The East Side warehouse ICE wants to turn into a detention site has sat empty for three years. Credit: Google Maps / Screenshot

Eight members of San Antonio City Council and Mayor Gina Ortiz Jones on Friday called for a special meeting to delay U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s plan to convert an East Side warehouse into a detention facility.

The meeting is expected to convene next week.

The first, which calls for a meeting no later than Oct. 8, calls for city-owned utilities CPS Energy and San Antonio Water System (SAWS) to conduct independent environmental assessments for the proposed detention center at 542 SE Loop 410.

The second demands the city do “everything in its power — up to and including filing a lawsuit” to stop the construction of the facility, which ICE would use to process immigrants the Trump administration has scheduled for deportation.

District 9 Councilwoman Misty Spears and District 10 Councilman Marc Whyte, council’s two most conservative members, were the only members of the dais who did not sign either CCR.

The grounds for the possible lawsuit, according to the proposal, are that the federal government allegedly disregarded legally required reviews under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA).

In a statement, Jones said City Attorney Andy Segovia is “reviewing options” to halt construction.

“The people of San Antonio deserve transparency from their federal leaders on this issue, and I remain committed to achieving that,” she said.

Precinct 4 County Commissioner Tommy Calvert, who’s been an outspoken opponent of the ICE detention site, said he supports potential legal action by the city under NEPA, but added that the utility review is likely to be fruitless. He said he would urge members of Bexar County Commissioners Court to vote to join a city lawsuit.

“We’re the only community in the United States that hasn’t sued, and we’re the only community where one of these facilities is still moving forward,” Calvert said. “We need to sue.”

The developments come hours after U.S. Rep. Joaquin Castro held a congressional hearing on the ICE facility at the Central Library.

Two protests are also planned in San Antonio on Saturday against the ICE detention center.

The first starts at 8 a.m. at 4702 E. Houston St. From there, demonstrators will march to the proposed ICE facility on the East Side. The second protest is planned for 2 p.m. in front of City Hall.

Current Editor-in-Chief Sanford Nowlin also contributed to this story.

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Michael Karlis is a multimedia journalist at the San Antonio Current, whose coverage in print and on social media focuses on local and state politics. He is a graduate of American University in Washington,...