Despite a report that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is considering a move into a North Side facility, the building’s owner has dismissed the rumor in interviews with KSAT.
WIRED, a technology magazine, reported last week that ICE is “considering a move” into a building located at 15727 Anthem Parkway near Interstate 10 and Loop 1604.
Recommended Videos
The outlet cited federal documents as part of its report on a larger, “secret campaign to expand ICE’s physical presence across the U.S.”
Citing the magazine’s reporting, other San Antonio outlets indicated this week that ICE is expanding, or could expand, its footprint further in the Alamo City.
However, an executive with Tourmaline Capital Partners, the building’s owner, says that is not currently the case.
“The reporting is not correct. ICE is not, and will not be, leasing space at Landmark One building at 15727 Anthem Parkway,“ the executive, who asked not to be named, wrote Tuesday in an email response to KSAT’s inquiry about the reports. ”I have no idea how that rumor started, but I can assure you it is not correct."
In follow-up phone interviews, the executive estimated the General Services Administration (GSA), which helps federal agencies acquire office space, had toured the building sometime in the last three to six months.
The executive said they would not have known whether the agency had been looking on ICE’s behalf, but said there were no lease negotiations or an active lease going on.
“They’re not leasing space with us in any capacity, whether it’s ICE or another sub-agency,” the executive said.
However, they also couldn’t say for certain the feds wouldn’t try to lease space later.
“I have no idea what they are considering, I just want to be clear. We are not in discussions with them to lease space in our building.”
KSAT has also reached out to CBRE Real Estate, which manages the leasing for the building, for more information.
Approximately two weeks ago, ICE confirmed that it acquired a facility on the East Side, located at Oakmont 410, to hold immigrant detainees.
The federal agency said in a statement that the Oakmont facility wouldn’t be a warehouse but rather a “very well-structured” detention facility.
In late January, D Magazine reported that ICE purchased a 1-million-square-foot facility in Hutchins, Texas. The building’s owner, Majestic Reality, told KSAT Tuesday it had not leased or sold the facility to the agency and would not in the future.
Majestic Reality’s full statement can be read below:
“While we were contacted about the potential sale of our building in Hutchins, Texas, Majestic Realty Co. has not and will not enter into any agreement for the purchase or lease of any building to the Department of Homeland Security for use as a detention facility. We’re grateful for the long-term relationship we have with Mayor Mario Vasquez and the City of Hutchins and look forward to continuing our work to find a buyer or lease tenant that will help drive economic growth.”
Read also: