The Project Wide Advisory Committee is poised to spend $283,833 after a sinkhole and subsequent pipe collapse at a golf course in The Villages.

The damage has occurred between 758 and 760 Evelynton Loop and Basin 5-10, which is located on the Belmont Executive Golf Course.

The redline shows where the pipe is located between Evelynton Loop and the Belmont Executive Golf Course
The redline shows where the pipe is located between Evelynton Loop and the Belmont Executive Golf Course.

In December, District Property Management excavated and replaced the collapsed section of a metal pipe with a plastic pipe, restoring functionality and allowing the full length of pipe to be inspected. The cost for the partial repair was $65,690 total.

However, in April, the section of existing metal pipe connected to the new plastic pipe suffered further collapse due to deterioration, causing another ground depression on the golf course, according to District Property Management.

“If the pipe collapsed further, it could cause damage to the golf course or private properties, cause flooding, and the pipe would be more costly and challenging to repair,” Director of District Property Management Mike Harris wrote in a memo to PWAC members.

The sinkhole has been marked off with yellow tape
The sinkhole has been marked off with yellow tape.

He is recommending a swift plan of action that will cost $283,833.

Here’s the plan:

• A pipe plug will be installed by Atlantic Pipe Services to isolate the basin from other connected basins.

• A rented pump will be delivered by United Rentals and installed, monitored and maintained by Hardscapes of Central Florida to dewater the basin. Prior to a Cured-in-Place Pipe (CIPP) installation, scuba divers from Atlantic Pipe Services will remove collapsed metal pipe material that could block or damage the inserted CIPP. Hardscapes of Central Florida will remove the roadway inlet’s concrete apron to allow access for the replacement.

• The CIPP will be installed by Atlantic Pipe Services at the roadway inlet and through the pipe’s outfall into the connected basin with only brief impact.

• Hardscapes of Central Florida will then excavate and backfill the ground depression.

• At the project’s conclusion, the pipe plug will be removed and water from connected basins will partially equalize back into Basin 5-10. Regular water levels will return with rainfall.

PWAC members will meet at 8:30 a.m. Monday at SeaBreeze Recreation Center to consider the plan and expenditure.