ORANGE PARK —Members of the Orange Park Town Council voted 3-2 to accept a State Board of Immigration Enforcement grant award during a lengthy debate at Tuesday night's meeting.

The grant, totaling $11,771.50, is reimbursement funding for the town's previous agreement with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), approved last April.

The Immigration 287(g) program allows the Orange Park Police Department to work with ICE to conduct immigration enforcement within the town.  Per the memorandum of agreement, ICE paid for the officers' training, while the town funded the rest of the program, including travel expenses.

According to Assistant Police Chief Cody Monroe, the department is in the early stages of developing standard operating procedures. Once they have Immigration 287(g) officers, the department will be able to process arrests.

Currently, the person is held with a warrant for approximately 30 minutes on the scene while ICE is called. If the federal agency chooses not to take action, the department has to release the person.

Last year, the council voted 3-1 to approve the agreement, much to some residents' disapproval. And Tuesday's meeting was no different, with a crowd of people, inside and outside the town's limits, showing up to speak out against the council's acceptance.

"I don't want ICE in my neighborhood. I've already seen them at my grocery store. I've seen what they're doing to families," one said.

"We're putting our efforts into the wrong thing. We need to put our efforts into people and humans. And I don't care what country they're from. As long as they're willing to be here and work here and pay their taxes," another said.

Although many detested the funding — some also questioning what deportations would do to the town's economic structure — some council members countered. Others understood the concerns.

"Would you rather, if ICE is in our town, have our police officers with them to try to help the individual that's there?" Town Mayor Randy Anderson asked. "Not take the individual away. Do you think that if we're not there, ICE won't come? It's not a choice."

The grant will continue to support the town's existing commitments regarding immigration enforcement assistance in cooperation with federal authorities. Monroe reiterated that the police department will not be "breaking into people's homes," but rather focusing on taking action if they come across someone who already has a civil warrant.

The town can terminate the agreement at any time.