ICE Expands Milwaukee Footprint with New Northwest Facility

(MILWAUKEE, WISCONSIN) The U.S. Department of Homeland Security is moving ahead with a plan that could reshape immigration enforcement in southeastern Wisconsin: a new U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) office on Milwaukee’s northwest side, even as the agency extends its Knapp Street lease downtown. City records show work at 11925 W. Lake Park Drive has been underway since at least spring 2023, with renovations ongoing and an application for an occupancy permit submitted in recent weeks.

At the same time, the current office at 310 E. Knapp St.—a building leased from the Milwaukee School of Engineering—will remain open at least through April 2026, with options to extend through 2028. That dual-track approach raises a practical question: Will ICE run both the new Milwaukee facility and the Knapp Street site at once?

Purpose and staffing of the new northwest office

The stakes are high because the new site is billed as the main southeastern Wisconsin office for enforcement officers and support staff. The agency has told local officials the facility will host 29 ICE officers and staff and keep regular daytime hours, typically until 5 p.m.

• It’s framed as a processing hub for two groups:
  • People who are not detained but must check in with ICE.
  • People who are briefly held for transfer to county jails under ICE contracts.

There is no sign either location will hold people overnight. Instead, those taken into custody are moved to county jails that contract with ICE, including Dodge, Brown, and Sauk counties.

Timeline, permits, and public information

The U.S. General Services Administration had projected the northwest site might open in October 2025, but as of early October there’s no official confirmation of that date. Inspections are still pending, and occupancy approval has not been granted.

• City documents point to steady progress, but neither ICE nor DHS has provided detailed updates.
• The Milwaukee Common Council has pressed for answers, and immigrant advocacy groups continue to ask basic questions about timing, scope, and public access to information.

If both locations do operate at once, the arrangement could be temporary while ICE tests the new site and settles into operations. The Knapp Street lease extension, secured through at least April 2026, gives the federal agency room to calibrate. MSOE, the building owner, has said it will reassess future plans next year after the federal government clarifies its intentions.

Facility design and local concerns

Local residents and officials who oppose ICE expansion into a new neighborhood have focused on more than just the lease. Key design elements include:

• Proposed eight-foot chain-link fence with privacy slats
• A sally port — a secure, vehicle-accessible entrance used to bring people in custody in and out

These features signal that the design is built for both administrative work and short-duration transfers. Even critics concede the plans don’t point to long-term detention, but they say the physical changes, combined with the extra staffing, could still boost arrest and transfer activity in Milwaukee.

Recent trends in arrests and detention

This fear is not abstract. ICE arrests in Wisconsin have climbed this year, with high-profile operations in Madison and Manitowoc in September and October. Nationally, detention bookings rose from 24,696 in August 2024 to 36,713 in June 2025, part of a broader shift toward more detention and longer holds.

Policy analysts tracking the trend say the direction is clear: deeper local cooperation and more time in custody for people in removal proceedings. The result, they argue, is a wider enforcement net that reaches further into daily life.

How county contracts fit into the system

At the local level, that network is built on county contracts and formal agreements.

• 13 sheriff’s offices in Wisconsin now participate in ICE’s 287(g) Program.
• Counties such as Brown, Sauk, and Ozaukee have recently expanded or adjusted agreements to move and hold people for ICE.
• Those counties receive direct payments for their services.

For context, ICE describes the 287(g) framework as a tool to identify and place people into removal after they’re booked on criminal or traffic charges by local police and sheriffs. Readers can learn more about the program on ICE’s official page for the 287(g) Program.

This structure makes one part of the ICE expansion in Milwaukee easy to picture: the northwest office channels people to those county facilities. In some cases, those jails have reached or exceeded their set capacity for ICE detainees, especially at Dodge County.

Operational guidance and consequences

According to policy summaries shared with local leaders, ICE’s internal guidance now tells officers to keep people detained during their removal cases, which in many situations means no access to bond hearings. That combines the physical capacity of county jails with policy choices that extend time in custody, and it has real consequences for families who must arrange:

• Childcare
• Legal help
• Cost-of-living expenses while a parent or partner remains in jail for weeks or months

Immigration lawyers say the first 10 days after arrest are critical for gathering documents and securing legal help; long drives between jails and offices make that window even tighter.

What the new northwest site will do (summary)

On paper, the Milwaukee facility near Lake Park Drive is designed for check-ins and processing, not long-term detention.

• People on orders of supervision or other reporting requirements will come to the office during normal hours.
• Those taken into custody in the region may be transported there briefly, then moved to county jails under contract.
• The sally port and fencing are meant to control transfers and keep the premises secure.

City records show planning has been in motion since spring 2023, but interior work and staff planning remain out of public view. An occupancy permit is the major milestone ahead; the GSA’s October 2025 target has not been confirmed and now lacks a clear endpoint.

Staffing and budget context

The staffing plan is modest in headcount but broad in reach. With 29 officers and staff, the office becomes the day-to-day hub for federal enforcement across southeastern Wisconsin.

• Functions likely include intake, case management, transport coordination, and recordkeeping.
• ICE’s annual budget has approached $30 billion, and agency leaders have discussed hiring 10,000 more agents nationwide — factors that influence field-office activity.

Advocates note other numbers: undocumented residents in Wisconsin pay more than $198 million each year in state and local taxes, according to groups that track tax flow and household spending. Many of those taxpayers also fear increased enforcement contact.

Politics, proposed state bills, and local pushback

The political context adds pressure. Two bills moving through the Wisconsin Legislature — Assembly Bill 24 and Senate Bill 57 — would require more cooperation between local police and ICE, deepening what immigrant families call the “jail-to-deportation” pipeline.

• Supporters say the bills help public safety.
• Opponents say the bills make families afraid to report crimes, seek help, or attend school and medical events.
• As of October 2025, both bills are still pending.

Locally, several Milwaukee Common Council members and County Supervisors have expressed strong opposition to the growth of local ICE infrastructure. Advocacy groups such as Voces de la Frontera, the ACLU of Wisconsin, and the Milwaukee African American Roundtable have raised alarms, held meetings, and urged residents to attend public hearings and monitor permitting steps.

Communication gaps and community requests

Federal officials have offered few details to ease concerns. Questions sent to ICE and DHS about opening dates, dual-site operations, and staffing have gone unanswered in recent weeks. City officials say they’re working with the normal inspection and occupancy process but do not have more specifics to share.

Local leaders and advocates have proposed steps to soften the impact:

• Clear public hours posted in advance
• A hotline for families to check transfer status
• Multilingual notices for any move from the downtown site to the new address
• Public briefings from ICE prior to opening day

As of now, those requests have not produced public-facing plans. Analyses by VisaVerge.com note that unclear timelines leave people guessing about where and when to report, which can lead to missed check-ins and added stress.

Practical guidance for affected individuals (three points)

For people with direct ties to ICE in southeastern Wisconsin, three practical points stand out:

1. The downtown site at 310 E. Knapp St. remains open, and the Knapp Street lease runs at least through April 2026.
2. The new address at 11925 W. Lake Park Drive is not yet open to the public; inspections and occupancy approval are still pending.
3. When the new office does open, it will not hold people overnight; those in custody will continue to move to county jails that contract with ICE.

People with reporting requirements should watch for appointment notices that list the location, date, and time. Families concerned about transfers can contact county jails directly to check if a loved one has arrived. Community groups encourage neighbors to attend council and county board sessions to ask questions on the record and request regular updates.

System strain and human impact

Reports from county jails suggest capacity has been tested; some facilities have briefly exceeded their set number of ICE beds. In that environment, policies directing agents to keep more people detained can lead to:

• Longer holds and more shuffling between counties
• Missed rent and income for families
• Difficulty securing legal representation
• Emotional strain for community members who must attend check-ins and carry proof of stability

Even routine check-ins carry emotional weight. The new facility’s secure setup may make those visits feel heavier, even if procedures remain the same.

Possible near-term scenarios

Milwaukee’s immediate future will likely include both visible construction at 11925 W. Lake Park Drive and steady foot traffic at 310 E. Knapp St.

• If the new office opens while the downtown site remains active, the city may experience a period of adjustment marked by mixed messages and trial runs.
• People with appointments could receive notices for either location, and security procedures may differ slightly between sites.

Closing takeaway

In the midst of uncertainty, one constant stands out: the system depends on trust.

For the federal government, trust grows when the public gets clear dates, simple instructions, and open lines of communication. For local leaders, trust builds when residents see their concerns reflected in oversight and policy debate. For families, trust rests on a steady routine—school drop-offs, paychecks, and check-ins that go as expected.

As the ICE expansion moves forward, Milwaukee faces a test of how to balance federal enforcement with local values. The coming months will answer basic questions about when the new office opens, whether both sites will run at once, and how the shift affects arrests and transfers. Until then, the city lives in the space between a signed lease and a sealed occupancy permit, between words on a plan and the daily lives those plans will touch.