By Roger Jimenez, Interning Correspondent for The Apopka Voice
Apopka Public Works Director and City Engineer Vladimir Simonovski presented the city’s latest plans to address the ongoing issues at Clear Water Lake during the City Council's July 16th meeting. The proposal focused on a new irrigation system to relieve high water levels impacting surrounding neighborhoods.
According to Simonovski, Clear Water Lake is a closed basin system, meaning it does not naturally drain into other water bodies. This leads to consistent flooding concerns, especially when reclaimed irrigation water or heavy rainfall causes the lake’s levels to rise beyond their capacity.
This isn’t the first time Apopka has taken action. In 2023, emergency pumping operations temporarily lowered the lake’s level by 3.4 feet, costing the city around $195,000. That move provided short-term relief, but officials have worked on a more permanent solution.
Several engineering alternatives were considered, including transporting the water to the Northshore Reclaimed Water Treatment Plant or repeating temporary pumping as needed. Ultimately, the City decided to recycle the lake’s surface water for irrigation, believing it would reduce strain on Apopka’s reclaimed water supply while remaining cost-effective.
The Balmoral Group began design work in April 2024. By January 2025, the project received permitting approval from the St. Johns River Water Management District. The permit allows water withdrawal down to 63 feet elevation, well below the current 69.75 feet.
Project Cost Breakdown:
- Construction Estimate: $456,000
(includes 15% contingency)
- Avian Pointe HOA Deposit: $60,000
- City Contribution: $60,000
- Clear Lake Landing HOA Share: $336,000
(approximately $2,400 per home)
- Estimated City Expenses to Date: $263,000
Construction is estimated to take about three months. However, tensions rose in the council chambers as confusion around funding and communication emerged.
Commissioners Nick Nesta and Alexander Smith raised concerns about long-term water reliability during droughts and whether the homeowners association and residents had formally signed off.
Commissioner Diane Velazquez voiced concern over the burden on residents.
“My concern is that the HOA and the community members were unaware that they were going to pay back the City… so are we footing this entire bill, or are they paying us back?”
Simonovski responded by framing the cost as an investment with long-term savings.
“The residents will stop paying the City for reclaimed water. So our approximation over the last 12 months comes to $110,000 overall… so by not paying for it anymore, they should recover their costs in about 3 years. Everything after that is saving for them.”
Residents Push Back
Still, HOA Board President James Bryan Mater had strong objections during public comment. Mater and many residents in attendance felt blindsided by the costs and skeptical of the City’s handling.
He expressed frustration that, according to Mater, his emails to Mayor Bryan Nelson went unanswered and argued that the overdevelopment of nearby areas—not the residents—caused the lake’s problems.
“What caused this? It wasn’t Clear Lake Estates’ fault. It wasn’t Clear Lake Landing’s fault. It was the overgrowth of the community, which is exactly what everybody complains about day in and day out. I’m sorry, but when you take away trees and dirt, put down rooftops, black pavement, and a little tree here and there—well, that water has to go somewhere.”
Applause echoed through the room following his remarks.
Mater stated that the project is not an asset for the community.
“We’re not buying an asset. An asset is something you can sell—a car, a house, jewelry. We’re being forced to put in a pump system that we must maintain. And if you remember when this was first discussed, it sounded really good on paper. But now it’s lipstick on a pig. We were told we’d be taken off reclaimed water, but now we’re being billed for a loan we didn’t agree to. I thought we were paying the city back directly, that they’d handle billing.”
Commissioner Nadia Anderson asked Mater what he needed from the Council to help resolve the issue. Mater was clear in his response:
“I don’t feel we should be responsible for something we didn’t cause. That’s the bottom line here. We’re being billed for a problem we didn’t create. I believe the City should step up and find a solution. I get that it’s a private lake, but the City’s choices created this problem. So they need to help fix it.”
Another resident, Gregory Griffith, called out the lack of collaboration:
“The HOA board members for all the affected areas should have been in a meeting with the mayor, and this stuff should have been hammered out. Why wasn't that done? You're coming here with a temporary solution… I think you need to go back to the drawing board.”
Resident Richard Withers supported a previously proposed alternative: pumping water to other nearby lakes.
“Option number two made more sense to me. Maybe there are technical reasons it wasn’t selected, but moving water to Lake Apopka or Mud Lake just sounds more logical. What exactly was wrong with option two?”
Others echoed concerns about the permit’s limitations, particularly its reliance on water level. Should a drought occur, reapplying for access to reclaimed water could take time and money, something residents find inconvenient and impractical.
The City’s Response
Nelson supported the idea, stating that it makes financial sense for all parties.
“So you do the math, you're saving money. The homeowners are saving money by having their own irrigation… You have to pay for the depreciation the pumps get on, and electricity. But there's no way that this doesn't make financial sense for the Clear Lake Landing HOA and for the city. We know it's going to make a difference.”
Nelson also said he’s willing to meet with the HOA again.
Nesta followed up by asking Simonovski whether option two was still viable. Simonovski explained that it would require costly infrastructure that could drive the project’s price even higher.
Related: Frustration from Wekiwa Village residents reaches Apopka City Council.
Anderson restated the importance of starting from scratch and involving the community.
“I think we're having an open discussion that should have been more of a private discussion with the HOA and with the engineer. Like a workshop with them to figure out which option they want to choose. So I think we can go back to the drawing board, because from my understanding, this is the first time some of us have heard about this. So it needs to be presented in a different form so the residents can really understand what the options are. There are so many options and I think this limited time is just not the setting for it.”
The council agreed to host a public workshop with Clear Lake residents and HOA representatives on August 11 at 6 p.m. In the meantime, the Council will work internally with the HOA.
