Everglades City wastewater treatment plant built with federal and state funds
State and federal funds helped Everglades City replace its old, rusting sewage treatment plant. J. Kyle Foster/Naples Daily News
A sewage treatment plant may not be sexy or exciting to most people, but to the people of Everglades City it is a feast for the eyes.
Mayor Howie Grimm says a new plant was supposed to be built 10 years ago to replace an old, rusting facility. Thanks to state and federal grants and loans, the plant on South Copeland Avenue is finally complete and is now attracting customers from Everglades City, Chokoloskee and Plantation.
“Without grants, this would not be possible. The community is too small,” says Tammie Pernas, Everglades City’s treasurer.
Mayor says Everglades City is too small to finance improvements alone
Located between Everglades National Park and Big Cypress National Preserve, Everglades City has a population of 352, according to the 2020 U.S. Census. Everglades City would not have been able to pay for the $14.8 million facility through utility fees, Pernas said. And rehabilitating the collection system will cost another $10 million. The city also cannot tackle the other improvement projects planned for the community without state and federal funds, Grimm said. Other planned projects include a new fire station and emergency operations center (ECO) and a community center. Grimm gives credit to U.S. Congressman Mario Diaz-Balart (R-Miami), state Senate President Kathleen Passidomo (R-Naples) and state Rep. Lauren Melo (R-Naples). All three are seeking re-election this year. Passidomo and Diaz-Balart attended the opening of the Everglades City facility on June 18. “When I say he loves Everglades City, he really loves Everglades City,” Grimm said of Diaz-Balart. Without him, Passidomo and Melo, the city would be in trouble, he said. “It’s not a sexy thing. A wastewater treatment plant is not a sexy thing. But it’s really very important – for all three communities,” Diaz-Balart said.
Money for the plant came from the State Revolving Fund, a grant from the state’s Land Planning and Management Agency, and funds from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. According to Grimm, Diaz-Balart, a ranking member of the House Appropriations Committee and a member of the Committee on Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, was directly responsible for funding the department.
“I’m really proud of what I’ve done,” Diaz-Balart said in an interview at the factory site. “These are small communities. These are the people who are usually forgotten.”
New power plant is being tested after recent floods
“Hurricane Irma brought home to us the urgent need for a new plant,” said Grimm, who took office five days before the Category 5 hurricane struck Southwest Florida on Sept. 10, 2017. A storm surge of up to 10 feet (3 meters) swelled in its wake, submerging Everglades City. The treatment plant was overwhelmed, Grimm said. The new plant was tested the week of June 12, when 8 to 14 inches (20 to 35 centimeters) of rain fell across parts of South Florida. An elevated transformer needs to be replaced, and engineers, who have not yet turned over control to Everglades City, have determined they need to add a second 200,000-gallon spillway on the property, said Michael Cannon, utility manager at U.S. Water Corp., which Everglades City contracted for its wastewater and drinking water facilities. “The plant itself is fabulous. It’s running great,” Cannon said. George Yilmaz, director of Collier County’s public utilities and works, agrees. Yilmaz was present at the opening, but Collier County is not involved in managing the facility. “If you can stand up at the top of a facility and it doesn’t smell, the cleaning is very good,” Yilmaz said. There was no smell up at the facility.
Wastewater treatment plant in Everglades City in operation
Treated water bubbles in a holding tank at Everglades City’s new wastewater treatment plant, which was built with state and federal funds.
What’s next for Everglades City?
“We’re building the fire station because there’s growth here,” Grimm said. “We’re going to have an EOC (emergency operations center) here. This will be the farthest EOC in Collier County.”
The $13 million project will be put out to bid in the next six months, Grimm said, and then hopefully Collier County firefighters will be stationed in Everglades City again. The new station will replace one that has already sunk twice, Grimm said. On June 18, workers were busy securing the roof of the building next to City Hall.
Grimm said the town got the money for the fire station from the state, thanks to Passidomo and state Sen. Bob Rommell (R-Naples). After that, Grimm wants to build a community center and hopes to again find grants to pay for it. Grimm sees the center as a place where kids can go after school to get help with homework and play; as a place where seniors can meet; and for community events. He estimates it will cost about $7 million. “It’s a community center” and “everything we’re doing is not just for us. It’s going to be for Chokoloskee and Plantation,” he said. “Hopefully we can get the money we’ve allocated at the federal level through the congressman. … We’ll allocate it on the state side as well. We can’t rush it too much, because I say we can’t do more than one thing at a time.”
More: Now you know: Audubon Florida publishes “State of the Everglades”
And: Marco Island City Council discusses expansion of CAT trolley/bus network
