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Residents press council on utility rates, reclaimed water rules and connection fees
Summary
Public commenters and councilors discussed Palm Coast’s utility rates, connection fees and reuse regulations. A resident said Palm Coast’s bills rank among the highest and asserted the city is absorbing roughly $4,000 per new home; staff said reclaimed water rules exist for new subdivisions but acquiring facilities is costly.
At the Feb. 18 City Council meeting several residents raised concerns about Palm Coast utility rates, connection fees and reuse regulations following a recent utility workshop.
Anna Gibson, a resident who said she attends council meetings regularly, told the council she researched neighboring jurisdictions and said St. Johns County lowered its utility rate by about 3% in 2023. She said Palm Coast’s current bills place the city “right down here” on a comparative chart and urged staff to study alternatives to building new facilities, including purchasing existing utility facilities if feasible.
Gibson said the city’s connection fees should be clarified: referencing a Florida House bill she said a connection fee is not an impact fee and that Palm Coast’s water capacity fees are “charged to the total city costs, which we're not doing right now.” She told council she calculated the city is “losing about $4,000” per new home and that Palm Coast’s 2023 development orders resulted in “a net loss of $16,000,000 we are currently absorbing.”
City staff responded that reuse regulations already exist in the city’s land development code and apply to new subdivisions — for example, Grand Landings uses reclaimed water — but staff said extending reclaimed water to some vacant ITT lots would be too costly. The city manager said Palm Coast is the largest utility provider in the county and that purchasing facilities is not always feasible because acquired systems can carry existing operational problems or consent orders. The manager also said connection‑fee questions were appropriate for the city’s utility consultant.
Mark Webb, a resident, said the materials from the utility workshop were difficult for some residents to find online and requested printed or clearer documentation at future workshops. The city said staff member Ms. Kershaw will make the presentations available by the end of the week after ensuring ADA compliance.
Council members asked staff to maximize available resources and review consultant work on connection fees and capacity charges. No formal action or ordinance was taken during the meeting on utility rates.
