US EditionLeavenworth, Kansas, relents and will allow a private prison to reopen and house immigrants
CoreCivic will create about 300 jobs with $28.25/hour starting pay and pay over $1 million annually in property taxes and impact fees, city officials said.
- In a 4–1 vote Tuesday night, the Leavenworth City Commission approved CoreCivic's permit to reopen the former Leavenworth Detention Center as an ICE facility.
- After a yearlong legal fight that reached appellate courts, CoreCivic first applied for a permit in March 2025, withdrew, then reapplied in December 2025 amid lawsuits and DOJ support.
- The facility itself is the 1,104-bed Midwest Regional Reception Center, closed since 2021, with a three-year permit requiring minimum staffing, banning minors, and creating a city oversight committee.
- CoreCivic projected economic gains, saying the center will generate $60 million annually, create about 300 jobs at a $28.25/hour starting wage, and pay a one-time $1,000,000 impact fee plus $250,000 and $150,000 annually.
- The broader legal and federal context included DOJ filings and ICE officials' testimony as well over 100 protesters gathered outside City Hall and almost four dozen people spoke in opposition.
24 Articles
24 Articles
The Virginian Pilot
San Gabriel Valley TribuneKansas town relents, will allow a private prison to reopen and house immigrants
A Kansas town known for its prisons is allowing a shuttered private prison to reopen as an immigrant detention facility after a nearly yearlong legal fight.
Associated Press News
Leavenworth, Kansas, relents and will allow a private prison to reopen and house immigrants
A Kansas town known for its prisons is allowing a shuttered private prison to reopen as an immigrant detention facility after a nearly yearlong legal fight.
Missouri Independent
Leavenworth officials approve permit for CoreCivic to reopen prison after ‘agonizing’ yearlong fight
Protesters hug after learning they lost the fight to keep private prison CoreCivic from reopening in Leavenworth. The city commission voted 4 to 1 on March 10, 2026, to give the company a special use permit (Grace Hills for Kansas Reflector).LEAVENWORTH — CoreCivic will reopen its private prison in Leavenworth to house immigration detainees after city commissioners approved the company’s special use permit on Tuesday, the result of a process one…
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