[UPDATED] Blossom South to house immigrant children? 

This story has been updated to include a statement from Rochester Mayor Lovely Warren.

The owner of the former Blossom South nursing home is interested in turning the now vacant home over to the federal government to house immigrant children who are facing deportation, according to an e-mail sent by Chris Stevens, president of the Upper Monroe neighborhood group.

The e-mail apparently went to everyone subscribed to the Upper Monroe e-mail list.

"I'm contacting you today to get your feedback on the proposed transfer and pass that feedback on to the mayor before committing to being on board," Stevens writes.

The property at 1175 Monroe Avenue is owned by Israel Segal. A representative for Segal has reached out to the city, Stevens' e-mail says.

The federal government needs facilities to house these children, the e-mail says, "and Mr. Segal believes that Blossom South would meet these needs."

According to the e-mail, the facility is 68,000 square feet with 86 bedrooms. There are also kitchens, dayrooms, solariums, dining rooms, offices, and storage rooms, the e-mail says.

Stevens asks that feedback be sent via e-mail by 6 p.m. on Tuesday, July 22. The feedback will be sent to Mayor Lovely Warren and the Neighborhood Service Center, the e-mail says.

Warren spokesperson Christine Christopher sent over the following statement:

Chief of Staff Jeremy Cooney was contact[ed] by a lobbyist on behalf of the owner of Blossom South to see if there was any interest on the part of the city in supporting the concept of turning Blossom South into a facility to house immigrant children.

This was a simple inquiry and no proposal or plan was offered; and other than the initial call, there has been no internal discussion between the mayor and her senior staff. The chief of staff will be briefing the mayor on Monday.