Florida governor plans “Alligator Alcatraz” detention center

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis on Wednesday said he intends to build a detention center for illegal immigrants in the Everglades. The facility, nicknamed Alligator Alcatraz, is planned for the site currently hosting a remote airport. He also floated plans for a similar facility at Camp Blanding, a Florida National Guard training center near Jacksonville in northeast Florida. A formal announcement of the plans would come soon, he said.

Why is Florida planning the new detention center? The initiative was a response to a request from the federal government, DeSantis said. He said the new center would keep Florida jails from filling with illegal immigrants. Florida wanted to expand the federal government’s immigration enforcement power, he said.

Will the facility be permanent? Alligator Alcatraz will be temporary, composed of heavy-duty tents, trailers, and other impermanent buildings, according to the Associated Press. The state plans to have 5,000 beds available for detainees by early July, the outlet reported. DeSantis said on Wednesday that the Florida government might eventually abandon the site and let the Everglades grow over it.

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