Public Works Department

Office of the Director

Administration Division

This division provides managerial, technical, and administrative services to the department including clerical, records, personnel, training, safety, financial, inventory, process control and office automation services.

Customer Operations Division

This division provides 24-hour service 365 days each year in support of the department's mission. All customer inquiries related to any of the services we provide are the responsibility of Customer Operations. Representatives in the Customer Service Center can be reached through the customer hotline, 954-828-8000. In addition to answering pertinent questions, investigating complaints and solving unusual problems in an effective manner, the Service Center also tracks customers contacts to ensure that satisfactory resolutions are achieved.

Another function of the Customer Operations Division is "Operation Nightmoves." Under this program all customer contact points in departments other than Police and Fire are transferred each night and weekend to the Service Center. Questions ranging from Parks and Recreation special events to airport noise complaints can receive attention in this manner and citizens do not have to "...call back tomorrow."

Providing specific and immediate action to meet the needs of the customers is the purpose of the Customer Service Center and has become an integral part of achieving the overall goals of the City of Fort Lauderdale.

Right-of-Way

Sanitation Services Division

This division prides itself on the levels of sanitation services offered to residents. Through the City Commission's "Clean City Initiatives," keeping Fort Lauderdale clean and beautiful is of paramount importance. This division provides an enhanced level of service that includes twice-weekly garbage collection, weekly curbside recycling, monthly bulk trash collection, and street sweeping operations.

Notice of Full Cost of Solid Waste Management
In accordance with Florida Department of Environmental Regulation Rule No. 17-708, the following is the average cost of solid waste collection and disposal services to a residential or commercial customer for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2002.

Recycling Program

The City's Recycling Programs provide once-a-week pick up for recycling. We collect all state-mandated materials (newspaper, glass, plastic, aluminum, steel and poly-coated paper containers), as well as corrugated cardboard. The City also provides pilot commercial and multi-family recycling collection program services. The recycling section also applies for and administers the residential recycling and waste tire recycling grants.

Clean City Maintenance

The Bulk Trash Pick-up Program features bulk trash collection of large household items and tree trimmings, up to 10 cubic yards in size, for residential customers. Pickup days are once a month including scheduled holidays (except for Christmas Day). Items accepted for bulk trash pick up include appliances, furniture, carpet, mattresses, toys, wood scraps, cabinet doors, tree clippings, leaves in boxes/bags or tires (4 max.). The City provides special pick ups by appointment, for a fee, if items are too large for pick up. The City now recycles 100% of all yard waste. Separating yard waste from other bulk trash at the curb helps keep disposal costs down.

The Lot Cleaning Program includes removal of trash and debris from city properties, railroad rights-of-way and alleys. An integral part of this program is cleaning up abandoned properties that have received code violations from Building and Zoning.

Engineering Division

This Engineering Division provides engineering, architectural, and project management services. It recommends to the City Commission projects for contract award which include seawall replacement, major renovations, utilities replacements, neighborhood improvement projects, and annual resurfacing program. It also processes all construction and consultant payments for projects plus all operating budget expenses.

The division administratively manages the capital funds including general capital projects, water and sewer fund, stormwater, and grants for certain projects. In addition, it serves as the main resource to other city departments and citizens regarding the capital improvement program.

Distribution and Collection Division

This division operates and maintains a 770 mile potable water distribution system, 330 mile wastewater collection system and a 127 mile stormwater collection system serving 57,000 accounts within Fort Lauderdale, as well as several adjacent large user cities. The division also maintains and repairs asphalt road surfaces and road shoulders.

Services

Maintenance Division

The Maintenance Division operates and maintains four raw water wellfields containing 55 separate well sites and four electric generation sites; 237 pump and lift stations at separate sites throughout the City, and the Central Maintenance Facility.

The division also operates and maintains one drawbridge and maintains forty-nine (49) fixed span bridges. Additionally, the division maintains the city-owned street light system (approximately 3,300 units), pays for electric service to 3,300 city and 10,500 FP&L lights, and maintains the appearance, structure and operations of city buildings, storm pumps, fences and other facilities including electrical, air conditioning, mechanical, painting, carpentry, welding, plumbing and custodial services.

Environmental Resources Division

The Environmental Laboratories section provides compliance monitoring services as well as chemical and microbiological analysis for drinking water, wastewater, recreational water and stormwater systems to ensure that these functions comply with expanding local, state and federal health and environmental rules and guidelines. The laboratory is State-certified and performs testing services for other city departments and municipalities.

The Environmental Services section is charged with protecting the infrastructure of the Public Services Department either by damage or misuse. This infrastructure includes, but is not limited to: water mains, lines and meters; wastewater mains and pumping stations; and stormwater lines, catch basins, and outfalls.

The section administers the State and County required backflow and cross-connection control program, the federally mandated and stated controlled industrial pretreatment program, and the federally mandated stormwater permitting program. It is also in charge of hazardous materials disposal and many forms of environmental sampling for the entire City.

All Public Services Department operational permits with all regulatory agencies including EPA, FDEP, BCDNP, SFWMD are renewed and updated by this section.

The Project Management section manages engineering projects from design through construction certification and provides contractual services to other local communities.

Treatment Division

The City of Fort Lauderdale provides regional water and wastewater services to approximately 300,000 residents of the central portion of Broward County. In addition to serving the citizens of Fort Lauderdale directly, the City contractually provides these services to adjacent communities through master metering points.

This division operates and maintains two (2) water treatment plants (Fiveash and Peele-Dixie) with a distribution capability of 90 million gallons per day (MGD) and a regional wastewater treatment plant (G. T. Lohmeyer) with a collection capability of 55.7 MGD serving Fort Lauderdale and other adjacent municipalities throughout Broward County.