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green standard as the official minimum criteria
for new government buildings and have con-
structed LEED certified buildings. Village Hall
achieved Gold standard from the Florida Green
Building Coalition in 2012, and we have re-
cently updated that certification.We use Flor-
ida-friendly landscape principles at all public
facilities.We implement green practices across
all of our departments and constantly try to
enhance upon these practices.We use alterna-
tive fuels in Wellington’s green fleet, and have
an alternative fueling station.Additionally,we
have held the title of ‘Tree City USA’ for the past
20 years. Some smaller practices include policies
requiring our electronic equipment to have con-
servation features, online registration for all of our
recreational programs which reduces emissions,
and active enhancement of our natural areas to
provide habitats, nesting sites, and curtail invasive
growth.”
Naturally, since Wellington was once swamp-
land, managing its water resources and storm-
water runoff safely and efficiently is imperative.
The Village owns and maintains a vast storm-
water drainage system to ensure that commu-
nity water levels are carefully controlled. “We’re
about 48 square miles in size; about ten square
miles of that is in a stormwater treatment area,
located to our west, which directs stormwaters
through this treatment area and then it dis-
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charges into the Loxahatchee Wild-
life Refuge, which we border on our
western boundary,” O’Dell explains.
“The Village has spent close to $40
million to re-plumb our stormwater
management system,” he continues.
“Half the Village used to flow to the
south and half to the north. Now,
everything flows north and then
goes through a major canal system
along the State Road 80 corridor,
and then discharges into the storm-
water treatment area. That’s been a
major accomplishment. And we’ve
been working diligently on reduc-
ing phosphorous discharge into our
stormwater. In addition, we’ve created
our own, internal stormwater treat-
ment system, known as the Marjory
Stoneman Douglas Environmental
Preserve. It’s a park and nature pre-
serve with pathways, a boardwalk,
and educational components, and
we pump our stormwater through
that system and it filters out through
the marsh system that we created in
there, as well.”
From swampland, to strawberry
patch, to affluent and thriving com-
munity, the Village of Wellington,
Florida has certainly come a long
way. And as long as it continues to
retain that hometown feeling, it is
certainly destined to go a lot further.