DHS Rejects Mamdani's Challenge Over ICE Use of City Parking Lots

The Department of Homeland Security stated on Monday that Immigration and Customs Enforcement will continue using public parking lots in New York City to stage operations, directly countering a threat by Mayor Zohran Mamdani to sue the federal government.

In a letter sent to DHS leadership, Mamdani declared the use of city properties for enforcement actions unauthorized and illegal. He specified that the city had not granted permission for agents to utilize these spaces. The mayor warned that if the unauthorized use persists, New York City will initiate legal proceedings to stop what he described as the unlawful commandeering of public property.

The letter highlighted a specific site at the New York Hall of Science in Flushing Meadows Corona Park. Mamdani identified this location as a staging area for recent operations in the Corona and Elmhurst neighborhoods. His office noted that the city has not authorized the use of its properties in this manner, asserting that the federal government proceeded without seeking approval.

This action follows a similar message Mamdani sent one month prior. In that earlier correspondence, he urged private owners of parking lots and garages to block ICE access to their properties. More than 100 elected officials signed that letter, adding weight to the mayor's push to limit federal use of both public and private spaces.

DHS responded to the new letter with a statement asserting that ICE is not slowing down. A spokesperson for the department argued that federal law fully authorizes the use of public parking lots. The spokesperson suggested that Mayor Mamdani should be grateful for the agency's efforts to clean up the streets, implying that the mayor's administration is insufficient in its own policing.

Local political figures have weighed in on the dispute. Assemblymember and State Senate candidate Jessica González-Rojas, who signed the previous letter, criticized the presence of ICE vehicles near community spaces. She pointed to reports of agents operating near a city-run preschool and the Hall of Science. Her office is currently considering the implications of Tuesday's election for her future jurisdiction.

The conflict has drawn attention to specific incidents in recent weeks. Soon-to-be Assemblymember Brian Romero reported seeing two individuals arrested in Elmhurst. He described an operation where agents allegedly used mace on one local resident before forcing them to the ground. These events have occurred amid a broader pattern of enforcement activities in immigrant-heavy parts of Queens.