Border Patrol opens 153,000-square-foot migrant processing facility in El Paso

The Border Patrol opened a 153,000-square-foot facility in El Paso, Texas, that will have the capacity to hold 1,000 migrants. Customs and Border Protection said the facility’s primary purpose is to safely and expeditiously process individuals in Border Patrol custody.

The new center is weatherproof, climate controlled and will also provide space for eating, sleeping and personal hygiene. This is in addition to another 1,000 person facility the agency opened in the fall of 2020. 

The announcement comes just a few days after President Biden visited El Paso and promised local officials and Border Patrol agents that he would get them the resources they need. 

El Paso city officials have been pleading for the federal government’s help. Immigration exploded in the area the week of Dec. 12 when they averaged nearly 2,500 migrant crossings per day. That put a major strain on the city’s resources, as more than 10,000 migrants were released into the community. Migrants were then left to sleep on the streets overnight in freezing temperatures.

“We have been talking to the federal government for many, many years and letting them know — look, we should not be forcing local taxpayers to pick up the burden, the financial burden, of this federal issue,” El Paso County Commissioner David Stout said in an interview with Straight Arrow News in October.

Breaking!  Over the weekend, the El Paso Sector experienced a major surge in illegal crossings, with a 3-day average of 2,460 daily encounters, primarily through the downtown area of El Paso.  We will continue to keep the public informed as the situation evolves. pic.twitter.com/V2pOO6Y31N

— Anthony “Scott” Good (@USBPChiefEPT) December 12, 2022

Last week, President Biden announced his administration is expanding an immigrant parole program for immigrants from Venezuela, Cuba, Nicaragua and Haiti effective immediately, citizens from those countries who cross the border illegally or arrive at a port of entry unannounced will be deported to Mexico, which has agreed to accept returns of 30,000 people per month. Under the program, the United States will welcome 30,000 individuals per month who will be allowed to live and work in the United States for two years. But if they try to cross illegally they will not be eligible for the new legal pathway.

“If you’re trying to leave Cuba, Nicaragua or Haiti, or have agreed to begin a journey to America, do not, do not just show up at the border. Stay where you are and apply legally from there,” President Biden said.

Two days before Biden’s visit, the Border Patrol announced it will begin construction on new sections of the border wall in Arizona where the state had installed shipping containers. That project is scheduled to be completed this summer.