Search Content

*Public meeting scheduled on Dec. 3* The Southwest Florida Water Management District has scheduled a public meeting for Dec. 3 to discuss an upcoming restoration project at Sawgrass Lake Park.Sawgrass Lake Park is a 330-acre natural oasis in urban Pinellas County. Located just west of I-275 and south of Gandy Boulevard, the park is owned by the District and managed by Pinellas County. A lake and wetland system on the property provides natural water treatment to enhance the… Read more

All Southwest Florida Water Management District (District) offices will close at noon Tuesday, Oct. 8 and will remain closed Wednesday, Oct. 9 and Thursday Oct. 10 due to potential impacts from Hurricane Milton. The District anticipates reopening offices Friday, Oct. 11, but will continue to monitor the progress of Hurricane Milton to determine if future closings are necessary.District structure operations staff will continue to monitor water levels and operate all of… Read more

Groups and individuals interested in applying for a Southwest Florida Water Management District community education grant are invited to attend a grant advisory session for residents with questions about the grants.The advisory session will be held Thursday, Aug. 19, from 9 a.m.- 3 p.m. at District Headquarters, in Conference Room A. District Headquarters is located at 2379 Broad St. in Brooksville.This “open-house style” session is aimed at answering questions… Read more

Todd Pressman, Pinellas-Anclote River Basin Board co-chair, third from left, joins the Oldsmar mayor, city council and utility staff for the groundbreaking of the city’s reverse osmosis plant. District Board members and Pinellas County, Oldsmar and District staff were on hand as the city of Oldsmar broke ground on its reverse osmosis water treatment plant. The plant, capable of producing two million gallons per day, is part of a $20 million project to provide… Read more

A cooperative project between the Southwest Florida Water Management District and the City of Lake Wales will reduce flooding near Twin Lakes.During 2004 and 2005, the water levels within Twin Lakes rose significantly and caused flooding in several apartments located east of the lakes. Some of the apartments flooded more than once.According to computer modeling, the 100-year/five-day storm event flood elevations for the lakes would be more the 14 inches higher than the… Read more

The Southwest Florida Water Management District is inviting the public to comment on proposed "minimum guidance levels for Tooke Lake and Whitehurst Pond ":http://www.WaterMatters.org/mfl in Hernando County at a public workshop on Tuesday, Oct. 16. The workshop will be held from 5 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. at the West Hernando Branch Library, 6335 Blackbird Ave., Weeki Wachee.The state Legislature requires the District to set minimum flows and levels (MFLs) for priority water bodies… Read more

The Southwest Florida Water Management District is inviting the public to comment on proposed minimum levels for Bonable, Tiger and Little Bonable lakes in Marion County at a public workshop on Thursday, September 27th. The workshop will be held from 6 to 7:30 p.m. at the Dunnellon Public Library, 20351 Robinson Road, Dunnellon, Florida 34431.The state Legislature requires the District to set " minimum flows and levels":http://www.WaterMatters.org/mfl (MFLs) for priority… Read more

Southwest Florida Water Management District (District) officials have raised the activation level of the District’s Emergency Operations Center (EOC) to Level 1 as they monitor Tropical Depression Fred. The EOC provides direction regarding District activities during an emergency weather event. The District is evaluating potential impacts from the tropical depression that could occur throughout its 16-county region. District staff are operating structures in anticipation… Read more

Who: Stewart Middle School teachers and students, Tampa Mayor Pam Iorio, Councilwoman Linda Saul-Sena, former Southwest Florida Water Management District Governing Board member Sally Thompson and Southwest Florida Water Management District Board members and staffWhat: A ribbon-cutting ceremony will mark the beginning of a unique project between the District and Hillsborough County Public Schools at Stewart Middle School, which is located on… Read more

A cooperative project between the Southwest Florida Water Management District and Pinellas County will improve water quality within tidal portions of Walls Springs Park and help restore small wetland areas.Located in western Palm Harbor, the well-known park experiences high use and is named after a small surficial spring in the park that discharges water into a small pond that flows into Boggy Bayou. The spring discharges about 3.5 million gallons of water per day during… Read more

The Southwest Florida Water Management District’s Governing Board Tuesday approved a land management plan for the Chito Branch Reserve in southeastern Hillsborough County that will provide a variety of recreational opportunities for the public.The District purchased the 5,515-acre reserve in 2001, in cooperation with Tampa Bay Water for the primary purpose of building the 16-billion-gallon C.W. “Bill” Young Reservoir to collect and store drinking water.… Read more

The Southwest Florida Water Management District’s (District) Governing Board approved the purchase of the Mattaniah Property, in partnership with Hillsborough County, in the Alafia River Watershed. This 629-acre parcel of land adjoins the Alafia River Reserve, which is in existing District ownership and managed by Polk County, and contains portions of English Creek, Thirty-mile Creek, and the North Prong of the Alafia River in Hillsborough County.This is the first joint… Read more

_Emergency Operations Center at Level 2 Activation_Southwest Florida Water Management District officials are monitoring Tropical Storm Colin and have raised the activation level of the District's Emergency Operations Center (EOC) to Level 2. The EOC provides direction and controls District activities during an emergency weather event.The District is continuing to monitor potential flooding that could occur throughout our 16-county region due to heavy and sustained rainfall… Read more

Groups and individuals interested in applying for a Southwest Florida Water Management District community education grant are invited to attend a grant advisory session for residents with questions about the grants.The advisory session will be held Wednesday, Aug. 25, from 9 a.m.- 3 p.m. at the Tampa Service Office in Conference Room B. The Service Office is located at 7601 U.S. Hwy. 301, Tampa.This “open-house style” session is aimed at answering questions… Read more

Groups and individuals interested in applying for a Southwest Florida Water Management District community education grant are invited to attend a grant advisory session for residents who live in the area represented by the District’s Pinellas-Anclote River Basin Board. The area includes Pinellas County and the southern portion of Pasco County.The advisory session will be held Wednesday, Aug. 18, from 12 p.m.- 5 p.m. at the Countryside Library, which is located at… Read more

Disaster struck the District over the Independence Day weekend when a fire sprinkler flooded Building 4 at District Headquarters in Brooksville. The problem began just after 4 p.m. on Sunday, July 3. A ceiling-mounted fire sprinkler activated on the third floor of the four-story building. The sprinkler worked as it was designed, with the fire pumping station supplying enough water pressure to douse a fire. The building’s alarm system detected the water flow and sent… Read more

table(webalert). |Who:|Approximately 100 children from the "Boys & Girls Club of Hernando County(Hernando Boys & Girls Club)":http://www.bgchernando.org/ and "Southwest Florida Water Management District(Southwest Florida Water Management District)":http://www.swfwmd.state.fl.us staff||*What:*|The District is coordinating a field trip at the "Serenova Tract(Serenova Tract)":/recreation/areas/starkey-serenova.html for children who attend the Boys & Girls Club of… Read more

Workshop to follow at 9:30 a.m.The Southwest Florida Water Management District’s Governing Board will hold its monthly meeting Tuesday, Dec. 17 at 9 a.m. at District Headquarters, located at 2379 Broad Street in Brooksville. After the Governing Board meeting, the District will hold an informational workshop on water related issues. To view the Governing Board meeting online, click on the… Read more

The Florida Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) officially approved adding three first-magnitude spring systems – Weeki Wachee River, Chassahowitzka River and Homosassa River – to the Surface Water Improvement Management (SWIM) Program priority list.In January, "The Southwest Florida Water Management District (District) Governing Board ":http://www.swfwmd.state.fl.us/about/governingboard/voted to begin the process of officially adding those systems to the existing… Read more

The Southwest Florida Water Management District’s (District) Governing Board voted to decrease property taxes by adopting a proposed rolled-back millage rate of 0.1909 mill for the fiscal year 2025 budget.The millage rate is 6.6% lower than the current fiscal year adopted millage rate of 0.2043 mill, a savings to taxpayers of approximately $9.5 million.For the owner of a $150,000 home with a $50,000 homestead exemption, the District tax would be $19.09 a year, or… Read more