Mississippi officials BLOCK plans to let 250 unaccompanied migrant children live in former casino hotels

Mississippi state officials have refused to support plans to house up to 250 unaccompanied migrant children in two former casino hotels.

The Tunica County Board of Supervisors voted 3-2 on Thursday against issuing a letter in favor of the proposal.

This followed months of opposition from local officials and Sheriff K.C. Hamp, who oversees the county of just under 10,000 people.

Hamp believes the county lacks resources to care for migrants, including healthcare facilities, meaning the responsibility would spill over to neighboring communities.

'Patients have to be taken to hospitals in DeSoto, Tate, Coahoma County along with area hospitals in Memphis, Tennessee,' Hamp told WREG. He also expressed concern about the emergence of a language barrier.

Mississippi state officials have refused to support plans to house unaccompanied migrant children in two former casino hotels in Tunica County (pictured: coworkers watch as immigration officials raid the Koch Foods Inc. plant in Morton, August 2019)

The two vacant hotels were formerly part of the Harrah's casino complex, which shuttered in 2014 after years of decline

The vacant hotels are designated through contracts from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and its partner agencies. They were formerly part of the Harrah's casino complex, which shuttered in 2014.

Once boasting the largest casino floor between New Jersey and Las Vegas, Harrah's was hard-hit by the Great Recession and saw the number of visitors drop off steeply before it began bleeding jobs.

These challenges were only compounded as rival casinos began to spring up in neighboring states.

Southland Park Gaming and Racing in West Memphis, Arkansas, succeeded in luring many of Tunica's former patrons before the casino officially went under.

Earlier plans to make use of the property did not pan out, including a proposal to outfit it with a 200-space RV park, golf course and water park.

During Thursday's meeting, attorney Shantrell Nicks clarified that the facility would hold up to 250 children aged 17 and younger, rather than the 2,000 previously discussed.

The Tunica County Board of Supervisors voted 3-2 against issuing a letter in favor of the proposal, which would see up to 250 children aged 17 and under housed at two hotels

The site would operate for five years and would not allow visitors, according to an attorney for the company that wants to take over (picture: the Veranda hotel, one of two hotels included in the plan)

The development came after months of hardheaded opposition from local leaders who expressed concerns about costs and insufficient resources

Nicks works for Rapid Development, the company that wants to make use of the hotels.

'There´s no strain to the local government as a result of this temporary children´s shelter,' she said, adding that it would only operate for five years. 'We are not going to attempt to enroll these children in local schools.'

However, state officials stood in adamant opposition. Some, like Senator Cindy Hyde-Smith, penned letters to the Department of Health and Human Services to express their concerns.

Hyde-Smith stressed the cost that would be passed onto local and state governments if a contact was awarded for site.

A Border Patrol agent gives a group of unaccompanied minors water after they were apprehended near the highway on February 4, 2024 outside Eagle Pass, Texas

Secretary of State Michael Watson lauded her efforts and pledged to follow suit.

'Well, these are children,' he told WBLT. 'I would love them, too. And that’s our job. That’s what I’m called to do as a Christian.

'That’s not the government’s job. We can’t force the government to do something that individuals may choose to do.'

Senator Roger Wicker also vowed to send his own letter. 'Many of my constituents had raised concerns about this project's impact on the community,' he said in a statement Friday.

'It was clear that Tunica County´s health care, transportation, and other services were not prepared for this sudden influx. I am glad this decision has been halted for now, but I am still worried about a similar proposal in the future.'