WASHINGTON – A new U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detention facility with capacity for more than 2,100 detainees is scheduled to open in Watonga in early 2026. A second may be on the way in Sayre.
Many in favor of the Watonga facility say new jobs will be created and local economies will boom, including Rep. Mike Dobrinski, who currently represents District 59, which includes Watonga.
“I certainly think that it will increase the need for local housing, as bringing company CoreCivic will bring some of their leadership to Oklahoma from other facilities around the country,” said Dobrinski. “They will try and employ as many local folks as they can, with over 400 full-time positions coming; that’s a significant demand in the area and great job opportunities for folks.”
Dobrinski emphasized that this development was not a surprise to most community members and that many supported it.
“The local folks have been aware that there has been more activity at the facility in the last several months, with some renovation projects on the equipment and some of the infrastructure there, so everybody knew that it was a possibility. When the announcement was made public, I learned the same time everyone else did,” he said.
The facility, formerly known as the Diamondback Correctional Center, served as a prison until 2010, when it closed. It is being reopened under a $100 million, five-year agreement between CoreCivic and Oklahoma’s Department of Corrections to house individuals detained by ICE.
“CoreCivic profits from incarcerating our loved ones and exploiting rural towns,” the Oklahoma Policy Institute said.
“Forcing small towns like Watonga and Sayre to play host to privately managed facilities, despite their record of dehumanizing conditions, in exchange for jobs and tax revenue, is exploitative and predatory,” the Institute said.
CoreCivic reportedly is eyeing reopening the former North Fork Correctional Facility in Sayre as another immigration detention center. Both are part of the billions of dollars appropriated by Congress this year, with the goal of deporting 1 million immigrants annually over the next four years.
“Added to the $10 billion Congress already appropriated ICE for fiscal year 2025 in March, ICE now has $28.7 billion at its disposal this year. That $28.7 billion figure is nearly triple ICE’s entire budget for FY24,” according to the Brennan Center for Justice in New York.
Many have opposed opening the Watonga detention center, claiming it would harm minority communities.
Melissa Lujan, an immigration attorney in Oklahoma, shared her reservations.
“I think that’s where our fear is, is that not just that immigrants who have a right to stay here will be harassed, but also citizens will be harassed because police will be eager to fill those beds,” Lujan told KOCO.
Lujan also emphasized that she believes the state is relying on the recent Supreme Court decision. The decision, on a 6-3 vote on September 8, grants federal agents the right to stop and question people for speaking Spanish or appearing Latino.
Sen. Michael Brooks-Jimenez, a Democratic legislator from Oklahoma City and an immigration attorney, also expressed concern in July about the influx of immigrants being targeted.
Brooks-Jimenez stated that most undocumented immigrants detained are not those with a criminal record or prior deportations.
Many in the community are upset by this, as many undocumented immigrants are being taken out of jobs in key industries, leaving employers and the economy at a loss. Since 70 to 75 percent of these immigrants have no criminal record, according to Brooks-Jimenez, many feel that these arrests are targeted.
“ICE is currently trying to build capacity to be able to detain these people,” Brooks-Jimenez told News 9.
Increased law enforcement efforts are prevalent and have also led to more arrests in the Oklahoma community. Under Operation Guardian, an agreement signed by Gov. Kevin Stitt in February 2025 between U.S. Department of Homeland Security and Oklahoma, law enforcement officials within the Oklahoma Department of Public Safety (DPS), the Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics (OBN), and the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation (OSBI) will be able to arrest and interrogate suspected undocumented immigrants on the suspicion of citizenship status.
“Law enforcement can’t do their jobs with one hand tied behind their back. By working directly with ICE, our law enforcement officers now have additional tools to keep dangerous criminals off our streets and protect Oklahomans,” said Gov. Stitt.
Gaylord News is a reporting project of the University of Oklahoma Gaylord College of Journalism and Mass Communication. For more stories by Gaylord News go to GaylordNews.net.
