Mass. submits possible locations for housing unaccompanied minor - Boston News, Weather, Sports | FOX 25 | MyFoxBoston

BOSTON (MyFoxBoston.com) -- Gov. Deval Patrick announced Friday that Massachusetts has submitted two locations to be considered for the shelter of children who arrive unaccompanied to the southern border of the United States.

Patrick's office said the two locations were Camp Edwards on Cape Cod and Westover Air Base in Chicopee. The federal government will assess whether one of those locations is suitable to house the children. According to a press release, the process will include outreach to communities and local leaders.

Massachusetts has been asked to find a site able to hold up to 1,000 children for a period of four months. The average stay of a child will reportedly be 35 days. The federal government will foot the bill for the cost of the facility and staffing.

"Massachusetts has a proud tradition of embracing opportunities to help in times of a humanitarian crisis," said Patrick's office. "After the Haiti earthquake and Hurricane Katrina the Commonwealth opened its collective heart to those in need. We have an opportunity to do that again for these children, many of whom have experienced great traumas in their home country or on their journey to America."

Congressman William Keating, who represents areas of Cape Cod and the South Coast, released the following statement Friday:

“The recent unprecedented surge of unaccompanied children to the United States poses the immediate practical problem of providing safety while having to enforce the law. The Commonwealth’s proposal to provide emergency shelter to those as young as 3 years old is on a temporary basis, with an average expected stay of 35 days, and would be fully paid for by the federal government. As a former District Attorney, I am unfortunately familiar with the heightened risk of abuse and exploitation faced by parentless children. During this emergency, we must safeguard the health and well being of these children, while immigration officials process them as directed by federal law.”

We are awaiting a comment from Congressman Richard Neal, who represents areas of western Massachusetts including Chicopee.