Private Utility May Charge Island Ratepayers $5,000 Each

Residents of a small barrier island in Florida may have to dish out nearly $5,000 a piece to improve the quality of their drinking water.

“Charlotte County Commissioners are concerned the water residents have been drinking for years isn't clean enough. Owner of the private company, Little Gasparilla Island Water Utility, Jack Boyer has an alternative. He recently built a water pipeline connecting the island to the Charlotte County Utilities system. He's asking well and cistern owners to hookup,” NBC 2 reported.

The tiny public utility serves under 400 customers. Boyer’s solution could become mandatory if a new policy proposal become enforced. It would require cistern and well owners to connect to the pipeline within three years, the report said. The cost is nearly $5,000 per homeowner.

Residents are not thrilled. Cheryl Smith says she installed a cistern system in 2003 that cost $15,000. "When you retire and you're on a fixed income life and you've worked all your life to get what you have now. Now, where am I going to get another $15,000? It's just not fair," she said, per the report.

According to a 2013 drinking water quality report for the island utility, the only contaminant problem the town had in its drinking water was for chloride. Residents have a “if it’s not broke, don’t fix it” attitude about the changes.

“Kathleen Stokes collects rain water in a cistern and filters it for drinking and washing. She's one of the many residents on Little Gasparilla residents who is completely satisfied with her water system. That's why she's frustrated that she and others are being forced to hookup to a utility pipeline,” according to an earlier report.

For more stories on the differences between public and private funding for untilities, visit Water Online’s Funding Solutions Center.