Contractors working at the migrant detention facility known as “Alligator Alcatraz” have received orders to begin “full demobilization” of the site, multiple sources confirmed to CBS News Miami, marking the effective end of a $1.2 billion project that opened less than a year ago.
Florida emergency management officials followed up Tuesday by directing contractors to begin physically dismantling the facility and make “significant progress” by Wednesday, according to the New York Times.
The detention center, located at the Dade-Collier Training and Transition Airport in Ochopee, Florida, opened July 1, 2025, when President Trump and Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL) toured the facility together. Florida’s Division of Emergency Management operated the tent facility and funded its construction.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement moved all detainees out of the facility last week, citing safety concerns as Florida enters hurricane season. Detainees were transferred to other ICE-operated facilities across the country.
Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier (R) confirmed Monday that the number of detainees being transferred to the facility had been declining for months, framing the closure as a natural end to a project that had met its objectives.
“I think Alligator Alcatraz actually stayed open longer than it was intentionally planned when it was first conceptualized,” Uthmeier told reporters. “Now that the federal government is resourced and standing up its own mission, using its own authorities, [the Florida site] is no longer needed.”
Uthmeier added that the facility had always been conceived as a temporary measure. “The plan was always to protect the Everglades and take it back to being a protected area,” he said.
Fully removing the infrastructure from the site could take several weeks, CBS News Miami reported. Once cleared, the airstrip will return to its original function as a pilot training facility at Dade-Collier.
The facility drew national attention when it opened last summer, with critics pointing to its location in the Florida Everglades and extreme summer heat conditions. Supporters argued it showed that states could step up to supplement federal immigration enforcement when Washington lacked capacity.
