DeSantis Now Open to Closing 'Alligator Alcatraz' After Months Fighting Court Challenges to Keep It Open: 'It Served Its Purpose'

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said Thursday he is now open to shutting down the controversial immigration detention facility known as "Alligator Alcatraz," after months of defending the site in court and promoting it as a model for President Donald Trump's immigration agenda.

"It would be great for us to break that facility down," DeSantis told reporters in Lakeland, referring to the Everglades detention center that Florida built last year and has spent hundreds of millions of dollars operating. He added that if the federal government decides the facility is no longer necessary, "we don't need to do it."

The remarks, reported by The Miami Herald, marked a notable shift for the governor, whose administration previously fought multiple legal challenges seeking to shut the facility down. Florida officials spent more than half a million dollars defending the center in court, including appealing a Miami judge's order that would have halted operations over environmental concerns.

The facility, located at a remote Everglades airstrip between Miami and Naples, became one of the most visible symbols of the Trump administration's immigration crackdown after opening in summer 2025. Trump toured the site alongside DeSantis and then-Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, with state officials openly promoting the harsh environment as a deterrent to undocumented migrants.

According to The New York Times, state and federal officials are now discussing whether to close the center because it has proven costly and operationally ineffective. Florida has reportedly been spending more than $1 million per day to run the facility, while the state's request for $608 million in federal reimbursement remains unresolved.

DeSantis nevertheless defended the project's broader impact, saying the facility processed roughly 22,000 detainees. "If we shut down the lights on it tomorrow, we will be able to say it served its purpose," he said.

White House border czar Tom Homan confirmed on Thursday week that the administration is reviewing the future of multiple detention facilities nationwide, including Alligator Alcatraz, as officials reassess detention capacity and enforcement strategy.

"There's a whole process going on right now on the future of detention and filling out 100,000 beds," said Homan, referring to the administration's goal of extending detention capacity to more than 100,000 beds. "So that is in the mix amongst a lot of facilities."

The center has faced sustained criticism from immigration advocates, attorneys and Democratic lawmakers over alleged conditions inside the site. Court filings and congressional inquiries have included allegations of detainee abuse, prolonged shackling, denial of legal access and the use of confinement cages known as "the box."

State officials have denied wrongdoing.