CoreCivic Wins; We Could Pay The Price

When CoreCivic announced last week that it had signed a contract for housing Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detainees, many in the Appleton area eagerly welcomed the news. It would mean a return of economic vitality. 

At one time, the 1,640-bed Prairie Correctional Facility employed 350 people from 24 surrounding counties in two states and generated an estimated $15.2 million in economic activity for the region. 

Those hundreds of jobs would return. The employees would buy groceries, gas, and services. They would eat at local restaurants. They would buy homes and increase the value of the homes in a wide area around Appleton. They would rent apartments. Money would flow in for the renovation of the too many run-down homes in the community.

For the city of Appleton, it would mean increasing real estate tax revenue as the prison’s $14 million market value rose, with CoreCivic expected to generate $75 million in annual revenues. The $494,719 in real estate taxes the prison currently generates would rise substantially. They currently represent more than one-third of the city’s property tax revenues.

For Swift County, it would mean the $110,564 it gets in property taxes would rise, easing the tax burden on other properties. For the Lac qui Parle School District, it would mean a boost in its current $78,197 in property tax revenues.

For supporters of the prison’s reopening, the Aug. 4 announcement was a day of celebration after 16 years of fruitless efforts to get it reopened. CoreCivic shut the doors to the prison in February 2010 but continued to maintain it as it sought opportunities to fill its cells. With the ICE contract, years of frustration were coming to an end.

August 5’s CoreCivic announcement quickly chilled those optimistic hopes,  igniting deep concern among elected officials and administrators of local governments. It was the day CoreCivic announced it was selling the prison to the federal government. It doesn’t pay property taxes.

CoreCivic was paid $495.6 million for the Prairie Correctional Facility by the Department of Homeland Security. It will make $75 million a year managing it. Apparently, there are discussions planned for compensating the area for the loss of the taxable prison, but we’ve heard nothing of those plans.

Without compensation, the city of Appleton’s residents face much higher taxes and cuts in services. Lac qui Parle schools may have to cut teachers or programs. Swift County will have a hole in its budget to fill with cuts or higher taxes. At the same time, the prison will mean more demands on area law enforcement and medical facilities responding to calls for assistance.

But the potential damage of CoreCivic’s sale of the Prairie Correctional Facility goes beyond Swift County into Stevens, Grant, Chippewa and others in the region.

CoreCivic is now gearing up its employee recruiting efforts with plans for detainees to be housed at the prison starting this fall. Those thinking of taking a job should consider a few realities before betting their futures on long-term employment at the prison.

If Democrats win the House or Senate, or both, in the November elections, the future of the aggressive arrest actions of ICE could be curtailed, causing the number of detainees to fall and detention centers to close. ICE funding could be clawed back, again leading to facilities being closed. If democrats win the presidency in 2028’s election, you can be assured immigration policy will see a significant change, leading to ICE detainee facilities being closed. 

Those considering jobs at the prison should also consider the job’s impact on their own mental health. In the past, the Prairie Correctional Facility housed real criminals; you knew the men were there for having done bad things. They were behind bars for a good reason. That will not be the case with the ICE detainees.

A vast majority of those arrested by ICE have no criminal history. Sixty-five to 73% have never been charged with a crime, according to the CATO Institute. Among those detained, 93% have never committed a violent crime. Just 5% have a violent crime on their record.

It has been reported that ICE is considering processing men, women and children through the prison. Some of their stories could be heartbreaking for those having to work with them.

“Most people held in these facilities have not been convicted of crimes,” Paul Schnell, Minnesota’s Commissioner of the Department of Corrections, has said. “They are parents, working people and neighbors awaiting administrative immigration proceedings.

“Large-scale ICE detention facilities are often located far from legal counsel and family support, creating pressure for detainees to abandon legal claims rather than endure prolonged confinement. The suffering is not a side effect of their circumstances; it is the very point,” Schnell adds.

For our area, we also have to consider the impact of an ICE facility opening on the growth of our immigrant population. It has been essential to rural Minnesota’s economic health. 

Immigrants have filled job openings and started businesses in empty buildings on Main Street. They’ve been essential to the growth of rural Minnesota’s dairy industry. 

“According to The Economic Contributions of New Americans in Minnesota, a February 2025 report by the Minnesota Chamber Foundation, immigrants…have been the primary driver of population growth, workforce expansion, and long-term economic stability across Minnesota,” Stacy Dahl of the Minnesota Women’s Press reported this past March. This has been especially true for our area of rural Minnesota, which has experienced declining population for decades. Will an ICE prison chill our efforts to attract immigrants?

ICE’s promise of economic revitalization is not as promising as first thought.

See the story on the next page.