Apopka reviews pump-and-irrigation options for Clear Lake; HOA faces roughly $336,000 share

Apopka city staff, engineers and Clear Lake area homeowners met August 11 at a workshop to review long‑term options to lower Clearwater (Clear Lake) after emergency pumps ran Feb.–Apr. 2023.

The discussion centered on three alternatives: (1) a privately owned irrigation pump station using lake surface water for neighborhood irrigation (the option the city’s consultant previously recommended), (2) a larger system to transfer surface water to the city’s North Shore reclaimed water treatment plant for treatment and reuse, and (3) repeating temporary emergency pumping when needed. Engineers and HOA representatives reviewed permits, cost estimates and likely homeowner impacts.

The matter matters to dozens of households around the closed‑basin lake because the lake’s level has risen in recent years and flooded yards. The city reported that emergency pumping in 2023 lowered the lake about 3.4 feet at a cost of $194,150, and Balmoral Group designed a longer‑term irrigation pump solution that is permitted as a consumptive use permit issued to Clear Lake Landing in January 2025.

City staff presenter “Vlad” summarized basin history, ownership and the permit: the lake is privately owned by four entities—Clear Lake Landing HOA (south), Clear Lake Estates LLC (northeast), Avian Point Community Association (west/northwest) and one private owner on the east—and St. Johns River Water Management District issued a consumptive use permit that allows withdrawals down to elevation 63 feet for irrigation. Vlad said the current lake elevation was 69.58 feet at the most recent reading and that, under the district permit, withdrawals could lower the lake surface about two feet from a stated normal elevation of 65 feet down to 63 feet.

Vlad and the engineer, Gregory Bridal of the Balmoral Group, gave cost and financing estimates. Balmoral reported design and permitting expenses of $68,900 and presented two capital cost models: option 1 (local irrigation pump controlled by the HOA) had a construction estimate shown in the presentation as roughly $397,200 plus a 15% contingency ($59,600) for a subtotal the presentation rounded to approximately $456,000; after existing contributions (Avian Point $60,000 and city in‑kind/support $60,000) the remaining capital cost for Clear Lake Landing was presented as about $336,000. That estimate would be shared among 142 homes in Clear Lake Landing and was modelled as a $350,000 loan at 6%: a five‑year loan payment of about $47.65 per household per month, plus operations and maintenance estimated at $18.14 per household per month, producing an asserted net monthly household “saving” of about $19.68 in the early five‑year window when factoring reclaimed‑water removal at FY26 rates as presented.

For option 2, Balmoral presented a larger system to pump roughly 19,200,000 gallons per year to the city’s North Shore reclaimed water treatment plant. The presented capital cost for that transfer option was about $1,000,000, with sample financing that would yield about $136.15 per household per month over five years if only Clear Lake Landing (142 homes) paid. Combining Clear Lake Estates (47 homes) with Clear Lake Landing (189 total homes) reduced the per‑household monthly capital payment in Balmoral’s table to about $102.29 (5‑year) or $58.74 (10‑year). Including Avian Point’s proportional share (234 total homes) further reduced the modeled per‑household capital payment to about $82.62 (5‑year) or $47.44 (10‑year). The engineer cautioned that transferring water into the city system would require additional treatment, potential chlorination, a permit modification from the water management district, and likely changes to the city’s reclaimed‑water facility permit.

Homeowners and HOA leaders pressed for more documentation. Brian Mader, president of the Clear Lake Landings HOA, said the community needs a detailed cost breakdown, including insurance, energy and maintenance line items, and who would collect and enforce payments. Multiple homeowners asked for insurance estimates after Balmoral’s O&M numbers; Greg Bridal said his maintenance estimate did not separately include insurance and was intended as an engineer’s lifetime/parts replacement estimate, not an insurance quote. Bridal also said he had not performed full water‑quality sampling for the lake as part of the design and that the assumption underlying option 1 is that the lake water would be used for private irrigation similarly to golf course irrigation, not reintroduction to the public reclaimed system.

Public commenters raised historical and enforcement concerns. Venus Griffin said she has video she contends shows dirt dumped into the lake by a developer; city staff invited her to provide the footage for review. Several residents asked how recurring emergency pumping (option 3) would compare as an annual cost; staff noted the city previously spent about $194,150 for the 2023 temporary pumps and estimated future emergency pumping could again be in the low‑to‑mid hundreds of thousands depending on scope and frequency.

City staff outlined next steps and direction from the workshop rather than a final decision: staff will compile and deliver detailed cost breakdowns for both capital options, provide a written maintenance and parts estimate (including insurance scenarios), check recent water‑quality records and testing options, clarify permit modification requirements with St. Johns River Water Management District and Florida DEP, and meet with HOA representatives. Staff and HOA representatives discussed scheduling a follow‑up workshop in mid‑September to present updated numbers and agreements.

The workshop did not produce a formal vote or binding commitment to any single option. Commissioners and staff repeatedly warned that none of the presented options would fully eliminate flooding in an extreme storm and that any pump system would have limits during a major hurricane event.

For now, homeowners said they will not commit to a loan or assessments without the requested breakdowns and insurance estimates; staff said they will return with more detailed numbers and attempt to contact Avian Point and Clear Lake Estates to confirm contributions and participation.

The city identified the balances it has spent to date on this issue: emergency pumping and design work totaling about $263,000 as reported in the meeting presentation. The workshop record shows the conversation remains in the study/negotiation phase rather than a formal council action.