City of Apopka details plan to rebuild Golden Gem reclaimed-water ponds after liner failures

City of Apopka officials and outside engineers on June 17 presented a multi-stage plan to reconstruct the Golden Gem reclaimed-water ponds after liner failures in 2024, and answered commissioners’ and residents’ questions about design, monitoring and costs.

Public Works Director and City Engineer Vladimir Simanovsky told the commission the Golden Gem project—conceived more than a decade ago as a regional reclaimed-water storage and distribution solution—remains central to the city’s strategy to protect springs, reduce pollution and conserve drinking water by using reclaimed water for irrigation. Simanovsky said the city and its partners, including the St. Johns River Water Management District and the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, acquired roughly 100 acres for the facility and have amended a 2009 memorandum most recently in May 2026.

“Once the pump station is built, the facility becomes fully operational,” Simanovsky said, describing a procurement schedule that included a Wright-Pierce pump-station design, a bid advertisement issued May 31, a bid opening scheduled for June 30 and construction expected to begin before Sept. 1, 2026.

Tetra Tech project manager Kevin Freeman gave the technical briefing. He said visual inspections and prior reports showed seam leaks and liner deterioration with gravel and rock fragments beneath the liner that likely contributed to punctures and progressive failure. Freeman said Tetra Tech has not yet performed new borings at the site but has installed 10 piezometers to monitor groundwater elevations; those readings and historical data will inform the final design.

“Our design approach is focused on addressing subsurface soils and groundwater,” Freeman said, noting the team is evaluating whether to over-excavate and reuse onsite soil for protective cover. He said the design specification being considered is a 60‑mil HDPE liner (a step up from the existing approximately 40–45‑mil liner), protective soil cover, venting to relieve hydrostatic uplift and strict construction quality assurance. “If it’s installed properly and with soil cover, you’re looking 40-plus years,” Freeman said of a 60‑mil liner’s expected service life.

City and consultant timetable and costs

City staff and Tetra Tech said they are prioritizing reconstruction of the west pond to return roughly 50 million gallons to service as soon as possible. The team has submitted 60% design documents for the west pond and expects final design and procurement steps to refine a schedule for the east pond. Simanovsky said the west‑pond reconstruction could be complete by March 2027 if design and construction proceed on the current schedule.

Tetra Tech and Ardaman (the geotechnical consultant) recommended targeted soil borings—Standard Penetration Tests—particularly for the east pond, where prior sinkhole repair and nonuniform fill (including what residents described as construction rubble) complicate the geology. Ardaman Orlando branch manager Colin Jewsbury said the area typically features clean sands above heavier clay sands and that the depth and elevation of that interface vary across the site, which affects uplift and liner design.

For the west pond, engineers estimated a rough order-of-magnitude cost for liner work in the range of $500,000 to $750,000 if onsite soils can be reused for cover. Freeman warned that importing clean fill would materially increase costs—potentially doubling the estimate depending on the amount and distance of haul. The pond footprint was discussed as roughly 8 acres for the west pond, with an estimated 26,000 cubic yards of fill if importing is required at commonly cited market prices.

Resident concerns and disputed technical claims

Multiple residents raised technical and historical concerns during public comment. Albert McGinley (3603 Golden Gem Road) urged use of electrical resistivity and sonic testing for the east pond—arguing that noninvasive methods can detect subsurface anomalies—and asserted a discrepancy between earlier reported pumped volumes and the volume present at collapse; McGinley said he had photographs and time-series evidence he would share with staff.

McGinley alleged there were roughly 200 million gallons unaccounted for between what he said was 107 million gallons pumped and a reported 300 million gallons at collapse; staff did not substantiate that arithmetic during the workshop. City consultants acknowledged the need for further site-specific analysis of berms and drainage and said the design will incorporate gas vents, drainage monitoring and pumping capabilities to manage uplift and perched water. That technical clarification leaves McGinley’s specific numeric claim unresolved in the workshop record.

Next steps and community engagement

Staff said the bid opening for a pump station is scheduled for June 30, 2026, with construction starting before Sept. 1 and an anticipated 18‑month construction window. The team will continue piezometer monitoring (biweekly or monthly), complete final designs for the west pond and then develop a concept and schedule for the larger, more complex east pond. Consultants and staff told the commission they will provide regular milestone updates to commissioners and residents and will return for further, more detailed public workshops with engineer plans and visuals.

Residents at the meeting urged transparency on design visuals, testing methods and cost estimates; staff agreed the next workshop will feature detailed engineer plans and clarified procurement and contracting routes. The commission closed the workshop with a pledge for continued updates and a reminder of the 7 p.m. commission meeting.