Contact

Barron Water Control District

POB 1606 LaBelle, FL 33975

Contact Information

All public records requests (FS §119) will be directed to the District Registered Agent. Registered agent and primary point of contact:
Judi Kennington-Korf, General Manager
POB 1606 LaBelle, FL 33975
Phone: 863-675-0346
Fax: 863-675-9297
judikk@bwcd.net

Internet website uniform resource locator:
https://bwcd.net

Staff:

George Leicht, Field Superintendent
gleicht@bwcd.net

Lupe Taylor, District Coordinator
ltaylor@bwcd.net

Board of Supervisors:

• Seat 1

  Mark Colbert, Chairman (January, 2021 – January, 2024)
  POB 1606 LaBelle, FL 33975
  Phone: 863-675-0346
  Fax: 863-675-9297
  seat1@bwcd.net

• Seat 2

  Pat McKenna, Vice-Chairman (January, 2020 – January, 2023)
  POB 1606 LaBelle, FL 33975
  Phone: 863-675-0346
  Fax: 863-675-9297
  seat2@bwcd.net

• Seat 3

  Rusty Hyslope, Treasurer (January, 2022 – January, 2025)
  POB 1606 LaBelle, FL 33975
  Phone: 863-675-0346
  Fax: 863-675-9297
  seat3@bwcd.net

Supervisors serve a three-year staggered term of office and are elected by landowners based upon one-acre per vote. Should a Supervisor resign before the end of their term, the Board of Supervisors may appoint a replacement until the Annual Landowners meeting in January. To qualify as a Supervisor, an individual must own land in the District. District members and staff adhere to the Code of Ethics applicable to all public officers and employees under the Code of Ethics as identified in Part III, Chapter 112, of the Florida Statutes FS 112, Part III, Code of Ethics, 2015 Authority and History:

• Florida Statutes, Chapter 298
• Florida Statutes, Chapter 189, Part III, §03-189.035
• Circuit Court of the Twentieth Judicial Circuit, in and for Hendry County, Florida. Case number: 72-197, May 8, 1975.
• Chapter 2001-301, House Bill Number 799
• Chapter 2016-260, House Bill Number 1221

The Barron Water Control District (District) is a multijurisdictional independent special district (Florida Statute §189.012(3)) located in Glades County and Hendry County. The District is governed by a three-member Board of Supervisors. The public purpose of the District is to provide for the operations and maintenance of drainage canals and protective dikes which serve to irrigate, drain and discharge excess water from lands and canal systems within the District. To meet the demands of the District, a variety of services are provided by a team consisting of six employees and a number of consultants. Through an intergovern-mental agreement, the General Manager and Staff Assistant also provide services to the Port LaBelle Community Development District collocated on the same premises. On August 30, 1972, a request was made by the General Development Corporation [“Order Granting Petition for the Formation of a Water Management [sic] District,”] for 31,847 acres they owned in Glades County and Hendry County to be declared a drainage district as authorized by Chapter 298 of the Florida Statutes. Thereafter, the District was created on May 8, 1975, by the Circuit County of the 20th Judicial Circuit in and for Hendry County in Case Number 72-197, styled “in Re: Barron Water Management District,”. Although each of the canals within the District proper are owned by Barron, the canals themselves are under the jurisdiction of the Board of Trustees of the Barron-Hilliard-ALICO Cooperative Drainage Plan commonly referred to as the “Joint Trust”. Within the 50-square mile area, there are three main drainage canals known as Canal 1 or C-1, C-2, and C-3. C-3 serves as both a drainage and an irrigation canal. The original petition of the Barron Drainage District was granted for a 30-year term. House Bill Number 799, approved by the Governor May 29, 2001, extended an additional term of 15-years granting authority for the District to exist until midnight September 30, 2020. House Bill Number 1221, approved by the Governor March 25, 2016, removed the Barron Water Control District’ sunsetting provision. On March 25 2016, the Governor signed House Bill Number 1221 (Chapter 2016-260) thereby removing the date restriction imposed by the original petition. Fiscal Information [Budget and Finance]: The fiscal year of the District is October 1, 2022 – September 30, 2023. The 2022-23 annual budget is $2,499,767.77. The District receives revenue most notably from tax rate assessments on a per acre basis within four categories:

• Urban rate, $77.61; there are 4,665.05 acres
• Irrigation rate, $21.92; there are 14,426.77 acres
• Drainage rate, $6.22; there are 7,083.91 acres
• Urban Grove rate, $38.81; there are 507.11 acres

Through an interagency agreement, the District also receives revenue from the Port LaBelle Community Development District. While providing field services and also serving as the Administrator, the District receives revenue from the Intergovernmental Services Agreement (ISF) with the water control districts of Collins Slough and Gerber Groves. A similar agreement is in place with users of the Joint Trust including the water control districts of Barron, Collins Slough, Devils Garden, Gerber Groves and also Global Ag Properties USA LLC (under lease by United States Sugar Corporation). Should it be necessary in incur debt, under Florida Statute §298.47, the District has the authority to issue bonds, notes, or other forms of indebtedness as necessary. Additionally, the District maintains a $600,000 line of credit.