Cape Coral council approves North 1 East utility assessments totaling about $32,000 per standard parcel

The Cape Coral City Council on Oct. 8 approved three initial assessment resolutions for the North 1 East Utilities Expansion Project, setting preliminary assessment amounts and scheduling final hearings after staff mails notices to affected property owners.

City staff said the typical combined assessment for a standard 10,000-square-foot equivalent parcel will be about $32,288, after factoring in a state septic-to-sewer grant. The council voted 8-0 to move forward with the irrigation, wastewater and potable-water resolutions.

The utility expansion will extend potable water, wastewater and irrigation infrastructure east of Del Prado, in five contract areas and a new master pump station. Bill Corbett of Public Works summarized the program’s history and funding structure and said the work will be paid in part by assessments, a capital facilities expansion charge (CFEC), water/sewer fees and bonds.

"The North 1 East project area is located in the Eastern part of the city, east of Del Prado," Corbett said. "We have five contract areas in North 1 East. Currently estimated construction costs are roughly $175 million for the contracts and master pump station; total program cost with soft costs is approximately $227.5 million."

Crystal Feist, the director handling finance components for the project, gave the staff estimate for assessments. "The total assessment to $32,288," she said, breaking the line-extension and CFEC components into water, sewer and irrigation portions and noting the city had been awarded a septic-to-sewer grant that reduced the wastewater share.

Staff described payment options for property owners: a prepayment period, an interim prepayment window, or annual installments billed through tax rolls for 20, 25 or 30 years (30 years is the default if no election is made). The resolutions set a maximum interest rate of 6.25 percent for financing; Mark Mason, assistant city manager, said the cap is a conservative estimate because the city will not issue bonds for several months. "The 6 and a quarter percent is because we don't actually issue the debt for about 6 to 9 months," Mason said. "Currently, tax-exempt debt is right in the 4.9 percent range but in 9 months from now it could be down to 4.2 percent."

Council members and residents raised affordability concerns during the public hearing. Several speakers asked about exemptions, hardship qualification, and whether homeowners can keep existing septic systems. Corbett and Feist answered that certain public and institutional properties are partially or fully exempt, that hardship deferrals follow federal guidelines and must be requalified annually, and that vacant lots are not assessed until utilities are installed.

"The widening of 20th Street is not an assessed cost," Corbett told a resident who asked whether a $20 million road widening would be split across parcels. He said the road work is funded with transportation funds, not the UEP assessments.

Staff said some properties cannot connect to irrigation immediately due to code restrictions; in those cases, the city will advance the assessment and be reimbursed when service is allowed. The city also expects to reconcile final assessment amounts against actual project costs at the end of construction and to apply grant credits at that time.

Council members emphasized continuing work to secure additional state and federal funding and urged staff to keep outreach and homeowner informational meetings active. Staff scheduled homeowner informational meetings and final public hearings in mid-November and said first billing would occur in November 2026 after assessments are finalized.

The council approved the three resolutions (2-94-25 irrigation, 2-95-25 wastewater, 2-96-25 potable water) by voice roll calls; each passed 8-0. Final assessment rolls and contract awards will be considered at the subsequent hearings required by the resolutions.