Longboat's underground utilities project has finally come to completion

A sense of relief and excitement washed over the Town Commission and residents of Longboat Key as they clapped and cheered for the removal of the last utility pole.

“Today really is about looking at the future and saying, we are going down the right path. That brilliancy is our future and today is a celebration of a huge part of that,” said Town Manager Howard Tipton.

The morning of June 23, Longboat Key Town Commission held its undergrounding project celebration at the Longboat Key Fire Rescue Station 91, saying a farewell to one of the last utility poles. The last few are to be taken down in the coming weeks. 

Those in attendance applauded as they saw a final end to the slanted and troublesome poles, but cheered on as they saw a new beginning for the town.

Photo by Carlin Gillen

The celebration started with opening remarks from Tipton and Isaac Brownman, assistant town manager. Tipton presented him with an award of “Exceptional Leadership in the FPL Underground Project” for his incredible efforts on an increasingly complex project. Brownman gratefully accepted and acknowledged all the various efforts made throughout this over 10-year project. 

Mayor Ken Schneier followed with a speech going into detail on the accomplishment with overwhelming challenges, including the 1,134 poles that were removed, the 743,000 feet of wiring, 263 streetlights and 46 street signs. 

Schneier also announced the town finished the project at least $6 million under budget within reference to its $49.1 million in bonds for the project. 

Photo by Carlin Gillen

The area manager for Florida Power and Light, Devaney Iglesias shared her gratitude. According to Iglesias more than 70% of outages are because of vegetation and debris flying into the lines during storms. 

She also mentions that response times are quicker for outages and storm resilience.