Construction to resume on proposed ICE facility in Elkridge, Maryland

The attorney for the company building out a proposed facility for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in Elkridge, Maryland, is pleased construction can continue.

U.S. District Court Judge Adam Abelson reinstated the building's permits Monday after Genesis GSA Strategic One LLC sued Howard County.

Michael Edney, the attorney who represented Genesis, argued the county illegally revoked the permits. Also arguing the county obstructed the federal government's authority.

During the case, Edney had to center his arguments on a state statute the county said was the reason for the revocation.

Howard County Council's chair reiterated Tuesday what the county's lawyers have argued in court: that the county was following the law.

"The legal system worked"

After sitting for months, the building at 6522 Meadowbridge Road is set to become a new office for ICE.

"If this decision has not come down in our direction, I think it would've been a signal that Maryland is not a particularly safe place to do business today. The legal system worked," Edney said.

Edney said Genesis had invested over $21 million by the time the permits were revoked. Noting the company was picked by the Biden administration for this project, he said politics unnecessarily became part of the situation.

"To plug the project into the political turmoil that certain Democrat leaders have about [the Trump] administration -- I think it's bad government, it's bad politics, and it's unfair," Edney said.

Aside from reinstating the permits, Abelson also ruled a state statute couldn't be enforced on the building. This statute in question requires a public comment period of at least 180 days before permit approval for buildings with immigration detention.

Edney has pointed to the building's plans during hearings in this case, that the building will mostly function as an ICE office building and only a small portion would be used to detain people.

"This is primarily an office building for hundreds of U.S. government employees that were working in Downtown Baltimore," Edney said. "It was never gonna be some kind of overnight jail for hundreds of immigrant detainees."

Public outcry

The facility became the focal point of a rallying cry by many in the Howard County community.

Howard County Executive Calvin Ball announced the building's permits were revoked in February. Then, in about a week's time, Howard County Council passed a private immigration detention center ban that was quickly signed into law.

Ball and his chief of staff would not comment on Abelson's ruling at a news conference Monday.

Meanwhile, county council's chair Opel Jones maintained the county just followed the rules.

"We all have a code, whether it's a local code, Maryland code -- when it comes to these facilities being in neighborhoods and amongst people," Jones said. "I thought that would have weighed more heavily."

Jones adds he will be connecting with his colleagues to determine if there's anything that could be done about the ruling.

The Office of the Attorney General also declined to comment on the ruling. It also defended the state statute in court.