Frustrated Village of DeSoto residents are upset over a bone dry basin in their backyard.
Residents of Caruthers Path spoke out Thursday morning before the Community Development District 12 Board of Supervisors at Everglades Recreation Center.
“Over 50 percent of the time we have no water,” said Gail Kelly.
She bought her home on Caruthers Path in 2021 for $989,000.
Kelly said that Caruthers Path residents have tried to stay engaged with CDD 12’s efforts to restore the basin after numerous “depressions” have opened up and drained the pond. However, she said that residents have lost faith in the process and now feel they are “getting the runaround.”
Jim Fenske, also a resident of Caruthers Path, echoed Kelly’s frustration. He asked why work on the basin has been put off until the winter.
District staff indicated they have been working with an engineering firm on the design of the project. When the design part of the project is complete, it will go out to bid. All of the work must be done in accordance with the Southwest Florida Water Management District.
The ponds are not meant to have an aesthetic value. They are part of the stormwater management system and are designed to project residents’ property in the event of a major storm or hurricane. The stormwater management system was highly praised after Hurricane Irma in 2017. With the exception of some homes on the Historic Side of The Villages, no homes in The Villages flooded because of Hurricane Irma.
