That Smell in Tangerine, Florida and Nearby Neighborhoods

More info on the City of Mt Dora Water Reclamation Plant upgrades at 441 and SR46, from Joe Grusauskas/ Utility & Plant Operations Director. “The project engineering task authorization will begin shortly. The new system will need to be permitted by the FDEP before it can be bid. The construction process will take a while. Staff will have a better startup schedule after the engineer submits a permit and has prepared a bid. In the meantime, the existing odor system is getting additional repairs which should help eliminate some of the airflow shortcutting. This should help knock down more odor in the interim. The new unit will be a state of art technology and sized for the buildout of the facility The upgrade was anticipated to happen with a larger plant expansion, but to be a good neighbor, Council concurred it would be best to accelerate. Thanks for taking the time to visit and learn about the facility. It takes Citizens like you to be involved to build a great utility. Joe” S

  Nearly a year ago, the founders of "That Smell in Tangerine and Surrounding Communities" came to the conclusion that it was going to take a concerted effort to reduce the odor problems in our area.  We started out as Tangerine residents living primarily around Lake Ola and spread to Zellwood, Stoneybrook Hills, and as far North as Round Lake Road. The Tangerine Improvement Society had been encouraging members to call elected officials when there was an odor. We saw that it wasn't enough and nothing was happening to solve the problems.  It was time to step up the effort, so the Facebook page page was born on January 12, 2020. It gave residents a chance to share their experiences and to begin to reach the right people at the regulatory level. It wasn't all peaches and cream, though. At least one employee  of Shelley's Septic Tank and his/her friends were among the first members and they popped up and defended the sources of the smell, especially when it was relate