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Data centers in Hillsborough County, Florida: 1 project mapped
No new data center has been proposed in Hillsborough County, and commissioners voted 7-0 twice on August 5, 2026 to prepare a ban. One vote ordered a study of water rules, including a possible ban on using county drinking water to cool data centers; the other told the county attorney to draft a moratorium on AI data centers in unincorporated Hillsborough. Because of a 2025 state law passed after hurricanes Debby, Helene and Milton, the moratorium cannot take effect until October 1, 2027, unless a court strikes that law down first.
The county's one working data center is an old one: the Franklin Exchange Building at 655 North Franklin Street in downtown Tampa, a 1966 tower whose 30,400-square-foot data center houses the Tampa Internet Exchange, where networks connect. A new venture, HyscaleIX, formed by H5 Data Centers and the investment firm Novacap, bought it from 365 Data Centers in early 2026.
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Development Services Director Adam Gormly said data centers are not an allowed use in the county's land code, and companies that asked were told they are "not eligible for development at this time." Residents at the meeting pointed to about 1,000 acres east of Tampa being marketed as "University Energy Park," a possible data center site; Gormly said no proposal had been filed for it. Commissioner Harry Cohen said the county would "proceed very, very cautiously before we even entertain the idea of allowing anything like this to be built."
The vote came during drought water restrictions. U.S. Rep. Kathy Castor wrote to commissioners on September 10 that she strongly opposes data centers in the county, citing water and electric bills. The staff study and the draft moratorium ordinance come back to the commission for a vote; no date has been set.
Data center projects on record in Hillsborough County
Grouped by the town each site sits in. The report above may name projects that have no record here yet.
Tampa1
| Project | Company | Status | Power | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Franklin Exchange Building carrier hotel (Tampa)Tampa | HyscaleIX (H5 Data Centers / Novacap) | Not reported | Source off site ↗ |
Where this comes from
The reporting above was written from these. Open one and check it yourself.
Every project above is drawn from public records, filings and local reporting. Each row links to what it is based on. Statuses change, so check the source date before you rely on one. Found something wrong? Write to [email protected] and it gets fixed.