County to study potential acquisition of Boynton Beach water utility; staff outlines phased due diligence

Palm Beach County water utility staff briefed commissioners on a preliminary plan to evaluate a possible purchase of the City of Boynton Beach water utility. The county presented an outline of four phases — initial financial feasibility, legal outreach and valuation, engineering and operational due diligence, and final negotiations/closing — and requested authorization to continue phase‑1 work.

Staff said Boynton Beach's utility serves about 125,000 customers, employs roughly 150 people, operates two treatment plants (an East plant with ~24 MGD capacity and a West plant at ~10.4 MGD), and carries outstanding debt with annual payments of about $7.5 million. Staff also noted Boynton's five‑year capital plan shows large capital needs (roughly $466 million across fiscal years), including a major water‑supply and plant improvement cost in FY28.

The county expects the initial financial feasibility (phase‑1) to take 30–60 days and cost in the neighborhood of $50,000; later phases will add legal, engineering and valuation work. Commissioners asked whether the county would pursue acquisition of the entire utility or only portions; staff confirmed the current review contemplates the entire system and requested direction to proceed with more detailed analysis.

The board supported continuing due diligence and asked staff to return with financial valuation and technical assessments after phase‑1 review.