Mount Dora is known for its charming downtown, lakeside views and small-town atmosphere. But for some people who live and work there, an unpleasant smell has become an unwelcome part of everyday life.

Now, the city is moving forward with plans for an estimated $105.6 million expansion of one of its wastewater treatment plants.

The project includes new odor-control equipment, but there’s an important distinction: City officials say the wastewater plant is not responsible for the widespread odors that have frustrated residents for years.

That raises two questions: Will the project help with the smell, and could residents eventually pay more for wastewater service?

A smell some residents say they can’t escape

Aida Gregory has lived in Mount Dora for 11 years. She also operates a salon in the city.

She told News 6 that the smell is familiar.

“It’s a funky, like a, like a stagnant water, like, like sewage,” Gregory said.

When asked how often she notices it, her answer was simple.

“Every day. Yeah, I smell it every day.”

Gregory described the odor as similar to standing water that has gone stagnant. She said she sometimes notices it around the sinks inside her salon, too.

She also reported experiencing watery eyes and a runny nose, symptoms she believes are connected to the odor. News 6 has not independently established a medical connection between the reported smells and those symptoms.

Despite her frustration, Gregory supports efforts to improve conditions.

“Hey, they get rid of the stink, go for it,” she said.

But that support comes with a condition: She does not want residents facing higher bills.

“I don’t wanna pay more. I think we’re paying enough here with taxes,” Gregory said.

What City Council actually approved

On Oct. 6, Mount Dora City Council approved a $675,010 agreement with Wharton-Smith Inc. for preconstruction services associated with the expansion of Wastewater Treatment Facility No. 2.

The plant is located at 2099 James P. Snell Drive, near State Road 46 and U.S. Highway 441.

The distinction between the two price tags is important:

• $675,010: The agreement approved for preconstruction services.
• $105.6 million: The estimated cost of the larger wastewater expansion project.

The $675,010 agreement allows Wharton-Smith to participate in the planning process through a method called construction management at risk.

That means the construction manager can review designs, evaluate potential costs, identify ways to improve efficiency and help prepare the project for construction.

It does not mean the City Council has approved a final $105.6 million construction contract.

In written answers provided to News 6 on Monday, Oct. 12, the city confirmed the approval and explained that the construction manager would provide additional oversight of the project’s design and construction planning.

The final construction price and other major decisions still must be worked out.

What’s included in the proposed expansion?

The project is about more than odor control.

According to the city’s planning documents, the goal is to increase the wastewater facility’s permitted treatment capacity from 1.5 million gallons per day to 3.5 million gallons per day.

That’s more than double its current permitted capacity.

The planning documents show the plant processed an average of approximately 754,000 gallons per day in 2024. Future planning projections anticipate demand increasing to approximately 2.114 million gallons per day.

The expansion is intended to prepare the city’s wastewater infrastructure for that growth while modernizing parts of the treatment process.

Proposed improvements include:

• New odor-control systems, including biological treatment and activated-carbon filtration.
• Covered treatment areas designed to help contain and manage odors produced during wastewater processing.
• New screening and grit-removal equipment to remove debris before wastewater moves farther through the plant.
• Expanded biological treatment, filtration and disinfection equipment to increase processing capacity.
• Improvements to sludge handling, including equipment that removes water from treatment byproducts.
• Additional reclaimed-water infrastructure, including storage and pumping improvements.

Plans also describe three rapid-infiltration basins at the city’s existing sprayfield site, along with a 16-inch pipeline connecting that site to the treatment facility.

In simple terms, the project would allow the city to process more wastewater and improve how it handles treated water.

But the inclusion of odor-control equipment does not necessarily mean the project will eliminate the smells people experience throughout the community.

The city says the wastewater plant isn’t causing the widespread smell

News 6 asked city officials directly whether the proposed improvements would solve the odor problem.

The city’s written response was unequivocal:

“The odors the community has reported are not being emitted from the wastewater facility.”

Officials pointed to previous odor investigations, including a study completed in 2025 by V&A Consulting Engineers.

That investigation involved measuring hydrogen sulfide, studying how odors travel through the air and recording observations by trained investigators.

The findings pointed toward a different possible source: the nearby Mid Florida Mount Dora landfill.

The study concluded that the landfill was the likely source of the persistent, widespread odors affecting southeastern Mount Dora.

It also identified other potential odor sources capable of producing more localized smells.

The investigators found that calm winds can make conditions worse because odors are less likely to disperse.

There is an important limitation to those findings: Investigators did not have access to the landfill property itself. Their observations were conducted from outside its perimeter, supported by environmental measurements, modeling and reviews of available records.

The study therefore identified a likely source. It did not establish that every odor reported in Mount Dora originates at the landfill.

That distinction also helps explain why the proposed wastewater improvements and the community’s larger odor complaints are separate issues.

A wastewater treatment plant can have equipment designed to control odors produced on-site without being responsible for odors experienced across surrounding neighborhoods.

Complaints were still being reported Monday morning

Residents were continuing to post odor complaints on Oct. 12.

News 6 reviewed three entries submitted that morning to SmellMyCity, a public website that allows people to document unpleasant odors.

The entries included:

• 6:15 a.m.: An odor rated 4 out of 5, described as smelling like sewer.
• 6:32 a.m.: An odor rated 4 out of 5.
• 7:59 a.m.: An odor rated 5 out of 5, the highest rating available.

The earliest entry also included a report of a dog coughing after being outside.

These are user-submitted accounts. News 6 has not independently verified the circumstances of each submission, any reported symptoms or the source of the odors.

The entries do, however, show that people were still reporting strong odors on the same day News 6 sought answers from the city.

The city’s own odor investigation previously considered SmellMyCity reports alongside scientific measurements and observations by trained investigators.

The researchers cautioned that individual reports are subjective and can vary because the people submitting them are not trained odor investigators.

Mount Dora has already spent money trying to control wastewater odors

This is not the first time the city has invested in odor-control technology.

According to information published on Mount Dora’s official website, the city installed a carbon biofilter costing approximately $500,000 in the summer of 2022.

In August 2023, the city added a chemical treatment process intended to neutralize hydrogen sulfide entering the wastewater plant.

Hydrogen sulfide is a gas commonly associated with a rotten-egg odor.

The city says the combination of those improvements significantly reduced hydrogen sulfide levels coming from part of the treatment system.

In November 2023, City Council also entered into a consent order with the Florida Department of Environmental Protection related to wastewater facility concerns.

As part of its monitoring efforts, Mount Dora installed odor-measuring equipment around the plant.

In its latest written response, the city said it continues to collect data from monitors at all four corners of the facility.

Officials said the information is reviewed weekly and continues to show the plant is meeting odor-control requirements.

The city also said it is collecting information from multiple odor loggers installed throughout the community.

So why are complaints continuing?

The city’s position is that the broader odor problem and the wastewater plant are not the same issue.

And the 2025 study provides the scientific basis for that conclusion.

Will Mount Dora residents have to pay more?

For residents like Gregory, that is one of the biggest questions.

The expansion carries an estimated $105.6 million price tag, and the planning documents discuss the use of Florida’s State Revolving Fund program, which provides financing for water and wastewater infrastructure projects.

News 6 asked the city whether existing utility customers could face higher wastewater rates and how much of the project developers would be expected to fund.

The city responded:

“The remaining construction portion of the facility after grants will be funded through impact fees new developments pay when connecting to the sewer infrastructure.”

Impact fees are charges assessed on new development to help pay for infrastructure needed to accommodate growth.

Under the city’s stated plan, grants and fees associated with new development would help cover construction costs.

However, that response does not establish that current customers will never see a future rate increase.

The city said any future adjustments would be considered through a broader study of the utilities fund and its financial needs.

No specific wastewater rate increase tied to this expansion was identified in the city’s response.

The city also did not provide News 6 with a detailed breakdown showing how much funding would come from grants, developer fees or borrowing, or how any potential loans would ultimately be repaid.

Those details remain important as planning moves forward.

A nearby business owner, who identified herself as Amy, said she believes the area’s continued development should help cover infrastructure needs.

“I think with all the growth that came out here, there should be plenty of money,” she said.

“This place is booming around here.”

Amy also expressed concern about the effect of repeated negative attention on Mount Dora’s reputation.

“I’d rather it all be positive. It’s too great of a town,” she said.

Her comments reflect another side of the issue: Some local business owners want problems addressed while also preserving the city’s appeal to residents and visitors.

When could construction begin?

The wastewater expansion remains a long-term project.

The planning documents outline a preliminary construction schedule beginning in September 2027 and extending through March 2030.

When News 6 asked whether that schedule remained accurate, the city said 2030 is still the estimated completion year.

That timeline remains subject to the progress of design, financing, future approvals and construction.

The city did not identify a specific date when the proposed new odor-control equipment would begin operating.

For residents who say the smell affects their daily lives, the wait could be frustrating.

Gregory said she has not noticed an improvement over the years.

When asked how quickly she would like to see a solution, she replied, “As soon as possible.”