Community demands officials step in to prevent ICE prison from opening in Marana

MARANA, Ariz. – Alyssa Perew walked out of Tortolita Middle School Thursday night holding a “Stop the Kidnappings” yard sign, a laminated card with a whistle tied to it that included instructions on what to do if you see immigration agents and a few flyers and pamphlets with information about some of the community groups that have been organizing to protect immigrant rights. 

Alyssa and her husband Andrew Perew were among about 200 people who attended the second community forum in Tucson to learn about a potential detention center opening in Marana, with community members demanding that the Town of Marana council do everything within their power to prevent it from potentially opening.

The gathering was organized by Pima Resists ICE (PRICE), a coalition of immigrant rights groups and organizers that was formed to fight back against the potential Marana detention center. 

Management and Training Corporation (MTC), which operates immigration detention and correctional facilities across the country, bought the former Marana prison in July from the Arizona Department of Administration for $15 million. MTC was the prison's previous owner before the state acquired it in 2013. The prison continued to operate until it was shuttered in 2023. 

While neither the company nor federal immigration officials have confirmed plans for the site, records have shown the company’s interest in moving forward.

In October, CALÓ News published a story that revealed MTC’s controversial track record — per numerous government oversight reports — including staffing shortfalls, medical neglect and poor facility conditions at five Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detention centers across the U.S. that the company manages.

Records obtained by ACLU of Arizona via a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request show that MTC intends to open an ICE detention center in the former prison and emails obtained by Arizona Luminaria show there has been some communication between town officials and MTC representatives, including questions about permitting and requirements to open an immigration detention center in the town.

CALÓ News reached out to MTC, requesting an interview and providing a series of questions regarding the corporation’s plans for the Marana property. 

“We are not taking interviews, but we are in discussions with several public agencies that may have a need for additional bed space,” Emily Lawhead, director of communications for MTC told CALÓ News in an email. “The facility’s capacity and configuration would ultimately depend on the specific needs and requirements of each agency.”

Asked whether she could elaborate on which agencies MTC is in conversation with, Lawhead replied, “While there has been speculation that the Marana facility will be used in partnership with ICE or for detention purposes, we have no contract in place and continue to explore opportunities with several prospective partners. That is all the public information we have to share at this time.”

CALÓ News also reached out to ICE to ask whether they’ve been in contact with MTC about opening an immigration detention center in the former Marana prison. 

In an email, Fernando Xavyer Burgos-Ortiz, spokesperson for ICE’s southwest region, said, “ICE does not discuss individual pre-decisional conversations, but when a new facility contract is finalized, information will be available on ICE.gov,” and added that as immigration enforcement continues across the country, the agency “has worked diligently to obtain greater necessary detention space.”

On Thursday, Pima County Supervisor Jen Allen moderated the community forum where a panel made up of immigration attorneys and representatives from The Florence Immigrant and Refugee Rights Project, ACLU Arizona, The Party for Socialism and Liberation in Tucson (PSL) and the O’odham Anti-Border Collective talked about some of the concerns they have with the possibility of a detention center in Marana. 

Panelists told stories of some of the migrants who are detained in immigration prisons. They also shared findings from their own research, from records requests they’ve made and published reports about the conditions in immigration detention centers. They also answered community members’ questions. Many of them amounted to: What can we do to stop this? 

‘Just the presence of it will create scars on this community’

The Perews are Marana residents and have lived in the town on and off since 2017, they said. 

“We wanted to… do what we could to stop the evil that's going on right now, so that we can say that we stood up and did something to help others,” Alyssa Perew said, before pausing and looking away, visibly emotional and concerned about the topic. 

Andrew Perew placed his hand on her shoulder and jumped in to share how he’s feeling. 

“One thing that's motivating me with all this is, a future generation is going to ask what people did at the time,” he said. “And I want to look my daughter in the eye and say that I did what I could.”

The Perews have an almost two-year-old daughter. They want Marana — where they’re raising her — to remain a vibrant community. 

“Mariana can be such a beautiful place. It's a beautiful, natural setting,” Alyssa said. “The community is amazing and just the presence of [a detention center] will create scars on this community that we don't know if they'll ever heal, and I don't want this place to become like that.”

During the forum, Liz Casey, a social worker with The Florence Project who documents conditions inside immigration detention centers, repeated what someone said at the first community forum in late October: that people don’t visit Eloy or Florence to shop or for vacation. Those towns are known as prison towns, with numerous correctional facilities and ICE detention centers in both southern Arizona towns.

“Marana will be undesirable,” Casey said. “We will be hearing about deaths, we’ll be hearing about medical neglect. And I assume that is not something that the town wants.” 

She said local leaders can make a statement that they do not want a detention center in their town.

Vic Hathaway, communications manager for the Town of Marana, told CALÓ News this week that there are no updates on whether MTC is moving forward with opening an immigration detention center. “We have no jurisdiction over the facility.”

Noah Schramm, Immigrants' Rights and Border Policy Strategist with the ACLU of Arizona, countered the argument from some locals about the center being good for the local economy, saying the ACLU reviewed economic studies regarding prisons and detention centers and found that research consistently shows that there is no broad economic benefit to communities where prisons exist. 

“Instead, their impacts tend to be localized [to the facility] and even often negative, especially for neighborhoods closest to the site,” Schramm said. “Studies also find declines in housing values, few or no gains in private sector employment, no improvement in per-capita income and limited or non-existent benefits for local businesses.”

Residents demand town council step up

Mary Romer, a member of PRICE, shared the FOIA information before the meeting began.

“So far, no further emails between MTC and the Marana town council have taken place,” Romer said. “We have learned that there's a pending meeting between the Marana mayor and MTC, and we know that federal funds in the billions will be unleashed in January for mass abductions. So, in the question of how to stop this detention center from opening, we believe it's up to the town council.”

President Donald Trump’s “Big Beautiful Bill,” which he signed in July, allocated more than $100 billion to ICE and border enforcement through September 2029. That funding includes $45 billion to build new immigration detention centers. 

The state and Pima County don’t have authority over the facility, “and therefore cannot stop the opening,” Romer said. 

“The town of Marina will not rezone this land due to fear of a lawsuit from MTC,” Romer continued. “However, permits for renovations and construction, as well as a business license, have not yet been requested or granted. We are working now to apply extensive pressure on the town council.”

PRICE has asked the town council to use any leverage it can to influence MTC to choose a different purpose for this facility.

“We believe that the Marana town council will be able to stop the opening of this detention center that we do not want,” Romer said. “We have been told that MTC, Management Training Corporation, is sensitive to public opinion… let’s make public opinion be known.” 

Alyssa Perew said she plans to remain engaged in the fight against the center and wants her elected officials to do the same.

“They need to use every ounce of the power and influence they have to stop something that will not just haunt us in the future but our children and grandchildren,” she said. “We can put an end to it now.”