HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY, Fla. — On Monday, Tampa Bay Water's Board approved Segment B, the southern segment, for the new South Hillsborough Pipeline.
After discussions with Hillsborough County, Tampa Bay Water recommended the “blue” route for Segment B, which, together with Segment A, represents the lowest cost route at $417 million.
The pipeline will be about 26 miles long and carry up to 65 million gallons per day of additional drinking water to the southern Hillsborough service area.
Southern Hillsborough County is one of the fastest-growing communities in Tampa Bay.
“If you live in Hillsborough County or if you work in Hillsborough County, you know that it’s growing, and it’s growing fast. You see a lot of development. That growth means the need for new water, the need for more water, more drinking water,” said Brandon Moore, the Public Communications Manager for Tampa Bay Water.
Tampa Bay Water explained that the pipeline project is crucial to meeting the public’s drinking water needs.
“We are building the South Hillsborough Pipeline to start from our treatment plant in Brandon, and it’s going to connect to the Hillsborough County Lithia Water Treatment Plant, and then also to a new point of connection south of that plant in southern Hillsborough County,” said Moore.
Tampa Bay Water said engineering consultants will now complete a final design to determine the specific location of the pipeline within the approved route corridor, estimate the final cost, and determine the schedule for Segment B.
"We definitely have seen an increase of business over the years," said Craig Beltz.
Beltz is one of the Assistant Managers at Circles in Apollo Beach, and he's seen the growth firsthand.
“My neighborhood has doubled in size since I moved in four years ago," said Beltz.
Construction of Segment A of the pipeline is scheduled to start in late 2024 or early 2025 and is expected to be completed in early 2028.
