There is an updated development agreement concerning the development of a proposed 4.4million-square foot data center complex, but the version posted online is missing some key data.
That updated development agreement on the proposed Fort Meade data center is going before the city’s Planning and Zoning Board Tuesday on its way to a hearing before the City Commission on April 14..
One issue is the road network that will serve the data center, which is contained in a so-far empty Attachment. B.
This is relevant for a couple of reasons.
One is that the revised development agreement map area now extends southward to County Road 630 through an area that was not part of the earlier approved Industrial Planned-unit Development.
Another is that the land at the moment does not lie within the city limits, according to the Polk County Property Appraiser’s website.
Neither of these issues are mentioned specifically in the development agreement.
If there are in fact plans to access the site from CR630, that would probably eliminate the need for the expense and delay involved in constructing an overpass across the CSX rail right of way. as mentioned in a previous post.
Th PUD conditions for the multistory data center site did specify the need for geotechnical testing to make sure the buildings would not sink or flood, both of which are mentioned as potential problems in the analysis of the soils on the site in the Polk County Soil Survey.
It is likely the developer’s engineers are aware of this, but the conditions are a safeguard.
This would also apply to any roadbuilding, too, since the development agreement does specify all roads should be constructed to city standards.
If some of the additional land does need to be annexed, that would be something that could be done easily if the City Commission is disposed to advance the project.
The April 14 hearing will tell the tale.
But once again it is important to point out that the development agreement simply lays out each party’s obligations if the project moves forward;. It is not a development approval.