A run down old warehouse on Lake Mirror in downtown Lakeland will be getting a huge makeover. The old Cash Feed building will be the home of Catapult 2.0.
- Catapult currently located in basement of Bank of America building downtown
- Transformation of old warehouse will cost $13 million
- Most of funding for will come from private donations
Lakeland economic development leaders opened Catapult a few years ago. Currently located in the basement of the Bank of America building in downtown, dozens of mostly younger entrepreneurs at Catapult work inside small offices and in shared open spaces. It’s supposed to be a hip environment that encourages collaboration and creativity.
One of the people paying for space in Catapult is graphic designer Joel Harrison. He likes the flexible approach of Catapult.
"So one day I could have my office here and the next day have it over there, so it keeps things fresh,” said Harrison.
The new building will be much larger than the current space. Renderings of the new building were released this week. (See the images below.)
"We are tripling our space," said Catapult Executive Director Meg Bellamy. "So we are going from 10,000 square feet to about 32,000.”
The transformation of the old warehouse will cost $13 million. Most of the funding will come from private donations. Besides considerably more space for offices, there will also be a commercial kitchen and retail space where people can test their ideas.
"We are taking this industrial old thing and kind of combining it and making it new," said Bellamy. "I’d say an industrial modern feel is what it'll have.”
For his part, Harrison believes Catapult 2.0 will attract young entrepreneurs to Lakeland.
"I'm sure it will add to that," said Harrison. "There will be more people involved. More energy, more projects, more things going on.”
Catapult 2.0 should be open in late 2017.