Indialantic voters casting ballots by mail approved a $3 million bond issue by a 2-to-1 margin last week, so city officials can now move forward with engineering studies and bids to replace miles of failing underground stormwater pipe.
Of the 657 valid ballots returned to Supervisor of Elections Lori Scott’s office, 451 people voted yes and 206 people voted no. The percentage breakdown was 68.65 in favor and 31.35 opposed. The bond will allow the city to invest in its stormwater infrastructure, and to re-do streets torn up to replace the pipes, at a maximum cost of 1 mil on property owners’ tax bills.
The election was accomplished by mail this March so the levy could be reported with this year’s taxes and be billed in the fall. Had the City Council waited until the November general election, or even the August primary, the new revenues could not be collected until late 2019 and early 2020.
Corrugated metal pipes installed to control flooding way back in the John F. Kennedy Administration have rusted through, allowing sand and soil to intrude. That sediment had actually been keeping most of the pipes from collapsing – until Hurricane Irma sent massive amounts of rainwater through the pipes.
