By Mayor Dean Trantalis

The first part of 2023 has been marked by significant progress on some major initiatives at the city, including a new police station and a new water treatment plant. 

Earlier this month, the City Commission approved the construction of a new police station. This has been in the works since voters approved a bond issue for the project in the spring of 2019. The current police station was built 60 years ago. It has grown out of date given the needs of modern law enforcement and is too small to accommodate the size of the city’s current police force. The police station cannot even withstand the impact of a major hurricane. 

Shortly after the bond issue was approved, the city retained AECOM to design the new station. The police station will be three stories and will include a parking garage and indoor firearms range. It will be built on the existing site with the current building demolished at the end of construction. We have hired Moss & Associates to undertake the work. The plan is to break ground soon and move in by late 2024.  

A month before the police station decision, the commission finalized plans to build a new water treatment plant — an important decision that will positively impact our city for generations to come. 

Like our police station, the existing Fiveash water treatment plant has reached the end of its lifespan after 70 years of use. The city spent the last several years researching our options of continuing to repair Fiveash or pursuing new construction. We also investigated what type of treatment system would make the most sense. 

We landed on a public-private partnership for a new plant as the best option to pursue. We are harnessing the talent of world-renown experts to build and operate a top-of-line plant that will produce crystal clear water that exceeds current drinking water standards. The new plant will be located next to our existing well fields at the executive airport with operations beginning in late 2026. We are excited to herald in this next era of Fort Lauderdale’s story. 

Yours,

Mayor Dean Trantalis