—
When she took office in 2011, she inherited a water crisis, with not enough of the natural resource available. The unacceptable situation resulted in the updating of the water treatment plant with state-of-the-art technology. This was accomplished without increasing rates, and on-schedule to meet health department deadlines.The efforts exerted over her years in office has helped West Palm Beach be ready with water plans to prepare the city for the future. In the short-term this means having a sufficient supply of water for a one to 100 year drought, thanks to a plan that protects the water supply in times of need, as well as a storm water master plan to protect against flooding that is currently in-progress.
As in the past, the steps Muoio is intent on taking to ensure that the city’s water supply is ready for the next 50 years includes the pursuit of new technology to meet future needs that will not disrupt neighborhoods or raise rates, while meeting deadlines for improving the water treatment system.
Water is one of the hot topics of the current mayoral race. This issue, as many others, sheds light on the differences between the candidates. As reported by The Palm Beach Post on March 3, 1025, Muoio’s opponent, Kim Mitchell has supported further study of an option by New-England based Poseidon Resources to build a new plant in Riviera Beach. Mitchell’s ex-husband, Richard Pinsky, is a local lobbyist for Poseidon.
Jeri Muoio and her team consider her actions an attempt to stall the water treatment plant project.
“The company my opponent wants to look at would privatize our water treatment plant, move our water treatment plant to Riviera Beach which could increase water rates,” said Muoio. “I want to ensure that our water treatment plant is not privatized and work to keep water rates low.”
Jeri Muoio is currently running for a second term as mayor of the City of West Palm Beach. Prior to holding her current position, she served as a city commissioner, having been appointed in 2006 and twice re-elected by voters, in 2007 and 2009. Muoio began her career in education, later becoming an administrator, working as a school district leader for many years.
She holds a doctorate in Education Leadership from Syracuse University and a master’s degree from the State University of New York (S.U.N.Y.) Oswego.
She lives in West Palm Beach with her husband, Charles. They are the parents of a daughter and the grandparents of three.
The City of West Palm Beach General Election will be held on Tuesday, March 10, 2015.
Release ID: 76593