Lakeland commissioners will discuss whether the city needs a 12-month timeout before considering more large-scale data centers at their agenda study meeting tomorrow, June 12.
The proposal would pause new applications for a year while the city develops rules for an industry that isn’t specifically addressed in Lakeland’s land development code.
Interest in a pause was triggered by a developer’s proposal to put a 600,000-square-foot data center on 60.5 acres of currently undeveloped land in west Lakeland, which sparked intense public opposition.
Commissioners Stephanie Madden and Guy LaLonde Jr. both said they would raise the issue at the meeting. They believe the city needs time to define hyperscale data centers, understand their impact on neighborhoods, and determine what the city’s water, wastewater, and electric systems can realistically accommodate.
Madden said the city wouldn’t be flatly saying no to data centers. It would be making sure it understands all of the implications and has safeguards in place before saying yes.
First public hearing could be July 6
Friday’s discussion will not result in an immediate moratorium, City Attorney Palmer Davis said.
“We cannot just throw this on the Monday agenda,” Davis said.
Davis said the city must follow public notice requirements for zoning-related ordinances, so the earliest the Commission could hold a first public hearing is July 6, followed by a second public hearing and a final vote on July 20.
“Tomorrow, I just want to confirm that they want to go down this path,” Davis said. “And if so, then we will begin drafting a moratorium ordinance and have that ready to go for the July 6 meeting.”
Madden added that if a 12-month moratorium were approved, it would not have to last the full year. Commissioners could vote to end it early if the city develops a workable framework sooner.
Project Swan exposed gaps in the city’s code
The conversation follows weeks of public concern over Project Swan, the proposed data center development near Old Tampa Highway and Wilkinson Road.
The concept generated hundreds of comments on social media and drew dozens of residents to a City Commission meeting earlier this month. Residents raised concerns about water use, electric demand, noise, traffic, and the project’s proximity to nearby homes.
The developer canceled a scheduled Development Review Team meeting after receiving 13 pages of feedback from city staff. The project remains active as the developer reviews the city’s findings and considers their options.
One of the issues highlighted during the Project Swan review was that Lakeland’s land development code does not specifically address data centers.
Madden compared the situation to earlier challenges involving million-square-foot warehouses, 5G infrastructure, and tiny homes — developments that emerged faster than local regulations could adapt.
Why commissioners want a pause
Commission votes can have lasting consequences in terms of natural resources, so it’s important to get them right, Madden said.
“This is not imaginary,” she said. “These are finite resources that we have to really understand more.”
LaLonde raised similar concerns in a Facebook post this week.
“A moratorium is not a ban,” LaLonde wrote. “It is a temporary pause that would allow time to gather facts, conduct independent studies, engage the public, and establish safeguards before projects of this magnitude move forward.”
LaLonde called for independent studies examining utility, transportation, environmental, economic, and water-resource impacts.
“Taking one year to do the homework is a reasonable investment in our community’s future,” he wrote.
Lakeland wouldn’t be alone
Lakeland is far from the only Florida community trying to figure out how data centers fit into its long-term plans.
In the past week, the city of Zephyrhills and Citrus, Hernando, Jackson, and Nassau counties approved 12-month moratoriums on data center-related applications. Pasco County is poised to vote on the issue today.
The city of Palm Coast and Flagler and Leon counties are also considering year-long pauses while they study the industry’s impacts and develop local regulations.
How to watch
Agenda study sessions are held at 8:30 a.m. on the Friday before each City Commission meeting.
The meetings take place in a small conference room on the third floor of City Hall, where commissioners walk through upcoming agenda items, ask questions, and hear presentations from city staff.
Residents can watch live or view a replay on the Lakeland Government Network.
Cindy Glover is a reporter for LkldNow, a nonprofit newsroom providing independent local news for Lakeland. Read at LkldNow.com.
