Northeast Cape Coral residents worry flooding may delay utility project

CAPE CORAL, Fla. —

Heavy rains and flooding in Northeast Cape Coral have left residents worried about potential delays in the utility extension project currently underway in the area.

Steve DeGregorio, who lives near Northeast 17th Place, shared his concerns about the project, particularly during the rainy season.

“So I hope that they can get it done quickly, because what I've seen across the street, they were working on it for years, and I saw people's houses saturated in dirt,” DeGregorio said.

He described the impact of Sunday night’s storm on his neighborhood.

“In my area alone, the street was heavily weak. The rain was coming down hard and heavy for at least an hour straight. I noticed that the drain ditches in front of my house and to the left and across the street, everything was full of water,” he said.

Photos from Sunday night’s flooding, sent in by Gulf Coast News viewers, show property damage and covered drains. Residents are particularly concerned about drainage issues during heavy storms, especially when drains are covered as part of the utility extension project.

DeGregorio said he asked city officials about contingency plans for weather-related setbacks.

“I asked them, I said, 'You guys got contingency plans for hurricanes and rain?' They said, 'We're supposed to be done within two years.' Apparently, my project is going to be the smaller of the two,” he said.

The city anticipates completing the utility extension project in the North 1 portion of Cape Coral by the end of 2027.

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