Clearwater approves Duke Energy deal, rejects public power

Clearwater City Council unanimously approved a new 30-year franchise agreement with Duke Energy on Thursday, ending a two-year effort to determine whether the city should buy Duke’s local electric distribution system and operate its own utility.

Council members concluded the financial and operational risks of creating a municipal utility outweighed the potential benefits identified during the city’s review.

Staff said negotiations secured commitments beyond the franchise itself. In addition to preserving the city’s 6% franchise fee, the memorandum of agreement includes funding for a citywide economic development strategy, a downtown retail recruitment plan and support for the North Greenwood Community Redevelopment Agency. It also commits Duke to infrastructure resiliency projects, Coachman Park improvements and greater coordination on redevelopment planning, utility infrastructure, vegetation management and storm preparedness.

Opponents urged the council to delay the vote, arguing the city’s own feasibility study supported further consideration of municipal ownership and warning that a 30-year agreement would limit future options.

Supporters, including Gloria Campbell, executive director of The Grove, pointed to Duke’s community investments. Campbell said weatherization work in North Greenwood had led to “in some cases, a 10% drop in bills,” adding that “for people who are living on fixed income, $20, $30, $40 a month is a lot.”

How Clearwater Got Here

As Clearwater’s 30-year electric franchise neared expiration, city leaders chose not to automatically renew Duke Energy’s contract. Instead, they spent two years studying whether Clearwater should join the roughly three dozen Florida municipalities that own and operate electric utilities. The effort included a $504,000 feasibility study, an independent appraisal of Duke’s distribution system and preparations for a potential bond issue. It also drew opposition from residents and business groups who argued municipalization could leave the city with billions of dollars in debt.

Clearwater granted Florida Power Corp. a 30-year electric franchise in 1995. Duke Energy assumed the agreement after acquiring Florida Power and has provided electric service in Clearwater since 2012. The franchise expired in December 2025, and the city and Duke have continued operating under its terms while negotiating a replacement.

NewGen Strategies & Solutions evaluated whether municipal ownership could lower electric rates, improve customer service, strengthen storm resilience, coordinate more closely with the city’s existing utilities, accelerate undergrounding projects and generate revenue that could reduce the city’s reliance on property taxes. After reviewing the study, the City Council authorized an appraisal of Duke’s local distribution system and later approved the legal framework that would allow Clearwater to issue up to $592 million in revenue bonds if it decided to pursue an acquisition.

Instead of pursuing municipal ownership, the ordinance would authorize a new 30-year franchise agreement allowing Duke to continue constructing, operating and maintaining Clearwater’s electric distribution system while preserving the city’s 6% franchise fee.

Beyond renewing Duke’s franchise, the proposal commits the utility to a series of economic development and infrastructure initiatives. Under a memorandum of agreement negotiated alongside the franchise, Duke would fund a downtown retail development strategy, contribute $100,000 annually for six years toward infrastructure resiliency projects, provide economic development funding for the North Greenwood Community Redevelopment Agency, help fund shade structures at Coachman Park through a 20-year naming rights agreement, construct a looped electric feed serving Clearwater Police Headquarters and provide annual updates on its electric distribution network, vegetation management and storm resiliency efforts.

Clearwater is not the only Pinellas County city weighing public power. In neighboring St. Petersburg, advocates have launched a campaign urging city leaders to study replacing Duke with a municipal electric utility, arguing local ownership could improve reliability, accelerate undergrounding and give the city greater control over its energy future. Opponents have raised many of the same concerns heard in Clearwater, including acquisition costs, litigation risk and the complexity of operating an electric utility.