Palm Beach County’s Water Utilities staff presented an initial feasibility overview to the Board of County Commissioners on a potential acquisition of the City of Boynton Beach water and wastewater utility.

Staff described the system as serving roughly 125,000 customers, operating with about 150 employees and two treatment plants (an east plant with ~24 million gallon a day capacity and a west plant around 10.4 MGD). Boynton Beach’s combined operating budget for water, sewer and stormwater was presented as just over $72 million, with a six‑year capital plan staff summarized at about $466 million. Staff also noted Boynton Beach carries system debt with roughly $53.4 million in retirement obligations.

County staff proposed a phased acquisition review: Phase 1 (financial feasibility) to dig into documents and valuation (estimated 30–60 days and an approximate Phase‑1 cost to the county of ~$50,000), Phase 2 for legal and valuation counsel (three to six months), Phase 3 for detailed engineering and operations due diligence, and Phase 4 for final negotiations and closing. Commissioners asked clarifying questions about rate differentials inside and outside city limits and whether the county would pursue the whole utility or only certain service areas; staff confirmed the request was to evaluate the entire system.

Board reaction was supportive of continued due diligence; staff will return with Phase‑1 results for further direction.

What’s next: Staff will complete Phase‑1 financial assessments over the next 30–60 days, continue document review with Boynton Beach, and report back to the board with an appraisal and recommendations for whether to proceed to legal and engineering due diligence.