The City of Lakeland's second public hearing on a potential data center moratorium drew a large crowd to City Hall on Monday, Aug. 3.

City commissioners voted 4-3 to approve an ordinance that pauses the acceptance and review of permit applications for data centers and "large load customers" (those using 50+ megawatts of power per month) for up to 12 months.

Much of the discussion centered on the ordinance's verbiage and whether it would unduly restrict current customers from storing their data. Commissioner Mike Musick reiterated that there's currently no application for a data center — developers withdrew an application for the 600,000-sqft Project Swan in June.

The data center conversation isn't over yet. Ultimately, the moratorium will allow city staff to dive deeper into the impacts of such developments and create regulations for them. "I support the moratorium, because I think it gives us a minute to look at what we're dealing with here," said Mayor Sara Roberts McCarley.

Catch up on the commission's conversation.

What readers are saying

We asked if you agree with the commission's decision to approve the data center moratorium.

81% — Yes
11% — No
6% — I'm not sure yet
2% — I don't care either way

"The environmental impact to our water and an already strained electrical grid would cost residents both monetarily and in quality of life." — Jayne L., "Yes"

"I applaud the city for the 'pause to take a breath.'" — Melissa G., "Yes"

"Our electrical [production] and fossil fuel processing is decades behind. There are US companies that have developed closed-loop water and electric technology that will eliminate most of the utility strain on the system. These data centers will ultimately improve US electrical systems due to need." — Clark B., "No"

"Somebody will get the business and the income. Don't block until we know more." — Alice H., "I'm not sure yet"

"No need for a moratorium. Codes are already in place and each application/project can be conditioned accordingly, or denied, during review by [the] Board." — Tracy M., "No"

"It’s sad to say that Florida is being overbuilt. I hate to see the loss of our natural habitats." — Bill M., "Yes"

"Holding back new technology from the Lakeland community is fatal, and once the data centers prove worthwhile, Lakeland will be left in the dust." — Michael F.

"More needs to be done to enact protections to Lakeland's resources before even considering data centers." — Janet P., "Yes"

"This represents excellent leadership by our city leaders. Taking time to consider the implications of a data center is wise and prudent." — AS, "Yes"

"Centralized storage & processing power keeps essential services like healthcare, banking, communications online. Life today is AI, data-generated; we must have upgraded data centers to capture the influx of use and security of data." — Anonymous, "No"

Responses may have been edited for brevity + clarity.