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West Cape Estates in Cape Coral is facing the prospect of legal action over the city\u2019s demand that the private community connect to municipal water and sewer service.<\/p>\n
Evan Williams<\/p>\n
Cape Coral is threatening to sue members of West Cape Estates, forcing homeowners there to hook up to the city\u2019s water and sewer lines instead of using their own septic systems.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Because the community is privately managed, homeowners could be responsible for up-front costs of $150,000 to $200,000 each for a system residents contend they don\u2019t need, according to residents and an attorney representing West Cape Estates Community Association Inc.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cFor many of us, the amount is simply not financially realistic,\u201d West Cape Estates resident Linda Grasshorn said at a Cape Coral City Council workshop Aug. 12. \u201cAs the wife of a disabled veteran, we live on a fixed income, and the possibility of having to take on a financial burden of this magnitude is extremely concerning. It would threaten the financial security of homeowners who have worked and planned for years to remain in their homes.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Cape Coral\u2019s demand that the community comply is part of the city\u2019s massive Utilities Extension Project, or UEP. The city is hooking up residents north of Pine Island Road \u2014 a once-rural area where residents relied on wells and septic systems \u2014 to the city\u2019s water, sewer and irrigation systems.\u00a0<\/p>\n
According to the city\u2019s website, \u201cfailed septic tank effluent can flow into groundwater and canals which has the potential to cause environmental problems.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
But West Cape Estates residents and their attorney, Rob Robinson, contend that the community uses aerobic treatment units, or ATUs, which are inspected twice a year, rather than conventional septic systems that should be targeted for replacement.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cHomeowners are required to maintain service contracts, and the systems are inspected twice a year with the information reported to the Florida Department of Health,\u201d Grasshorn said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
She added, \u201cThe water quality is perfect and the ATU works every time. You\u2019re trying to fix something that is not broken.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
The community also utilizes wells for potable water and irrigation. Cape Coral has told West Cape Estates that the sewer and potable water connections are mandatory, but an irrigation connection is voluntary.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Cape Coral City Attorney Aleksandr Boksner at the Aug. 12 meeting asked Council members for their blessing \u201cto pursue all legal action to force the (West Cape Estates Community Association) to connect to the city\u2019s wastewater and potable water system.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Council didn\u2019t take an official vote on Boksner\u2019s request. But most members offered a verbal \u201cyes,\u201d arguing that other communities throughout Cape Coral have already complied with the UEP.\u00a0<\/p>\n
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Homes along the water in West Cape Estates in Cape Coral. Residents say mandatory connections to the city\u2019s water and sewer systems could cost homeowners $150,000 to $200,000 each.<\/p>\n
Evan Williams<\/p>\n
Boksner said he had private discussions with council members about potential litigation against West Cape Estates. He advised them not to publicly discuss or debate the matter because it could be used against them in court.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The city\u2019s communications office said no legal action has been necessary to get compliance from other areas of the city.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Cape Coral City Manager Michael Ilczyszyn said other private communities, such as Heatherwood Lakes, Trafalgar Woods and Bella Vida, have already agreed to the mandatory hookups.\u00a0<\/p>\n
In all UEP areas, homeowners are shouldering the cost burden. But most have the option of spreading the cost over decades of annual tax bills because the city issued long-term bond debt to pay for the project.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Private communities, such as West Cape Estates, are charged with managing the project and figuring out how to pay for it on their own. So, residents could end up with a bill due immediately.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Boksner argued that the potential cost to homeowners is not legally relevant.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t want that to be the basis for which you make your decision,\u201d he told council members.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Council member Keith Long, whose District 6 includes West Cape Estates, argued that the cost to homeowners \u2014 which he called \u201cthe human element\u201d \u2014 should be considered.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s asking you to take the human element out of it,\u201d Long said of the city attorney\u2019s statement.\u00a0<\/p>\n
He added, \u201cIf each homeowner is looking at $200,000, they\u2019re not going to mind litigating this thing all the way to the end, which is going to (cost) our taxpayers, as well.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Ilczyszyn said it might be possible to reach a settlement agreement with the West Cape Estates Community Association to put the cost of the utility hookup on residents\u2019 annual tax bills. Boksner agreed to speak with the association\u2019s attorney to try to reach a solution before pursuing court action.\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"West Cape Estates in Cape Coral is facing the prospect of legal action over the city\u2019s demand that…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":370798,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[14],"tags":[209,211,210,113922,149979,149980,149978],"class_list":["post-370797","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-cape-coral","tag-cape-coral","tag-cape-coral-headlines","tag-cape-coral-news","tag-septic-system","tag-utility-hookup","tag-water-and-sewer","tag-west-cape-estates"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/370797","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=370797"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/370797\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/370798"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=370797"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=370797"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=370797"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}