Leavenworth, Kansas approved the reopening of the Midwest Regional Reception Center as a new ICE detention center on Tuesday after a year-long process. 

The city commission voted 4-1 allowing CoreCivic to have a special use permit to reopen its private prison facility in partnership with Homeland Security. The company’s previous prison was closed in 2021 due to understaffing and poor conditions.

The city’s decision to approve the ICE detention center stands in stark contrast to the virulent opposition the federal agency has received in Kansas City on both sides of the state line, where Democrat officials have taken steps to bar the facilities.

Over one hundred residents gathered in front of city hall before and during the meeting, most to protest ICE, holding signs or taking turns speaking at a podium. 

In contrast, Kansas City, Kansas resident Charles Johnson and his wife both work for the company and said his family used to struggle financially but now for the first time he can see a future for himself. 

“This job has truly changed our lives. … For the first time we feel stable, we feel secure.”

Johnson described his coworkers as caring and focused on doing the right thing. 

Another CoreCivic employee from Leavenworth agreed, saying a lot of his coworkers are very compassionate and that he sees his job as an opportunity to “set a positive example from within.” 

“It’s not my role to judge those in my care, but it is my responsibility to perform my duties to the best of my ability,” he said. “I recognize there are a lot of emotions involved with this complex issue. However, regardless of different viewpoints, we can still choose to treat one another with kindness and compassion.” 

Most of the speakers at the meeting urged the commissioners to vote against the facility, communicating their distrust of both CoreCivic and ICE. 

“Let’s be honest, it’s clear it’s going to be an ICE detention center, right?” city resident David Benitez asked. “Is that organization keen on following the law? On making sure that those they capture are held in safety and well-being? No, they are not.”

Some of the critics called the facility a slave center, claiming the city faced a choice between human rights or financial security. “Please don’t allow Leavenworth to become Auschwitz,” one resident pleaded, comparing immigration enforcement to the Holocaust. 

During the time for the board to address the public, two ICE opponents interrupted the proceedings on separate occasions and had to be escorted out of the meeting by officers. 

“I am VERY curious how many people that protested CoreCivic under the guise of human rights, due process and respect of your community, were arrested due to unacceptable outbursts…” Patrick Manning commented on a commission Facebook post. 

One of the protesters disrupted the meeting by shouting “Fuck ICE” repeatedly, with the group of people waiting outside the building applauding him as he was arrested. 

Despite the opponents’ antics and over-the-top rhetoric, resident and CoreCivic employee Michelle Bridges brought a different viewpoint. 

“Five generations of my family call this place home. Because of that, the safety of this community isn’t an afterthought to me, it’s personal. It’s about my family, my neighbors, and the people I’ve grown up with my entire life.” 

Bridges exuded confidence in the company’s ability to bring more safety to the Leavenworth area. She also expressed the city’s need for stable jobs with good wages, which she attests CoreCivic will provide. 

“People deserve the chance to come home in time for dinner, to attend their children’s school events, to rest and to breathe,” she said. “That is what a decent-paying job gives a family – the gift of time, stability and peace of mind.”

Mayor Nancy Bauder pointed out that Leavenworth didn’t have a permit process when CoreCivic was there before. Now, the three-year special use permit lists 17 conditions the company must agree to in order to maintain its presence in the city. 

As regulated by the permit, only adults will be detained in the facility and no prisoners will be released in Leavenworth unless they lived there before incarceration. CoreCivic must abide by specific staffing and capacity regulations as well as state and federal laws. 

Commissioner Holly Pittman said the permit process has secured the city “stronger oversight, clearer guardrails, and a significant financial concession that protects our taxpayers moving forward. …

“Tonight’s vote is about a special use permit. It is not a vote on federal immigration policy, it is not a vote on national politics, it is not a vote on whether you or I like or dislike CoreCivic.”

Mayor Pro Tem Rebecca Hollister was the only “no” vote on the issue, saying her position was due to the lack of cooperation from the company in 2025 and existing issues at current CoreCivic facilities.

“With the knowledge I have right now, I just do not have sufficient faith that their operation would meet all of the golden factors and development regulations,” Hollister justified. “I hope I’m wrong, and I think that’s possible.”

One public commenter against the facility claimed enforcing immigration law is against the American ideals of liberty and equality.

“What a shame that the ones voting for this slave center to reopen don’t represent what she stood for,” the man said, noting a replica of the Statue of Liberty outside city hall. “The American ideals of liberty and equality serve as a beacon of hope and a welcoming figure for immigrants worldwide. The broken shackles and chains at her feet symbolize the end of slavery, oppression, and bondage.”