LAKELAND, Fla. — Governor Ron DeSantis cast serious doubt Thursday on the future of the controversial proposed hyperscale data center in Fort Meade, saying he does not believe the project is “viable.”
The governor made the comments in Lakeland while signing SB 484, a new law creating statewide regulations for large-scale data centers in Florida.
“You know, it’s clear that this is not a viable project,” DeSantis said. “When you look at all the different issues that are outstanding that they would not be able to satisfy, this just was not fully thought through.”
The proposed 4.4 million-square-foot data center in Fort Meade has sparked months of backlash from residents concerned about water usage, electricity demand, environmental impacts and strain on local infrastructure.
“My understanding in Polk [County], the citizens didn’t want the data center in Fort Meade,” DeSantis also said during Thursday’s event at Florida Polytechnic University.
The new law signed Thursday does not ban data centers in Florida, but it does create additional oversight for hyperscale facilities that can require enormous amounts of electricity and water.
Among other provisions, the law adds new requirements for major water use permits and includes protections aimed at preventing residential electric customers from absorbing costs tied to the massive energy demands of data centers.
“You should not, as a hard-working Floridian, have to subsidize some of the wealthiest companies in the history of humanity. That does not work. They need to foot the bill,” DeSantis said.
Some residents who oppose the Fort Meade proposal attended Thursday’s bill signing, including Scott Lynch.
“I really want these regulations, because of the fact that I’m more concerned about the water and the rate hikes,” Lynch said.
During the event, DeSantis also suggested local governments, not tech companies, should ultimately determine how communities develop.
The governor stopped short of saying whether Fort Meade city leaders should revisit their recent approval of the data center project. However, his comments marked the strongest public criticism yet from a top state leader about the proposal’s future. Florida Commerce Secretary J. Alex Kelly, who also attended Thursday’s event, has previously raised concerns about the Fort Meade proposal and suggested it was “far from approved.”
The project still requires approvals from state agencies, including the Southwest Florida Water Management District and the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.
Stonebridge, the developer behind the Fort Meade proposal, has previously said the facility would use a “closed loop” cooling system designed to reduce water consumption compared to traditional hyperscale data centers. However, critics, including some state officials, have questioned how much water and power the project would ultimately require if built at full scale.
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Chad Mills calls Polk County home and has witnessed the area’s growth firsthand. He is focused on sharing stories from his neighbors in Lakeland. You can use the form below to connect with Chad.
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