The City of Southfield is at the center of a new immigration dispute over plans to lease office space to lawyers for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
According to the lease agreement with the U.S. General Services Administration, the office space would be designated for general office use and would not permit law-enforcement or detention activities at the property owned by REDICO in Southfield.
However, members of the newly formed Southfield Neighbors Action Committee say they don’t want any ICE presence in their community.
“The lawyers who are doing the bureaucratic work that decide the legal size for a cage for a child or for an adult,” said Cameron Fink, a co-founder of the group, “and when they can arrest people, what countries they can deport them to – we feel like those are also equally wrong.”
Supporters of immigration enforcement argue the agency’s legal offices are a routine part of the federal immigration system and help process cases through immigration courts.
If the attorneys do move in, Fink said, his group plans to continue protesting daily, and community members who have office space there say they plan to move out.
Protest organizers say they have raised concerns with the property owner about the lease. However, Fink said they’ve been repeatedly told that Redico will not – and cannot – cancel the lease. However, he added that his group is getting support from city officials.
“So far we have heard, pretty consistently, from many city council members and the mayor that they are also unhappy with ICE operating in our town,” he added.
Nationwide, ICE’s legal division includes more than 1,700 attorneys working out of offices in cities across the United States.
Publisher’s Notes: ICE lawyers plan to lease office in Southfield; residents push back was first published on Public News Service and was republished with permission.
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CLARIFICATION: After publication, REDICO informed us that the lease referenced in this story is with the U.S. General Services Administration rather than directly with ICE. The company said the agreement is for general office use and prohibits law-enforcement or detention activities at the property. (12:02 p.m. CST, Mar. 11, 2026)
Cover Photo: Canva