Publix tears down 85-year-old Florida Citrus Mutual building for IT campus parking

Sara-Megan Walsh, Lakeland Ledger
·2 min read
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An excavator is seen through the front windows of the Florida Citrus Mutual building during demolition at Orange Street and Massachusetts Avenue in Lakeland on Thursday. Publix Super Markets Inc., which now owns the building got approval in August to demolish the building for a parking lot serving the company's planned IT campus, which will take up two large buildings on nearby blocks.

Crews have begun demolishing the 85-year-old Florida Citrus Mutual building in downtown Lakeland to make room for a parking lot for Publix's developing technology campus.

Demolition was underway Thursday.

The Lakeland City Commission unanimously approved Publix's request for a conditional use permit to demolish the roughly 21,000-square-foot building at 411 E. Orange St. and turn the 2.42-acre site into surface-level parking lot in the city's downtown core.

A demolition excavator tears down the 85-year-old former headquarters of Florida Citrus Mutual in downtown Lakeland on Thursday.
A demolition excavator tears down the 85-year-old former headquarters of Florida Citrus Mutual in downtown Lakeland on Thursday.

It was once a contentious idea. When Publix first proposed razing the building in June 2022, city staff recommended the conversion into a parking lot be allowed for five years without needing to present the city with plans to develop the site. The city has been methodically pushing to rid itself of surface-level parking lots in favor of development downtown.

But in August, the city approved Publix's request with no timeline for redevelopment.

Publix purchased the former Florida Citrus Mutual Building for $3.1 million in November 2016. The company has never occupied the roughly 85-year-old building and complained to city staff of the maintenance costs. It was the same complaint made by Florida Citrus Mutual when it sold the building.

Publix purchased the building from Florida Citrus Mutual in 2016. Both had complained about expensive maintenance costs.
Publix purchased the building from Florida Citrus Mutual in 2016. Both had complained about expensive maintenance costs.

Publix purchased the former FedEx building in June 2022 and is joining that with its existing offices between Kentucky and Tennessee avenues to create a technology campus downtown. The grocer has plans to renovate both buildings and bring "hundreds of high-skill, high-wage jobs" downtown, according to previous reports in The Ledger. The city ahs said the jobs would have an average annual salary of $130,000, more than 250% of the Polk County annual average wage.

According to previous reports, the city is requiring Publix to construct a minimum 4,000-square-foot pedestrian plaza with public seating at the northwest corner of the property, along the intersection of Orange Street and Massachusetts Avenue. The company will have to preserve the existing trees around the perimeter of the lot and protect them from demolition activities.

A demolition excavator is seen through the front windows of the Florida Citrus Mutual building during demolition on Thursday.
A demolition excavator is seen through the front windows of the Florida Citrus Mutual building during demolition on Thursday.

Information from Ledger archives was used in this report.

This article originally appeared on The Ledger: Florida Citrus Mutual building makes way for future Publix IT parking