Burnt Store Road area residents expressed concerns about possible supply disruptions and rate increases due to hundreds of new homes that will be hooked up to the wastewater treatment plant serving their communities.
Charlotte County commissioners on March 25 initiated plans to expand the Burnt Store Water Reclamation Facility’s capacity to accommodate the area’s growing population.
Commissioners approved hiring Jon F. Swift Inc., of Sarasota, as construction manager at risk and 2nd Archer Western Construction LLC, of Tampa, to manage the project at a cost of $20 million.
County Utilities Director Dave Watson said there will be “zero impact on existing customers as far as capacity goes.”
Addressing Watson, Commissioner Chris Constance said, “As far as the financial impact on current ratepayers, you’re not going to have an answer.”
Commission Chair Joe Tiseo said the county previously put the project out to bid but said it came in at “tens of millions of dollars over budget.” Commissioner Ken Doherty said the bid was more than $170 million, nearly double what the county had budgeted.
Poole & Kent Company bid $178,922,100 for the project.
“There’s no way we could pass those rates through to the people,” Doherty said.
Once a new company is chosen, the entire project is expected to take about 18 months, officials said.
Despite reassurances there will be no disruptions, some residents were not satisfied, speculating capacity will be reached before the project is completed.
Punta Gorda resident Phillip Smallwood said the plant was built to a 500,000-gallon capacity and that the utilities department cut capacity to 250,000 gallons per day to add a digester, which breaks down organic matter in the sludge.
Smallwood, who was a chemical operator for DuPont and later ran a sewer plant in Indiana, said he toured the Burnt Store wastewater facility. “The plant in the middle of February was running at 333,000 to 348,000 gallons a day,” he said.
He said the 1,800 new homes that will be built in a planned development are in addition to a recreational vehicle park in Lee County also hooked up to the wastewater treatment plant. The RV park has the capacity to handle 520 RVs and is currently half full, but is “expected to be full next year,” at which time it will be using 18,750 gallons a day, he said.
The new hookups will put the plant’s usage at 538,000 gallons per day, Smallwood told commissioners.
“Even if you convert the plant back to 500,000 a day, it will be over capacity one year from now,” he said.
Watson and Charlotte County Utilities Manager Jeremy Frost explained if capacity is reached before the project is completed, a package plant would be brought in to provide extra capacity.
Following the meeting, Smallwood explained a package plant comprises portable units that are brought in on semitrucks and can handle the functions of a wastewater treatment plant.
Constance read letters from John Fleming and Mary Ellen Kiss, founders of the Burnt Store Corridor Coalition, which represents more than a dozen communities situated along Burnt Store Road, sharing similar concerns.
Fleming referred to Frost, who “pointed out that the Burnt Store facility had the shortest timeline to reach full capacity and there was a chance capacity would be reached before a new plant could go online.”
“According to the [Florida Department of Environmental Protection], the timeline may be as early as November 2025 if certain factors like a bad rainy season or another hurricane occur.”
Watson said he will provide a utilities presentation in May, which will provide an update on the wastewater facility.
The county budgeted the wastewater plant’s expansion for fiscal year 2025 under its capital improvements portion, and funding will be supplied by the Utility Wastewater Connection Fee fund.
