Elmhurst residents worried about a potential ICE detention facility in their city got reassurance on Wednesday, Sept. 9, from a member of the City Council.

Alderman Guido Nardini told colleagues at the council meeting that a new Illinois law makes it virtually impossible to site a federal immigration jail in Elmhurst. House Bill 5024, signed by Gov. JB Pritzker in August, bars new federal immigration detention centers within 1,500 feet of homes, schools, daycares, parks, forest preserves, cemeteries or places of worship.

Because Elmhurst is "developmentally mature," Nardini said, no parcel in the city falls outside that buffer.

"We would have an extra layer of protection with the state of Illinois addressing that," he said, according to Patch.

The statement caps months of anxiety among residents. Concern grew after a developer planning a warehouse on the city's southwest side drew scrutiny. In 2025, the same developer sold two Georgia warehouses to ICE for $68 million. Some residents feared the Elmhurst project was a cover for a detention facility. The developer has since promised to include a deed restriction barring an ICE lockup at the site.

In May, Nardini and Alderwoman Karen Sienko asked the city to explore zoning rules that would address federal jails. The new state law, Nardini said, adds a layer beyond what local zoning could accomplish.

HB 5024 was sponsored by Illinois House Speaker Emanuel "Chris" Welch, D-Hillside, and passed along party lines in both chambers. The law took effect immediately upon signing. It does not apply retroactively to existing facilities, including the ICE detention center in suburban Broadview. The law was partly a response to chaos that erupted outside the Broadview facility in 2025.

Legal experts and Republican critics have said the law is likely to face legal challenges because the federal government is generally exempt from state and local zoning restrictions, Capitol News Illinois reported. Nardini acknowledged at the meeting that the federal government retains the right to do what it wants with its own property.

He called the idea of placing immigration jails in municipalities "wildly unpopular" and said the issue crosses party lines.

No further council action on the matter was announced at the Sept. 9 meeting.