Alligator Alcatraz live updates: President Trump visits Florida immigration detention facility
'Alligator Alcatraz' opens, protestors outside while Trump tours
'Alligator Alcatraz' officially opened in the Florida Everglades. President Trump took a tour of the immigration detention facility Tuesday. FOX 35's Marie Edinger spoke with protestors outside the facility.
OCHOPEE, Fla. - President Donald Trump toured the newly opened Florida immigration detention center nicknamed "Alligator Alcatraz" on Tuesday morning.
The controversial facility, located at the Dade-Collier Training and Transition Airport, is designed to house, process and deport undocumented immigrants.
Trump to tour ‘Alligator Alcatraz’
Timeline:
President Trump participated in a guided walking tour of the new "Alligator Alactraz" facility around 10 a.m. on Tuesday. The guided tour was also attended by Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis.
President Trump travels to 'Alligator Alcatraz'
President Donald Trump will tour the newly opened Florida immigration detention center nicknamed "Alligator Alcatraz" on Tuesday morning. President Trump is expected to arrive in Ochopee, Florida, around 9:50 a.m.
Here's a look at the president's schedule for the day:
7:15 a.m. President Trump departs the White House en route to Joint Base Andrews. Trump spoke with reporters for a few minutes before boarding his plane. "It should be very exciting; very good work," he said. "I think it's going to be great."
'Alligator Alcatraz' opens today; Trump to visit
Florida's immigration detention center nicknamed "Alligator Alcatraz" opens today. President Donald Trump is expected to visit the facility and participate in a guided tour.
7:25 a.m. President Trump departs Joint Base Andrews en route to Florida.
Trump remarks before heading to 'Alligator Alcatraz'
President Donald Trump will tour the newly opened Florida immigration detention center nicknamed "Alligator Alcatraz" on Tuesday morning. Before departing from the White House to head to Florida, Trump stopped to answer several questions from reporters.
9:50 a.m. President Trump is wheels down in Ochopee, Florida.
President Donald Trump arrived in Florida on Tuesday morning.
10 a.m. President Trump participates in a guided walking tour of "Alligator Alcatraz." "So beautiful, so secure," Trump said. "And a lot of bodyguards, a lot of cops and alligators."
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, left; President Donald Trump; and Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem at "Alligator Alcatraz."
11:05 a.m. President Trump participates in a roundtable discussion.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis greeted President Donald Trump as he arrived in the Sunshine State.
12:10 p.m. President Trump departs "Alligator Alcatraz" en route to the White House.
2:35 p.m. President Trump arrives at Joint Base Andrews.
2:45 p.m. President Trump arrives at the White House.
Trump administration approves 'Alligator Alcatraz'
The Trump administration on Tuesday afternoon announced that it approved construction of an off-the-grid facility to house ICE detainees in the heart of Florida's "alligator alley."
‘Securing our border and keeping Americans safe’
What they're saying:
Trump said the U.S. now has the lowest number of daily border crossings ever recorded, and the number of undocumented immigrants that entered the country in May was zero.
Trump said his "One Big, Beautiful Bill" includes funding for 3,000 new border patrol officers and 10,000 new ICE agents.
"It's incredibly built," Trump said. "Very soon, this facility will house some of the most menacing migrants, some of the most vicious people on the planet. We're surrounded by miles of treacherous swampland, and the only way out is deportation. A lot of these people are self-deporting back to the country where they came from."
Full tour of 'Alligator Alcatraz': Trump visits Florida ICE detention facility
President Donald Trump took a tour of "Alligator Alcatraz" on Tuesday in the Florida Everglades. The president spoke with the media as he toured the brand new immigration detention facility.
"Biden let in how many millions?" DeSantis asked. "Don't let Florida be the only state. There are very red states that should be doing this just as much as Florida's doing."
"Let’s be clear — Florida isn’t a sanctuary state, and America's borders aren't open," said Republican Party of Florida Chairman Evan Power. "Thanks to President Donald Trump, Gov. Ron DeSantis and Florida's Attorney General James Uthmeier, we’re taking real action to protect our people and enforce the law. … President Trump is doing what Biden never would — securing our border and keeping Americans safe."
President Donald Trump spoke at "Alligator Alcatraz" on Tuesday morning.
What is ‘Alligator Alcatraz’?
Dig deeper:
The controversial detention facility nicknamed "Alligator Alcatraz" is located at the Dade-Collier Training and Transition Airport. The facility is designed to house, process and deport undocumented immigrants.
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Officials say the facility will eventually hold up to 5,000 people.
According to the Florida government, the site will cost around $450 million a year to operate. However, that cost is expected to be reimbursed by FEMA.
'Alligator Alcatraz' immigration detention facility
FOX 35's Garrett Wymer takes a deep dive into "Alligator Alcatraz." Florida is now using emergency powers to take over a remote, 30-square-mile site in the Everglades to build what some are calling "Alligator Alcatraz." The state said the site will hold up to 5,000 immigration detainees and will operate under the current state of emergency. Construction is already underway.
‘Alligator Alcatraz’ controversy
The other side:
A coalition of environmental groups filed a federal lawsuit on Friday, June 27, to stop construction of the migrant detention facility nicknamed "Alligator Alcatraz." Critics say it threatens endangered species and violates environmental law by bypassing review and public input.
Florida Democratic Party Chair Nikki Fried believes the facility is a "dangerous distraction" from Trump's Big, Beautiful Bill, which she says will gut $930 billion from Medicaid — the largest cut in the program’s history.
"Alligator Alcatraz is the kind of corrupt abuse of power we've come to expect from Florida Republicans, and Trump's visit underscores the fact that this project is a political stunt," Florida Democratic Party Chair Nikki Fried said. "Following in Trump's footsteps, Florida Republicans are exploiting both Florida's immigrant population and its most vulnerable ecosystem to sell cheap merch. Using outdated emergency powers and misappropriated FEMA funds, DeSantis and Uthmeier are taking a victory lap on their latest abuse of power: A land grab in the Everglades without any public input or research on environmental impact."
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The court has not yet scheduled a hearing, and federal agencies have not issued public statements on whether environmental reviews will proceed.
The Source: This story was written based on information shared by the Associated Press (AP) and the Office of Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and gathered from President Donald Trump's tour of Alligator Alcatraz on July 1, 2025.