Commissioner Regalado Partners with Pinecrest to Tackle Water Issues

MIAMI-DADE – On Tuesday, June 8, the Pinecrest Village Council made a giant leap forward in investing in critical water infrastructure for the health and safety of its residents. Commissioner Raquel Regalado is partnering with the Village to finally connect approximately 720 homes still on well water to the Miami-Dade County Water & Sewer system.

“This is a historic moment for Pinecrest and I applaud the leadership of its Council,” said Commissioner Raquel Regalado. “As sea level rise continues to impact our neighborhoods, protecting our clean drinking water is absolutely vital to the health of our residents. This can be a model for other small municipalities looking to solve water infrastructure issues.”

The $11.3 million project will be funded using a combination of federal funds from the American Rescue Plan, bond funding provided by Miami-Dade County, and a special assessment on properties hooking up to water lines. The assessment will cost most property owners less than a dollar a day for 25 years, in return for safe drinking water that is constantly monitored and tested. In past years, some wells in Pinecrest have had documented cases of contamination.

“The Village has been talking about this issue for decades,” said Pinecrest Mayor Joseph Corradino. “This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to take this piece out of the equation before we tackle the much bigger problem of septic tanks.”

Commissioner Regalado brought Miami-Dade Water & Sewer, the Department of Environmental Resources and Miami-Dade Fire Rescue to meetings to answer all the environmental and logistical questions posed by council members and Pinecrest residents and has committed to working with the Village on this critical project.

“I’d like to thank our WASD, DERM and Fire departments for their help in marshalling the research and resources to help Pinecrest put this plan together,” said Commissioner Regalado. “This is a perfect example of how we should be partnering with our municipalities to solve regional issues.”