Trump Visits $450 Million 'Alligator Alcatraz,' Suggests Taxpayers Should Fund More of Them

Only eight days after construction began, and 12 days after Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier released a video on X announcing plans for an immigration detention center in the Everglades, “Alligator Alcatraz” will officially open this week. The site, which was visited by President Donald Trump and Florida Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis on Tuesday, puts Florida at the forefront of the federal government’s mass deportation campaign.

The state-run immigration detention facility is planned to eventually hold up to 5,000 detainees and will be capable of processing and deporting migrants to speed up deportations amid the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown. The 30-square-mile parcel of land was chosen in part for its unused airstrip—and for its alligator- and python-laden surroundings serving as cheap security and deterrence. “They ain’t going anywhere once they are there…because good luck getting to civilization,” DeSantis said during a news conference on Monday. “The security is amazing. Natural and otherwise.”

During the tour of the facility, DeSantis added that Florida should not be the only state but should serve as a model. “We need other states to step up,” he said.

Trump called out California Gov. Gavin Newsom specifically, saying the Democratic governor could “learn something” about curbing illegal immigration. DeSantis pointed out that California is home to the original Alcatraz, implying that it, too, could be outfitted as an immigration detention center. Although both the president and DeSantis were quick to say Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Kristi Noem would be able to find funding for additional immigration detention centers, the cost and source of funding for these facilities merit further scrutiny, particularly since ultimately taxpayers are footing the bill. 

While touted as an “efficient, low-cost opportunity to build a temporary detention facility” in Uthmeier’s original video about the facility, Florida’s new facility is expected to cost $450 million to operate for a single year. A DHS official told CNN that Florida will fund the operation of the facility and then “submit reimbursement requests” through the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and DHS. Secretary Noem said that Alligator Alcatraz and other approved detention facilities in the state will be funded “in large part” by $625 million set aside by the FEMA Shelter and Services Program.

The project has faced objections from local residents and government officials, including Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava, who opposed using county-owned land for the project. After Levine Cava requested an environmental impact report and updated land appraisal, DeSantis seized the land under emergency powers in place since 2023.

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