White City says IGA with Bartow County will transfer Aubry Lift Station and have county assume USDA sewer loan

Mayor Curtis Powell said White City and Bartow County are finalizing an intergovernmental agreement that would transfer ownership of the Aubry Lift Station to Bartow County and have the county pay off the city’s USDA sewer loan. "The finalization is underway and it should be ready for the April meeting," Powell said during the council’s March 19 called meeting.

The agreement, as described by Powell on the record, would move the lift-station assets to the county and include a change to the sewer service area in the final version. The mayor did not provide dollar amounts, a timetable for the loan payoff, or the precise language for the proposed service-area change; those specifics were not specified on the record.

Why it matters: transferring the lift station and the USDA loan would shift asset ownership and long-term financial responsibility from White City to Bartow County and could affect which customers receive sewer service. Powell said the council expects the finalized IGA to be presented at the council’s April meeting for further consideration.

The council did not take a vote on the IGA at the March 19 meeting. No additional documents or staff presentations were introduced in the record; city staff and county counterparts were not quoted during the meeting.

Next step: Powell said the April meeting will include the finalized agreement for council review. The meeting record does not list a public hearing date or indicate whether a formal vote will occur in April.