The new plant replaces the 1953 Fiveash plant and can treat 50 million gallons a day. Tap water may look or taste different through the end of 2026.

Fort Lauderdale has a new main drinking water plant. The City Commission cut the ribbon Thursday on the Prospect Lake Clean Water Center, a project the city puts at about $666 million including related infrastructure.

The plant replaces the Fiveash Water Treatment Plant, which is nearly 70 years old, as the city’s primary source of treated water. The city announced the opening in a news release on Thursday, Oct. 15.

“This is a transformational investment in the future of Fort Lauderdale,” Mayor Dean Trantalis said in the release.

What the plant is

According to the city’s release and its project page:

  • It can treat up to 50 million gallons of drinking water a day.
  • It uses nanofiltration, a membrane process, and ion exchange. The old plant used lime softening.
  • It is built to withstand Category 5 hurricane-force winds.
  • It sits at the city’s Prospect Wellfield, about three miles from Fiveash. The site is closed to the public for security reasons.

The city said the new process is meant to make the water clearer and better tasting. Its project page says the plant removes tannins, which give the water a yellow tinge, and is designed to help meet the city’s goal of fewer than five color units. The city also said it gives the utility more room to deal with changing water quality standards and emerging contaminants. Its project page names PFAS, the so-called forever chemicals, as one reason the old plant needed replacing.

Who built it and who owns it

The plant is a public-private partnership between the city, IDE Technologies, Ridgewood Infrastructure and Kiewit Water Facilities Florida Co. The city owns the plant. The company formed by Ridgewood and IDE runs operations, maintenance and repairs for a 30-year operating period, with city staff working alongside its crews, the project page says.

The city’s project page sets out how it got here:

  • 2020: the city received an unsolicited proposal
  • March 2022: the city selected the IDE-Ridgewood proposal
  • 2023: the city signed the comprehensive agreement
  • January 2024: groundbreaking
  • Late 2025: testing with water began
  • September 2026: water from the new plant began flowing into the city’s system

What happens to Fiveash

Fiveash opened in 1953 and was expanded several times. It will stop treating water and become a storage and distribution site that pumps water from the new plant into the system, according to the city. Some Fiveash employees will stay to run its tanks and pumps, and others are being trained to work at the new plant.

The city’s separate Peele-Dixie membrane plant keeps serving the area south of Davie Boulevard. The city also sells water to several neighboring cities and large utilities in Broward County and said it is coordinating the switch with them.

What it means for you

  • Your water may look or taste different for a while. The city said changes in taste, color and cloudiness are normal and temporary as the system switches over, and may last through the end of 2026. It said they do not affect safety and the water keeps meeting state and federal health standards.
  • Your bill is going up. The city’s project page says water and wastewater rates rise 9% a year through 2027, then 5% a year from 2028 to cover operations.
  • Questions about your water go to the city’s Customer Service Center at 954-828-8000. The city’s 2025 water quality report has the most recent test results, from before the switch.

More on reaching the right office: who to call at City Hall.