Data Centers in Lakeland

Lakeland – Central Florida's Resilient Digital Hub

Lakeland serves as a strategic data center market for businesses requiring low-latency access to Central Florida's major population centers, including Tampa and Orlando. Its inland location and attractive power costs provide a resilient and cost-effective alternative to coastal deployments, safeguarding critical infrastructure while connecting key commercial corridors. This combination makes it a strong choice for disaster recovery and primary production workloads serving the entire Florida peninsula.

Lakeland: At A Glance

Network & Connectivity Ecosystem

Carrier Density & Carrier Neutrality: The Lakeland market features a solid carrier ecosystem, with access to over 5 providers as of September 2025. Facilities are carrier-neutral, offering diverse connectivity options to link Tampa, Orlando, and national networks.

Direct Cloud On-Ramps: While there are no direct public cloud on-ramps within Lakeland as of September 2025, dedicated and private access to all major cloud providers, including AWS, Google Cloud (GCP), and Microsoft Azure, is readily available. These connections are typically established through private network links to primary interconnection hubs in Tampa or Orlando.

Internet Exchange Points (IXPs): Public peering is primarily handled through the nearest major exchange, the Tampa Bay Internet Exchange (TPAIX). Most peering in the immediate Lakeland area is conducted privately between carriers within local data centers.

Bare Metal: Bare metal server options are available in the broader Central Florida region, providing dedicated compute resources for performance-sensitive applications. Providers such as Hivelocity offer services from nearby facilities.

Power Analysis

Average Cost Of Power: Lakeland offers one of the most competitive power markets in the state, with industrial rates around $0.06/kWh as of February 2024. This significantly lower cost reduces the total cost of ownership for high-density compute and storage deployments. The regional power mix is dominated by natural gas (approximately 74%), with significant contributions from nuclear and a growing solar portfolio.

Power Grid Reliability: The power grid supporting the Lakeland area is well-engineered to withstand the region's weather patterns. Data centers benefit from redundant power feeds and substation diversity, which are essential for maintaining uptime during adverse conditions.

Market Access, Business & Tax Climate

Proximity To Key Business Districts: Lakeland's data centers are strategically positioned along the Interstate 4 corridor, providing low-latency access to the logistics, healthcare, and commercial business districts of both Tampa and Orlando. This central location is ideal for serving Florida's rapidly growing population.

Regional Market Reach: From Lakeland, businesses can effectively serve over 8 million people within a 100-mile radius. Its location makes it an excellent hub for content delivery, application acceleration, and disaster recovery for the entire state.

Tax Advantage For Data Centers: Florida provides significant financial incentives for data center operators and tenants. These programs include sales and use tax exemptions on essential equipment like servers, cooling systems, and power infrastructure, which directly lowers capital expenditure.

Natural Disaster Risk

Lakeland has a High natural disaster risk profile, with a FEMA National Risk Index score of 87.72 as of September 2025. While its inland location mitigates direct coastal flooding and storm surge threats, operators must engineer facilities to withstand significant weather-related events.

The primary risks for the area include:

• Hurricane
• Tornado
• Lightning
• Drought
• Wildfire
• Riverine Flooding