The WRWSA's first
water supply facility is located in Citrus County and named for Charles
A. Black. Raised in Gainesville, he attended the University of Florida,
received a B.A. Degree in environmental engineering and had a distinguished
career specializing in water supply and treatment. His professional
career spanned almost six decades and included the national presidency
of the prestigious American Water Works Association, membership in
numerous national and state engineering, water resource, pollution
control and sanitary engineering societies and associations as well
as the Royal Society of Health in Great Britain. Mr. Black was appointed
by two Governors to serve on several regional agencies, including
the Withlacoochee Regional Planning Council, the Coastal Rivers Basin
Board of the Southwest Florida Water Management District (SWFWMD)
as well as the Governing Board of SWFWMD. He served as Chairman of
the SWFWMD Governing Board for several years in the early 1990s.
As part of his service to SWFWMD, Mr. Black set a goal of strengthening
the development of regional water supply authorities within SWFWMD's
jurisdiction. SWFWMD is the only water management district in the
state that has worked to help create and foster regional water supply
authorities (RWSA) over its entire service area. Mr. Black's service
during the late 1980s and early 1990s as a member and later as Chairman
of the SWFWMD Governing Board provided the leadership to stimulate
new directions for the West Coast Regional Water Supply Authority
(now Tampa Bay Water). In addition, his personal intervention and
leadership resulted in moving both the Peace River/Manasota RWSA in
southwest Florida and the Withlacoochee RWSA in north central Florida
into actual water production.
Mr. Black was the
prime mover and advocate for SWFWMD to provide funding to both RWSAs
to build and/or purchase water supply facilities. In the Withlacoochee
Region, Mr. Black secured almost $5 million for the engineering,
design and construction of the water supply facility located in
Citrus County. The development of this facility was the first step
toward implementation of the Authority's Regional Water Supply Plan
and a key ingredient in making the Authority self-sufficient. In
addition to securing funding for the Authority, Mr. Black chaired
an intergovernmental design and review committee to work with the
consulting hydrologists and engineers in development of the well
fields, pipeline interconnects, ground storage tanks and water treatment
facilities. The water supply facility was dedicated in 1992 and
with Citrus County's blessing it was appropriately named for Charles
A. Black who played such a large role in its development.
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