VERO BEACH — The Vero Beach City Council Tuesday night approved a utility franchise agreement for Florida Power and Light to provide residents with electric service once the Vero Beach electric utility is sold.
The ordinance grants FPL the exclusive right to serve the city with electric power for 30 years, effective on the closing date of the sale of the utility. FPL would be given access to utility rights of way in the city limits and would collect a 6 percent franchise fee and forward those revenues to the city on a monthly basis.
The measure amounted to a formality, as the establishment of a franchise agreement is required as part of the purchase and sale agreement approved by the council and ratified by voters on March 12.
A cover letter from City Attorney Wayne Coment explained that the council was required to have a public hearing on the ordinance granting the franchise on or before July 31.
Indian River County already has a franchise with FPL for customers in the unincorporated county who are currently served by FPL.
City officials are hopeful that the sale of the electric utility will be completed in 2014 and, at that point, the city’s 33,000 customers would then receive FPL rates. The City of Vero Beach’s rates are nearly 40 percent higher than those of FPL.