LOXAHATCHEE, Fla. — Palm Beach County zoning staff approved a plan that nearly triples the amount of data center space previously approved on part of the property associated with Project Tango, according to new documents obtained by WPTV reporter Michael Hoffman. The Oct. 7 approval came less than three months after county commissioners voted 5-1 to reject a much larger Project Tango expansion.
The new plan increases the approved data center space from 206,000 square feet to just under 700,000 square feet.
That distinction is important because the new approval is separate from the Project Tango expansion commissioners rejected in July.
Project Tango dates back to a 2016 approval
In 2016, plans were approved for 206,000 square feet of data center space and 1.2 million square feet of warehouse space on the property. About 600,000 square feet remained unassigned.
The site is next to what would later become the Arden community and Saddle View Elementary School.
A decade later, a much larger proposal came before the Palm Beach County Commission.
On July 15, commissioners spent roughly 12 hours reviewing the application known as Project Tango. That proposal sought to increase the project's data center footprint to more than 1 million square feet.
Commissioners voted 5-1 to deny the expansion following significant opposition from nearby residents.
The county also passed a moratorium on new data center applications while officials work on new rules.
For residents who had fought the expansion, the July decision was a victory. Many believed it meant the 206,000 square feet of data center space approved in 2016 would remain the limit at the site.
New documents show that was not the end of the story.
Documents show a separate proposal was already in the works
Documents obtained by Hoffman show PBA Holdings, one of two companies that own property associated with Project Tango, had submitted a separate proposal before the July commission vote.
Palm Beach County staff approved that plan Oct. 7 without another vote by county commissioners or a new public hearing before the commission.
The approval increases the data center space on that portion of the property from 206,000 square feet to just under 700,000 square feet.
The additional data center space uses square footage that had been unassigned under the 2016 approval.
Under the newly approved plan, the property would include:
- Two 288,000-square-foot data center buildings
- One 122,000-square-foot data center building
- 1.2 million square feet of warehouse space
- A utility building and offices occupying the remaining square footage
New approval comes with conditions
There is another significant difference between the 2016 plan and the October approval.
The latest approval contains conditions governing development of the property. Palm Beach County zoning officials confirmed in July that the original 2016 approval did not include such conditions.
Under the newly approved plan, data center buildings cannot be constructed within 850 feet of the property line near Arden.
Noise at neighboring homes would be capped between 50 and 60 decibels, depending on the time of day. Sound monitors would run continuously, with the county receiving access to the monitoring data.
The county's water utility would commit to providing no more than 100,000 gallons of water per day for the entire site.
Battery storage would also be required to comply with fire safety requirements.
Why the county says the plan could move forward
Residents have contacted WPTV and Hoffman questioning how the plan could be approved without another commission vote and saying they believed the county's data center moratorium would prevent further movement on the property.
Palm Beach County Zoning Director Wendy Hernandez told Hoffman by phone that the proposal was submitted before the moratorium took effect.
Because it was already submitted, Hernandez said, county staff were able to continue reviewing it and ultimately approve it.
Hernandez declined an on-camera interview.
Another proposal could add even more data center space
The Oct. 7 approval is not the only application involving the Project Tango property.
According to Hernandez, WPB Logistics, the second owner of part of the property, has submitted its own proposal seeking to increase data center space on its roughly 60-acre portion of the site without approval from the County Commission.
That proposal could result in approximately 1.2 million square feet of additional data center space.
Unlike the PBA Holdings proposal approved Oct. 7, the WPB Logistics application remains under review.
WPTV seeks response from Project Tango representative
Hoffman also reached out to Ernie Cox, the main project manager for Project Tango, seeking a response to concerns from residents who said they felt the latest approval happened without their knowledge or an opportunity for public input.
A member of Cox's staff returned Hoffman's call Tuesday and said the team would respond to the question.
Hoffman had not received that response at the time of publication.
