Applicant, staff: proposed RPD avoids sewer-connection trigger; density and trip-generation calculations discussed

The examiner questioned whether the proposed configuration would trigger the LE Plan’s potable water and sanitary sewer hookup policies. The applicant and staff said the project’s density would remain near 2.49 dwelling units per acre with the requested duplex-option configuration, which means the project would not automatically trigger a requirement to extend public water and sewer under current LE Plan thresholds.

The applicant said running public water and sewer to the site was cost-prohibitive—he stated the nearest existing utility connections were roughly 2.5 miles away near Town Lakes—and that earlier higher-density proposals were withdrawn because the cost and policy triggers would have required potable water and sanitary sewer hookups. The examiner and staff also discussed traffic: staff’s traffic-impact analysis (Lee County DOT) found an overall net reduction in trips compared with maximum-density RS3 assumptions that assumed hypothetical sewer/water extension.