U.S. authorities needs to purchase B.C. billionaire’s Virginia warehouse to show it into ICE facility

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The U.S. Division of Homeland Safety is in talks to purchase a Virginia warehouse owned by British Columbia billionaire Jim Pattison, with plans to show it into an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) processing facility.

In a Jan. 21 letter to officers in Hanover County, Va., the Division of Homeland Safety shared its intent to "buy, occupy and rehabilitate" the roughly 550,000-square-foot warehouse property, which has been owned by Jim Pattison Developments since 2022.

“As a part of the endeavor, ICE could conduct exterior and inside modifications to the present warehouse facility,” the letter mentioned, together with the “building of holding and processing areas.”

Pattison is a businessman and philanthropist whose conglomerate the Jim Pattison Group spans varied sectors together with actual property, automotive, media and retail.

The Jim Pattison Group and Jim Pattison Developments didn't instantly return requests for remark.

The potential deal has sparked anger and disapproval, together with from the chief of the B.C. Inexperienced Social gathering who's now calling for a boycott of Pattison’s Save-on-Meals grocery shops.

<img loading="lazy" srcset="https://i.cbc.ca/ais/1.6228936,1635469854000/full/max/0/default.jpg?im=Crop%2Crect%3D%280%2C0%2C6000%2C4000%29%3BResize%3D796 796w,https://i.cbc.ca/ais/1.6228936,1635469854000/full/max/0/default.jpg?im=Crop%2Crect%3D%280%2C0%2C6000%2C4000%29%3BResize%3D1083 1083w,https://i.cbc.ca/ais/1.6228936,1635469854000/full/max/0/default.jpg?im=Crop%2Crect%3D%280%2C0%2C6000%2C4000%29%3BResize%3D1280 1280w" sizes="(max-width: 762px) calc(100vw - 32px),730px" src="https://i.cbc.ca/ais/1.6228936,1635469854000/full/max/0/default.jpg?im=Crop%2Crect%3D%280%2C0%2C6000%2C4000%29%3B" style="aspect-ratio:1.5" data-cy="image-img"/> Pattison, a businessman and philanthropist, has owned the roughly 550,000-square-foot warehouse property since 2022. (Kyle Bakx/CBC) Canadian corporations face criticism Pattison is the most recent Canadian firm to face criticism over associations with ICE.

As reported by The Globe and Mail, Vancouver tech firm Hootsuite secured a $95,000 US pilot venture with ICE in September that entails monitoring social media discussions concerning the immigration company.

ICE has additionally earmarked hundreds of thousands of {dollars} for a bulk order of 20 armoured autos from Brampton, Ont.-based defence producer Roshel.

Amid ICE’s expansive immigration crackdown that has seen federal brokers shoot and kill two Americans in Minneapolis, Minn., one enterprise ethics professional says corporations should be clear about the place they draw the road on who they do enterprise with, or else they danger tanking employees morale and public opinion.

“If I have been a CEO, I would not need my title or my firm's title, my model, related to what is going on on within the States proper now,” mentioned Chris MacDonald, an affiliate professor within the legislation and enterprise division at Toronto Metropolitan College.

“There's only a plain moral difficulty. There is a query of proper and incorrect and whether or not it is proper for a corporation, or for anybody, to be contributing, even in a small means, to the actions which are happening.”

WATCH | Minnesotans protest ICE crackdown: Minnesotans maintain 'financial blackout' to protest ICE crackdown

Folks throughout Minnesota took half in an 'financial blackout' motion on Friday to protest a federal immigration crackdown in components of the state. Tons of of companies closed for the day and organizers urged individuals to not work or go to high school. In a social media video seen over 80,000 instances on TikTok alone, B.C. Inexperienced Social gathering chief Emily Lowan referred to as on Pattison to sever ties with ICE and inspired individuals to boycott his grocery shops.

“As we stare down what's more and more the fascist and doable civil conflict unfolding in america, I believe as Canadians we should be crystal clear about who's driving, who's contributing to the crises we're dealing with and the way we are able to step up and take actual actions,” Lowan mentioned in an interview with CBC Information.

1000's of ICE officers have been deployed within the U.S., together with in Minneapolis and Maine, below a mass deportation marketing campaign that has been met with fierce criticism and resistance from native politicians and residents and heightened worry in immigrant communities.

<img loading="lazy" alt="A white man with round glasses, light light blue eyes and light brown and grey hair and beard smiles in a headshot." srcset="https://i.cbc.ca/ais/bdbd69cb-1ad2-4234-85c6-1e75fde97b2a,1769471361477/full/max/0/default.jpg?im=Crop%2Crect%3D%28486%2C236%2C2754%2C1902%29%3BResize%3D796 796w,https://i.cbc.ca/ais/bdbd69cb-1ad2-4234-85c6-1e75fde97b2a,1769471361477/full/max/0/default.jpg?im=Crop%2Crect%3D%28486%2C236%2C2754%2C1902%29%3BResize%3D1083 1083w,https://i.cbc.ca/ais/bdbd69cb-1ad2-4234-85c6-1e75fde97b2a,1769471361477/full/max/0/default.jpg?im=Crop%2Crect%3D%28486%2C236%2C2754%2C1902%29%3BResize%3D1280 1280w" sizes="(max-width: 762px) calc(100vw - 32px),730px" src="https://i.cbc.ca/ais/bdbd69cb-1ad2-4234-85c6-1e75fde97b2a,1769471361477/full/max/0/default.jpg?im=Crop%2Crect%3D%28486%2C236%2C2754%2C1902%29%3B" style="aspect-ratio:1.4479495268138802" data-cy="image-img"/> Michael Berdan, a resident of Hanover County, Va., strongly opposes Pattison's warehouse there being become a facility for ICE. (Submitted by Michael Berdan) Michael Berdan, a lawyer and resident of Hanover County concerned in immigration advocacy, says he strongly opposes the concept of an ICE facility in his neighborhood and says it undermines Pattison’s philanthropic efforts. Pattison is understood for his giant donations to Canadian medical services.

“A deal advancing worry and household separation inherent in immigration detention would stand in stark distinction to those rules,” he instructed CBC Information.

“And I believe quite a lot of my neighbours, no matter political variations, will acknowledge that this isn't one of the best use for the county.”

The Hanover County Board of Supervisors is scheduled to debate the potential buy of the warehouse on Wednesday, Jan. 28. The Division of Homeland Safety has additionally invited a number of tribes to take part in a session.