DeSantis picks Baker Correctional for new migrant detention facility

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Gov. Ron DeSantis is shifting plans for Florida’s next migrant detention site, announcing Thursday that Baker Correctional Institution in Sanderson will become the state’s second major hub for processing and deporting people in the country illegally.

Dubbed the “Deportation Depot,” the North Florida facility will hold more than 1,300 detainees and operate much like the state’s first site, the Everglades-based “Alligator Alcatraz.” The governor says Baker was chosen over a proposed site at Camp Blanding because it offers “ready made infrastructure” and will require far less work to bring online.

Sanderson is about 45 miles west of Jacksonville.

Florida Division of Emergency Management Director Kevin Guthrie said the state has secured a $600+ million federal grant to reimburse the costs of both facilities. He estimates it will take about two weeks to ready Baker for the new operation.

The announcement comes as “Alligator Alcatraz” faces multiple legal challenges — including a pause in construction ordered earlier this month by a federal judge. The site can continue holding detainees, but for two weeks no paving, filling, or other infrastructure work is allowed. Environmental groups and the Miccosukee Tribe, who sued in June, argue the facility threatens sensitive wetlands and violates federal environmental law. The court is still weighing a longer-term injunction.

At the same time, Democratic lawmakers are suing to enforce their right to make unannounced inspections at state detention centers after being denied entry to the Everglades facility in July. They’ve cited state law and a 2024 emergency order promising transparency.

DeSantis has called that lawsuit “frivolous” and accused Democrats of “posturing politically.” It comes as lawmakers and immigration advocates have alleged poor medical care, extreme heat, and inadequate access to voluntary return options at “Alligator Alcatraz” — claims the state strongly denies, saying the facility meets “higher standards than most prisons.”