Zohran Mamdani Warns Trump Administration: Stop ICE Using NYC Parking Lots or Face Legal Action
The mayor says the agency lacked city authorisation, while Homeland Security argues federal law permits agents to use public parking facilities
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani has warned the Trump administration that the city will take legal action if Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) continues using city-owned parking lots for enforcement operations. In a letter dated Monday, 2 November, Mamdani said the agency had no authorisation to use the properties.
The letter was addressed to Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin, Acting ICE Director David J. Venturella and ICE New York Field Office Director Kenneth Genalo. Mamdani described the reported activity as the 'unlawful commandeering' of city property and demanded that federal officials instruct agents to stop.
'ICE has not secured any authorization from the City to use these lots for immigration enforcement. To be clear: the City does not authorize ICE using its property in this manner,' the letter states.
The mayor warned that New York would take legal action if agents continued using the lots without permission. However, the letter does not identify a court, set a deadline or specify the legal remedies the city might pursue.
The warning follows Mamdani's 16 October appeal, backed by more than 100 elected officials, asking private parking garage and lot owners to deny ICE access. That earlier request concerned privately owned premises, while Monday's letter focuses on city land. The New York City Mayor's Office published the letter on 2 November.
Where Mamdani Says ICE Has Been Using City Parking Lots
The letter says agents have reportedly parked vehicles and held meetings at unstaffed city-owned lots. These include a lot at Van Cortlandt Park in the Bronx and others along 111th Street, west of Flushing Meadows Corona Park in Queens.
The Queens lots are beside a city-run preschool and cultural institutions visited by children every day. The letter does not provide dates for each alleged visit or identify individual agents. IBTimes UK could not independently verify that ICE agents used these locations or held meetings there.
The Department of Homeland Security disputed Mamdani's position in comments reported by The Guardian. A spokesperson said ICE's presence in public parking lots was authorised under federal law and represented standard law-enforcement practice. The disagreement centres on whether the city can restrict federal agents' use of public land.
The mayor's letter maintains that the city has not authorised ICE to use the lots for immigration enforcement. It argues that parking facilities connected to city parks should remain available for visitors' safe use and enjoyment.
Mamdani Also Announces New Parks Policy
City Hall announced a new NYC Parks policy on Monday for frontline workers encountering attempts by non-local law enforcement agencies, including ICE, to access park property. The mayor's office said the policy strengthens procedures for employees responding to attempts to enter public and non-public areas of parks.
The administration said ongoing training would help staff apply the updated procedures. The policy forms part of work under Executive Order 13, which aims to update city agencies' protocols for non-local law enforcement access to city property.
No lawsuit over the parking lots has been announced. Mamdani has warned that legal action will follow if the reported use continues, while DHS maintains that federal law permits ICE to use public parking lots.
Whether New York City can successfully restrict that activity remains unresolved. The dispute places the city's control over its property against the federal government's asserted authority to conduct immigration enforcement.
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