Choctaw Nation Buys Former Big Lots Warehouse, Closing Off Oklahoma ICE Detention Site

[Nittersing]

The sale is the second time in months that a large Oklahoma warehouse pursued by ICE for detention use has instead gone to another buyer.

"The Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma announced Wednesday it has purchased the former Big Lots distribution center in Durant — a 1.24-million-square-foot warehouse that had been under informal consideration by Immigration and Customs Enforcement as a potential detention site.

The purchase removes the property, located at 2306 Enterprise Drive, from the federal market and, based on Project Salt Box analysis of comparable warehouse conversions, forecloses an estimated 8,500 detention beds from ICE’s expanding warehouse-to-detention pipeline. That figure is derived from comparisons with similarly sized warehouse sales under the agency’s Detention Reengineering Initiative, including a facility in El Paso, Texas, where ICE has targeted the same detainee count in a warehouse of comparable size.

Chief Gary Batton said the nation has not yet determined a use for the facility, describing it as an opportunity to support operational growth adjacent to the tribe’s existing headquarters campus on Durant’s south side.

The Durant property had drawn public attention in late 2025 after the city of Durant acknowledged it had “reason to believe” the site was being considered for ICE detention use. Mayor Martin Tucker said at the time the city had received no direct contact from federal officials and that the property was not zoned for a detention facility. By January, the Durant City Council had voted unanimously to pass an ordinance restricting property sales to ICE. Choctaw Nation Tribal Council representative Mabray, speaking before the vote, said the council would view a large detention facility at the Big Lots property as incompatible with surrounding land uses."

https://www.projectsaltbox.com/p/choctaw-nation-buys-former-big-lots

Hat tip to the Choctaw Nation!!