Seacoast Utilities Timeline

1955

John D. MacArthur, Ross Brothers execute agreement by which MacArthur loans Ross Brothers $2.8 million to commence development of North Palm Beach and $1 million to construct water and wastewater treatment facilities to serve proposed North Palm Beach and Lake Park development. North Palm Beach Utilities, Inc. offices located at 109 US 1 in North Palm Beach (Lakeview Building). Elevated water tank at the intersection of Watertower Road and Old Dixie Highway leased by the Town of Lake Park to North Palm Beach Utilities, Inc. for 30 years for $1,500 per year.

October 1955

John D. MacArthur incorporates Palm Beach County Utilities Company to serve the Lake Park area.

1956-1957

Palm Beach County Utilities Company constructs water distribution system and sewer collection system for the Town of Lake Park.

1957

Anchorage Drive WWTP (See aerial photograph in NPB Library), capacity 1.7 MGD (trickling filter with discharge to Earman River) and Richard Road WTP, capacity 1.5 MGD (lime softening) placed in service, owned and operated by North Palm Beach Utilities, Inc.

1959

Palm Beach County Utilities Company opens 1.5 MGD Lilac Street water plant (pump, chlorinator and aerator only) and 0.75 MGD wastewater plant (trickling filter with effluent discharge to Thompson River). Palm Beach County Utilities Company administrative offices co-located with Bankers Life and Casualty offices at 1001 Park Avenue, Lake Park (site now occupied by an Auto Zone store).

July 1963

Exercising an option in his 1955 financing agreement with the Ross brothers, MacArthur files suit to acquire the assets of North Palm Beach Utilities, Inc. at cost, including the Richard Road WTP and the Anchorage Drive WWTP.

October 1964

Circuit court rules in favor of the Ross Brothers and NPB Utilities, Inc.

July 1966

Fourth District Court of Appeals affirms circuit court ruling in favor of Ross Brothers and NPB Utilities, Inc.

August 1966

Westport Utilities Corporation transfers all water distribution facilities serving Lost Tree Village to North Palm Beach Utilities, Inc.

August 1967

By a 5-2 vote, reversing its own earlier 4-3 decision that it would not hear MacArthur’s appeal, the Florida Supreme Court reverses all previous court decisions on the subject, finding in favor of MacArthur and thus authorizing him to acquire North Palm Beach Utilities, Inc. assets, including the Anchorage Drive WWTP, for $2.065 million.

1968

Lilac Street water plant expanded to 4.0 MGD and to provide lime softening facilities.  During this expansion project, the concrete north wall of the horizontal precipitator collapsed as the tank was being filled because of insufficient reinforcing steel in the walls.

1969

Capacity of Anchorage Drive WWTP tricking filter plant expanded to 2.5 MGD.

1970

Florida Public Service Commission extends certificated service area of Palm Beach County Utilities Company to include the City of Palm Beach Gardens. The original certificate was issued on August 4, 1960 covering the Town of Lake Park. Lake Park’s water supply system consisted of wells, an elevated storage tank located near Water Tower Road and Old Dixie Highway, and an 8-inch water main from the elevated storage tank to 6th Street and Foresteria, was likely constructed by Harry Kelsey interests, perhaps funded and/or constructed by the federal Works Projects Administration (WPA). The original water system installed by development interests, was briefly owned by the Town, but was later returned to the MacArthur-owned utility, except the elevated storage tanks.

July 1970

John D. MacArthur purchases 230 acres along the south side of Northlake Boulevard, east of the C-17 canal from Goolsby family. This tract includes Utility Operations offices located at 3090 Northlake Boulevard (site now occupied by a Target department store).

1971

John D. MacArthur assumes ownership and operational authority over North Palm Beach Utilities, Inc. assets, including Anchorage Drive WWTP and Richard Road WTP.

1971 and 1972

Public Service Commission grants Palm Beach County Utilities Company additional water and sewer service area.

1972

Palm Beach County Utilities Company constructs the Carolinda repump station to serve Lost Tree Village, Juno Isles, and Old Port Cove. The station was placed in service in 1973.

July 1975

Florida Public Service Commission transfers North Palm Beach Utilities, Inc. service area certificate to Palm Beach County Utilities Company (MacArthur owned).

1975

Palm Beach County Utilities Company constructs PGA Wastewater Treatment Plant, one mile west of the turnpike, one mile north of PGA Boulevard.

1976

Palm Beach County Utilities Company decommissions Lilac Street Wastewater Plant (demolished in the early to mid 1980s), pumping wastewater to PGA WWTP for treatment. 1976 Anchorage Drive WWTP upgraded, expanded to 5.0 MGD and modernized, aeration facilities installed.

November 1976

North County Utility Company (Cabana Colony) water and wastewater service area and facilities transferred to Palm Beach County Utilities Company.

December 1976

Westport Utilities Corporation (Lost Tree Village) water service area and water distribution facilities purchased by Palm Beach County Utilities Company.

July 1977

Palm Beach County Utilities Company completes the Hood Road Water Treatment Plant (6.0 MGD lime softening) and places it in service.

January 1978

John D. MacArthur passes away.  Utility facilities, among many other MacArthur assets, passes to the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation. January 1978 PGA Wastewater Plant begins delivery of effluent to JDM Country Club – first reclaimed water customer.

October 31, 1978

Florida Department of State, Division of Corporations name change from Palm Beach County Utilities Inc. to Seacoast Utilities, Inc.

December 1978

Florida Public Service Commission approves Palm Beach County Utilities Company name change to Seacoast Utilities, Inc.

1979

Seacoast Utilities, Inc. expands Hood Road Water Treatment Plant to 10.0 MGD. Operations section and warehouse move to 3855 Holiday Road in Cabana Colony (site currently occupied by Frenchman’s Reserves golf maintenance buildings).

March 1980

Seacoast Utilities, Inc., successor in interest to North Palm Beach Utilities, Inc., negotiates termination of lease for Watertower Road elevated tank, paying the Town of Lake Park $6,000 in back rent and agreeing to demolish the tank.

October 1980

Seacoast Utilities, Inc. offices opened at 4200 Hood Road, Palm Beach Gardens.

February 1981

Former offices at 1001 Park Avenue demolished.

Mid 1981

Seacoast Utilities, Inc. fleet maintenance, warehouse facilities opened at 4200 Hood Road, Palm Beach Gardens.

Early 1980s

Former offices on Northlake Boulevard (current site of Target) demolished for Congress Avenue improvements.

Sept. 1982

Following the Town of Jupiter’s April 1978 acquisition of Tri-Southern Utilities, Seacoast Utilities, Inc. sells FM Water (Tequesta) water distribution system to Town of Jupiter.

1985

Seacoast Utilities, Inc. expands Hood Road Water Treatment Plant to 17.5 MGD.

Mid 1987

MacArthur Foundation solicits bids for Seacoast worldwide; PB Gardens, North Palm Beach, Palm Beach County, Riviera Beach, Loxahatchee River District, Northern Palm Beach County Water Control District all begin work on separate proposals.

January 1988

Herb Gildan, representing the Village of North Palm Beach, drafts interlocal agreement for ownership and operation of Seacoast, recommending a cooperative effort among local units of government.

February 15, 1988

MacArthur Foundation opens bids for purchase of Seacoast.

June 1988

MacArthur Foundation announces sale of Seacoast to Juniper Development of Massachusetts, highest of 24 bidders including eight governments.

August 17, 1988

Seacoast Utility Authority (SUA) formed as a consortium of local governments to block private buyer (George Whitten of Juniper Development, Massachusetts developer of Cypress Island) from acquiring utility assets from the MacArthur Foundation.

October 1988

SUA files eminent domain action to seize by condemnation all Seacoast Utility Authority assets.

November, 1988

Seacoast Utility Authority announces that it has settled its eminent domain lawsuit with the MacArthur Foundation for approximately 50% of the acquisition cost previously established by the Juniper Development transaction.

November 14, 1988

Court validates SUA’s acquisition bond issue.

December 20, 1988

Seacoast Utility Authority assumes ownership and operational responsibility for all Seacoast assets, pays MacArthur Foundation $65 million.

1989

Seacoast Utility Authority completes construction of the Anchorage Drive wastewater pump station and force main, diverts Anchorage Drive WWTP effluent to its PGA Wastewater Treatment facility.

August 1991

SUA decommissions Cabana Colony Wastewater Treatment plant, pumps wastewater to PGA Wastewater Plant for treatment, reuse and/or disposal.

1992

SUA expands Hood Road to 23.0 MGD.

1992

SUA sells Carolinda repump station and storage tank to the Benjamin School; storage tank subsequently demolished.

September 1993

SUA decommissions Lilac Street Water Treatment Plant, constructs raw water booster station to divert Lilac St. wellfield water to the Hood Road WTP for treatment.

August 1994

SUA decommissions Anchorage Drive WWTP, ceasing all wastewater treatment operations at that site, pumping wastewater to PGA WWTP.

1998

SUA donates nearly the entire Anchorage Drive WWTP site to the Village of North Palm Beach in exchange for miscellaneous easement rights – no cash paid to SUA.

1999

SUA donates nearly the entire Lilac Street WTP site to the City of Palm Beach Gardens in exchange for miscellaneous easement rights – no cash paid to SUA.

2006

The Authority Board authorizations $88 million capital improvement to decommission both the Hood Road and Richard Road lime softening water plants, consolidating all water treatment operations into a single 30.5 MGD membrane treatment facility at the Hood Road WTP site. Project to be complete by 2014.

2007 - 2008

SUA expands PGA WWTP to 12.0 MGD capacity, including full capacity filtration and high level disinfection for 100% reclaimed water production.

Sept. – Nov. 2009

SUA awards contracts for new Membrane Water Treatment Plant, concentrate disposal well, raw and finished water mains Hood Road – Richard Road, conversion of Richard Road WTP to pump station; Lilac Street and Hood Road pump station renovations as part of Membrane Conversion Project.

May 21, 2014

The Authority’s new state-of-the-art reverse osmosis Water Treatment Plant was placed into service. The new Hood Rd Water Plant is a 30.5 million gallon per day (MGD) finished water treatment plant comprised of 26.0 MGD of nanofiltration (NF), 3.5 MGD of low pressure reverse osmosis, and 1.0 MGD of pretreated local surficial aquifer blend water.

May 17, 2015

Seacoast authorized the demolition of the Richard Road lime softening water plant located at 1153 Richard Road, Lake Park, FL. 33403.

2016

Hood Road lime softening water plant and Richard Road water plant demolished.