Indian River State College has scrapped its proposal to build a more than $1.5 million, state-funded data center campus in Okeechobee County, the college said in a response to TCPalm.
The controversial, ambitious Okee-One proposal — a project that planned to partner with tech giant Nvidia — was opposed by neighboring residents who planned protests at the college’s Okeechobee campus.
“The Okee-One project has been discontinued and is no longer active,” IRSC said in an emailed response to TCPALM requests for information about the project.
College officials gave no further explanation and declined subsequent requests for comment.
The abrupt cancellation was the culmination of more than a month of opposition from Okeechobee residents.
Okee-One’s beginning and end
Okeechobee County officials were initially supportive of the project when it was proposed in 2023.
“The county views this as a positive economic opportunity for the community that will provide a new business for the region and state,” said Okeechobee County Administrator Deborah Manzo in 2023.
Indian River State College planned to use $1.5 million it received in 2025 from Gov. Ron DeSantis’ rural infrastructure fund to build the data campus on 205 acres of land previously used by the Okeechobee School for Boys, a satellite campus of the state’s infamous and abusive juvenile reform school.
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.”
Jack Randall is TCPalm’s economy and real estate reporter. You can reach him at jack.randall@tcpalm.com.
This article originally appeared on Treasure Coast Newspapers: Florida college scraps proposal to build state-funded data center
Reporting by Jack Randall, Treasure Coast Newspapers / Treasure Coast Newspapers
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