A massive data center could be coming to west Lakeland.
A Tampa-area developer is proposing a project of up to 600,000 square feet on 60.5 acres of currently undeveloped land near Old Tampa Highway and Wilkinson Road. The proposal, called “Project Swan,” shows three data center buildings, large mechanical yards, stormwater ponds, and an electrical substation at 923 Wilkinson Road.
It is the first hyperscale-style data center proposed within Lakeland’s city limits — but city officials say the project is in its earliest stage and may face basic questions about whether the use is allowed under the current city code.
The proposal lands as Central Florida is seeing a surge of large data center projects tied to artificial intelligence and cloud computing…