North Port works on plan to expand city sewer

When General Development Corp. established the subdivision that became the city of North Port in 1959, much of the land had already been subdivided into 80-foot by 120-foot lots.

Those lots — all platted prior to a 1972 state law that mandated new subdivisions be hooked up to central water and sewer facilities — have left a legacy of 28,322 potential residences that have a vested right to use well and septic systems instead of waiting for city water and sewer, as well as 16,332 occupied parcels that are on well and septic systems.

In contrast, there are 11,158 parcels of land on water and sewer. Many of those are in subdivisions platted after 1972, such as Heron Creek, Gran Paradiso and Island Walk.

But, if water and sewer lines are available, homes built on those 28,322 lots would connect without the extra expense of first digging wells and septic systems.

“Every year you wait, more homes get septic tanks and that impacts the problem, compounds it,” said assistant utilities director Jennifer Desrosiers of any delay in connecting areas to central utilities.

On May 6, city officials hosted their second workshop this year on developing a plan to expand water and sewer to virtually all properties within the city limits.