WASHINGTON (TNND) — President Donald Trump is taking a trip to Florida on Tuesday for a guided walking tour of "Alligator Alcatraz," the new immigration detention facility.

The center, which gets its nickname from the remote location in the Everglades, is being built on an isolated airstrip about 50 miles west of Miami and could house up to 5,000 illegal migrants as they await deportation.

Trump spoke to reporters outside the White House before he left for Florida about the deterrent factor of the facility.

"If snakes are fast, but alligators, we're going to teach them [detainees] how to run away from an alligator," Trump said. "OK, if they escape prison, how to run away. Don't run in a straight line, like this, and you know what? Your chances go up about 1%. OK, not a good thing."

Florida's Attorney General James Uthmeier, who coined the name "Alligator Alcatraz," called it an efficient, low-cost opportunity.

“You don’t need to invest that much in the perimeter. People can get out and there’s not much waiting for them other than alligators and pythons; nowhere to go, nowhere to hide," he said in a video posted on X.

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) also posted a photoshopped picture of Alligators in ICE hats, with the post, "Coming Soon."

Gov. Ron DeSantis suggested Monday that the facility could be open and “ready for business” by the time Trump arrives.

They ain’t going anywhere once they’re there, unless you want them to go somewhere, because good luck getting to civilization," DeSantis said. "So the security is amazing.

The detention facility is estimated to cost about $450 million a year to run, and will largely be paid for by the federal government. The state of Florida is expected to be reimbursed by the Federal Emergency Management Agency, or FEMA.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement detainees are in detention facilities for immigration reasons, like entering the country illegally or overstaying a visa. They are either waiting for ICE to put them on the next flight or bus ride home or are fighting their removal in immigration court.

If an immigrant is accused of or has committed a violent crime, he or she is tried and held in state or federal criminal jurisdiction, separate from the immigration system. In those cases, they may be transferred to ICE for deportation after completing their criminal sentences.

Environmental Groups filed a lawsuit to block the facility from opening this week as scheduled, arguing it could threaten "the wetlands, critical wildlife habitat and protected species," and also that the site is "important for drinking water supply and everglades water quality."

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Editor's note: The Associated Press contributed to this article.