Main Squeeze: Project Neptune Planning Board Hearing

🏙️ FORT PIERCE: The Fort Pierce Planning Board declined to make a zoning determination for data centers on Thursday, pushing the entire question back to the City Commission for further discussion, and Willow Lakes LLC then tabled its rezoning application for Project Neptune to a date uncertain.

🤔 Why it matters

Project Neptune is the proposed 174 acre data center at the northwest corner of Interstate 95 and West Midway Road, on land that was previously going to be a resort with a wave garden. Before the Planning Board could hear the rezoning request, it first had to decide what zoning category data centers should fall under, because the city's code does not currently list "data center" as a permitted use anywhere. That determination would have opened the door for data center development citywide, not just for this one project.

🏛️ What happened in the room

I got to City Hall around 2 p.m. yesterday and had to park on the top floor of the parking garage. I am not sure if I have ever driven my car that far up in that garage before, but that is where the spots were. Inside, it was standing room only, and a recess had to be called for people to find seats. Everyone who could not sit was directed to the lobby to watch the meeting there.

Roughly the first hour of the meeting was spent on the zoning classification question, not the actual project. Planning Director Kev Freeman walked the board through the options, essentially light industrial, heavy industrial, or something in between, and told them staff was not comfortable making a strong recommendation without more analysis.

Freeman told the board staff had already received more than a hundred objections from the community about data centers, and that whatever decision the board made would essentially lock the city in on future data center applications because of State Bill 180, which protects development entitlements through October 2027.

Kev Freeman: "I think there's huge public disquiet about data centers, wider than the city itself."

📋 The two motions that passed

The board went back and forth on how to proceed. They did not want to make a decision without more research, but they also did not want to sit on the item indefinitely. Two motions passed unanimously:

• 🔍 The Planning Department will do deeper research on data centers and bring the zoning question back when they are ready
• 🏛️ The City Commission will be asked to put data centers on an upcoming meeting agenda as an item for discussion

😕 A note on the confusion

I want to be clear about what I saw. Sitting in the back of the room, I was getting a lot of questions from people about what was actually being discussed and what was being voted on. I do not think people really understood in the moment what the process was, and I am not really sure how to fix that in the future. A lot of folks felt like the item was being kicked down the road, and I do not think people felt good about the outcome. I am not taking sides. I am just telling you what I observed.

📄 Willow Lakes tables Project Neptune

After the board declined to make the zoning determination, the Willow Lakes rezoning application for Project Neptune came up next. After a brief recess, attorney Lee Dobbins stepped to the podium and asked to table the application to a date uncertain.

The board voted to accept the request. That means if Willow Lakes brings the application back later, it will require new public hearing notices, so residents will know when it returns.

🗣️ What I heard after the meeting

I spoke with people on both sides after everything wrapped up.

Those in favor of data centers spoke about the economic benefits and made the point that data centers are not what they used to be.

Those opposed talked about water quality, environmental concerns, the fact that Florida's heat would require different cooling systems, and that our exposure to hurricanes does not make the Treasure Coast a good fit for this kind of infrastructure.

🎥 Watch the full meeting

If you want to see all of this play out for yourself, we uploaded the full Planning Board meeting to our YouTube channel. Watch it right here.

📅 What's next

The zoning question goes to the Fort Pierce City Commission as a discussion item at an upcoming meeting. Planning staff will continue their research and bring the item back to the Planning Board when it is ready. Willow Lakes can refile Project Neptune at any point.

💬 What do you think about data centers coming to the Treasure Coast? Leave us a voicemail at (772) 212-1504, or tell us right here.