The ‘Project Tango’ data center approval was supposed to be a footnote. Instead, it reopened the whole fight. On 7 October, county staff tripled the allowed data center space at 20-Mile Bend using a master plan from 2016. That is the loophole Sachs now has to close.
In July, commissioners voted 5-1 against PBA Holdings‘ 3.6 million-square-foot plan after a 12-hour hearing. It looked final. But the 2016 approval still carried about 600,000 square feet of unassigned rights, and staff let PBA reassign them.
That takes the data center from 200,000 to 698,000 square feet across three buildings, roughly 12 football fields. No public hearing was needed. Another data center that is making headway despite fierce pushback is the ‘Project Jupiter’ data center in New Mexico.
The data center campus has topped out its first building, with three more to come. Clayco and Kiewit New Mexico Co. placed the final structural beam on the 855,000-square-foot first portion this week. Ground was broken in October 2025, so the frame took about a year.
Why the Project Tango data center approval is not final
Commissioner Maria Sachs, who voted no in July, blames outdated zoning. “All of a sudden we’ve gone from, let’s say, being an opera to being rock and roll,” she told WLRN. “But we’re using the rules that we used for years.”
She also says career staff should not settle a project this contested. “But that’s not the way democracy works,” she said. The full commission must still approve before construction begins.
Conditions include a 60-decibel noise cap and continuous sound monitoring. A closed-loop system is capped at 100,000 gallons a day. An 850-foot buffer protects Arden — and blocks rival landowner WPB Logistics. The two are in court.
Cause of Disarray on the Project
A one-year moratorium on new large data center applications took effect on 24 September. It covers anything drawing 50 MW or more. The rejected plan wanted 600 MW. However, the freeze applies only to new applications, and the current paperwork predates it.
Last week, commissioners voted 4-1 against spending nearly $225,000 on a consultant to write permanent rules. The Nov. 18 meeting will consider cheaper options and a public advisory group. “They may set the table,” Sachs said, “but it’s not coming out of the oven until we approve it.”
Why the neighbors stopped trusting the process
The land has a long backlog. PBA Holdings bought it in 1993, mined it for rock, and sold a slice to Florida Power & Light. The eastern section became Arden, about 2,300 homes, with Saddle View Elementary nearby.
A WLRN investigation documented secret meetings and an undisclosed end user. No fraud is alleged here. Still, trust was gone before the first noise study.
PBA Holdings has appealed the July denial under a state land-use law, sending the dispute to a special magistrate. Nothing has been built.
For now, the site stays empty. The arguments move to Nov. 18, then to a commission vote nobody can schedule yet. A decade-old checklist just sized a 600 MW AI campus.
Project Overview: ‘Project Tango’ Data Center
- Project Value: $34.5bn
- Location: 20-Mile Bend, Palm Beach County
- Developer: PBA Holdings
- Status: Administrative approval granted
Scope
- 202-acre site, three data center buildings
- Data center space: 698,000 square feet
- Warehouses: 1.2 million square feet
- 2016 master plan rights reassigned
Project Highlights
- 60-decibel noise cap
- Continuous sound monitoring
- 100,000-gallon daily water limit
- 850-foot Arden buffer
Key Developments
- July 15 commission rejection, 5-1
- Oct. 7 staff approval for expansion
- One-year moratorium in force
- Nov. 18 rules meeting scheduled
Key Challenges
- Outdated zoning rules
- Resident transparency concerns
- Landowner lawsuits and state appeal
- 600 MW projected power demand
Outlook
- Commission retains final approval
- Advisory task force under discussion
- Moratorium expires September 2027
- Special magistrate hearing pending
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