Sanford leaders advance funding plan for treatment plant to remove 1,4-dioxane

Sanford city leaders met Feb. 23, 2026 to discuss funding options and next steps for a new water treatment facility designed to remove dangerous contaminants - notably the industrial solvent 1,4‑dioxane - from the city’s drinking water supply. The meeting follows a process begun in 2024 that hinges on approvals from the Florida Department of Environmental Protection.

The City of Sanford contracted Carollo Engineers in January 2024 to develop a water facilities plan, and that plan was provided to FDEP in June 2024. As the city summarized in its August 2024 update: “As part of the City of Sanford’s continuing efforts to supply safe and high-quality water to Sanford’s citizens and customers, the City contracted with Carollo Engineers in January of 2024 to develop a water facilities plan as the next step toward the City receiving funding from the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP) for water treatment system upgrades. The FDEP had committed to providing Sanford with adequate funding to address the 1,4 dioxane contamination issue and reserved funding for the City. One of the requirements for final approval of the funding is the water facilities plan which was funded by the FDEP. The plan was provided to the FDEP in June.”

FDEP returned comments on the water facilities plan on August 14, 2024 and requested clarifications during its quarterly review of statewide water resources funding; because the plan was not fully approved at that time, Sanford remained on a waiting list for the previously reserved funds. The city’s September 26, 2024 update reiterated that “The FDEP has assured the City that funding is still available to the City in this and future years. City staff and Carollo Engineers will respond to the request for additional information and continue to provide the FDEP with all needed information.” The city also engaged Carollo to prepare a preliminary design report at the 30 percent design level, scheduled for submission to FDEP at the end of October 2024.

The Feb. 23, 2026 meeting advanced discussion of funding options, but the supplied meeting fragment does not identify which elected officials or staff attended, what specific funding streams were considered, whether any local match or bonding was proposed, or whether the meeting produced a vote or resolution. Key technical and financial details remain undisclosed in the materials provided: no capital cost estimate for the Sanford, Florida project, no treatment technology selection, and no current water-quality concentrations for 1,4‑dioxane were included.

Regional and national reporting offers context for Sanford’s funding choices. At a December 10, 2024 rural water summit in Sioux Falls, panelists warned federal funding could tighten and urged readiness: “it’s going to be really important to pay attention to what gets cut and what’s changing,” and “We need more money, we need more water, and I think that’s going to continue to be a challenge going forward,” said Moore. Examples of alternative municipal funding mechanisms appear in other states: applications for Michigan MEDC Community Development Block Grant–Disaster Recovery funding open Feb. 17 and are due by mid‑April, one village secured a $9.4 million Local Bridge Advisory Board approval, and small grants such as a $15,000 Saginaw Bay Watershed Initiative Network award have supported local launches.

Large-scale planning documents in other states underscore the scale of water projects but refer to different municipalities. North Carolina planning material lists a City of Sanford WTP expansion line item of $418,500,000 to grow from 12 MGD to 30 MGD and explicitly cautions that these figures “represents a rough order of magnitude costing scenario does not account for any construction phasing or potential funding partners.” Those NCLEG figures apply to a Sanford in North Carolina and are presented here only as comparative context.

Sanford city staff and Carollo Engineers have indicated they will continue responding to FDEP’s requests for information; with the city’s Feb. 23, 2026 meeting, officials signaled a push to firm up financing. Before FDEP funds can be released, the water facilities plan and the preliminary design approval steps remain central milestones, and the city has not yet published meeting minutes, attendee lists, cost estimates, or the technical approach for 1,4‑dioxane removal. Expect follow-up documents from the City of Sanford, Carollo Engineers, and FDEP to clarify the project timeline and funding structure.