Florida Ecopark AI Data Center Campus

Timeline from the record

Newest first. Record entries come from the filings and reports the registry cites. Coverage entries are headlines from publisher feeds we monitor daily, linked to the outlet; last checked September 14, 2026.

1. April 17, 2026

   Proposed
   Florida Commerce Secretary Alex Kelly called project fundamentally flawed over water, energy, and transportation risks in letter to Fort Meade Source: Tampa Bay Times
2. April 15, 2026

   Proposed
   Fort Meade City Commission approved 20-year development agreement despite near-unanimous public opposition; outstanding water use and grid interconnection permits required before construction can proceed Source: WUSF
3. April 8, 2026

   Proposed
   Fort Meade Planning Commission voted unanimously to recommend approval of 20-year development agreement Source: WUSF
4. March 2026

   Proposed
   Stonebridge/Florida Ecopark LLC proposed development on 1,300-acre former phosphate mine; data center footprint 200 acres

Opposition and litigation at this site

Yes. Florida Ecopark AI Data Center Campus in Fort Meade, Polk County, Florida is contested. Hearings, public comment, petitions, or organized opposition are on record, and no lawsuit has been filed so far. Florida Commerce Secretary Alex Kelly called project 'fundamentally flawed' in April 17, 2026 letter citing water, energy, and transportation risks.

How the community has taken it

Reception is a sourced signal, not an editorial judgment: contested means active public debate is on record, with hearings, petitions, or organized opposition, without litigation.

Florida Commerce Secretary Alex Kelly called project 'fundamentally flawed' in April 17, 2026 letter citing water, energy, and transportation risks. Environmental advocates questioned water usage claims (reduced from 140,000 to 50,000 gallons/day) and generator emissions. Fort Meade Planning Commission recommended approval unanimously April 8, 2026. Fort Meade City Commission approved 20-year development agreement approximately April 15, 2026; 40 of 41 public commenters opposed at hearing. Southwest Florida Water Management District approval for water use permits remains outstanding, SWFWMD informed Fort Meade the city's current water permit cannot supply the data center and Stonebridge must apply separately.

Source: WUSF

Power and water

Expected to be powered by Duke Energy (near its Hines Energy Complex); Fort Meade residents currently receive power through the Florida Municipal Power Agency. No on-site generation reported.

Stonebridge states it will use a closed-loop system to recycle cooling water; the City of Fort Meade reserved 50,000 gallons/day of potable water for the project (down from an original 150,000-gallon request), which the developer says serves restrooms and kitchens rather than cooling. Residents raised concerns that actual demand could exceed the city's limits, and no SWFWMD water-use permit had been filed as of April 2026.

Public money on the record

Notes on the record

1,300-acre former phosphate mine site; 200-acre data center footprint. 20-year development agreement approved by Fort Meade City Commission approximately April 15, 2026. Requires 1.2 GW of electricity. No identified lessee or buyer publicly disclosed. Water use reduced in plans from 140,000 to 50,000 gallons daily; Southwest Florida Water Management District approval pending separately. Florida SB 484 signed May 2026 added new state-level data center siting requirements. Coordinates are Fort Meade city centroid; actual site is former phosphate mine outside city limits. Re-checked 2026-09-10: status unchanged at 'proposed'. The 20-year development agreement was unanimously approved by Fort Meade commissioners (2026-04-15), but two resident lawsuits filed 2026-05-14 seek to void that approval and block construction-permit issuance (trial scheduled November 2027), and a recall effort against three commissioners is itself now in litigation (Commissioner Matthew Taylor sued 2026-09-09 to stop the recall). No groundbreaking reported. Exact street address still not found in public reporting (site described only as 'west of US-98' on former phosphate-mine land) - missing:address could not be filled this pass.

Other sites within 30 miles

Distances are between recorded coordinates, many of which are a city or county centroid, so treat them as approximate. Cumulative load on one utility and one aquifer is the question a planning commission rarely asks.

• Project Swan · Lakeland · Ryan Companies (end operator TBD)23 mi · Cancelled · Opposed
• Cielo Haines City Data Center · Haines City · Cielo Digital Infrastructure27 mi · Proposed · 300 MW · Contested

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