US plan for office stirs up anxiety
Holding cells upset some residents

Globe Staff / November 15, 2007
emoskowitz@globe.com.

www.boston.com


With federal immigration officials on the cusp of relocating their regional headquarters to Burlington, town officials are trying to gain last-minute answers about the project and address the anxiety and even anger that has surfaced as word of the facility has spread.

more stories like this"It's really turned into quite a mess," said Albert L. Fay Jr., chairman of the Board of Selectmen. "It's a hornet's nest that's stirred up."

Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the largest investigative branch of the Department of Homeland Security, is putting the finishing touches on a renovated 43,000-square-foot office building off Burlington Mall Road that it will use largely as an administrative office and regional headquarters but also as a temporary holding center for as many as 40 illegal immigrants who are being processed.

Because the use did not require a vote by the Planning Board or other officials, the project proceeded quietly for more than a year.

But suddenly it has taken the town - or, at least, official town gatherings - by storm. In the past two weeks, concerned residents have peppered officials with questions, protested a lack of information, accused the federal government of duping the town, and pressed for a way to stall the project or divert the detention component. Residents have spoken out at meetings of the selectmen and the Planning Board and at an all-issues session hosted by US Representative John F. Tierney.

To try to address the questions and concerns of residents, town officials this week were trying to schedule a community forum that they hoped would include a representative from ICE to explain more about the intended operations at the facility. As of Tuesday afternoon, the meeting had not been scheduled.

Meanwhile, Police Chief Fran Hart has tried to reassure the town by explaining that the ICE headquarters will include state-of-the-art security features, that detainees will be held for only a few hours at a time, that the building will appear to be a nondescript office center, and that the surrounding area is a commercial zone and not a residential area - in short, that it should be less onerous, and will have fewer negative features, than the typical suburban police station.

In an interview with the Globe this week, an ICE official elaborated on the plans and stressed that the facility is not a detention center. About 120 employees will work in the building, which will house ICE's Office of Detention and Removal Operations, said Todd Thurlow, acting deputy field office director for ICE in New England. Detention and Removal Operations is currently housed at the John F. Kennedy Federal Office Building in Boston.

The office processes about 75 people a week who have been accused of violating immigration laws, Thurlow said. Roughly one-third have existing criminal records, and the remainder are undocumented immigrants who have committed no other crimes, he said.

After being identified, the individuals spend an average of one to two hours each in the office for processing before they are taken to holding facilities to await the handling of their legal cases, Thurlow said. ICE contracts with local corrections centers for that part of the process, he said.

Thurlow said ICE officials would be happy to attend a community forum to discuss the office, which they plan to open before the end of the year.

Sonia Rollins, a member of the Board of Selectmen, said she appreciates the concerns of those worried about the safety of the facility and its appropriateness for Burlington. She said selectmen are trying to address those concerns while learning more about the project and trying to minimize speculation and rumor.

Much of the anguish could have been avoided if ICE had contacted the town and clearly explained its plans at the outset. "It would have just been, for sure, a nice-to-know," Rollins said.

Thurlow said the federal General Services Administration, not ICE, handled the acquisition, permitting, and renovation of the building, based on ICE's needs and in accordance with local bylaws. "We're more than willing to speak with the community if requested to do so, and we have in the past," he said.

Lou Rubino, a Town Meeting member and vocal critic of the project, said a forum with federal officials is unnecessary. "We don't want to talk to ICE so they can quote-unquote 'educate' us," Rubino said. "We got it. We know what they're going to do."

Rubino has called for the town to avoid granting a certificate of occupancy to ICE as a way to stall the project. He said he is concerned that the facility could process suspected terrorists or dangerous criminals; even the slightest risk of escape makes the facility a bad fit for Burlington, he said. He cites the lack of information as a reason to suspect that the nature of the facility could evolve in a negative way.

But not all residents who have spoken out about the project oppose it. Sam Martorano, who called Town Hall to express his support, said he understands why people are upset.

"Nobody likes a surprise," he said. But he supports the enforcement of immigration laws and considers the location to be appropriate for a secure facility.

"Our jail" - the police station, with overnight holding cells - "is right next door to our library, and nobody complains about our jail being there," Martorano said.

Robert Murray, a local property owner, purchased the building and 2.7-acre lot for $4.75 million in 2005, according to town records. It sits in the New England Executive Park, between the Burlington Mall and the Lahey Clinic.

Building inspector John Clancy, whose office would issue the certificate of occupancy, made the original ruling that the interior plans constituted an "office use," and thus would not need further review or special permit. The town counsel agreed, given that less than 5 percent of the plans show holding rooms.

"It's 98 percent office space," Clancy said of the plans. "It [also] has restrooms, a coffee break room - the typical things that an office space has - and it has a small area for holding rooms."

Some, including Rubino and Selectmen Walter T. Zenkin and Ralph C. Patuto, disagree.

"What was proposed as administrative offices is clearly different than what is happening now," said Zenkin, who also said he wants to consider revising the zoning code as a possible way to prevent the detention component of this project or provide greater review of other projects in the future.