From Staff Reports
In Summary:
The Apopka City Commission unanimously approved a $12.7 million contract to build the long-delayed Golden Gem reclaimed water pump station, a project city leaders say will finally allow reclaimed water stored at the facility to be distributed throughout the city's reuse system. Mayor Nick Nesta called the project "well overdue," while staff said construction is expected to take about 18 months and that design work continues on a separate 50-million-gallon expansion of the West Pond.
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The Apopka City Commission unanimously approved a $12.7 million construction contract at its Wednesday meeting for the long-delayed Golden Gem reclaimed water pump station, advancing a project that officials say is essential to expanding the city's reclaimed water system and improving service to customers throughout Apopka.
Related: Developing Story: Apopka delays preliminary tax-rate vote after commission deadlocks over proposed 0.75-mill increase.
The commission awarded Carr & Collier Inc. an $11,545,700 contract, with a 10% contingency, bringing the total authorized amount to $12,700,270.
Mayor Nick Nesta said the pump station has been one of the city's most overdue infrastructure projects because, although reclaimed water has long been pumped into the Golden Gem storage ponds, there has never been a way to return that water to the distribution system.
"This is the Golden Gem reuse pond pump that has been delayed for some time," Nesta said. "We're able to pump water into the reuse pond; we've never been able to pump it out. So this will help to initiate and start that project going."
The commission also received an update on the next phase of improvements at the Golden Gem facility. Public Works Director Vladimir Simonovski said preliminary engineering has been completed for the reconstruction of the site's West Pond, which will add approximately 50 million gallons of reclaimed-water storage capacity.
"The preliminary design is completed, and our consultant is finalizing the design," Simonovski said. "I'm targeting the end of August, and then we'll put that out for a bid for construction."
Commissioners asked when the pump station itself would be complete, and Simonovski said construction is expected to take about 18 months from the start of work.
The discussion then shifted to questions about earlier plans for the project after resident Abbey McKimmie asked what had happened to grant funding that had once been discussed for a three-million-gallon storage tank at the Golden Gem site.
Staff explained that some of the referenced funding had actually been used for a ground storage tank at the Northwest Water Treatment Plant, while a separate grant associated with Golden Gem was ultimately lost.
Engineering Director Paul Herron said the Golden Gem funding totaled roughly $2.25 million through a combination of grants from the St. Johns River Water Management District and the Florida Department of Environmental Protection.
"That was related to the Golden Gem overall project for the reclaimed water facility," Herron said. "It was going to be used either for the ground storage tank or some piping or the pump station that we're getting into right now."
Herron also confirmed that the ground storage tank originally envisioned for Golden Gem is no longer part of the project.
"The ground storage tank has been removed from the original plan," he said, adding that he was not with the city when that decision was made.
Simonovski told commissioners he would research why the grant funding was withdrawn and provide additional information at a future meeting.
The discussion prompted comments from resident Sylvester Hall, who argued the unanswered questions surrounding the project's history highlighted the need for a broader review of previous City decisions.
"This is the reason why we need an audit," Hall said. "We've got a fresh crew here, and we had a lot of turmoil with the last administration. Now we're getting ready to go into it like you've got a checkbook—you wrote a lot of checks, you don't know how much money you've got here or there, and nothing is balanced."
Hall urged commissioners to take the opportunity to fully understand projects inherited from previous administrations before moving forward.
"You have a chance to make Apopka what it's supposed to be," he said. "Do the right thing by the people."
After hearing public comment, the commission voted unanimously to approve the contract.
If the project stays on schedule, construction will take approximately 18 months. Combined with the planned reconstruction of the 50-million-gallon West Pond, city officials say the improvements will significantly expand Apopka's reclaimed-water capacity and finally allow Golden Gem to function as originally intended—storing reclaimed water when supply is abundant and delivering it back into the city's irrigation system when it is needed.
Key Points:
- The City Commission approved a $12.7 million contract with Carr & Collier Inc. to construct the Golden Gem reclaimed water pump station.
- Mayor Nick Nesta said the project is "well overdue" and will finally allow reclaimed water stored at Golden Gem to be pumped into the city's distribution system.
- Construction is expected to take approximately 18 months, while design work continues on a separate 50-million-gallon expansion of the West Pond.
- Residents questioned the history of grant funding for the project, and staff said they would research why an earlier Golden Gem grant was withdrawn.
- Northwest Apopka residents urged the city to complete the project quickly, citing ongoing reclaimed-water pressure issues affecting irrigation systems.
