WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — After a more than 12-hour meeting, Palm Beach County commissioners voted to deny the 'Project Tango' AI data center.
In a 5-1 vote, the board approved the motion to deny the project without prejudice.
The only board member to vote to approve the data center was Commissioner Maria G. Marino.
Loxahatchee Acreage
Palm Beach County rejects Project Tango AI data center
Palm Beach County commissioners voted Wednesday on "Project Tango," a proposed hyperscale artificial intelligence data center near Arden, following months of public debate, multiple postponements, and a recent recommendation from the zoning commission to reject the project.
The project's roots trace back to 2016, when the county first approved warehouse and data center development in the area. In late 2025, developers pushed to expand that plan into a hyperscale AI facility, drawing new scrutiny and community pushback. After reporting on the proposal and a wave of public outcry, the commission postponed its decision.
Since then, votes have been delayed, town halls have been held, and site plans have been revised. Two weeks ago, the zoning commission recommended rejecting the project.
Project developers told the commission Wednesday they are confident the project and its potential impacts on sound, water, and power usage will not affect the surrounding community.
They brought in a number of experts to support their case.
Questions about data center sound
Commissioner Maria Sachs asked a low-frequency sound expert about the effects a low-frequency hum would have on people around the data center, which has been a concern.
He said at 55 decibels, which he claimed was similar to the level in the commissioners chambers today, it would have no adverse effect.
She also asked if he's ever visited other data centers. He said no.
Another expert spoke about intermittent sounds versus constant sound. He said sound can cause health problems, but that the data center would not be "changing the sound environment."
"Is there going to be a noise emanating from Project Tango when you're done?" Sachs asked Brian Seymour, an attorney for the project applicant.
"Yes," he responded.
Commissioner Joel Flores asked experts to measure the sound of the room without any talking. It measured 43.9 decibels, which they said should be similar to what the data center makes.
WPTV spoke with Janice Ridenour, head of the Western Palm Beach County Alliance, who said the presentation from sound experts was surprising.
"It doesn't sound like they're as prepared as they should be. I don't think that they're giving enough information that's convincing," she said. "That we should feel safe as a community that they are definitely going to follow through with what they are promising."
Conversation about 2016 application vs. 2026
The project's roots date back to 2016, when the county first approved warehouse and data center development in the area.
However, during the zoning presentation, Commissioner Sachs said if they knew what it would be used for in 2026, they would not have approved the nearby Saddle View Elementary, which opened in 2025.
Vice Mayor Marci Woodward asked zoning staff if they would approve this project without all the conditions they've put on this property.
The response: "No."
Western Palm Beach County Alliance challenges data center expansion
The Western Palm Beach County Alliance also made its case before the commission. One of its key arguments centers on the distinction between light and heavy industrial designations.
County code currently classifies data and information processing as light industrial. An alliance spokesperson argued that while the server farm approved in 2016 may have qualified as light industrial, a hyperscale AI data center does not.
Commissioners have been questioning experts on both sides of the issue.
The project already holds approval for more than 2,000,000 square feet of data center and warehouse space. Today's hearing is focused on the applicants' request for additional approvals.
Other data center projects in Florida canceled
Several proposed data center projects have been withdrawn following community pushback across the Treasure Coast, but the possibility of data centers in the region has not disappeared.
Three projects were pulled after facing opposition: the Silver Fox proposal in Indiantown, the Okee-One project in Okeechobee County, and the Sentinel Grove Technology Park in Fort Pierce.
Despite those withdrawals, new data center activity continues in the area. In Martin County, Florida Power and Light has asked to rezone 5,700 acres off Kanner Highway to include potential data center use. The utility has told WPTV they currently have no plans for a data center on the land.
In St. Lucie County, a company called Atlas Compute says it is planning a 22-acre data center campus in Fort Pierce.
