No decision on Newport ICE facility construction until May, assistant director says

NEWPORT, Ore. (KPTV) - An assistant director for Immigration and Customs Enforcement says the agency has no plans to begin construction on a facility in Newport before May 1.

The news comes as Lincoln County and the Newport Fishermen’s Wives continue their legal battle to keep the Coast Guard rescue helicopter in Newport.

According to court documents filed on Tuesday, ICE Enforcement and Removals Operations (ERO) Acting Assistant Director Ralph Ferguson stated that ICE halted “environmental compliance activities” to use the Coast Guard Air Facility in Newport as a temporary holding/processing facility after receiving a notice on Dec. 4, 2025.

The notice, which Ferguson says was sent by the commandant of the Coast Guard, withdrew the air facility from ICE-ERO’s consideration.

Court documents state only initial steps were taken in the Environmental Due Diligence Analysis—a process that evaluates the environmental condition of the property under Environmental Protection Agency guidelines.

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The declaration by Ferguson also says that ICE is not currently building a temporary holding/processing facility in or around the Newport Municipal Airport, and has no plans to begin construction on an ICE facility in Newport before May 1, 2026.

The filing does not rule out a future ICE detention facility after May 1.