Council holds first reading of proposed ordinance to ban local immigration-detention uses, directs workshop and legal review

The Highland Park City Council on March 2 read, for the record, a proposed zoning amendment that would prohibit the establishment of immigration detention facilities, civil immigration holding facilities, and immigration processing/staging areas within the city.

The ordinance text — read aloud in detail — would amend the zoning code to add definitions for several facility types, declare those uses prohibited in all zoning districts, forbid workarounds and require enforcement through zoning remedies. The draft included limited exemptions for existing local criminal detention operations and juvenile justice facilities, and a firewall clause intended to bar federal immigration-enforcement operations from using otherwise-exempted facilities.

Council President Thomas recommended the item stand as a first reading but urged the council to send the draft to a workshop for more thorough legal review. "Because of the nature of this particular ordinance ... and we are talking about the attempt to supersede federal law, I would recommend that this go to a workshop after this first reading," the council president said. Legal counsel and planning staff were asked to review comparable efforts in neighboring cities and return with recommendations.

A council member moved the ordinance to a workshop scheduled for March 16 with a recommendation to involve the city's legal department, planning consultants and to prepare for the required public hearing. Council members emphasized they wanted to pressure-test the draft so it would be defensible and not subject to successful legal challenge.

Next steps: legal and planning staff will compare the Highland Park draft with other local efforts, vet enforcement language, and report back to council at the March 16 workshop before any second reading or public hearing is scheduled.