Fort Meade Data Center, Fort Meade, Florida

Stonebridge has city approval for a 4.4 million-square-foot AI data center in Fort Meade, Polk County, Florida, and three of the city leaders who approved it now face a recall. On April 15, 2026, the Fort Meade City Commission voted unanimously for a development agreement with Stonebridge for the data center, which would sit on more than 1,300 acres, after a four-hour meeting at which dozens of people spoke against it.

The land, owned by Florida Eco Park and Polk Industrial Park and used for cattle grazing, was rezoned in June 2025 for up to 4.4 million square feet of data centers, and the end user has not been named. Stonebridge must build certain water and wastewater improvements, and the city will reserve water and wastewater capacity for the campus. Vice Mayor Petrina McCutchen called her vote a leap: "Unfortunately, there are some questions that will go unanswered that I don't even have, that you don't even have, but does that mean I don't take a leap because I'm gripped by fear?"

Water is the open question. Stonebridge first said it would need about 140,000 gallons a day and later said 50,000. The Southwest Florida Water Management District told the city in April that under rules adopted in December it cannot serve the data center from its existing water permit; the demand must go into a new permit approved by the district's governing board at a public meeting. Days after the vote, Florida Commerce Secretary Alex Kelly wrote to the commission that the project "presents significant risks to Central Florida's energy capacity, water resources, and transportation infrastructure" and that its projected water demand "appears woefully underestimated." "These facilities introduce persistent low-frequency noise, large substations, and transmission lines," real estate agent Danielle Evans told the commission.

Residents have gone to court and to the ballot. The group Watchdogs of Fort Meade sued the city in May over what it calls a lack of transparency and lawful review, and asked the state Department of Environmental Protection for an environmental review. A recall committee then filed petitions against Mayor Jaret Williams, Vice Mayor McCutchen and Commissioner Matthew Taylor, and its vice chairman, George McNerney, said residents had asked repeatedly for a moratorium. The Polk County Supervisor of Elections certified enough first-round signatures on August 14, and in early September Taylor sued to stop the recall, calling it retaliation for his support of the data center and "a gross abuse of the process." Taylor has defended the project as keeping Florida ahead in the global AI race.

The data center cannot proceed until the Southwest Florida Water Management District's governing board approves a water permit that covers it. For the recall to reach a ballot, organizers must next gather signatures from 15% of Fort Meade's registered voters. A judge has not yet ruled on Taylor's challenge.