Migrants from New York City will not be coming to Newburgh "in the near future" for housing in motels, Orange County Executive Steve Neuhaus announced Wednesday evening in an address posted on Facebook. 

Dozens of asylum seekers were expected to arrive in Orange County Wednesday, despite a state of emergency declared by Neuhaus this week.

But Neuhaus said after "heated" conversations with New York City Mayor Eric Adams, the plans changed, and the county executive pledged to continue to challenge any efforts to transport the migrants to Orange County.

"This country is a country of immigrants. It’s what makes this country strong,” Neuhaus said. 

But guidance is needed from the federal government on the issue of immigration, he said.

"There's got to be a plan on how to do it," Neuhaus said. "And that's what's frustrating."

In a statement released just after 10 p.m. Wednesday night, Fabien Levy, an Adams administration spokesman, said discussions remain ongoing, but the city still plans to transport migrants to Orange County. 

“We’re discussing legal and safety concerns with our state partners, and while we have paused tonight, our plans have not changed,” Levy said.

Town of Newburgh Supervisor Gil Piaquadio said the Crossroads Hotel, which is in the town, could not operate as a shelter, and that local government officials would enforce town codes. 

Adams had said migrants would also be taken to Rockland County for temporary housing, but that county also issued a state of emergency. A state Supreme Court judge issued a temporary restraining order barring Armoni Inn and Suites in Orangeburg — a hamlet of Orangetown in Rockland County — from housing them. 

County executives from around New York state will speak with Adams on the phone within the next 24 hours to discuss the situation and options going forward, Neuhaus said.

In a letter to Sen. Chuck Schumer on Wednesday, Dutchess County Executive William O'Neil, citing what he called "good cause for concern" among citizens and elected officials, called for "a coordinated decompression strategy" for cities taking in migrants, and claimed that housing them "in local hotels is not a solution — it creates far more problems than it solves ... This is not a humane or logical solution."