There’s more anger and scrutiny in Riviera Beach over contamination in the city’s water system, after an emergency meeting raised more questions than answers.
Last week, the City removed the utility district director, Michael Low, on the back of a county health department investigation over alarming failures to deal with E. coli in the water system. It had emerged in January that, after finding traces of the bacteria, the contaminated water was not retested nor was the public made aware for seven months.
But in the second emotional meeting in two weeks, the City of Riviera Beach on Wednesday decided to keep operating without an acting director to oversee its water distribution system.
The assistant director, Steven Doyle, had threatened to quit, but remained on board — raising more concerns over government dysfunction.
Residents, like Scott Lewis, sounded off on city officials, demanding better transparency and management of its utility district staff.
" [For] 13 months. I had s*** in my water. It was covered up by the staff. And nothing has happened. That is not acceptable,” Lewis shouted during public comment. “Please, we elected you, we didn’t elect your staff. You have to do something.”
Resident Lloyd Brown said even some churches have stopped using water fountains. "We still got a flat tire and nobody trying to fix it," Brown said.
The groundwater wells are typically treated at the city’s water treatment plant. The drinking water was contaminated between June 27, 2023, and June 28, 2023, according to the city’s report.
In January 2024, the city admitted it had failed to notify the Florida Department of Health about E. coli bacteria that was detected in a well within 24 hours, as required by state and federal law and failed to test additional samples. “Well #14 was immediately shut down,” the report said. It was also repaired, according to the report.
Official say the water is safe to drink.
After a Palm Beach County Department of Health investigation, the city has agreed to pay $80,000 in fines for the contamination. City officials now fear they could face more violations from the health department and more than 100 potential lawsuits in connection to the water scandal.
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Council members like Dr. Glen Spiritis and Shirley Lanier have also lost confidence and suggested the city seek outside counsel to help solve the water management issues.
“It seems like we keep fumbling how we're moving forward with this,” Lanier said. ”We need to have somebody in that district that knows what they are doing, can do the job and I recommend outside assistance because what's been happening hasn't been working.”
Last week, the then-utility director, Low, seemed to blame shortcomings on the treatment plant itself, long-term planning, engineering issues and staff communication failures.
“And this will continue whether I’m in the position or anybody else,” Low cautioned. "The issue is you need a water plant. You are not going to get a water plant if you continue to carry on the way you are doing it.”
Estimates for a new water plant have ballooned to $300 million dollars, angering residents who worry that the $115 million bond initiative residents had voted for earlier this year, as well as a trio of infrastructure measures, won't be enough to build a new plant.
Managing an old water system
The city manager for Riviera Beach Jonathan Evans, who manages the utility district, was also grilled by council member Tradrick McCoy, who raised questions about Evan’s leadership.
Evans said he didn’t want to fire the previous director or replace him with the Assistant Director, Steven Doyle, without permission from the Counsel. And that he’s seeking clarity on how to move forward.
“There are obviously some flaws in the system and I think that we are trying to work towards resolving those issues,” Evans said. “Because, at the end of the day, we understand that the public trust, especially concerning water and water quality, is paramount.”
The Council voted Wednesday evening to deny Doyle from becoming the new acting director. In the meantime, Evans will work with Doyle to oversee daily water operations, namely to monitor the aquifer and the 27 wells sprawled across the the city.
Out of the 27, nine are experiencing degradation issues and are "out of service for various reasons," said Doyle, due to "mechanical failure, electrical shorts, water quality issues."
Doyle said the water staff is in talks with Palm Beach County to help immediately improve "five wells that we want to tackle because those are the wells that have the most dire need."
The council's next meeting is scheduled for August.
