TAMPA, Fla. — This week Tampa’s Super Bowl Host Committee unveiled the big game's logo.
And while you'll see many changes in Tampa in the coming months, the most transformative change in the city will be happening underground.
- Tampa City Council OK's largest infrastructure project in city's history
- Project will replace parts of city's aging water, sewer system
- Projected to be complete in 20 years
- More Hillsborough County stories
The Tampa City Council gave the green light to the largest infrastructure project in its history on Thursday. The almost $3 billion project will replace parts of the city's water and sewer lines.
It'll take 20 years for it to finish.
City officials said it's the biggest project Tampa's seen since horse and buggies also roamed the streets. We wanted to know, if the city starts in your neighborhood, how long will construction last?
Tampa Water Director Chuck Weber said it can vary.
After all, the infrastructure project is not just the piping. The streets will be repaved, as well.
He said usually it would take several weeks for the easier jobs. It’ll take several months for most neighborhoods.
But Weber also explained he doesn't think any one particular section in the project would take more than a year.
The big headline, though, is utility bills will be doubling in eight years.
They average right now is in the mid-$40s and by 2028 it would be in the high $80s.
The alternative, Tampa officials said, are “Band-Aids” to nearly 2,000 water main breaks and cave-ins, costing $20 million per year.
The total cost of $2.9 billion in Tampa compares to the $300 billion forecasted capital expenditures over the next decade nationwide.