The former Boca Raton Bridge Hotel, now known as Waterstone Resort & Marina, will have its grand opening May 7. Jerry Lower/The Coastal Star
By Christine Davis
On May 7, Waterstone Resort & Marina, 999 E. Camino Real, Boca Raton, will celebrate its grand opening. A marriage of water and stone, the resort and marina feature fabulous water views, a social and fun pool promenade, handsome architecture and interior décor that seamlessly integrates with its water environment, guest suites with balconies and water views and two dining venues (Boca Landing and Waterstone Bar & Grill).
Saluting the arts, it features works curated exclusively for the resort by Bette Ridgeway and Nina Sampaleanu, including a piece that draws influences from the coastal surroundings. The resort also will feature partnerships with regional cultural venues providing event access and a variety of packages.
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At a ribbon-cutting ceremony on May 8, Plaza Theatre patrons will be treated to food, drink and entertainment at Club Plaza’s new piano bar. They’ll enjoy a cabaret show Broadway’s Second Bananas, starring Beth Dimon, followed by a performance by David Curtis. Future activities will include jazz performances, chamber musicals and other eclectic events. For information about the Plaza Theatre, its current or upcoming season, contact the Plaza Theatre box office at 262 S. Ocean Blvd., Manalapan, call 588-1820, or visit www.plazatheatre.net
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An independently organized TEDx event will make its debut with a program about ideas worth spreading, scheduled for 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. May 9 in the University Theatre on the Florida Atlantic University campus. The conference offers short talks, demonstrations and performances by experts on a wide range of subjects.
Among those presenting will be Brad Short, who started his journey with parkour at the age of 14. Parkour is an athletic discipline in which participants negotiate any environment as efficiently as possible using their physical abilities. It commonly involves running, jumping, vaulting, rolling and other similar physical movements.
Short became fascinated after seeing a film about parkour, and started his own YouTube channel in 2011 dedicated to showcasing his parkour abilities and daring stunts. He has built a name for himself within the parkour community and quickly reached a point of training with the most recognized and talented parkour athletes in the world.
Short attended Florida Atlantic University and pursued a degree in exercise science. In February 2011, he became a certified parkour and free-running instructor through the World Freerunning and Parkour Federation. Short is now the manager and head instructor at Intensity Parkour, a parkour gym in Margate.
General admission tickets are $100, and include all meals and beverages and a seat in the main auditorium. Tickets for students have limited availability and include all meals and beverages for $30, and seating in the simulcast lounge. All tickets may be purchased at www.tedxbocaraton.com, where biographies and information on all expert speakers may be seen.
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At its 12th annual Doggie Ball on March 24, Tri County Humane Society leadership announced a new organization name and unveiled a new logo and plans for campus expansion. The new name is Tri County Animal Rescue, and visual re-branding was launched to reflect its mission of a 100 percent no-kill regional 501(c)3 animal rescue nonprofit that operates 100 percent on donations.
“We have spent a great deal of time strategizing on a re-freshened branding that effectively communicates ‘what we do’ and ‘what drives us,’” said the organization’s chairwoman, Harriet Lewis-Mooney.
The new logo design is symbolic in both color and elements, she added. “It is a dramatic departure from the rescue organization’s previous branding mark that featured an umbrella and a variety of animals, including ducks, bunnies, hamsters and birds that are not rescued by Tri County for adoption.”
The new logo features the colors of red, yellow and orange. The choice of red reflects the action and passion of the organization’s board, staff, volunteers, donors and advocates. Yellow emulates the Florida sun, as well as the happiness that awaits abandoned, abused or neglected dogs and cats, puppies and kittens rescued each year. Orange stimulates optimism and awakens the community to join and advocate for the organization and those it saves.
On the logo, a dog and cat are featured in a protective haven of a palm tree with the brand promise of “100 percent no kill” arched above their heads.
Co-founder and executive director Suzi Goldsmith reported that a new state-of-the-art animal rescue center on Boca Rio Road was designed to increase quality intake services. The center will house an examination room, a treatment room, and isolation facilities for rescues with contagious illnesses and conditions.
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The Greater Boca Raton Chamber of Commerce will host 36 teams of golfers at its 44th annual Golf Classic on June 6 at Via Mizner Golf & Country Club, 6200 Boca del Mar Drive, Boca Raton.
Participating golfers will enjoy breakfast, a putting contest, and a day of golfing followed by a luncheon/awards reception. The event will kick off at 7 a.m. with a breakfast and finishes around 2:30 p.m. Tickets are $200 per player and $800 per foursome. Approximately 170 guests are expected to attend. Sponsorship opportunities are available. For information, call 395-4433, ext. 233.
Gearing up for its Festival Days in August, the Boca Chamber recently unveiled its 2014 Festival Days logo, which was created by Ashley Ramirez, a ninth-grade student from the marketing and communications class of West Boca High School. Selected from more than 20 entrants, Ramirez’s logo depicts the sun representing a heart that is shining and warming the Boca community.
Hosted by the Greater Boca Raton Chamber of Commerce, 30 Young Entrepreneurs Academy (YEA!) students, ages 11 through 18, will compete in the Sixth Annual Southeast Region Saunders Scholars Competition, 3:30 p.m. May 16 at Florida Atlantic University’s College of Business, DeSantis Pavilion.
This is one of three national events; the top two student businesses from each regional competition will be flown to Washington, DC to compete in the Finals round at America’s Small Business Summit. These young entrepreneurs will be competing to win college scholarships ranging from $25,000 to $50,000 and the opportunity to be on ABC Television’s hit show Shark Tank.
The Greater Boca Raton Chamber of Commerce has been administrating the YEA! Program in partnership with FAU for three years with great success. The Boca Chamber Young Entrepreneurs Academy has graduated more than 50 CEOs in the seventh through 12th grades, and a national YEA! winner graduated from the Boca Chamber program.
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The Greater Delray Beach Chamber of Commerce’s 28th annual Chamber Golf Tournament, a scramble with four-player teams and 18 holes to be held a Gleneagles Country Club, is just around the corner on May 16.
Promising to be lots of fun, there’s a cocktail hour and contests (longest and straightest drives, closest to the pin, hole-in-one). Price is $650 per foursome or $165 per player.
Gleneagles Country Club, recently named “Best New Golf Course” by Golf Digest, is at 7667 Victory Lane, Delray Beach. Registration and lunch is scheduled for 11 a.m. with a shotgun start at 1 p.m. Cocktails and hors d’oeuvres will be offered at 5 p.m., followed by an awards presentation.
Golfers who don’t want to play a full game or can’t get a whole team together, can join for the buffet lunch, attend an afternoon lesson from a Gleneagles Country Club professional followed by a stretch-and-strength lesson, then attend the cocktail reception and awards ceremony.
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“If you’re on the road and on your way to Florida, you now can plan your whole visit to Delray Beach before you even get here,” says Stephanie Immelman, executive director of the Delray Beach Marketing Cooperative. That’s because the marketing cooperative worked with Rand McNally’s Best Town Travels program to help build a new mobile app for vacationers and business travelers learn about Delray Beach and what it has to offer. Through the free app, visitors will have easy access to an overview of the area, as well as listings of things to do, places to stay and restaurants to visit. The free app is available on iTunes.
The Style Bar Hair Bar and Day Spa in Palm Beach recently provided three cancer patients with a spa day. Pictured: Sandy Wade, Gail Forrester, Perrie Gurfein (spa owner) and Judy Kephart. Photo provided
On March 26, in honor of Women’s History Month, three women battling three types of cancer came together for their scheduled appointments just like they’ve done in the past; only this time they received an unrelated and pleasant treatment.
“After booking so many dates for doctors’ appointments, it was nice to pencil in ‘spa day appointment at the Style Bar’ in my calendar,” said Gail Forrester, a breast cancer survivor and single mother of two.
The Style Bar Hair Bar & Day Spa in Palm Beach provided Forrester, Judith Kephart and Sandy Wade, all patients from the South Florida Radiation Oncology Program, with massages, manicures, pedicures and facials.
“It’s nice to give back to the community, especially when so many survivors are overwhelmed with medical bills,” said Style Bar owner Perrie Gurfein. “The last thing they can afford is to treat themselves to a day at the spa, but it’s honestly the very thing they need and deserve, and we were happy to provide them with this. I speak firsthand, as a cancer survivor myself.”
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Recently, Annie Davis, owner of Palm Beach Travel at Plaza del Mar in Manalapan, was named the American Express Travel Insider for the British Virgin Islands. “It is a wonderful honor,” Davis said. “Palm Beach Travel is an American Express affiliate, specializing in Platinum and Centurion Travel as well as cruises, tours and family reunions. The British Virgin Islands are one of the most beautiful places to explore, and my customers always appreciate insights into ways to enjoy the Islands, even if they have been there before.” For information, call Palm Beach Travel at 585-5885.
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E. Peter McLean’s investment of time and money at 70 Curlew Road in Manalapan certainly helped sell the home, said listing agents Nicholas Malinosky and Randy Ely, realtors with Corcoran.
Mclean bought the property in October 2008 for $1.25 million, and this February, the 7,824-square-foot Bermuda-style home sold for $2.7 million to Henry and Junko Siemon. “While that looks like double the price and it was purchased as an investment property, Peter completely redid it and lived in it for a couple of years. He basically rebuilt it and he created one of the most incredible homes with beautiful finishes,” Malinosky said.
Two homes owned by Dennis and Shelia Hammond that sold within days of each other would not be considered flipping, either. Perhaps double downsizing would be more appropriate to say?
Between April 1 and April 3, the Hammonds sold a home at 346 Brazilian Ave., Palm Beach, for a recorded $5.425 million to a revocable trust in the name of Elizabeth D. Remmert, with Remmert serving as trustee. Beverly Broberg of Brown Harris Stevens represented Remmert. Broker Linda Gary of Linda A. Gary Real Estate represented the Hammonds. The Hammonds paid $5 million for the Palm Beach property last July, property records show.
Again represented by Linda Gary, the Hammonds also sold their Manalapan estate at 1920 S. Ocean Blvd. for a recorded $11.84 million. The buyer was a Miami-based limited liability company named South Ocean Living LLC, represented by agents Jack Elkins and Bunny Hiatt of Fite Shavell Associates. The Hammonds had paid $10 million for the house in July 2011.
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Some more real estate news: Lang Realty recently made a $4,500 donation to Habitat for Humanity as part of its annual Open House Extravaganza, where prospective home buyers toured more than 300 listings priced from $200,000 to more than $1 million throughout the Palm Beach and Treasure Coast.
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No surprise, the Boca Raton-based National Council on Compensation Insurance supports its employees living healthy lives, too. In March, its employees celebrated National Nutrition Month by participating in interactive workshops, seminars and contests on a variety of food-related subjects, as well as access to an onsite farmer’s market, with healthy food good to go home for supper.
Akron Biotech recently was awarded a Phase 1 Small Business Innovative Research Award from the National Institutes of Health to develop enzyme-based formulations for the isolation of stem cells from various tissues. A collaboration with Dr. Gregg Fields, vice president of scientific affairs at Torrey Pines Institute for Molecular Studies, the project will involve the use of new engineered-enzyme formulations to improve viability and quality of isolated stem cells with no toxicities. Akron Biotech will manufacture and commercialize kits for tissue dissociation and develop further therapeutic applications for a wide variety of diseases.
“This is a critical step toward improving healthcare and advancing cell therapies,” said Claudia Zylberberg, founder and CEO of Akron Biotech.
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This past April, luxury home décor designer, Michael Aram, founder of Michael Aram, Inc. and the creative director of MacKenzie-Childs, Rebecca Proctor, appeared at Bloomingdale’s and Neiman Marcus in Boca Raton to introduce the brands’ newest collections.
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Felicia Holden recently was named senior vice president of human resources and operations of the independent brokerage and risk management agency Century Risk Advisors, which has offices in Boca Raton and Miami. Holden began her career in New York as operations manager of a major investment banking firm, before moving in 1990 to South Florida.
She found her niche within human resources at an annuities company in Boca Raton, where she held the position of human resources generalist. She then joined Century Financial Services, where she was assistant vice president, director of human resources and administration.
Holden has achieved an insurance designation as an accredited customer service representative and has her Florida customer service representative insurance license. She also received the Society for Human Resource Management’s designation of professional in human resources.
Christine Davis is a freelance writer. Send business news to her cdavis9797@comcast.net.
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