Construction has begun at Fort Bliss in El Paso, Texas, on the nation’s largest immigration detention facility — a $1.2 billion project that could eventually house up to 5,000 illegal immigrants.
The Trump administration awarded a roughly $1.2 billion contract to Virginia-based Acquisition Logistics Company to build and operate the tent complex, including $232 million contributed by the Army, per Bloomberg.
The Department of Homeland Security described the site in a performance work statement as a “staging facility” that will “supervise aliens pending their removal from the United States.”
The memo added that the facility will start with 1,000 beds, with 250 beds added incrementally until full capacity is reached.
“The contractor shall design and recommend a housing configuration that promotes safety and security and aligns with ICE detention standards and policies regarding housing detainees by classification and sex,” the department wrote.
The camp will consist of temporary, soft-sided housing spread across roughly 60 acres at Fort Bliss, an active Army base that has previously supported border operations and illegal immigrant housing.
Operations will be managed by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), though it remains unclear whether U.S. troops will be involved beyond possible perimeter security.
When contacted for comment, ICE confirmed that detainees will be held at Fort Bliss but noted that other options are also under consideration.
“ICE is indeed pursuing all available options to expand bedspace capacity. This process does include housing detainees at certain military bases, including Fort Bliss,” the agency told Border Report.
The Trump administration’s broader immigration enforcement strategy has increasingly involved the Department of Defense, with active-duty troops providing security and logistical support at the border.
These developments come shortly after the Pentagon announced that 1,700 troops would be deployed to the southern border to assist ICE units, as previously reported by The Dallas Express.