The federal government has “tentatively” agreed to offset almost $1 million in tax revenue lost when a company sold its Schuylkill County warehouse to be used to temporarily house those people rounded up by Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

It’s one more baby step toward a fair shake for the county, Tremont Township and the Pine Grove Area School District.

But county commissioners want that verbal agreement in tangible form, as a written promise.

“There’s tentative verbal (agreements), said Commissioners Chairman Larry J. Padora. “I want them in writing.”

Padora, speaking at a commissioners public meeting Wednesday, said Department of Homeland Security in a recent conference call said it would provide money in lieu of taxes to offset the lost revenue. The government, unlike private entities, doesn’t pay property taxes.

The lost revenue has shaken out to $222,000 for the county, $196,000 for the township and $555,000 for the school district, Padora said.

Brianna L. DelValle, Orwigsburg, organized a group called No Skook Detention.

She cited other instances in which the federal government failed to ante up the money.

Referring to the money in lieu of taxes, she said, “There is no fund, actually it’s just like DHS money that was already granted for three years. What happens after that?”

DelValle wondered what the county, township and school district budgets would look like five or 10 years down the road.

“We have no idea how long the facility is going to be there. We have no idea what the payments in lieu of taxes are going to look like,” she said.

The county’s wish list

The revenue offset is one a several verbal agreements DHS negotiated in the teleconference, the second one arranged through Congressman Dan Meuser, R-9. The discussions also included other parties Padora said, including officials in Berks County, where DHS plans another ICE facility. Future calls will be Schuylkill-specific, he said.

The most recent call, last Thursday, included Patrick M. Caulfield of the Schuylkill County Municipal Authority, DHS and ICE.

He said the talks are in the “beginning stages. We hoping this week to have more conversations.”

County officials also want schematics, said Commissioner Gary J. Hess, including building layouts.

“They said they would get that to us,” he said.

The verbal agreements also included DHS providing truck routes. Padora said the county prefers the facility traffic be routed on I-81 instead of going through small towns in the area. Other agreements would concern infrastructure including sewer and water.

The state Department of Environmental Protection on March 5 ordered DHS to not occupy the planned facilities in Schuylkill and Berks until it proves compliance with state and federal environmental regulations.

DEP is concerned the facilities would overwhelm surrounding rural communities’ sewage capacities and reduce the drinking water supply.

“Doubling the populations of these areas could drain drinking water sources and lead to polluted waterways from overwhelmed sewer facilities leaking raw waste into, our streets and rivers,” DEP Secretary Jessica Shirley said in a prepared statement.

“Just like anyone else, DHS needs to demonstrate its facilities comply with environmental standards,” she said.

“Federal officials will appoint a spokesperson to communicate with surrounding communities, and will reach out to local fire companies, Emergency Medical Services, our 911 system, our emergency management people and the surrounding hospitals. We asked specifically about the 911 communications in the (ICE) building … that first responders will be able to respond. They said they’ll work with our 911 to provide that information so that people will be able to communicate in the event of an emergency inside the building.”

Padora said county officials also asked about the impact on hospitals. “They said they’d get us more information,” he said.

“They did state they would have their own dentists, doctors, nurses, x-rays on-site,” Padora said. “We asked for an Advanced Life Support system to be in there, too, and how they would handle transportation.”

He also wants county officials, firefighters and emergency management officials to be bled to tour the facility.

Padora has said children and families would not be housed at the facility. “We want it in writing, though,” he said.

He also asked what the long term plans are for the facility. For example, would they shut down in three years. They said “probably not.”

Schuylkill comes into play

Padora said he was told ICE is consolidating from 234 facilities across the United States to 34.

The 1.3 million-square-foot Big Lots Distribution Center in Tremont Township on Jan. 29 was sold to the federal government for $119 million. The federal government has said the detention center may open in the spring, but there’s a lot of negotiating and work to be done before that happens.

DHS and ICE anticipate housing about 7,500 men and women in the facility. About 2,500 staff would also occupy the building.

The planned facility in Bern Township, Berks County, would be smaller, housing up to 1,500 people.

Commissioners hands are tied

“The county commissioners cannot stop the federal government from coming into our county,” Padora said. “So our job is to mitigate the impact on our taxpayers, the rate payers, the hospitals, our first responders, our 911 and Emergency Management Agency services. That is in our wheelhouse. If the governor of our state believes he can stop this, that is in the Governor’s wheelhouse.”

Gov. Josh Shapiro’s has spoken his opposition to having ICE detention centers in the state.

Padora is homed in on Schuylkill County as opposed to the political debate about immigration policies.

“Our personal opinions on the overall immigration policy of the president is something I don’t want to be brought into the debate,” he said. “I want to focus on the impact on my county.”