Congressman Dave Min and local officials attempted a Thursday morning visit to office space in Irvine that reports have said has been leased for Immigration and Customs Enforcement purposes.
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Irvine Councilmember Melinda Liu and her chief of staff and members of Min’s office joined the congressman in the visit.
After knocking on the door, Min was met at intervals by three employees, the third of whom said he was not in a position to admit Min and attempted to schedule a visit for another time.
Irvine councilwomen Melinda Liu and Congressman Dave Min are denied entry to a government office in Irvine on Thursday, October 22, 2026. The officials want to see the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement office and verify there are no detaniees at the location.. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Irvine councilwomen Melinda Liu and Congressman Dave Min are denied entry to a government office in Irvine on Thursday, October 22, 2026. The officials want to see the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement office and verify there are no detaniees at the location.. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Irvine councilwomen Melinda Liu and Congressman Dave Min are denied entry to a government office in Irvine on Thursday, October 22, 2026. The officials want to see the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement office and verify there are no detaniees at the location.. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)
“There have been reports from other office buildings ICE has leased that they have used those illegally, against local zoning ordinances, to temporarily detain people and that they have refurbished some of the offices into temporary holding cells,” Min said. “And that’s the first thing I want to check out.”
Min is running for reelection. His 47th congressional district represents much of south Orange County, including Irvine. Liu is running for another four-year term representing District 1 on the Irvine City Council.
Wired first reported in February that ICE was moving into offices at a federal building in Santa Ana and in commercial space on Main Street in Irvine — a high-rise in an office complex near John Wayne Airport — as part of an effort to expand its physical footprint around the country.
Wired reported the offices would be used by attorneys and street-level ICE agents. Two people who answered the door said they were attorneys.
The report prompted protests by community groups and area residents, who voiced broader rancor surrounding the Trump administration’s immigration campaign and ramped-up immigration enforcement efforts in Orange County.
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Bill Velto, the building’s landlord and president of MGR Real Estate — the company owns properties for lease throughout Southern California — has said he cannot comment on who leases offices in his buildings.
Min said his office has asked several times via email to tour the office but was repeatedly told “ICE will not be facilitating a visit at this time.”
The Department of Homeland Security Appropriations Act — legislation passed in 2024 — prohibits federal funds from being used to prevent entry for “oversight purposes” by members of Congress to DHS facilities, including those run by ICE.
DHS officials could not be immediately reached for comment on Thursday.
“We’ve been in touch with ICE here and our staff has had a series of communications indicating that we’d like to come by, that I’d like to stop by,” Min said. “Today was mentioned as a specific date.”
Min and Liu both voiced frustration about communication efforts between their offices and ICE. The two led a town hall in April that included feedback from immigration justice organizers and attorneys on immigration enforcement activity. Min’s office invited ICE and the Department of Homeland Security to participate in the town hall, but no representatives attended.
“We’re going to wait to hear back and see if ICE connects with us.,” Min said of next steps. “We’ll keep following up. We’ll go back to the drawing board.”
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