ORCA has new Vero Beach home after IRSC evicted it from Fort Pierce Coast Guard station

The Ocean Research & Conservation Association has a new and permanent home, a year after Indian River State College abruptly evicted the nonprofit from the building it had been leasing for 16 years.

ORCA has bought the 6,500-square-foot building, a former radio station at 1235 16th St. in Vero Beach, and expects to be fully moved in by the end of the year, said Edie Widder, the nonprofit's co-founder and senior scientist.

The building will be named the D.J. Rainone Research and Science Building, in honor of a Vero Beach resident who "possessed an incredible love for the ocean and whose estate kicked off the capital campaign that made the purchase of the building possible," according to an Aug. 22 announcement from the nonprofit.

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Indian River Lagoon research

Rainone's estate donated $500,000 toward the $865,000 purchase price, Widder said. ORCA has collected $921,000 of its $1.2 million fundraising goal in a campaign it kicked off in April, Widder said.

The city assisted with renovations and in 2019 donated a defunct water quality testing lab near the airport that has became ORCA's new citizen science center, Widder said. The Vero Beach Art Club also helped by painting murals in the space.

“The city of Vero Beach has been so supportive of our efforts on behalf of the lagoon, we are feeling really great about this move," Widder said. "The community support has been phenomenal and it’s an ideal location for ORCA, as its midway between the extremes of the 156-mile-long Indian River Lagoon."

The lagoon runs through five coastal counties, including Martin, St. Lucie, Indian River, Brevard and Volusia.

Why did IRSC evict ORCA?

ORCA had been based at the historic Coast Guard building on Seaway Drive in Fort Pierce since 2005, until IRSC issued a 60-day notice to vacate in May 2021.

The IRSC board in April 2021 "deemed that the facility was not being maintained to IRSC standards and was unfit for continued occupancy," spokesperson Suzanne Seldes told TCPalm at the time.

The 1936 building was deteriorating, IRSC officials told ORCA. That baffled ORCA staff. Managing Director Warren Falls, who is a licensed contractor, said the structure was "strong" and "sound," and had passed all its fire inspections. The interior and mostly exterior had been renovated in 2018 to fix hurricane damage.

IRSC repeatedly denied TCPalm's request for inspection records detailing problems with the building.

IRSC also denied ORCA's request for more time to find its next headquarters.

"The urgency with which they seemed to need to get us out of there was quite mystifying," Widder told TCPalm Thursday. "At the time, I begged them to let us stay a little longer."

IRSC Hospitality Center

Once ORCA vacated, a new name appeared on the sign: "Hospitality Center."

What the building will be used for remains unclear. It's too early to determine, as there is "much to do to make the building fit for occupancy," Seldes told TCPalm Thursday.

The building will remain unoccupied until an assessment, review and renovation are complete, Seldes said. She could not provide a timeline.

The building is reserved for the college's hospitality program, which focuses on the tourism industry, Seldes told TCPalm last year.

The building features Dade County pine, New England-style arches with tucked-away windows, lengthy kitchen cabinets designed for naval military officers who lived there during World War II. A third-floor ladder accesses a panoramic view of the ocean, inlet and lagoon.

Despite not having a headquarters this past year, ORCA expanded its citizen science program and continued its Indian River Lagoon research, Widder said.

"I'm looking forward to even more advancements in the coming years, when we've got this new space to depend on," she said.

ORCA is still accepting donations at teamorca.org.

Max Chesnes is a TCPalm environment reporter focusing on issues facing the Indian River Lagoon, St. Lucie River and Lake Okeechobee. You can keep up with Max on Twitter @MaxChesnes, email him at max.chesnes@tcpalm.com and give him a call at 772-978-2224.

This article originally appeared on Treasure Coast Newspapers: ORCA nonprofit buys $865,000 Vero Beach building after IRSC eviction