LAKELAND, Fla. — Some members of a Polk County community say they are upset to see a new development get a sewer hook-up when they've been asking for the same thing for decades.

What You Need To Know

  • A resident of Crescent Heights in Lakeland says her community has been asking the city for a sewer hook-up for 30 years

  • A nearby development is getting a hook-up, and that has caused Crescent Heights residents to ask when it will be their turn

  • City officials say a feasibility study is being conducted and hope to have the results soon

Crescent Heights is tucked into the northwest Lakeland community, right alongside the new Bonnet Spring development.

“I’ve been here for 30 years, and for 30 years we’ve been asking for a sewer line to hook-up to our septic tanks,” said resident Audrey Figgs. “A year ago I came out here and saw a man hooking up a sewer line for the park.” 

Bonnet Springs Park has been under construction for about a year and city officials say a $200,000 payment to Lakeland Water Utilities is why they got the sewer line hook-up so quickly.

All the same, Figgs and several other residents in the area said they should have the same access to underground sewage.

“Where do our tax dollars go?” asked Figgs. “Who’s spending our money?"

Figgs pointed to documents dating back to the 90s that show she had been in conversation with Water Utilities in regards to the underground sewage.

“They investigated the possibility of extending sewer to the Crescent Heights area over 20 years ago,” she said. “So what’s taking so long?”

Currently all the waste that goes down a toilet that’s not connected to a sewer line has the potential to get backed up and resurface on that person’s yard or somewhere else on the property. A sewer line hook-up guarantees that all that activity happens underground.

“There’s no community in the city of Lakeland as old as this one and we have a right," Figgs said. "I’m tired — I’m 73 years old, I ain’t going to live forever.”

The city of Lakeland is currently working with engineers to complete a septic sewer study.

“Regarding Crescent Heights, we are currently engaged with an engineering firm that is completing a septic-to-sewer study of six different areas to determine feasibility and potential costs to install and connect homes to sewer,” said city spokesman Kevin Cook. “Crescent Heights is included in this study, but based on the slope of the land a gravity sewer would not work and pumps stations would be needed to pump waste uphill. This would add to the cost for residents.”

City officials say they hope to have the results from the study in the coming months.