Detention Center Nicknamed "Alligator Alcatraz" Set to Open in Everglades, Sparking Debate

Donald Trump's second term as president has had a large focus on immigration in his first few months in office. As such, some of his supporters have rallied around the idea of increased migrant detention centers, like the one nicknamed Alligator Alcatraz. This 5,000-bed facility is being hyped by lawmakers in some circles, who wish to see Trump's vision for an immigration crackdown come to fruition.

However, not everyone is on board with the idea of the facility, and some are proposing it for moral and ecological reasons. Where is Alligator Alcatraz being built? Keep reading to find out, and to learn when it's expected to begin taking detainees.

The alterative detention center is going to be built in the Florida Everglades, according to NBC News, who documented some of the details of the facility.

According to the publication, Governor Ron DeSantis has been pushing to get the holding center up and running, and quickly received approval from the Department of Homeland Security, which will likely reimburse DeSantis for some of the $450 million it's expected to cost each year.

Thanks to the name of the building and the political hype surrounding it, the Republican Party of Florida has reportedly started to use it as a fundraising tool, and they are even selling branded merchandize for the facility.

As for the exact location of the immigration detention center, it looks like it is being set up on an airstrip in Miami-Dade County. According to NBC News, DeSantis seized the property using emergency powers, which he has been extending since 2023.

But, despite the national attention the facility is getting, not everyone is on board with the idea. In fact, protesters were quick to get involved, and at least one group had filed legal paperwork to try and prevent the facility from ever opening, which DeSantis says will likely take place at the start of July 2025.

The executive director of the Friends of the Florida Everglades group shared a statement NBC News about her organization's legal objections to the facility.

“The site is more than 96 percent wetlands, surrounded by Big Cypress National Preserve, and is habitat for the endangered Florida panther and other iconic species,” Eve Samples said in a statement. “This scheme is not only cruel, it threatens the Everglades ecosystem that state and federal taxpayers have spent billions to protect.”

Samples' group isn't the only one suing, either. NBC News says that that multiple lawsuits have been filed to try and stop the facility from being built.

The Everglades are actually part of the National Park Service. According to the government's website, the Calusa Indians called the Everglades home prior to the arrival of the Spanish in 1513.

While developers have tried to make traditional housing communities a thing in the area for decades, there are only a few homes where people live fulltime. According to The Parklander, most of those are owned by the state, with new builds strictly prohibited in the area.