This was supposed to be a zoning meeting.
Citrus County residents spent hours debating maps, zoning, noise, water and a proposed industrial expansion.
About four hours in, the conversation turned to a donkey.
Her name was Eloise.
Eloise
The AntiData CenterDonkey
A miniature donkey from Hernando, Florida accidentally became the face of a fight over a proposed 1,356-acre industrial expansion.
Hernando, FLVery much a donkeyWould like an oatmeal cookie
Meet Eloise.
She is a miniature Jerusalem donkey who lives with the Osteen family in Hernando, Florida, alongside a cow, goats, and a turkey.
She likes attention. She likes apples and oatmeal cookies.
Her family has called their animals “bougie little animals.”
30 feet
to the Osteen family's fence
1,356 acres
proposed for industrial expansion
9 hours
the planning meeting lasted
Unanimous
the commission recommended against it
Then Eloise entered the public record.
During a discussion of low-frequency noise, attention turned to the donkey living beside the proposed development.
“There's a little donkey right there on the street. The donkey's name is Eloise.”
Eloise herself was unavailable for comment.
Then they voted.
The Citrus County Planning and Development Commission recommended against the proposal. Unanimously. The developer withdrew.
That came from residents and organizers. Eloise became the face people remembered.
“I'm concerned for Eloise, because she is kind of the face of this application.”
Eloise escaped Citrus County.
Shirts showed up with her face on them. Flyers too. The Tampa Bay Times wrote the story down. Other outlets followed.
By the time it reached X, she was already a local symbol. People started gathering around it online. Then someone launched $ELOISE.
The community stuck around.
The story traveled.
Tampa Bay Times
How a donkey named Eloise became a symbol in the fight against Florida data centers, opens in a new tab
Emily L. Mahoney · Aug. 24, 2026
Yahoo
Fast Company
Meet Eloise, the Florida donkey taking on the data center boom, opens in a new tab
Chris Morris · Aug. 26, 2026
Community token
$ELOISE
Solana
2sw8vb5zHCt87TwXkmvk28ZBdNM2h2F8nxFQeKkMpump
The pledge
Eloise gets the apples.
If Eloise is the reason this community exists, she should get something out of it.
100% of community fees go to Eloise, her family and the animals — or toward a cause they choose.
100% of fees Eloise
Apples aren't free.