Jim Pattison Developments says the sale of its industrial building to the United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement will not be going forward.
The development arm of B.C.’s Jim Pattison Group issued the statement just before 10:30 a.m. on Friday (Jan. 30), saying “the transaction to sell our industrial building in Ashland, Virginia will not be proceeding.” Jim Pattison Developments says it will not be providing any further comment at this time.
The news comes two days after the Jim Pattison Group first said it wouldn’t be commenting further on the private transaction on the sale of its building in Virginia to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, more commonly known as ICE.
A statement to Black Press Media on Jan. 28 acknowledged the “conversation around immigration policy and enforcement is particularly heated, and has become much more so over the past few weeks.”
Multiple U.S. cities have been rocked by anti-ICE protest, specifically in Minneapolis after the deaths of two citizens by federal agents.
U.S. senators, including seven Republican senators, voted to block a bill that would have included $10 billion for ICE.
The Jan. 28 statement from Jim Pattison Developments said the transaction was still subject to certain approvals and closing conditions and that Jim Pattison Development remains “committed to complying with all applicable laws and regulations as we work to divest this asset.”
Hanover County’s planning department was first alerted to the sale by a letter from the United States’ Department of Homeland Security dated Jan. 21. ICE was proposing to “purchase, occupy and rehabilitate” a 43.49-acre warehouse, located at 11525 Lakeridge Pkwy. in Ashland, Va., “in support of ICE operations.”
The letter called it a “processing facility.” It also said interior modifications could include the “construction of holding and processing spaces.”
On Wednesday, Hanover County issued a news release opposing the proposed sale. The statement mainly pointed the potential impacts of the proposed ICE processing facility, including changing the character of the area, placing unplanned demands on county services and public safety and reducing county tax revenues by “no less than (US)$1 million annually.”
“While the County has no role in federal immigration policy, we are responsible for land use, budget decisions and ensuring transparency and public engagement on matters within the Board’s authority,” Board of Supervisors Chair Sean Davis said.
“Based on what we know today, this property is not the right location for this type of operation. Had the federal government contacted us earlier, we could have shared important information about potential impacts.”
The proposed sale also received pushback in Canada.
B.C.’s Attorney General Niki Sharma said business leaders in B.C. and beyond should “think about their role in what is unfolding” in the United States and to “make decisions would not lead to some of the outcomes that we’re seeing unfold in the States.”
Emily Lowan, the B.C. Green Party leader, also had called for a boycott on Jim Pattison Group companies.
The Jim Pattison Group operates several divisions from advertising to car dealerships to food and grocery chains, such as Save-On-Foods, Buy-Low Foods, Quality Foods, Urban Fare and more.
The union representing 28,000 food and grocery workers in B.C. urged the Jim Pattison Group to “decline any involvement that would contribute to the ongoing attack on human rights.”
“We stand firmly against the demonization and targeting of immigrant workers by the Trump administration, as well as the dehumanizing practices being utilized by ICE,” the statement from the United Food and Commercial Workers 1518 said.
“The expansion of immigrant enforcement infrastructure, including ICE processing facilities, has had devastating consequences for workers and their families by creating fear and undermining fundamental human and labour rights.”