Earlier this year, The Nation uncovered that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) holds people in 186 under-the-radar "subfield offices," which the less generous might call "secret immigration detention centers."
One such building, known as "B-18", is unmarked and tucked away in the storage area of a large federal building in Los Angeles. Human Rights Watch, the ACLU and other groups are trying to get the government to come clean about these detainment centers and where they are located.
From the Utne Reader: "Many of the centers still lack prominent signage, even in commercial buildings where businesses are well marked. One attorney who had a client held in a subfield office said the operations were 'akin to extraordinary renditions within the United States.'"
Read the full story: ICE’s Secret Prisons in Suburbia
Land use as protest: How American cities are fighting federal immigration detention centers
Across the country, city officials are using zoning codes and land use law to limit where ICE detention facilities can be built.
San Antonio sets new rules for immigration detention facilities
The city revised its zoning code to add new restrictions for private detention centers, but the ordinance won't apply to federally operated facilities.
Architecture Firm to Stop Designing ICE Prisons After Staff Outrage
Employees of one of the nation’s largest “justice facility” firms called on their company to end contracts for detention facilities.
Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.
Northwest rail fans eager for Sept. 30 debut of Amtrak’s Airo fleet
Get ready for that new train smell and more seats. But they won’t go faster or run more frequently on the Cascades route in Washington and Oregon.
Trump is considering data centers on 6 states' public land — some state officials say they had no idea
If the administration approves the proposed projects, data center and data center-related developments will cover 17,600 acres of public land.
After decades of planning, Sacramento gains new light rail station
Trains will arrive every 15 minutes during peak hours and every 30 minutes during non-peak hours.
Massive tunnel-boring machine breaks ground on Gateway Project
The Trump administration revoked funding for the project in October 2025, and then restored it earlier this year.
Airo trainsets begin service on Amtrak Cascades route
The trains feature panoramic windows, complementary wifi and over 300 seats per train set.
FREE Course: Walkable City 1: Why Walkability?
After describing his path towards focusing on walkability as the essence of good planning, Jeff Speck marches through his five principal reasons for making more walkable places.
Reinventing Malls: Planning Alchemy—Turning Gray Fields Into Gold
The course focuses on the opportunities and imperatives that shape reinvention of mall sites.
City of Thousand Oaks
City of Wisconsin Rapids
Harvard University Graduate School of Design
The Architects Foundation
University of Cincinnati Online
The Pocatello Development Authority
The Urban Renewal Agency of the City of Pocatello