County will pay for water system switch

© St. Petersburg Times,
published October 5, 2001

CARROLLWOOD -- Hillsborough County commissioners agreed last week to foot the $2-million bill for residents of Original Carrollwood to connect their private water system to county water.

Initially, residents had been told they might have to pay about $1,200 per household to bring the aging system up to county standards before the county would take it over. Now commissioners have agreed in a 7-0 vote to pay all those costs with funds from the Community Investment Tax.

"It was a unanimous vote, which is a small miracle for the County Commission," said Betsey Hapner, president of the Carrollwood Civic Association. "Everybody is just thrilled about that."

Most of the costs involve replacing old water lines that are collapsing beneath the streets, Hapner said.

Original Carrollwood is connected to a private water system because when it was developed about 40 years ago, it was the first planned community in northwest Hillsborough County.

For years, residents there have complained about high water bills, poor water quality and poor customer service from owners of the private system. The county has agreed to take over the water system by October 2002.

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