'Huge deal for city': Lake Worth Beach gets $23 million-plus to upgrade electric utility

A surge in federal funding will help to transform Lake Worth Beach's outdated and historically troubled power system.

The U.S. Department of Energy has awarded a nearly $23.5 million grant to Lake Worth Beach, the only Palm Beach County municipality with its own electric utility. The federal grant money resulted from a historic, bipartisan effort to pump billions of dollars into America's troubled infrastructure, at the same time creating jobs and working to become more environmentally friendly.

Ed Liberty, director of the Lake Worth Beach Electric Utility, said the city has agreed to match the grant using current bond funds and future bond issues. Between the federal money and the city's own share, nearly $47 million is now slated for planning, constructing and maintaining a more modern electric utility in the coming years.

"What this Bipartisan Infrastructure Law is going to help us do is to build the grid of the future," Liberty said.

The goal of the federal program is affordable, reliable and clean energy for everyone, including the tens of thousands of Lake Worth Beach residents living in disadvantage communities, or DACS, a term used by the federal government to describe areas that are "marginalized, underserved, and overburdened by pollution."

Locally, after the lengthy overhaul is complete, residents should see fewer power outages, quicker repairs and a stronger, more weather-resistant power grid thanks to the following five projects:

• Interconnection and battery storage for community solar: Lake Worth Beach currently generates a very small amount of its power using a solar energy field atop the old landfill off Washington Avenue. This project will create a battery system, allowing the city to store solar power generated earlier in the day before delivering that power to homes during peak energy usage in the late afternoon and evening. It also opens the door to larger batteries and more solar capacity in the future.

• Advanced metering infrastructure (AMI) system: This project is all about integrating modern technology into the local power grid. The new AMI will allow Lake Worth Beach to remotely monitor residents' energy usage, meaning the city can calculate utility bills and offer home-specific energy tips without physically sending out a worker, a departure from the aging and often faulty system now in place. The new system will also notify the city within seconds of a power outage, instead of waiting for a resident to call about the problem. A resident could be asleep or at work, unaware of the problem, and the city can still get to work, Liberty said.

• Meter data management (MDM) system: Liberty described the MDM as a "giant memory device" that will store several years of utility data, as opposed to just 12 months, allowing the city to conduct more informed energy analyses for residents. "We need to have multiple years worth of data, with different weather experiences, to see how your business or home reacts to weather," he said. "Are you better off focusing on insulation or windows or a new central air system? And how is that going to drop your energy use?"

• Sectionalizing devices: Once more of these devices are added to Lake Worth Beach's utility system, the city will have greater ability to isolate a faulted section of line, avoiding large-spread outages and minimizing the number of people affected whenever a problem occurs.

• Fiber optics: The Lake Worth Beach Electric Utility is also installing more fiber optic connections, meaning the control center and vital parts of the utility system, including the substations, can more quickly communicate with each other. That should allow the city to identify and address problems faster. Optical fiber is also known for being resistant to extreme weather.

Lake Worth Beach's troubled electrical system dates back to the 70s

Lake Worth Beach has long struggled with electrical equipment that dates back to the '70s, and the city's coastal location leaves it vulnerable to worsening hurricanes and other severe storms.

The city has dedicated millions of dollars to making improvements over the past several years through its System Hardening and Reliability Improvement Program. That includes replacing outdated equipment with modern technology, and constructing a system that's capable of resisting Category 5 hurricanes.

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Lake Worth Beach generates its own power and, even more so, imports cheaper energy from other utilities. A stronger, more modern system is needed to deliver that electricity to the city's growing population, and to homes that increasingly need more power for their computers, appliances and even their cars.

The city's existing projects will continue alongside the new construction made possible by millions of dollars in federal funding. As part of the grant, Lake Worth Beach utility leaders have vowed to reduce outages in disadvantaged communities by 50% in four years.

The federal money will also go toward creating 100-125 new jobs

They also anticipate creating 100 to 125 jobs throughout the lengthy process of planning and constructing the new equipment, with some of those people remaining as full-time staff at the projects' completion. Current employees will also be trained on the new technology.

And at least 10 contracts will go to a mix of businesses identified as being small, local or owned by minorities, women or veterans.

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Alyssa Kirk, a compliance manager with the local utility, delivered the good news at a recent commission meeting, presenting a list of nearly a dozen community organizations and about three dozen people who made the grant application possible.

“I know this was an amazing team effort," Mayor Betty Resch said during the meeting. "I know that Vice Mayor McVoy was very involved in this, being the electrical, technical guy that he is. And also our staff worked tirelessly to get this done. I want to thank the city manager for keeping that going, and Alyssa, the staff, just everybody — thank you so much. This is a huge, huge deal for the city.”

Giuseppe Sabella is a reporter covering Boynton Beach and Lake Worth Beach at The Palm Beach Post, part of the USA TODAY Florida Network. You can reach him at gsabella@pbpost.com. Help support our journalism and subscribe today.

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Lake Worth Beach gets $23M federal grant for electric utility upgrade