Trucks working on the renovation of Eau Palm Beach Resort’s outdoor restaurant and pool deck are parked near the south entrance to Lantana beach on Nov. 12. A temporary construction easement expires Dec. 15. Willie Howard/The Coastal Star
By Willie Howard
The Town Council accepted a $10,000 payment from the Eau Palm Beach Resort & Spa during its Nov. 9 meeting as compensation for a temporary construction easement at the town beach.
The resort, formerly the Ritz-Carlton Palm Beach, has been using the temporary easement, originally approved in October, to cross property at the south end of the town beach while renovating its outdoor Breeze restaurant and pool deck.
The resort originally agreed to rebuild the south stairs at the beach, which washed away in a storm, in exchange for the easement. But because of potential legal problems with building on town property and obtaining permits, the council agreed to accept the $10,000 fee instead.
The easement is needed to move paver bricks and other materials onto the resort’s pool deck.
Work is expected to be completed this month. The temporary easement expires Dec. 15. Under the agreement, the resort must pay the town $1,000 a day for each day it continues to use town property after Dec. 15.
Mayor David Stewart said trucks delivering materials for the project were blocking the south entrance to the beach parking lot and dripping concrete slurry on the town’s access road when he stopped by the beach in early November.
When Stewart began taking photos of the trucks, he said, one of the workers was rude and told him he had a permit from Manalapan to block the road.
The mayor said pickup trucks loaded with construction materials were occupying numbered spaces at the beach parking lot but were not paying by the hour to park as required.
During the Nov. 9 council meeting, Stewart said he had assurances from Harvey Oyer III, attorney for the resort, that there would be no more problems with construction trucks interfering with traffic at the town beach during the remainder of the project.
“I’m going to check it,” Stewart told Damian Presiga, the resort’s construction manager. “I will not be happy if it happens again.”
Town manager gets raise
Also on Nov. 9, the Town Council voted unanimously to extend Town Manager Deborah Manzo’s contract for another year and to give her a 5 percent raise.
Manzo, who replaced Michael Bornstein as town manager in May 2012, will earn $125,921 annually under her new contract.
Her 5 percent raise is at the top end of the range of merit raises offered to the town’s general employees, based on their evaluations.
“She does not expect anything more than town employees get,” Councilman Lynn Moorhouse said.
Stewart said Manzo has done “a great job,” even though he has disagreed with her at times.
Manzo thanked residents and the Greater Lantana Chamber of Commerce for helping move the town forward.
“Working together, we’ve been able to accomplish a lot,” she said.
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