LAKE WORTH BEACH, Fla. — Lake Worth Beach voters delivered a decisive message Tuesday, rejecting two charter amendments that would have given the city commission final authority to approve long-term leases on public land.
In a landslide vote, residents chose to keep that decision-making power in the hands of voters.
According to results, nearly 79% of voters rejected Question 2 and about 77% rejected Question 3, proposals that would have allowed the city to approve leases of up to 99 years on certain city-owned properties.
The amendments centered around high-profile public spaces including the Lake Worth Beach complex, the municipal golf course, and the historic City Hall Annex in downtown Lake Worth Beach.
Supporters argued the changes could help attract private investment to repair and revitalize aging infrastructure across the city. But opponents said the proposals would take control away from residents and open the door to potential overdevelopment.
Lake Worth Beach Commissioner Anthony Segrich, who supported the amendments, said the results show residents still have concerns about how development decisions are made in the city.
"I think it was clear, based on what was decided, there is a large mistrust," Segrich told WPTV in a follow-up interview Wednesday.
Even with the amendments defeated, Segrich said the city will still move forward with attempts to address some of its long-standing infrastructure challenges.
"We already have RFPs in process on most of those projects, and we are going to continue to do that," he said.
However, without the charter changes that would have allowed the commission to approve long-term leases directly, he said the process will likely take much longer.
"It's not that public-private partnerships are going away," Segrich said. "It's just that the process is going to be a heck of a lot more difficult."
During the campaign, Segrich warned that Lake Worth Beach could face a potential financial shortfall in the coming years, especially if state lawmakers move forward with proposals that could eliminate property taxes or limit other municipal revenue streams.
With the amendments failing, he said the city may now have to focus on traditional cost-cutting measures.
"It's going to have to be old-fashioned budget cutting and streamlining operations and eliminating waste," he said.
He also acknowledged that residents who turned out in large numbers for the referendum election may now have a bigger role in helping shape the city's financial decisions moving forward.
"I'm hopeful that since we had such a large activated turnout, some of those new faces that got civically involved continue to do so through the tough times ahead," Segrich said.
Some opponents of the amendments suggested the city could instead pursue funding through tourism dollars, grants, or historic preservation programs to restore properties like the City Hall Annex.
But Segrich said those options are not guaranteed.
"Grant money is usually on an equal match basis, and they come and go," he said. "If you look at what this administration has done with grants in the last year, the outlook on grants is not so good."
He also questioned how the city would generate tourism revenue without improving some of the very attractions that bring visitors to the area.
"If we're not going to revitalize the golf course and we're not going to revitalize the beach, where are we going to get tourism dollars?" Segrich said.
WPTV Reporter Vannia Joseph asked whether a revised proposal could return to the ballot in the future.
Segrich said not anytime soon.
"I don't think it's going to happen anytime soon," he said. "I think anything like that would be two or three years in the making."
He said preparing a project for voters would require expensive engineering, feasibility and financial studies before it could even be considered.
"If we're going to get potential partners to come in, the city and the residents are going to have to fit the bill for the engineering studies, the feasibility studies, the financial studies," Segrich said. "You're looking at costs anywhere between $750,000 to $1.5 million just to get that project off the ground."
For now, Segrich said the city will likely focus on smaller improvements and projects that can demonstrate progress to residents and build trust.
"It's going to be a lot of little wins," he said. "We need to take care of our roads. We need to show that we can take care of some of the larger projects."
He pointed to ongoing work on the city's parking garage project as an example of something that could help build public confidence.
"If that goes well, maybe people will see that we can handle that," he said.
With the amendments defeated, the city's charter remains unchanged — meaning voters will continue to have the final say over major long-term leases involving public land.
For now, the vote ensures that any major redevelopment plans for places like the public beach, golf course, or other city-owned properties will likely return to residents at the ballot box before moving forward.
