Indian River State College has scrapped a proposed $1.5 million data center campus in Okeechobee County after immense public backlash. The project would have been state-funded via Gov. Ron DeSantis’ rural infrastructure fund. However, DeSantis said he did not personally approve the specific plans. A state-subsidized data center project in Okeechobee County, Florida was rejected after unanimous opposition from local ranchers and residents. The project received roughly $1.5 million from the Governor’s Rural Infrastructure Fund. Community concerns centered on water use,… pic.twitter.com/v24YrvIVgr — Localize – Farmers Market (@Localizefoodapp) May 7, 2026 South Florida Sun Sentinel explained further: A Florida state college’s plan to build a data center near Lake Okeechobee has stoked fierce pushback from residents and an about-face from the DeSantis administration, which granted $1.5 million in state funds to the project and now says it was deceived. But college leaders say that the conflict is just a misunderstanding. Indian River State College has been working for years on the “Okee-One Data Campus” in the town of Okeechobee. The campus, which is slated to include a data center, is planned for a 205-acre rural parcel that sits along Highway 441, about two and a half hours east of Sarasota. In a February presentation before the Okeechobee County Commission, a college official noted multiple times that the project would not have moved forward without support from Gov. Ron DeSantis’ administration. He also stirred anxiety — noting the project’s potential to grow in size, use more electricity and possibly involve a mega-data center corporation like Nvidia. The project has proceeded without any public vote for approval in the city or county governments, because the land is controlled by the state college. The parcel has a dark history. To make way for the center, the college plans to bulldoze most of the remnants of the former Florida School for Boys at Okeechobee, an infamous reform school where students were systematically abused. It’s the sister campus to the more well-known Arthur G. Dozier School for Boys in Marianna, where students were so brutally beaten that dozens of bodies have been found in unmarked graves. Resistance against the planned data center intensified, culminating in a petition that tallied thousands of signatures. One resident said one of his biggest worries about the project was its potential environmental impact. The proposed site was in “proximity to sensitive waterways connected to Lake Okeechobee and the Everglades,” WPBF noted. “It’s our home, and once we give it up, we won’t get it back. So I urge you, let’s stand together and speak clearly and protect what makes this place worth living here for,” one concerned resident said, according to the outlet. WPBF shared further: College officials have said the Okee-One data center would be small, at least initially, and would include a learning lab for students studying AI and data technology. They have also pointed to possible economic growth and jobs. But some residents remain skeptical that those promises will pay off for the community. “Data centers are not like small business that could become part of the community. They are massive industrial facilities. They consume enormous amounts of resources that we depend on every day.” “They hum constantly, they generate heat and they often require large-scale infrastructure changes in a place like ours.” “And what do we get in return? A handful of jobs, temporary construction work and few very long-term positions,” said one resident at the commission meeting April 9. Residents organized protests to oppose the project and voiced their concerns at public meetings. “The Okee-One project has been discontinued and is no longer active,” Indian River State College said in a statement to TCPalm. “The abrupt cancellation was the culmination of more than a month of opposition from Okeechobee residents,” the newspaper stated. TCPalm has more: Following residential opposition, Okeechobee County Commissioner Terry Burroughs discussed the proposal with Florida Commerce Secretary Alex Kelly, and he shared that conversation during an April 23 County Commission meeting. The college “will return almost 50% of the money,” Burroughs said. “The data center is not going to be built.” The DeSantis administration, since approving state funding for Okee-One, has taken a stronger stance against large data centers in Florida. Kelly, however, was initially supportive. “We are grateful for our continued partnership with Indian River State College as they establish the Okee-One data campus and provide Florida’s future job seekers with valuable skills in high-demand fields,” Kelly said in a 2025 statement. Wyatt Deihl, who grew up in Okeechobee and graduated with an associate’s degree at the state college in 2018, launched a petition against the college’s proposal that received more than 3,100 signatures. Deihl learned about the proposal on social media, he told TCPalm. At the time, it was initially framed as a “technical training campus,” he said. But the environmental, economic and public health consequences of data centers later became clear, he said. “While Okeechobee residents are celebrating this victory, we remain vigilant,” Deihl said over text. “Our focus now is on oversight, ensuring local officials prioritize public safety over Big Tech interests.”