4 July 3-9, 2025 miaminewtimes.com | browardpalmbeach.com NEW TIMES | MUSIC | CAFE | CULTURE | NIGHT+DAY | NEWS | LETTERS | CONTENTS | MONTH XX–MONTH XX, 2008 miaminewtimes.com MIAMI NEW TIMES | MUSIC | CAFE | FILM | ART | STAGE | NIGHT+DAY | METRO | RIPTIDE | LETTERS | CONTENTS | CRIME AGAINST NATURE Friends of the Everglades sues to stop ‘Alligator Alcatraz.’ BY ALEX DELUCA D ecades after helping save the Everglades from a doomed jetport project, Friends of the Everglades is once again fighting to protect the precious land — this time, from an arguably more out- landish idea. On Friday, environmental groups Friends of the Everglades and the Center for Biologi- cal Diversity announced that they filed a law- suit against federal, state, and Miami-Dade County officials. The suit challenges what Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier has dubbed “Alligator Alcatraz”— the state’s plan to build a sprawling immigration detention fa- cility in the middle of the Florida Everglades. The lawsuit contends that the plan has gone through no environmental review, as re- quired under federal law, and the public hasn’t had an opportunity to comment on the project. “This scheme is not only cruel, it threatens the Everglades ecosystem that state and fed- eral taxpayers have spent billions to protect,” Eve Samples, executive director of Friends of the Everglades, said in a statement. “Friends of the Everglades was founded by Marjory Stoneman Douglas in 1969 to stop harmful de- velopment at this very location. Fifty-six years later, the threat has returned — and it poses another existential threat to the Everglades.” The 27-page lawsuit, which seeks to halt the project, was filed against U.S. Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, Immigration and Customs Enforcement di- rector Todd Lyons, Florida Division of Emer- gency Management director Kevin Guthrie, and Miami-Dade County. The defendants did not respond to New Times’ request for comment. Back in the 1960s, as South Florida’s popu- lation boomed, the state had a seemingly bright idea: it wanted to erect the world’s largest airport on a remote stretch of swamp in the heart of the Everglades. Located roughly 50 miles away from Marco Island, the 39-square-mile property would feature six runways and support coast- to-coast flights at supersonic speeds. The Mi- ami-Dade County Port Authority purchased the land and broke ground in 1968; the proj- ect was also known as the Big Cypress Swamp Jetport, or simply the Everglades Jetport. But the following year, an environmental impact report published by the United States Department of the Interior warned that the jet- port could, in short, destroy the Everglades — as well as the broader South Florida ecosystem. Alarmed by the findings, journalist and conservationist Marjory Stoneman Douglas founded Friends of the Everglades, a non- profit organization, to fight the construction and pressure the port authority to find an- other location for the airport. “I’ll do whatever I can,” a 79-year-old Doug- las said at the time, of stopping the jetport. The group’s efforts paid off: work on the airport was halted in 1970, after just one run- way was built. Now, more than half a century later, Friends of the Everglades is once again fight- ing to save the land. As the Trump administration continues to intensify its immigration crackdown, tripling the daily arrest quota from 1,000 to 3,000, the state quickly began construction on the land (with the federal government’s blessing) late last month. Uthmeier said the site will consist of “light infrastructure” in the form of “heavy duty tent facilities, trailer facilities,” hold more than 5,000 beds, and be up and running by the first week of July. “We don’t need to build a lot of brick and mortar,” Uthmeier said. “It will be temporary, and thankfully, Mother Nature does a lot on the perimeter. We’ll have a little bit of addi- tions needed. But there’s really nowhere to go. If you’re housed there, if you’re detained there, there’s no way in, no way out.” Since Uthmeier announced the plan, Friends of the Everglades and other veteran conservationists have pushed back in hopes of protecting the land and its vital ecosystems, home to countless habitats and endangered species, including the West Indian manatee, American crocodile, and Florida panther. Days after hundreds of people gathered near the site to protest the project, Friends of the Everglades executive director Eve Sam- ples sent Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis a let- ter urging him to halt the construction. She warned that the project would cause irrepa- rable harm to the Everglades’ wetlands, as well as strain water and sewer infrastructure, increase light pollution and traffic, and bur- den emergency services. “Friends of the Everglades is deeply con- cerned that building a detention center — along with the necessary infrastructure, and the likelihood of future development — poses an unacceptable and unnecessary risk to on- site wetlands, nearby Big Cypress National Preserve and Everglades National Park,” the letter reads. It adds, “To be clear: Allowing the ‘Alliga- tor Alcatraz’ proposal the move forward would signify a reversal of the DeSantis ad- ministration’s stated commitment to Ever- glades restoration.” As the letter points out, “Alligator Alca- traz” is one of several ongoing projects cur- rently threatening the Everglades. Weeks ago, Florida gave U.S. Sugar Corp. and Okeelanta Corp., better known as Florida Crystals, the green light to move forward with a controversial rock mine project that would turn sugar farming land into a rock mine near the Everglades Agricultural Area (EAA) reser- voir, which sits just south of Lake Okeechobee. “It’s clear the Everglades face a new round of threats,” the letter reads. “We urge you: Don’t make the same mistake Florida avoided 55 years ago. Stand with thousands of Floridi- ans against efforts to pave the Everglades — and be part of the fight to save it, instead.” [email protected] A jet takes off from the Everglades Jetport. Decades after Friends of the Everglades halted the project, they’re fighting a new one: Alligator Alcatraz. Photo by Environmental Protection Agency | METRO | How Low Will They Go? Florida GOP is hawking ‘Alligator Alcatraz’ merch. BY ALEX DELUCA I f there’s one thing the Florida GOP never misses, it’s a chance to turn outrage into merch (just ask fans of their “Gulf of Amer- ica” and “Florida Space Coast” gear). Now, the party is capitalizing on its latest controversy: a plan to build a sprawling immigra- tion detention facility in the middle of the Florida Everglades. As the Trump administration continues to ramp up its immigration crackdown, Florida has quickly begun constructing a detention facility for migrants on the site of a largely unused pub- lic airport in the heart of the Everglades (along the eastern boundary of Big Cypress National Preserve) to house and process suspected un- documented migrants. Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier has said the site will consist of “light infrastructure” in the form of “heavy-duty tent facilities, trailer facilities,” hold more than 5,000 beds, and be up and running by the first week of July. The state is calling it “Alligator Alcatraz.” As construction gets underway, the Florida GOP is already hawking branded “Alligator Alca- traz” merch. Yes, really. The party’s online store now features $30 T- shirts stamped with the name and what appears to be an AI-generated image of a swampy prison scene, complete with an alligator and oversized snake. A matching black trucker hat goes for $27, and a set of koozies runs $15. In a Florida GOP email advertising the merch, the party boasts “Alligator Alcatraz” as a “gator- guarded, python-patrolled prison for illegal aliens who thought they could game the system. “We’re backing President Trump’s fight against illegal immigration with this blazing Alli- gator Alcatraz gear,” the email reads. “Every shirt, hat, or koozie you grab funds our push to keep Florida tough on crime and tougher on borders.” Florida officials broke ground on the site late last month week using emergency powers granted to Gov. Ron DeSantis under a 2023 state of emer- gency declaration over illegal immigration. Un- der Florida law, the governor may com- mandeer or use private property if it’s deemed necessary to “cope” with an emergency. The Florida Division of Emergency Management will reportedly over- see things at the facility with the help of the Na- tional Guard at an estimated cost of $450 million per year, with the option to seek federal reim- bursement. Since Uthmeier announced the plan, Friends of the Everglades and other veteran conserva- tionists have pushed back, warning that the proj- ect threatens critical ecosystems home to endangered species like the West Indian mana- tee, American crocodile, and Florida panther. Just days after hundreds gathered near the site to protest, Friends of the Everglades execu- tive director Eve Samples sent a letter to DeSan- tis urging him to immediately halt construction. She warned the project would cause irreparable harm to wetlands, strain water and sewer infra- structure, increase light pollution and traffic, and burden local emergency services. “Friends of the Everglades is deeply con- cerned that building a detention center — along with the necessary infrastructure, and the likeli- hood of future development — poses an unac- ceptable and unnecessary risk to on-site wetlands, nearby Big Cypress National Preserve and Everglades National Park,” the letter reads. It adds, “To be clear, allowing the ‘Alligator Alcatraz’ proposal to move forward would sig- nify a reversal of the DeSantis Administration’s stated commitment to Everglades restoration.” FLORIDA OFFICIALS BROKE GROUND ON THE SITE LATE LAST MONTH.
