The Amenity Authority Committee is considering spending $400,000 to purchase generators in the wake of last year’s destructive Hurricane Irma.
The purchase will be discussed when AAC members gather for a budget workshop at 1:30 p.m. Wednesday at the District Office at Lake Sumter Landing. The public is welcome at the budget workshop.
District Property Management is asking for the purchase of two generators at $200,000 each to be earmarked in the 2018-19 budget.
A grant from the Federal Emergency Management Agency will be sought to help pay for the generators. However, District officials are warning that the “normal” FEMA grant process takes 18-24 months.
The generators would be purchased for the Golfview and Mira Mar Pump stations.
“The addition of these generators will enable The District Government to convey excess storm water from Lake Paradise and Lake Mira Mar to Golfview Lake. The storm water is then dispersed from Golfview Lake to Hilltop Executive, Silver Lake Executive Golf Courses and Orange Blossom Hills Championship Golf Course,” according to a document prepared ahead of Wednesday’s AAC budget workshop.
The Historic Side of The Villages was hit the hardest when Hurricane Irma roared through this past September. Homes were flooded, power was lost and access was cut off when water blocked entry to the bridge over U.S. Hwy. 27/441. The Community Emergency Response Team performed door-to-door checks out of concern for some of the most vulnerable residents of The Villages.
One Historic Side resident detailed the suffering in an Opinion piece.
“These generators are important as the District Government moves into yet another hurricane season as these pump stations are a critical part of the District Government’s flood management program within an area where the design storm frequency is based upon 1970 design criteria,” the budget document said.
