Granite Ridge abandons plan to house migrant children, but 'circumstances may change'

NORTH EAST — Granite Ridge won't pursue a partnership with a federal contractor to transform its historic campus into housing for unaccompanied migrant children, officials said Friday evening in a letter addressed to the community.

Officials said the decision was based on the community feedback they're received in recent months, which included a public meeting attended by more than 200 residents on May 11, as well as government requirements for the facility.

However, "It is always possible that circumstances may change in the future," Granite Ridge officials said, noting that "as of today, we are focusing on other uses for the campus."

More: North East residents confront Granite Ridge officials over migrant children facility

More: Granite Ridge partner seeking workers for 'influx care facility' for migrant children in Erie

"We remain committed to the growth and stability of the campus, and surrounding communities," Granite Ridge officials said in their statement. "Our current focus is to continue to find users and event hosts that can benefit from the uniqueness and beauty of this campus."

Granite Ridge, formerly the Mercyhurst North East campus of Mercyhurst University, had been in talks with Alexandria, Va.-based Culmen International, a federal military contractor, about partnering to fulfill a contract with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Service's Office of Refugee Resettlement, which is responsible for caring for unaccompanied migrant children who are apprehended by federal agents at the southern border between U.S. and Mexico.

Culmen International and as many as nine other contractors were deemed eligible to provide housing under an IDIQ contract. IDIQ, which stands for indefinite delivery, indefinite quantity, is a type of contract aimed at streamlining the federal contracting process. In this case, the work of providing housing and programming for the unaccompanied migrant children program was collectively valued at $75 billion. However, contractors must be able to meet the requirements of another contract type called a task order, also referred to as a request for proposal, in order to be eligible for the work.

While it was not immediately clear Friday evening what federal contracting requirement discouraged Granite Ridge officials from continuing to pursue the partnership, Culmen International founder and CEO Dan Berkon said in May that the draft task order included a provision that required facilities to be located within 250 miles of the southern border, which would disqualify Granite Ridge.

North East resident Dave Herman, who organized a group to oppose the plan, called Friday's letter from Granite Ridge "a very positive development.

"While the caveats accompanying this announcement highlight the need for continued community vigilance, I welcome the opportunity to work with Granite Ridge on productive 'win-win' uses for this beautiful and historic North East, Pa. facility," Herman said in a message to the Erie Times-News. "Today’s announcement opens the door for positive conversations, and sets the stage to rebuild trust and accountability between all parties."

Herman urged Granite Ridge officials to meet with borough and township leaders to resolve any issues or answer any questions that might be outstanding.

Historic campus

The 75-acre property, which is located in both the township and borough of North East, was for 106 years the home of St. Mary's Seminary, which was founded by the Redemptorists of the Baltimore Province in 1881. The Redemptorists, a religious order of Catholic priests, closed the seminary in 1987.

Community members then spearheaded efforts to raise money and persuade Mercyhurst College to locate a satellite campus on the site, which it did in 1991. More three decades later, citing declining enrollment nationwide, Mercyhurst University closed the campus, consolidating most of the North East programs at its main campus in Erie.

A new owner

Enter Jonathan Ehrenfeld, a Baltimore-based entrepreneur whose portfolio of properties includes the S.P.I.R.E. Institute in Geneva, Ohio. Ehrenfeld Companies bought the North East property for $4.5 million, closing on the purchase in late January of 2022. Ehrenfeld considered using the property potentially as an overflow site for S.P.I.R.E., a sports-training facility with an array of programs at both the high school and collegiate level.

The borough applied for a state grant to help Ehrenfeld Cos. renovate older buildings and build a sports complex, but the grant applications were never approved. Since then, Granite Ridge, the name it was given by way of a contest, has explored a variety of uses for the property and its different buildings. It has continued to rent apartments and town houses on the campus and has made the campus's renovated chapel available for weddings. Other buildings have been used for conferences. Last year, Granite Ridge was intent on bringing sports camps to its grounds.

Last July, according to Granite Ridge officials, the company was approached by Culmen International about the possibility of housing unaccompanied migrant children. In early March, Culmen International was one of several other contractors that became eligible for the five-year, $75 billion contract. However, later that month a Granite Ridge employee resigned and leaked the plans to local media, setting off a firestorm of opposition from community members concerned about the impact the facility could have on crime, property values, business and tourism.

On Monday last week, North East Township Supervisors voted to subdivide a portion of the property so that Granite Ridge can construct dozens of cottage-style residences.

This article originally appeared on Erie Times-News: North East's Granite Ridge won't house migrant children for now