City of Zephyrhills stops new development for a year to protect water supply - WFLA

City of Zephyrhills stops new development for a year to protect water supply | WFLA

PASCO COUNTY, Fla. (WFLA) — Zephyrhills is famously known for its water.

With explosive growth, construction sites have been popping up all over the city. Now the city is stopping big developers from building as it monitors its water supply.

“The city has grown quite a bit almost doubled in size in the last several years,” said Kevin Weiss, with the city. “We’re up to roughly 20,000 residents.”

Southwest Florida Water Management District, which manages water resources for West Central Florida, said Northern Tampa Bay has been under a water use caution for more than 30 years.

Weiss said city council passed a one-year residential moratorium last month, which says that for the next year, the city won’t accept new applications for new residential developments that are over an acre.

“It’s a proactive measure to make sure that we can provide water to all residents that are moving and coming into Zephyrhills,” said Weiss.

The Florida Department of Environmental Protection shared its 2021 annual status report, which said “Florida’s current fresh water supply is projected to be unable to meet all of the growing needs of Floridians in the future. “

Weiss said the City of Zephyrhills has used an average of 2.9 million gallons per day so far this year, which came close to hitting the limit of 3.3 million gallons per day, but the city wants access to more water. Southwest Florida Water Management District said the city has submitted an application to increase its allowance to 4.46 million. A spokesperson said the permit application is currently under review.

“They went through an annexation and expansion process, so they will be utilizing more water from the city,” said Weiss.

Weiss is talking about the bottled water company, Zephyrhills, which currently uses 14.5% of the city’s daily water supply.

The city passed an ordinance in April requiring all new homes be built to Florida Water Star standards. SWFMD said builders will use water-efficient appliances and fixtures to conserve water and allow the city to grow responsibly.

This program is said to save homeowners $530 annually on their utility bills and up to 48,000 gallons of water less each year compared to traditional construction.

This residential moratorium primarily affects the large developers; however, it does not impact the developments currently under construction or individual residents.