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Seminole County utilities propose $94.8M budget and $29M of FY27 projects to renew plants and pump stations
Summary
Utilities Director Johnny Edwards outlined a $94.8 million fee‑funded budget with $29M in deliverable projects for FY27, stressing wholesale water/wastewater fee impacts and priorities including pump station upgrades, Greenwood Lakes and Yankee Lake flow re‑routing, and continued advanced metering rollout.
Johnny Edwards, utilities director, presented the proposed utilities budget for FY27 and a prioritized capital program. "The utilities department total proposed budget request is $94.8 million — 100% funded through water and sewer fees," Edwards said. The department plans $29 million in FY27 projects and emphasized a focus on renewal and replacement at treatment plants, distribution and collection system maintenance, and pump‑station upgrades.
Edwards singled out a few capital priorities: redirecting some wastewater flows from Greenwood Lakes to Yankee Lake to manage capacity; master pump station work and force‑main projects to accommodate growth near the Reagan Center; and ongoing work to reduce infiltration and inflow through pipelining and CCTV inspection programs. He noted wholesale water and wastewater agreements are a major operating‑cost driver in the proposed budget and that the department is updating interlocal agreements with neighboring utilities to better reflect current costs.
On customer‑facing services, the utilities business office is modernizing billing platforms and exploring AI for detection of meter anomalies and billing errors; field operations are moving toward advanced metering infrastructure to give customers near‑real‑time consumption data. Edwards said the department is staging major console and system upgrades across multiple years to balance funding and system continuity.
Next steps: staff will return with more detailed CIP schedules as designs mature and will bring individual projects forward for board approval when ready.
