U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has purchased a warehouse in Salt Lake City for detention purposes, the agency confirmed on Friday, raising questions for what it means for Nevada, which falls under the same enforcement region.  

A property deed, recorded with the Salt Lake County Recorder's office on March 11, shows that the agency purchased a warehouse west of the Salt Lake City International Airport for $145 million. It has been widely reported that ICE is buying warehouses to use as detention centers, purchasing new facilities everywhere from Pennsylvania to Maryland.

The purchase of the warehouse could significantly bolster detention capacity in the region — ICE's Salt Lake Field Office oversees agency operations in Nevada, Montana and Idaho. The office, led by former U.S. Customs and Border Protection official Brian Henkey, is charged with making the majority of ICE arrests and detentions in the region. 

Henkey's leadership has elicited concerns from immigration activists that ICE may use more aggressive tactics in the region. The Border Patrol is known for a more paramilitary culture relative to ICE, which is seen as more circumspect. 

ICE did not respond to a question asking to confirm the capacity but said that the facility would bring in more than $238 million in tax revenue. 

"These will be very well-structured detention facilities meeting our regular detention standards. Sites will undergo community impact studies and a rigorous due diligence process," an ICE spokesperson told The Indy. 

The warehouse purchase, which has faced significant pushback in Salt Lake City, has also elicited some concerns from local officials about what it could mean for Nevada. 

"We're a part of the Salt Lake City region for immigration enforcement, so it is concerning to see the expansion of this property for ICE," Assm. Selena Torres-Fossett (D-Las Vegas) told The Indy in an interview. Torres-Fossett has long pushed to expand protections for immigrants, including blocking local collaborations with ICE.

The confirmation of the long-rumored purchase in Utah also further raises questions about ICE's plan to expand detention capacity in Nevada. ICE frequently transfers detainees from facility to facility, with more than a thousand transfers from the Salt Lake City area to Nevada in 2025, per the Los Angeles Times. Michael Kagan, the director of the UNLV immigration clinic, said that the new facility could enable ICE to detain many more people from Nevada. 

ICE also plans on opening a new detention center in Arizona, which Kagan said would place the Las Vegas area in a "triangle of large detention centers."

"Salt Lake City and Phoenix are roughly five hour drives away," Kagan told The Nevada Independent. "Someone could be detained, arrested by ICE in the morning in Las Vegas and be in one of these detention centers by that evening."

It also comes as there has been rumored detention expansion within the state itself. A Washington Post story from this summer found that ICE has considered adding up to 450 new beds at Nevada's main detention facility, the Nevada Southern Detention Center, which could nearly double the state's detention capacity. Kagan added that many of the detainees in that center come from Utah and Montana. 

"It's not just a question of whether Nevadans will be sent to Utah," he said. "Its also a question of overall capacity in the region."

Torres-Fossett said that such expansion is part of "the reality" she has come to expect. In the 2025 special session, there was a failed attempt to require legislative approval for the expansion of any immigration detention facilities. 

"The Trump administration has consistently said that they are working to expand the amount of detention centers and just overall capacity for detention centers." Torres-Fossett added. "I'm hopeful that we won't have similar expenses like expansions of detention centers immediately in our community."