No showroom car dealership revs up $47M project in region

Lakeland has grabbed most of the industrial projects in Polk County in recent years, amid a boom in e-commerce companies and last-mile logistics.

Now Haines City, 25 miles east of Lakeland, is on the verge of its own prized industrial project: Carvana, the no-showroom car dealership that sells vehicles out of a glass tower vending machine, plans to build a $47 million auto inspection and distribution center in the city. Tempe, Ariz.-based Carvana has agreed to pay $921,750 for the site, an undeveloped tract between  County Road 544 and Bannon Island Road, according to Haines City records.