Place Au Soleil Carries a Gulf Stream Address. Its Water Bill Gets Decided in Delray Beach and Boynton Beach.

Place Au Soleil is the one part of Gulf Stream west of the Intracoastal Waterway. It is a 50-acre subdivision established in 1960, with its own zoning district, RS-P, separate from the RS-C district that covers the oceanside Core. Over the next 18 months, four decisions will shape what it costs to own a home here and what the neighborhood looks like. Two of them sit with Gulf Stream's commission: its tax rate and the next phase of its road program. The other two were made by neighboring cities, Delray Beach and Boynton Beach. A listing shows none of this. The details are in commission votes, a Boynton Beach bid document and reporting in The Coastal Star.

I want buyers comparing coastal towns in Palm Beach County to see those decisions before they write an offer, so here they are, in the order they affect the bills.

The New Water Main Ends at the Neighborhood's Entrance

For at least 50 years, Delray Beach supplied Gulf Stream's drinking water. In 2024 the city told the town it had to leave Delray's system. Delray is building a new water plant and says it can afford one only large enough for its own population, which is expected to grow by 7,000 residents.

Gulf Stream's answer was a 25-year bulk-water agreement with Boynton Beach, which The Coastal Star's April 2026 report says was signed the previous fall. The new supply arrives through a water main running from Seacrest Boulevard east along Gulfstream Boulevard to a connection just inside the entrance to Place Au Soleil. The whole town will be served through that pipe, and the connection point is at Place Au Soleil's front entrance.

Here is how the switch has played out so far. The first three dates come from The Coastal Star's April 2026 report, which describes the October increase as having come months before the spring rollback:

1. October. Delray Beach raised the rate it charges Gulf Stream to $4.90 per 1,000 gallons. The town passed the increase through by adding $1.30 per 1,000 gallons to each of its four rate tiers.
2. February. After complaints about "almost shockingly high" bills, Mayor Scott Morgan and the commission asked staff to review the increase. Gulf Stream bills cover two months of use, which made the jump look twice as large on each statement.
3. March 13. Commissioners cut every tier by 40 cents per 1,000 gallons. Chief Financial Officer Mark Bymaster said the lower rates let the town break even against what Delray charges it, and gave up a $100,000 cushion for water-system repairs.
4. May 19, 2026. Bidding closed on Boynton Beach's Gulfstream Boulevard project, which includes the new Gulf Stream water main as part of streetscape work between Seacrest Boulevard and the FEC railroad tracks.
5. July 7, 2026. Boynton Beach's commission agenda recommended awarding the work to DBF Construction, LLC for $3,791,843.12, with a 10% contingency bringing the maximum to $4,171,027.12.
6. Spring 2027. This is the town's current estimate for the connection. Gulf Stream set aside $883,295 from its water fund for it in the FY2027 budget.

The tiers are based on lot size and water use, with higher rates for higher use to discourage heavy lawn watering. This table works back from the reported changes. Before the October increase, the first tier was $3.60 per 1,000 gallons.

All rates are per 1,000 gallons.

Once Gulf Stream connects to Boynton Beach, its wholesale cost drops to $3.75 per 1,000 gallons, down from the $4.90 Delray charged. That is about 23% less per gallon at the wholesale level. Commissioner Michael Greene said the town is "looking forward to lower rates in '27." The town also expects better water pressure once the Boynton connection is live.

Three things are still unsettled. First, I have not found a published source confirming which water rates apply for FY2027. Second, Boynton Beach approved a 17% increase in its own utility rates on Sept. 16, effective Oct. 1. The Coastal Star's report notes that Gulf Stream buys water under a separate bulk contract but does not say whether the city's increase affects it. Third, the same Sept. 30 report gives the timing only as "sometime next year." Lower rates in 2027 are a reasonable expectation, but they are not guaranteed.

The Tax Rate Stayed Flat While Property Values Rose

The same Sept. 30 budget coverage shows how a stable rate can still mean a higher bill. Gulf Stream approved a town rate of $3.67 per $1,000 of taxable value for FY2027 at its Sept. 23 hearing. The rate has not changed since 2021.

Property values in town rose 7.9%, to $2.05 billion, for this budget year. At the same rate, the town's tax revenue is $7.53 million, up about $534,000. The rollback rate, meaning the rate that would have raised the same amount as last year apart from new construction, would have brought in $6.99 million. The adopted rate is 7.3% above it. Town Manager Trey Nazzaro said more than half of tax revenue goes to police, fire and emergency medical services.

According to the town's figures, the owner of a $1 million home will pay $3,672 in Gulf Stream taxes for FY2027. That is the town's share only. County, school and other levies are added on top. If you are budgeting, look at the full bill for the specific home, not the town rate alone. Treat this as general information and confirm the numbers for any property with the county and your own tax advisor.

That tax base also pays for the next item, which is where Place Au Soleil sees the most direct change.

The Road Program Is Coming to Place Au Soleil

The FY2027 budget includes a $2.87 million capital projects fund. With road and drainage work in the Core area wrapping up, that money moves to engineering and construction in Place Au Soleil: resurfacing, swale grading and roadway reconstruction in spots.

The two cost estimates published this year differ. In May, Nazzaro and Bymaster estimated $4 million for resurfacing Place Au Soleil roads, along with $1.8 million for the water connection. They also said the town no longer needed the $7 million loan it had planned. By late July, The Coastal Star reported the Place Au Soleil work at an estimated $2.8 million. Until a contract is awarded, the cost and scope are still open.

The Core project shows how these schedules tend to go. In March, the town projected substantial completion by March 17 and final completion by May 22. In late July, Roadway Construction LLC was still only about to lay the final asphalt. In the Sept. 30 budget coverage, the work was still described as "wrapping up." A buyer closing in Place Au Soleil in 2027 could live through a few months of swale grading and resurfacing, and the end date may move.

Next Door, a Long-Vacant Site Will Become Townhomes

The fourth decision was made by Delray Beach. A group of lots on North Federal Highway beside Place Au Soleil has sat empty for about 20 years. On Aug. 18, the Delray Beach City Commission approved a 47-townhome project there by Ultra Luxury Townhomes LLC on a 3-1 vote, reconsidering a proposal that had failed 2-2 in July. The plan calls for 39 two-story buildings and eight three-story buildings.

The site has a history. In November 2022, Delray rejected a rezoning that would have allowed an auto dealership there. Presenting attorney Neil Schiller argued that the Walmart at Federal Highway and Gulfstream Boulevard, 0.29 miles away, discourages commercial development on the lots. The approved version adds curbed sidewalks, colored to set them apart visually, and speed bumps.

Gulf Stream supported the project. Its commission passed a resolution in favor, and Nazzaro presented that position at the Delray meeting:

"We believe it is consistent with the area, beneficial to our Place Au Soleil homeowners, and a few of them are here to offer their support."

At its Sept. 11 meeting, the town commission recognized three Place Au Soleil homeowners for staying through that Delray hearing. For a buyer, the edge of the neighborhood along Federal Highway now has an approved residential plan instead of a vacant site with an uncertain future. A similar project, the Tropics, was approved in August 2024 just to the south on the west side of North Federal, but its land had not yet been cleared as of the September report. Approval is not the same as construction, so check the status of both sites.

Inside Place Au Soleil, Bluewater Cove adds a planned 14-home street with two sites on the Intracoastal and 12 other lots along the road. That is new single-family construction within a 1960 subdivision whose original developer favored Asian-influenced rooflines.

What to Request Before You Make an Offer

None of these items appear in a list price, so ask for them early:

• At least two recent bimonthly water bills, with the tier shown. The rate depends on lot size and use, so a neighbor's bill will not tell you much about a different property.
• The full tax bill, not just Gulf Stream's $3.67 rate, so you can see the county, school and other levies for that parcel.
• The current Place Au Soleil road schedule from the town, since engineering and construction are funded in the FY2027 budget.
• Information on the Place Au Soleil Association, Inc., a Florida nonprofit first filed in 1980 that is still active. Ask the seller what it covers and whether it charges dues.
• Town review requirements for any exterior plans. Gulf Stream requires a pre-application meeting for exterior remodeling, painting, major landscaping and significant improvements. A new primary home goes through Level 3 review by the Architectural Review and Planning Board and the Town Commission.

If you are looking at Place Au Soleil and want help reading the water bills, the tax figures and the 2027 road schedule for a specific home, Matt Campbell can go through them with you before you make an offer. Schedule a free market consultation with Matt.