Cape Coral poised to OK $269M phase of utilities project

The city is expected to officially approve construction contracts and loans Wednesday for the next phase of a decades-long utilities project.

But residents aren’t pleased about having to shoulder much of the $269 million cost.

‘First of all they’re compelling you. I don’t think they should,” homeowner Alice Siedelman said. “Everybody in this area I’ve talked to that are homeowners, they don’t want it. So why should we have to pay for something we don’t want?”

The city insists its Utilities Extension Project is essential to establishing and maintaining reliable service to customers. The latest phase will place new water, sewer and irrigation lines in an area north of Pine Island Road.

The cost is $18,000 to each homeowner who pays in advance. Spreading payments out over 20 years, another option for the nearly 9,000 properties affected by the latest phase, increases the cost to $32,000.

Work on this phase is expected to begin later this month and take a year to complete.