As the moon was at its closest point to the Earth in late September, its strong gravitational pull

drew higher than normal tidal waters over seawalls and bulkheads along the coast. The annual

autumn event, called a ‘king tide,’ followed a rare total lunar eclipse on Sept. 27.  Higher tides (and flooding)

are expected again in late October. ABOVE: A television journalist wades through flood water along Marine Way in Delray Beach.

BELOW: Tidal water floods the boat ramp and parking lot at Sportsman’s Park in Lantana.

Streets near an unfinished construction project

at the Briny Breezes marina flood during a high tide.

Photos by Tim Stepien, Willie Howard & Jerry Lower/The Coastal Star

Sargassum seaweed blankets the Ocean Ridge beach in July.

Jerry Lower/The Coastal Star

By Cheryl Blackerby

    Sargassum, the brown free-floating algae that turns up on Palm Beach County’s beaches every summer, is essential for marine life. The thick masses of seaweed stretch for thousands of miles in the Atlantic Ocean, giving safe sanctuary and nutrients to fish and endangered sea turtle hatchlings.
    Onshore, the seaweed helps keep expensive replacement sand on beaches, offers crucial delicacies such as crabs and snails to seabirds, and provides nutrients to plants on dunes.
    But scientists, and certainly beach resorts, are wondering if there is too much of a good thing.
     “We have noticed a little more seaweed than usual in September, and in August it was pretty bad,” said Wally Majors, director of Boynton Beach Recreation and Parks Department. “We speculate it may have been caused by Tropical Storm Erika. It depends on wind direction.”
    The wet tangle of seaweed is brought onto the beaches every year from May through August, but since 2011 the increasing amount of sargassum has caught the attention of marine scientists who are researching causes of the excessive seaweed, which has piled onto beaches in the Caribbean and clogged coves in the Florida Keys.
    Palm Beach County has been lucky that the seaweed hasn’t come onshore in the amounts that it has in the Keys.
    “There has been more than average, but not to the extent of what is being reported to the south,” said Dan Bates, deputy director of the Palm Beach County Department of Environmental Resources Management.
    Scientists say there may be many reasons for the abundance of seaweed.
    “The problem began right after the Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico in 2010, but we’re trying to piece it together,” said Dr. Brian Lapointe, research professor at Florida Atlantic University’s Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institute. “Unfortunately, very little of the BP money was spent to study sargassum.”
    The reasons for the excessive growth of the seaweed, says Lapointe, are numerous: fertilizers dumped into the gulf and ocean by rivers, warming oceans, and probably the gulf oil spill.
    Septic tanks were one of the surprise culprits in northwestern Florida and the Florida Keys, scientists discovered. And higher-than-  normal air temperatures and low winds, which influence ocean currents, were other probable causes.

Floating sargassum provides shelter for a sea turtle hatchling.

Photo by Steve Dougherty

    Sargassum travels on currents around the Caribbean, in the gulf, through the Florida Straits and in the Gulf Stream.
    “The Gulf Stream moves four miles per hour. This stuff can move pretty quickly,” said Lapointe. “In a matter of weeks, it can transit from the Keys to the Sargasso Sea, almost like a conveyor belt. It’s really cool. Sea turtle hatchlings rely on sargassum in their early years. They swim offshore until they encounter sargassum, then drift to the Azores.”
    The seaweed has been piling up on beaches in the Gulf of Mexico and in the Caribbean. The beaches of Galveston, Texas, were some of the first shores to attract national attention when beachgoers were faced with 50-foot-wide, 6-inch-thick brown mats of sargassum.
    In the Caribbean, 10-foot piles of seaweed are repelling tourists, and beach cleaners can’t stay ahead of the mess. Sea turtles are having trouble navigating the seaweed to lay eggs.
    “It’s very bad for turtle nesting in the Caribbean,” said Lapointe. “And the gas (emitted from dead seaweed) can kill turtles. Several nesting turtles were found dead in Barbados and they likely died from the gases.”
    The gases can be harmful to humans if there are large piles of decomposing seaweed, he said. “A lot of mangroves and coves in the Florida Keys are clogged with this stuff. It creates hydrogen-sulfide toxic fumes.”
    Prolonged exposure to large quantities of the gas can cause symptoms such as nausea, watery eyes and headaches. But the rotten egg smell will probably send most beachgoers running before they become ill.
    In Florida, a bigger threat to turtles, Lapointe said, are the cleanups of seaweed that damage nests and remove sand on renourished beaches.
    “Seaweed removal with heavy equipment such as Bobcats can really accelerate beach erosion and damage turtle nests,” he said. “In some areas, seaweed is buried in back dunes, which helps build beaches and supplies nutrients.”
    If the seaweed isn’t piled high enough to impede turtle nesting, he said, it should be left on the beaches, where it will help stabilize the sand. Seaweed is part of nature and should be appreciated for its contributions to a healthy ecosystem.
    Lapointe has been the chief scientist on numerous Caribbean and Atlantic Ocean research expeditions studying the health of tropical seagrasses and coral reefs.
    Sargassum is not a seagrass but a seaweed. The Sargasso Sea in the middle of the North Atlantic Ocean was named after sargassum, which floats there in vast amounts. Christopher Columbus was amazed by the seaweed when he crossed the sea in 1492.

By Jane Smith

    One of the owners of the historic Sundy House in Delray Beach still wants to do a project at Lake Worth Beach, but under different terms.
    Hudson Holdings, which also has an ownership stake in the historic Gulfstream Hotel in downtown Lake Worth, sent a letter Sept. 15 to the city that it is withdrawing from the “invitation to negotiate” process for the casino complex.
    In the letter addressed to the city manager, Hudson Holdings principal Steven Michael writes, “the current ITN process has been derailed by a lack of clear direction and structure.”
    Michael explained that his company now wants to use the “P3 process.” The relatively new public-private partnership allows developers to submit unsolicited proposals to local governments and agencies as long as the project still serves a public purpose. Using this process, Hudson Holdings’ project would relieve the city of its $300,000-$400,000 shortfall at the casino building and create something that a group of residents wants, he said.
    “And also for us, to create something super high-end hotel guests want,” Michael said. Next to the Gulfstream, Michael said, he wants to build a hotel annex carrying Hilton’s latest high-end brand, Curio.
    Such hotels will be part of “a carefully selected, global collection of distinctive four- and five-star hotels that offer travelers local discovery and authentic experiences in key markets,” according to the Hilton website.
    Hudson just submitted plans to create a 12,000-square-foot, two-story building that would have an open first  floor and “a nice public restaurant” on the second floor. The restaurant would have a full kitchen, allowing renters to have catering done on site, Michael said.
    “It would give us a nice tie-in with our hotels. We could use parking at the hotels for weddings, events and parties for our guests,” he said.
    That building also would have a covered valet drop-off area, public restrooms and a lifeguard control station.
    In addition, Hudson Holdings would replace the existing pool with one that can be used for meets and build two other pools — for recreation and kids.
    It also plans to build out the empty space on the second floor of the casino building and pay market rental rate.
    But it won’t add more parking.
    The city will have an option to issue a revenue bond for a 150-car garage on the lower level, Michael said. He estimates the cost to be $4 million.
    He said Hudson Holdings would pay whatever the city requires to have the plans reviewed for financial feasibility.
    Around the city, the red signs still are standing. They say: “Hands off our beach. No to private development.”
    The unusual “invitation to negotiate”  process started in September 2014 as a way to get developers interested in completing the casino complex and fixing the aging city pool and locker rooms.
    Hudson Holdings was involved early on, but the city review committee asked the company four times to reduce the size of the project.
    “Further exacerbating the problem is the number of times the ‘goalposts have been moved’ by staff regarding the size and scope of the project making it impossible for the ITN to be completed in a fair and responsible way,” Michael wrote.
    He also pointed out that the city is paying for the previous renovation by lengthening its repayment schedule to its water utilities fund, which increases the cost of water to Lake Worth residents.
    Meanwhile, Hudson Holdings submitted a rezoning plan for the Gulfstream Hotel parcels in August. The plan will be reviewed by the city’s Historic Preservation Board this month and then the Lake Worth City Commission in November.
    Hudson Holdings teamed with Carl DeSantis, founder of Rexall Sundown vitamins, to buy the historic Gulfstream Hotel for $7.22 million in May 2014.
    In Delray Beach, Hudson Holdings has an ownership stake in the Midtown Delray project on West Atlantic Avenue and South Swinton Avenue. Preliminary plans for the project were submitted in June. The partners are reviewing comments made by the various departments, Michael said.
    They also will seek permission to move seven historic structures now located on Swinton Avenue as part of the Sundy House project.

By Jane Smith

    The Boynton Beach Community Redevelopment Agency board recently sweetened the deals for two entities to buy its historic homes and turn them into restaurants.
    For the Little House, at 480 E. Ocean Ave., the CRA board agreed to buyer Richard Lucibella’s request to limit the reverter clause from 10 years to just a few months until the tapas restaurant gets city approval to open, said Lucibella, an Ocean Ridge town commissioner.
    He formed Ocean Avenue Pride with partner Barbara Ceuleers to pay $335,000 in cash for the historic home and then rent it to Lisa Mercado, who will use her Living Room restaurant on Congress Avenue to prep most of the finger food offered at the Little House.
    There was some confusion about the reverter clause, Lucibella said. It was not in the contract he received from the broker but in the one his attorney received. He referred detailed questions to his attorney, Ken Kaleel, former mayor of Ocean Ridge.
    The restaurant sits in a historic home, creating concern among some residents about what would happen if the eatery was no longer viable there.
    “Boynton has a process. You just can’t do what you want there without going through the process,” Kaleel said.
    The shortened reverter clause was the buyer’s request, and the CRA staff supported it, said Vivian Brooks, CRA executive director.
    “The public benefits by increased activity along Ocean Avenue,” she said. “If they get the C.O. (certificate of occupancy), then why would we want to buy back the property?”
    For the Oscar Magnuson house at 211 E. Ocean Ave., the Philadelphia purchaser also received a reduced reverter clause but only to three years.
    “The reverter clause protects us in case the place goes fallow so that we don’t have an important property vacant on the street,” CRA board member James “Buck” Buchanan said at the Sept. 8 board meeting. “If it’s a fair market value purchase, I don’t see a problem with having it in there ad infinitum.”
    Brooks countered that she’d like “to come up with a number that is more fair to the purchaser.”
    The purchaser’s attorney offered three years after the C.O. is approved.
    Both homes also have a three-year right of first refusal, meaning that if the owners want to sell the restaurants within three years, they would first offer it to the CRA for purchase.
    The two houses carry local historic designations, meaning the city’s Historic Resources Preservation Board must approve any renovations.
    “Once someone asks to have the designation removed, assuming no hurricanes or that the buildings burned down, we won’t be able to grant it,” said Barbara Ready, board chairwoman.
    In other action at the Sept. 8 meeting, the CRA board approved next year’s budget, which contains $200,000 for the Town Square project. Mayor Jerry Taylor had asked for the increase in August when the historic high school was on the city’s demolition list. Since then, the city gave West Palm Beach architect Rick Gonzalez until January to determine whether the building can be saved.
    Board member and City Commissioner Mack McCray asked, “Can we remove the word ‘demolition’ and just say old high school through Town Square? I would feel more comfortable.”

Brooklyn, N.Y., artist Isabelle Garbani installs her crocheted plastic bags artwork titled “Invasive Species”

near the Children’s Schoolhouse Museum in Boynton Beach. Eleven kinetic artworks, by nine artists,

have been installed along East Ocean Avenue where they will remain for a year.

This is the ninth year for the Avenue of the Arts outdoor exhibit.

Tim Stepien/The Coastal Star

By Dan Moffett

    A self-described “Florida girl” who grew up in Boynton Beach and has lived in Palm Beach County for 40 years, Christina Adams moved to Briny Breezes last year with her husband, Gene, and their two teenage sons.
    “We love the ocean,” she says. “We love the outdoors and really want the best for Briny.”
    Adams decided to step up and serve her new community when she applied for an open Town Council seat, a vacancy left by the resignation of Barbara Molina in August. Council members unanimously approved Adams on Sept. 24 to serve out the rest of Molina’s two-year term, which expires in March.
    “I want to help preserve Briny for the future,” Adams said. “I just want to make sure that the town is informed and that the safety in this town is always kept in check.”
    Adams is a registered nurse who worked “for many years” in home health care. She says she and her family “love to volunteer,” and they do missionary work in Ensenada, Mexico, with their church group.
    “I’m excited to work with the council,” she said. “They’re good people to be surrounded by.”

    In other business, Town Attorney John Skrandel told council members he is continuing to explore what it would take for Briny Breezes to claim ownership of Old Ocean Boulevard. Over the years, both town and corporate officials have said they believe it’s in the community’s long-term interest to have clear possession of the property.
    “For many years, there’s been talk of Old Ocean Boulevard and who owns it and how it can be taken and closed off,” Skrandel said. “And all that comes down to who actually is the owner.”
    Skrandel said his research, which goes back some 70 years, suggests that the state wanted to transfer ownership to the town but apparently never filed a deed to legally do it. He said Palm Beach County doesn’t want the property, and neither does the Florida Department of Transportation.
    Skrandel told the council it appears the state is willing to transfer the property to the town by deed at no cost, but with the stipulation that it be used for a public purpose. Then it would “make more sense” for the corporation to take control of it from the town.
    “Whoever receives the property, the town or the corporation [that owns the park], will be financially responsible for it,” Skrandel said.
    The council instructed Skrandel to continue his research and report his findings at the Oct. 22 town meeting.

Related stories: Robocalls stir pot while fire-rescue talks simmer | Editor's Note

By Dan Moffett

    Six coastal municipalities are joining forces to explore forming a barrier island fire district that could reduce rising costs, improve response times and sever dependence on mainland governments.
    The proposed district would stretch roughly 18 miles from South Palm Beach on the north to Highland Beach on the south and include Manalapan, Ocean Ridge, Briny Breezes and Gulf Stream.
    The six municipalities, which total some 10,000 residents, currently have individual contracts for fire-rescue service with Palm Beach County, Boynton Beach or Delray Beach. The cost of those contracts has increased steadily over the last decade, and talk among officials in Boynton and Delray about consolidating their departments with the county is raising new concerns about future coverage for the A1A communities.
    Gulf Stream Vice Mayor Robert Ganger says the possibility that Delray might stop providing service to his town, and also Highland Beach, is a “profound shift” that the island municipalities cannot ignore.
    “Delray continues to pursue shifting fire-rescue to the county, and now it appears Boynton is doing the same thing,” Ganger said. “We really can’t afford to sit back and see what happens.”
    Ganger and Gulf Stream Town Manager William Thrasher are leading an initiative exploring the feasibility of a barrier island district. On Sept. 17, representatives of the six municipalities met in Gulf Stream and agreed to contribute toward a study, if the cost is right.
    Thrasher is hoping the study costs $100,000 or less, and he expects as many as a half-dozen vendors to bid. If the price is too high, he allows that the coalition may splinter.
Deadline for submitting proposals is Oct. 30, when the bids are scheduled to be opened at 11 a.m. in the Gulf Stream Town Hall.
    “In my heart of hearts, I have a strong belief that this is the thing the barrier islands need to do for their residents,” Thrasher said. “There’s going to come a point in time when the barrier islands are going to have to fend for themselves.”
    While there is wide support for getting more information, there are no illusions about the potentially long road ahead. If the feasibility study itself proves feasible, then it will take several months to complete and dissect the report, then months more to build a consensus that a district makes sense, or that it doesn’t. If one does, it could be years before the administrative, legislative, legal, financial and political details get worked out.
    Creating the infrastructure is a formidable chore in itself. The northern and southern ends of the proposed district would have the fire stations currently serving Manalapan and Highland Beach, but there’s nothing in the middle. Gulf Stream has proposed a plan to build a station on a vacant lot next to the Briny Breezes Town Hall, and Thrasher has said his town is willing to pay for hiring an architect to do a rendering, so officials can see if the site can accommodate the structure.
    “I don’t see any objection to a no-cost, no-obligation rendering,” said Sue Thaler, president of the Briny Town Council.
    Thrasher says Gulf Stream is willing to help Briny get a station built, if the town and its corporation are onboard. That could mean getting grants, Thrasher said, or working with the group of municipalities to get financing.
    “This has to be a team effort,” Thrasher said.
    But for right now, the first step of a very long journey is to get more information, he says. In Ocean Ridge,  commissioners have voiced their support for contributing to the study, expressing a belief that, if nothing else, moving forward gives the town more leverage in negotiating with Boynton Beach.
    “It will send a signal to Boynton that we are willing to look at other options,” said Commissioner James Bonfiglio.

By Jane Smith

    The Boynton Beach City Commission is trying to take control of its Community Redevelopment Agency board by ousting the two appointed members, James “Buck” Buchanan and former Mayor Woodrow Hay.
    Vice Mayor Joe Casello brought up the issue on Sept. 15 during a discussion about making the CRA board independent, a topic raised during the city’s strategic planning sessions in June. He has supported that idea in the past.
    Instead, Casello made a motion to have the CRA board comprised of elected officials only. He said he changed his mind at the Sept. 8 CRA board meeting. That’s when Buchanan and Hay disagreed with Casello and Commissioner Mack McCray about the performance of the CRA’s executive director and gave her a 3 percent salary increase. Casello and McCray had wanted to remove Vivian Brooks from that position.
    “The problem is not with Vivian, not with the city manager and not with the staff. The problem lies with the leadership of the city,” Hay said at the Sept. 8 CRA meeting. “I really wish there was an evaluation for each of us by the city for the way we behave up here on the dais.”
    Casello countered at that meeting that he gets “evaluated at every election.”
    The City Commission voted 3-1 to return the CRA board to having only city commissioners serve on it. Commissioner David Merker was absent because the Sept. 15 meeting was held on the eve of Rosh Hashanah. Commissioner Mike Fitzpatrick voted against the change, because “it helps to have a broader experience of other people to help with the decisions and direction of the CRA.”
    Mayor Jerry Taylor initially was against the change, saying “developers like to know who they are dealing with and they don’t like to see changes in the process.”
    Later during the meeting, he said, “If that’s the way the commission wants to do it, I won’t fight it.”
    To make the change final, a resolution to remove the two appointed CRA members will be brought back to the Boynton Beach Commission for approval this month.
    In Delray Beach, which has an independent CRA board, city commissioners want to reduce the amount of property taxes given to its CRA to be able to spend that money citywide. As a last step, they would replace the CRA board with the City Commission.
    The Boynton Beach CRA, created in 1981, has a budget of $10.4 million. Since its start, the board has had various combinations: city commissioners only, city commissioners plus two appointees and an independent board.

With the silhouette of the existing Prime Catch in the foreground, the developer’s plans call for 328 apartments

in a U-shaped configuration to make the most of the site’s waterway frontage.

Rendering provided

By Jane Smith

    The Riverwalk Plaza owners want to demolish the vacant Winn-Dixie building and replace it with a 10-story, U-shaped building with 328 apartments to take advantage of the Intracoastal views. The nearly 10-acre shopping center sits at the southwest corner of the waterway and Woolbright Road in Boynton Beach.
    Isram Realty, based in Hallandale, will submit site plans in mid-October, said Shaul Rikman, company founder and chairman. “Everyone will be happy with what they see,” he said.
    The plans end nearly 10 months of speculation about what would happen to that prime slice of real estate when Winn-Dixie announced it would close some of its grocery stores.
    Rikman’s company purchased the center in March 2011 from Woolbright Development in a short sale, meaning the owner owed more money than the property was worth.
    In April 2007, Woolbright paid $16 million for the shopping center, plus $2.5 million for the vacant 3.2-acre, landlocked parcel south of the center. It took out a $14.75 million mortgage on the shopping center and the vacant parcel.
    Isram Realty, on the other hand, paid $9.5 million for the center and an extra $500,000 for the vacant parcel. Andrew Mack, interim planning and zoning director for Boynton Beach, said the mostly residential project fits the downtown master plan. He suggested adding some retail to the apartment building.
    The owner will have to do a traffic study showing traffic generated and the impact on surrounding roads because it will seek a land use change from commercial to mixed-use, Mack said.
    Luke Therien, whose family owns the nearby Prime Catch restaurant along the Intracoastal, is in discussions to do a land swap with Isram Realty.
    “Part of the land we own is a quarter-acre parcel that sits south of the restaurant. They would like to gain access to it,” Therien said. “It will have to be a win-win for both parties or it won’t happen.”
    Prime Catch diners now self-park in front of the Winn-Dixie building. The restaurant offers a valet service that parks vehicles south of the building.
    Wendy’s and the Wells Fargo bank branch will stay where they are because they each own their parcels, Mack said. “Wendy’s will be modernized at the same time the center is redeveloped,” he said. “Wells Fargo was done at the time it bought the bank branch.”
    The other building, owned by Isram, contains a Walgreens drugstore and a Jo-Ann Fabric and Craft store; it would stay and be updated, Mack said.
    The newest tenant in the Winn-Dixie building, Bond en Smolders bakery and coffee shop, just opened Aug. 21. Co-owner Patty Smolders is not worried. She and her husband, Ralph Bond, have a five-year lease with an option to renew for another five years.
    She hopes the owners find a place for the shop in the project or “they will have to buy us out.”

Evelyn and Robert Kraft.

Photo provided by the family

By Emily J. Minor

    BRINY BREEZES — She slipped away on a Wednesday. He collapsed that next Sunday. And, in the end, which is what it turned out to be, no one was all that surprised that Robert and Evelyn Kraft died within days of one another.
    “This was a romance that never stopped,” said Dolores Montgomery, Mr. Kraft’s first cousin. “It was a real love affair right up until the very end.”
    Full-time residents of Briny Breezes since they retired in the late 1980s, the Krafts were affable fixtures in this mobile home community. For many years, Evelyn worked at the library and met the girls for morning coffee, while Bob joined a group of friends that held court at McDonald’s across the bridge.
    She was the more social of the two. He loved his books and poetry.
    “It’s her kindness I’ll miss most,” said Vivian Billock, who met the Krafts 25 years ago. “I can’t explain it. I wish I could, but everything she did was for him.”
    But, as growing old is wont to do, recent months had been rough on the couple. After beating back cancer, Evelyn Kraft died from a recurrence on Sept. 9. She was 79. Stricken with grief, worried about life without his wife, Mr. Kraft suffered a major stroke a few days later. He died Sept. 22 at the age of 88. They’d been married 58 years.
    Montgomery said Mr. Kraft was “distraught, but coping” after his wife’s funeral Sept. 11. They had immediately arranged for in-house help and talked about handling meals and laundry.
    “And he said, ‘Yes, I can do all those things. But I’ll be lonely,’” Montgomery recalled.
    It might seem a cliché to suggest that someone could die of a broken heart. Can the heart really break from sorrow? But Dolores Montgomery and her sister, Beverly — Mr. Kraft’s closest living relatives — said they watched him deteriorate in the days following his wife’s death. Beforehand, he’d been in good physical condition, taking no medications, said Montgomery, adding that doctors were “amazed” at his physique for a man of 88.
    And yet, on the morning of Sept. 13 — when the two cousins came by to help Mr. Kraft with some personal affairs — they found him barely conscious.
    Dr. Faustino Gonzalez, the chief medical officer with Hospice of Palm Beach County, says couples dying within close proximity to one another is well studied. “These couples that have been together since they were kids, they’re united,” he said. “They complement each other.”
    Clinically named Takotsubo cardiomyopathy (after the Japanese doctor who studied this “broken heart syndrome”), the stress hormones that rage during grief can cause tiny capillaries around the heart to clot or narrow, Gonzalez said. “When we reach a certain age, our reserve is so weak and so small,” he said. “It’s like we’re walking on thin ice.”
    If not for the poetic timing of his death, Mr. Kraft’s obituary story might very well have begun with his previous small-town claim to fame: Robert Kraft became a Florida snowbird in 1938, at the ripe old age of 11.
    It was Mr. Kraft’s father, Joe, a retired Detroit city firefighter, who discovered Briny Breezes in the ’30s. The family bought a trailer and Robert began attending classes in both Boynton Beach and Detroit. “Because he was so intelligent, that wasn’t a problem for him,” his cousin Dolores said.
    A veteran of the U.S. Navy, Mr. Kraft attended college after World War II, earning a degree in English from the University of Michigan. He took a job teaching English at Cass Technical High School in Detroit.
    The school, still thriving today, was one of the nation’s first magnet schools and required an audition. Among his students were Diana Ross and Lily Tomlin. Through the years, Mr. Kraft would joke that he gave Ross some of the worst advice of his life, once chastising her about a messy paper and suggesting she might have to rely on typing to make a living. Ross graduated from the school in 1962.
    Friends and family are uncertain how Mr. Kraft met the former Evelyn Hunter. One story is he spotted her working in the camera department at Sears. Another is they met when she was visiting Palm Beach with girlfriends. For many years, Mrs. Kraft worked for Pan American Airlines and left only as the company went out of business.
    The Krafts never had children, but loved animals and, for years, fed many of the stray cats in Briny.
    Besides Dolores and Beverly Montgomery, both of Washington Township, Mich., Mr. Kraft is also survived by a third cousin, Kenneth Montgomery, of Port Huron, Mich., and two second cousins, Douglas Bidigare, of Harper Woods, Mich., and Deirdre Nolan, of Lakeland, Colo.
    Mrs. Kraft is survived by nieces and nephews: Sharone Klein of Los Angeles; Gary Symons of Laguna Niguel, Calif.; Cary Camphausen of St. Clair, Mich.; Jill Kwasniewski of St. Charles, Mo.; Dale Camphausen of Port Huron, Mich., Beth Willey of DeKalb, Ill., and by her brother-in-law, Jerry Henderson of Genoa City, Wis.
    In lieu of flowers, the family is asking for donations to Hospice of Palm Beach County or the Peggy Adams Animal Rescue League. Both Mr. and Mrs. Kraft died with the comfort of hospice care.

    BOCA RATON — Larry Phillips, who became a driving philanthropic force in the Jewish Federation of South Palm Beach County community immediately upon moving to Boca Raton 22 years ago, died Sept. 11.
    Retired from the Phillips-Van Heusen apparel company that was founded by his great-grandfather, Mr. Phillips, 88, died at his home in Delray Beach.
    He left an unparalleled legacy, according to the Federation. His compassion knew no bounds, as his generosity and leadership reached deep and wide.
    While continually helping the members of the Federation, Mr. Phillips was dedicated to building a financially secure future for the community. A top Federation donor, he was an inaugural member of the Ketubah Society that recognizes those with Annual Campaign gifts of $1 million or higher.
    Mr. Phillips served on the Federation Executive Board, becoming a director emeritus, on the Jewish Community Foundation Board, where he was named an honorary trustee, and on the JCC board. He spearheaded a successful effort to “burn the mortgage” of the Federation’s Siemens Campus, and named the Larry and Roxane Phillips Gymnasium at the Adolph & Rose Levis Jewish Community Center.

    Mr. Phillips helped the community hands-on. He founded the Annual Thanksgiving Banquet for residents unable to afford or prepare a festive meal. For years, he bustled among the tables, avidly greeting and serving guests and encouraging up to a hundred volunteers. He saw the dinner grow to the feast for 625 that it is today. 
    Quickly becoming a warm, inspiring and enduring presence at Federation events, Mr. Phillips was also instrumental behind the scenes. He worked the phones as well as the room at Super Sundays. His move to St. Andrews Country Club has been heralded as a key to its development as a pivotal community of Federation support. Soon, he had joined the JCC Board, and Federation’s Campaign Management Team, as well as committees for Major Gifts Events and Shomrim Galas, one of which he co-chaired and underwrote.
    He also helped establish the Jewish Women’s Foundation. Mr. Phillips also made a considerable gift to Ruth and Norman Rales Jewish Family Services (JFS) for the new Shirley & Barton Weisman Delray Community Center. Mr. Phillips was committed to sustaining Jewish life among the younger generations. His support of Birthright served as a beacon to others.
    A Federation mission to Cuba inspired him to get involved with the system’s overseas efforts. Mr. Phillips’ gift sustained an orphanage in the former Soviet Union, and he served on the Federation’s Israel and Overseas Committee for 10 years. Mr. Phillips’ contributions earned him the Federation’s Jim Nobil Community Leadership Award.
    Mr. Phillips is survived by his sister, Carol; his children, Laura and David (Sarah); and his grandchildren, Maya, Tara, Sasha and Joey.
    Donations in his memory may be made to the Jewish Federation of South Palm Beach County. A memorial service will be scheduled at a later date.

Obituary submitted by the Jewish Federation of South Palm Beach County

Alex Warner of Delray Beach is a director of Boatsetter, which makes privately owned boats

available for rent. He’s standing on the bridge of the 65-foot Floating Price, one of the largest boats

listed on Boatsetter.com, at Marina Delray.

Willie Howard/The Coastal Star

By Willie Howard

    A South Florida company with offices in Delray Beach and Hypoluxo is competing with other boat-sharing companies to make a variety of privately owned boats available to people who want to explore the water.
    Boatsetter.com is something like Airbnb for boaters. It is a platform for boat owners to rent out their boats when they’re not using them, often with licensed captains at the helm.
    Collaborative Boating Inc., based in Aventura, launched the Boatsetter concept in 2013.
    The company’s website, Boatsetter.com, has been live for about a year and, as of early September, had about 220 boats listed — most of them between Jupiter and Key West.
    On Sept. 15, Boatsetter announced its merger with Cruzin. The combined company uses the Boatsetter name, has more than 3,000 boats listed in locations throughout the country, and claims to have the largest network of licensed captains in the boat-sharing business.
    “We are jumping on the burgeoning collaborative- consumption movement by bringing great on-the-water experiences to the more than 80 million millennials who are looking for new and exciting experiences,” said Jaclyn Baumgarten, the founder of Cruzin who now serves as Boatsetter’s chief executive officer.
    Boatsetter also has partnerships with marinas, such as Palm Beach Yacht Center in Hypoluxo and the Loggerhead group of marinas, which includes a Lantana location, to help promote and deliver private boat chartering services to consumers.
    Participating marinas facilitate the check-in, check-out process, as do Boatsetter affiliates — boating wonks who book rentals and handle the details for owners who prefer not to be bothered.
    A marketing campaign is planned this fall to promote Boatsetter’s system to renters, boat owners and captains, said Alex Warner of Delray Beach, a Boatsetter director and investor who also owns Gulfstream Boat Club, a boat-rental business based at Marina Delray.
    “It’s a cross between Uber and Airbnb,” Warner said, referring to the company’s role of using technology to connect end users to private owners.
    Why would someone charter a private boat through a website such as Boatsetter instead of simply renting a boat?
    It’s partly about choices.
    Rental boats tend to be limited in size, style and location, while a variety of privately owned boats in many locations are available through peer-to-peer boat chartering companies such as Boatsetter and Boatbound.
    Want to fish for bonefish in the Florida Keys on a nice flats boat but not be restricted to the decisions of the charter captain?
    Click away.
    Boatsetter boats are available with licensed captains, and many owners require the use of a captain. That adds to the cost, but also offers the advantage of local knowledge for renters who are new to boating or visiting from out of town.
    Warner said boat-sharing companies have the potential to boost the marine industry by helping boat owners cover their costs, introducing more people to boating and enabling captains to find more work on the water.
    Chris Shaffner, owner of TowBoatUS Palm Beach, invested in Boatsetter and became the company’s general manager after being introduced to the concept.
    “I’ve been looking for a way to reinvigorate boating, and this is the best thing I’ve seen come along in 25 years,” said Shaffner, who is a member of Florida’s Boating Advisory Council.
    Most boats are not heavily used by their owners. According to the National Marine Manufacturers Association, about 12 million boats are registered in the United States. On average, owners use their boats 28 days a year.
    Shaffner says Boatsetter’s emphasis on the use of licensed captains is a good thing.
    “I see a lot of people with more boat than they can operate,” he said. “It turns into a bad experience for them, and they get out of boating.”
    In addition to facilitating the connection between boat owner to boat user, Boatsetter screens captains and renters and provides insurance that covers the period of the charter along with BoatUS towing insurance in case of problems.
    Boatsetter charges a 30 percent commission and passes along the costs of captains (if used), charter insurance and towing insurance. Renters pay for fuel in addition to the charter fee. A $500 security deposit is held in case the boat is returned dirty or low on fuel.

This 15,000-square-foot spec house in Manalapan was sold for $33 million

by 800 South Ocean LLC, owned by developer Patrick Carney.

The furnished ocean-to-lake home has eight bedrooms, 11 baths and a tennis court.

Photo provided

By Christine Davis

    September was a HOT month for multimillion-dollar oceanfront real estate: Two pricey homes sold in Manalapan and another in Delray Beach.
    On Sept. 9, a 15,000-square-foot ocean-to-lake spec house on two acres at 800 S. Ocean, Manalapan, sold for $33 million. The listing agent was Jim McCann of the Corcoran Group.
    Furnished by Marc Michaels Interior Design, the eight-bedroom, 11-bath estate with a tennis court was built by developer Patrick Carney, a Palm Beach County resident, who owned the home through his company 800 South Ocean LLC.
    According to the warranty deed, a Delaware limited liability company, NNCID LLC, c/o Worldwide Management LLC, Palm Beach Gardens, is the buyer. County records show that the parcel was picked up by Carney for $5.45 million in 2011. The property was originally listed after it was built in 2013 for $45 million and the asking price was $34.9 million at the time of the sale.
    An  11,800-square-foot estate at 860 S. Ocean Blvd., Manalapan, built by developer Frank McKinney, just sold for $13.8 million, less than its 2005 sale price of $14.5 million. On a 1.62-acre ocean-to-lake lot, the property features lush landscaping with waterfalls, tennis court, infinity-edge pool, and dock that can accommodate multiple watercraft. Randy Ely and Nicholas Malinosky of the Corcoran Group represented the seller, Aleksander Popov. William J. Gueck is the buyer, according to a deed filed Sept. 8. It was listed for $16.5 million.
    According to a warranty deed recorded on Sept. 3, an 11,462-square-foot beachfront estate on 1.4 acres at 969 S. Ocean Blvd., Delray Beach, was purchased by developer Craig Menin for $17 million. The seller, represented by Candace Friis of the Corcoran Group, was 969 South Ocean LLC, managed by Brian Benoit, the CFO of a California company, Private Single Family Office.
    According to its listing, the property was recently rebuilt by local homebuilder Mark Timothy. Earlier this year, Menin Development acquired the George Buildings in downtown Delray Beach for $19.5 million.
                                
    Tennis with Jimmy Connors, anyone? Or a camel ride? The new Waldorf Astoria Unforgettable Experiences packages incorporate memorable activities at Waldorf Astoria destinations paired with its bespoke VIP services and amenities.
    And local South Palm Beach County residents don’t even have to leave the immediate area for the experience. At the Boca Raton Resort & Club, guests can enjoy excursions privately chauffeured by Maserati, a private tennis clinic session with five-time U.S. Open champion Jimmy Connors, and dinner at Morimoto prepared by sushi chef Takao Soejima, protégé of the famed Iron Chef Masaharu Morimoto.
    For those who prefer to travel to Waldorf Astoria’s other locations, offerings include private helicopter tours and cool after-hour museum tours. For example, during a stay at the Arizona Biltmore, guests can opt for a full-day chartered helicopter ride over the Grand Canyon and a Sedona Sunset history tour.  At the Waldorf Astoria Chicago, guests can visit the city’s infamous gangster-related historic landmarks in a private limo. At Waldorf Astoria Dubai Palm Jumeirah, the package includes a Bentley airport transfer, hot-air balloon ride in the desert, and a camel ride to a desert dinner for two.
    To check out or book these and other Unforgettable Experience packages, visit www.waldorfastoria.com/unforgettableexperiences.
                                
    Announced on Sept. 8, Regency Centers Corp. acquired the University Commons retail plaza, 1400 Glades Road in Boca Raton, for $80.5 million. Regency Centers owns 319 shopping centers across the country.
    The 180,323-square-foot shopping center on 22.4 acres leased from Florida Atlantic University was built in 2001 by the sellers, an affiliate of the Boca Raton-based retail and office developer Schmier & Feurring Properties, who were represented by HFF’s Daniel Finkle, Luis Castillo and Nat Scarmazzi.
    Fully leased, the center’s tenant roster includes Whole Foods Market, Nordstrom Rack, Barnes & Noble, Bed Bath & Beyond, PF Chang’s, J. Alexander’s, Mario’s Osteria, and Shake Shack.
                                
    In July, Boca Raton Regional Hospital and the Atlanta research facility Shepherd Center formed a new partnership aimed at attaining the best possible outcomes for people in the South Florida area who have complex neurological conditions. The partnership also helps patients locate rehabilitation equipment in their area, as well as educational materials for patients and families during care transitions, such as returning to their communities.

                               
    Boca Raton native Pamela Steiger, DMD, recently opened Dr. Pam Orthodontics — The Smile Boutique, in a new state-of-the-art orthodontics facility, at 1001 N. Federal Highway, Suite 2, Boca Raton.
                                
    Roseann Grippo has joined Waterstone Resort & Marina, Boca Raton, as its new general manager.  Grippo most recently served as senior director of beverage operations for Royal Caribbean’s Quantum of the Seas and Anthem of the Seas, the largest Royal Caribbean ships.
                                
Atlantis Golf Club has hired Richard Rosenthal as its new general manager. Before this new position, he served as president of the Ohio Valley Club Managers Association.
                                
    As part of New York Fashion Week in September, William DeBilzan of DeBilzan Gallery, Delray Beach, presented his artwork, fashion and accessories at the Hudson Terrace Rooftop, New York City.
    Also featured at the FASHION 9/11 show were fashions from Jule Guaglardi’s Delray Beach boutique, Roxy Lulu, and Project Runway designer Amanda Perna’s House of Perna. Janine and Adam Shuman, from Naked Hair Salon in Delray Beach, provided hair, makeup and styling for the models.  Janine Shuman also served as creative director for the fashion show.

To assist the state’s 8,000 children in family foster care, the Florida chapter of the

Women’s Council of Realtors recently conducted a statewide suitcase collection to benefit

the Guardian ad Litem Program. (l-r) Nancy Macaluso, Jessica Rosato, Pamela Banks, Doris Behrens.

Photo provided

                                
Florida Realtors president

    Andrew Barbar recently recognized Christel Silver, owner of Silver International Realty in Delray Beach, for her work as the 2015 Global Business Committee Chairperson.
                                
    In August, at Florida Realtors Keynote Luncheon, Palm Beach County Realtors Judy Ramella and Ann DeFries were honored as lifetime contributors to their communities and local, state and national Realtor associations.
                                
    Executive Women of the Palm Beaches announced the addition of four businesswomen to its organization, chosen for their  business accomplishments, charitable involvements and community impact. They are: Gail Kleinert, president & CEO of Healthy Mothers, Healthy Babies Coalition of Palm Beach County; Melody Spano, president/owner of M & R FL Investments Inc. since 2005; Natalie Stolbach, owner and partner of Barry’s Jewelry Spa for more than 34 years; and Adrianne Weissman, president & CEO of Evelyn & Arthur women’s boutique.
                                
    The Boys & Girls Club of Boca Raton will host its sixth annual casino night, “Sounds of Sinatra, The Best is Yet to Come,” on Saturday evening, Oct. 17, at the Boca West Country Club. Returning as event chairmen are Zakir N. Odhwani, market sales executive at U.S. Trust, Bank of America Private Wealth Management, and Kathryn Gillespie, a Realtor at Lang Realty.
    This year’s corporate sponsors include U.S. Trust, JM Lexus and The GEO Group Inc. Tire Kingdom Service Centers will serve as the Valet Service Sponsor. Also supporting casino night are Ellis, Ged & Bodden, P.A., Whole Foods, Tanzy’s Restaurant, and Kendra Scott.
    For information, contact Sarah Aylesworth at 683-3287.
                                
    On Nov. 11, from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m., the Greater Boynton Beach Chamber of Commerce will host Samantha DeBianchi, founder of DeBianchi Real Estate. Her firm represents a number of athletes, entrepreneurs and investors, and she has appeared on Bravo’s Million Dollar Listing Miami.  She has garnered her $25 million in sales in just three years.
    The luncheon will be held at Benvenuto, 1730 N. Federal Highway, Boynton Beach. Tickets at the door are $30 for members and $35 for nonmembers. To purchase tickets earlier, call 732-9501.
                                
    On Oct. 30, Slash Fitness will offer 100 percent of its new-customer drop-in proceeds to Help Our Military Heroes, a nonprofit dedicated to assist amputee veterans with fully equipped, adaptive minivans. The High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) gym also will donate a percentage of proceeds from all customer visits, including personal training sessions.
    New customers can experience Slash on Oct. 30 for $25 for a group session. Last year the gym raised more than $19,000 for Help Our Military Heroes in one day.
    Slash Fitness is at 290 S.E. Sixth Ave. in Delray Beach. For information, or to register for this nonprofit event, visit www.slashfitpro.com or call 865-5716.

Send business news to Christine Davis at cdavis9797@gmail.com.

By Rich Pollack

    Sparked in part by recent tragic events on the waterways in and around Florida, state Sen. Maria Sachs last month gathered representatives of the boating community and marine industries — along with law enforcement officials — to explore ways to enhance watercraft safety.
    The meeting, held in Delray Beach, also provided an opportunity for representatives from Highland Beach to meet directly with top officials from the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission to discuss slowing boats along the Intracoastal Waterway to reduce seawall-damaging wakes and improve safety.
    “They agreed there is something that possibly could be done,” said Highland Beach Commissioner Lou Stern, who has been leading the town’s efforts to slow boats along the narrow stretch of the Intracoastal Waterway that borders the town.
    Residents have complained for years about speeding boats, but have repeatedly been told that there is little that can be changed.
    “There’s no one stopping the boats going 50 or 60 miles per hour,” Ira Oaklander, vice chair of the town’s Beaches and Shores Advisory Board, told Sachs and others gathered around the table to discuss boating safety.
    Oaklander suggested that one possible solution to the problem and to other safety issues could be to make speeds along the Intracoastal Waterway uniform. Law enforcement representatives, however, said that could be a challenge since conditions vary greatly.
    One common theme that arose throughout the discussions was the need for additional education for young boaters as well as for first-time boaters and those who might need a refresher course to keep up with new technology — such as the use of emergency beacons that are enhancing boater safety.
    A second theme that arose was the need for additional funding for education and for strengthening of law enforcement efforts.
    “Education, education, education,” said Ernie Marks, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission’s south area regional director.
    Many at the meeting spoke in favor of prioritizing education over legislation, especially those representing the boating industry.
    “Let’s educate people to the technology we have available today rather than put in another regulation,” said Michael Kennedy, president of the Marine Industries Association of Palm Beach County.
    Kennedy also suggested that young boaters receive school credits for participating in and passing a boating-safety course.
    While state law requires anyone born after 1988 to pass a boating safety class and carry proof of completion while on the water, some suggested that regulation might need to be crafted to create a minimum age requirement for boaters.
    “Do you think a 10-year-old should be allowed to take a water safety course and be allowed to take a boat out on the ocean?” said state Rep. Irv Slosberg, who said he is preparing legislation that would require an age minimum.
    Much of the discussion about age requirements was prompted by the disappearance of two 14-year-olds who in July took a boat out on the ocean from Jupiter Inlet as a storm approached.
    But Sachs said she didn’t want to craft legislation without hearing from those who would be impacted by it.
    “We don’t need a knee-jerk reaction,” she said. “That’s why we’re here.”
    Sachs said she will begin the process of creating a bill that she can take to Tallahassee.
    “It will be something that will best serve the boating community and our families and still encourage fun and safety on the waterways,” she said.

By Rich Pollack

    Drive along State Road A1A and you’ll see the subtle signs of a steadily recovering economy.
    In Highland Beach, a multimillion-dollar luxury condominium project is coming out of the ground on what had been one of the last remaining empty parcels of land in town.  
    Not far up the road a new beachfront home is being built on the site of a house that was recently bulldozed. A short distance away, crews are remodeling an aging condo for new owners who want a place with a more contemporary appearance.   
    All up and down the coast, South Florida’s economic rebound can be seen in the construction that’s taking place — and in the resulting revenues municipalities collect from building-permit fees.
    “As the economy gets better, construction increases,” says Mike Desorcy, Highland Beach’s building official.  “When people are doing well, they spend more money.”
    In Highland Beach, for example, revenues from building fees for the first 11 months of this 2014-2015 fiscal year were close to $710,000. That is about $207,500 more than in the previous fiscal year and about $460,000 more than was collected from building fees in the 2009-2010 fiscal year.
    Much of this year’s increase can be attributed to a single project — construction of a 20-unit luxury condominium building at 3200 S. Ocean Blvd. Town officials estimate building-permit fees from that one project alone to be in the $200,000 range and say that  figure could increase.
    In Highland Beach — and most other towns — building permit fees are usually set by ordinance or resolution and often are based on the construction value of a project. Highland Beach, for example, charges $15 per thousand dollars of improvement value up to the first $500,000 of value and $12 per thousand dollars of value for anything over $500,000. Fees vary in each municipality.
    In Boca Raton, where large projects are springing up in the downtown area, building permit fees have increased $2.25 million from last year’s $10.7 million in just the first 10 months of this year.
    In Gulf Stream, a multifamily building project helped generate about $387,000 in building fee revenues last fiscal year, about  $110,000 more than was collected through the end of August this year.  That’s still significantly more than the $171,000 that was collected from building fees during the 2009-2010 fiscal year in the midst of the recession.
    While new construction of multifamily buildings tends to bring in the largest chunk of revenue from building fees, town officials in coastal communities are also seeing building-permit-fee revenue increases coming from other sources.
    In Manalapan, for example, construction of seven sizable single-family homes — four east of State Road A1A — has helped to generate close to $1 million in building fee revenues through the end of August. That’s a 170 percent increase of about $632,000 from the previous year when about $365,000 was collected from building fees.
    “This is the highest it’s been since I started here 13 years ago,” said Town Clerk Lisa Petersen.
    One reason for the dramatic increase in Manalapan could be a pent up demand for luxury homes as a result of the improving economy.
    “These are nice homes and quality homes,” Petersen said. “They’re being made with the highest quality materials and finishes available today.”
    In addition to new home construction, remodeling projects and concrete restoration projects are helping to generate more building fee revenues.
    “People are doing more remodeling and they’re doing more extensive remodeling,” says Karen Hancsak, Ocean Ridge’s town clerk.
    So far this fiscal year, Ocean Ridge has issued 647 building permits. That’s down slightly from the last fiscal year when 706 permits were issued. It’s significantly up from five years ago, however, when only 519 building permits were issued.
    While there are fewer permits issued so far this year, compared to all of last year, the actual dollars collected are up, with Ocean Ridge receiving $250,000 in building-permit-fee revenue so far this year versus just under $230,000 last year. In 2009, during the height of the recession, the town collected only about $145,000 from building fees.
    This fiscal year, Ocean Ridge collected about $75,000 in building-permit fees from construction of five new houses, four of which replaced teardowns. Permit fees from several remodeling projects totaled about $56,000, while an assortment of other building projects accounted for the remainder.
    Remodeling also accounts for a substantial amount of building permit fee revenue in South Palm Beach and Highland Beach, which both have a large number of condominium buildings.
    In South Palm Beach, which has 25 condominium buildings, 15 town homes and four single-family homes, a little less than one quarter of the town’s 464 building permits so far this fiscal year were for bathroom, kitchen or other remodeling projects.
    Highland Beach’s Desorcy says he is seeing an increasing number of condominium apartments purchased decades ago being passed on to children of the original owners, who either sell the units or move in themselves and quickly remodel.
    “The new owners often want it updated,” he said.
    Concrete restoration projects to aging condominiums, in which crews have to replace balconies and make other external repairs, can also increase building-fee revenues collected by towns.
    “Some of those restoration projects are million-dollar projects,” Desorcy said. “They can go on for years.”  
    While the revenue generated by building permit fees in the small coastal towns — which have little if any commercial construction — is welcome, it pales in comparison to larger neighboring communities.
    Delray Beach, for example, has generated close to $5 million in building permit fees through the first 11 months of this year, up from about $4.3 million last year.

By Rich Pollack

    After weeks of meticulously scrutinizing a proposed budget line by line, Highland Beach Town Commissioners agreed in September to cuts that result in a reduced operating tax rate of $3.50 per $1,000 of assessed value.
    Commissioners agreed on $631,000 in cuts from the $11.3 million budget that allowed them to lower the tax rate from the previous $3.95.
    “I’m very happy with a tax rate of $3.50,” said Commissioner Rhoda Zelnicker, following a unanimous commission vote to drop the tax rate below $3.70 — the rollback rate which would have generated the same amount of property taxes collected by the town last year. “We worked very hard to make our residents as happy as possible and to be inclusive of all residents.”
    As a result of the tax-rate reduction, the owner of a home assessed at $400,000 with a $50,000 homestead exemption will pay an estimated $1,225 in municipal property taxes for the upcoming fiscal year. That’s a decrease of $158 for a home with the same assessed value last year.
    The savings, however, drops to about $70 for the year when a 7 percent increase in assessed value — the average increase for Highland Beach property owners — is factored into the equation.
    Despite the unanimous vote to lower the tax rate, two commissioners expressed concerns that the reduction might be too drastic.
    “I thought it was too steep of a drop in one year,” said Vice Mayor Bill Weitz. “I just believe in a more gradual decrease.”
    Commissioner Lou Stern echoed Weitz’s opinion, saying he would have been more comfortable with a $3.60 operating tax rate.
    Highland Beach commissioners were able to reduce the tax rate in part because of an increase in property values and through a series of budget cuts, including the reduction of what equates to one full-time staff position.
    Total assessed value of property in Highland Beach increased from $1.9 billion last year to just over $2 billion this year.
    As a result of several cuts, the town’s operating budget would drop to $10.7 million. Among the items taken out of the budget were two major capital improvements that have been placed on hold: license plate recognition scanners for the Police Department at a cost of $68,000 and enclosures for two terraces at the library with a price tag of $150,000.
    In a move that drew criticism from at least one resident, commissioners agreed to eliminate the full-time maintenance position at the town library and convert it to a 20-hour-a-week, $18.25-an-hour position.
    The 27-year employee holding the full-time position, who received a salary of about $38,000 plus more than $33,000 in insurance and benefits, will take the part-time position. In addition, the town will contract maintenance of the library with the outside firm that currently cleans Town Hall.
    “It seems you’re looking at people who provided good service and you’re penalizing them,” said resident Peter Rodis.
    Weitz said the switch made sense because it allows the town to accomplish the same goal at a lower cost while having one firm responsible for maintenance of all municipal buildings.
    “I think we’re trying to send a message that we have to be serious about financial restraint,” he said. “We have to be careful with taxpayers’ money.”

By Sallie James

    When it comes to marijuana or anything related to its use, the city’s Planning and Zoning Board wants Boca Raton to just say no.
    For another year at least.
    At a Sept. 15 meeting, Planning and Zoning Board members voted to recommend the city extend a temporary moratorium on the operation of medical marijuana treatment centers and dispensing or cultivation facilities. The existing moratorium in Boca expires Oct. 28.
    The ordinance aims to give the city extra time to address possible land development regulations should Florida voters approve the use of medical marijuana sometime in the future. Because of the city’s historical prohibition of marijuana use and cultivation, no existing land development regulations address its permitted use.
    “This moratorium will allow staff to research, analyze and study the potential impacts of medical marijuana dispensaries on things such as adjacent uses, surrounding areas, the demand for city services and other aspects,” Boca Raton senior planner Tamashbeen Rahman told the board.
    The issue of legalizing the use of medical marijuana in Florida was rejected in November by Florida voters, but is expected to surface again.
    The Compassionate Medical Cannabis Act of 2014 — which became effective Jan. 1 — authorizes specific physicians to prescribe low-THC cannabis known as “Charlotte’s Web” to certain patients and authorizes a limited number of dispensing organizations to cultivate, process and dispense low-THC marijuana for such use. The 2014 act remains in effect.
    Amendment 2 — which did not pass last year — would have allowed marijuana to be legally given to anyone with a doctor’s referral who has cancer, multiple sclerosis, glaucoma, hepatitis C, HIV/AIDS, Lou Gehrig’s disease, Crohn’s disease, Parkinson’s disease or “other conditions for which a physician believes that the medical use of marijuana would likely outweigh the potential health risks for the patient.”
    Board member Kerry Koen wondered if any property owners in Boca had filed applications with the state Department of Health to become a designated dispensary site.
    Rahman said the state has received five applicants to date, all from Miami-Dade County. No one from Boca Raton has applied, she said.
    Board member Arnold Seville wondered what Boca had done in the past year to research the effects such a dispensary might have on surrounding areas and was upset to learn nothing had been done.
    “We put this moratorium in place a year ago for the purpose of studying what impact this would have on the city of Boca Raton. What studies have been done?” he asked. “I don’t understand why nothing was done.”
    Rahman said the city was waiting to see which nurseries would be chosen by the state.
    “That is when we can see the impact the municipalities are facing,” Rahman said. “At that point we can adopt regulations that would make sense.”

By Rich Pollack

    A 15-year-old free-diver from Hobe Sound was discovered in about 50 to 60 feet of water off the coast of Boca Raton almost two hours after he failed to surface while spear fishing late last month.
    Skyler Hunt of Hobe Sound, who had been free-diving from a private boat with friends and relatives, was later pronounced dead at Delray Medical Center.
    “He was an experienced free-diver,” said Tim Fernan of the Palm Beach County Reef Research Team, who along with another team member discovered the missing teen.   
    Fernan and nine other divers from the research team were heading north to conduct research dives off Boynton Beach when they saw police boats speeding by with their blue lights flashing.
    Above they saw a Coast Guard helicopter conducting a search and on the marine radio they heard conversations about a free-diver missing off the coast of Boca Raton, near Spanish River Boulevard.
    “As soon as I heard that, I said  ’You guys might want to suit up,’ ” Fernan said
    At the Coast Guard’s request, the team joined the search and after three dives Fernan and one of his other divers found Hunt motionless in the ocean.  
    “I brought him to the surface,” Fernan said.
    Skyler was later rushed by Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office boat and then U.S. Coast Guard helicopter to the hospital.
    About 30 minutes after Skyler was reported missing, his father, Triston Hunt, had put out an alert on Facebook saying that his son was missing and might have succumbed to “shallow water blackout” — a condition that occurs when too little oxygen gets to the brain during extended dives. Free-divers use no breathing aids while underwater.
    Fernan said visibility was about 20 to 30 feet when he first saw the shaft and line from Skyler’s spear gun and later the spear gun itself.
    The Palm Beach County Reef Research Team is a group of volunteers who observe, collect, document and record scientific data for use in enhancing marine habitats.

By Sallie James

    Boca Raton homeowners will pay a slightly lower total property tax rate this year under a $625 million 2015-2016 budget that includes 70 new employees, several generous allocations to nonprofit organizations and some user fee hikes.
    During a Sept. 17 final budget hearing, council members unanimously approved a total property tax rate of $3.68 per $1,000 of assessed value, down slightly from the current rate of $3.71. The total tax rate includes an operating tax rate of $3.42 that stayed the same from last year, plus the debt service rate of 26 cents, down from 29 cents last year.
    Council also approved the 2015-2016 budget, which includes a $142 million general fund and a $372 million operating fund.
    Under the approved tax rate, the owner of a $300,000 single family home will pay $1,103.97 in municipal property taxes. The city fire rescue assessment fee is holding steady at $85 per household.
    While the total tax rate will be slightly lower, taxable property values rose 7.6 percent in the most recent valuation.
    During the final budget hearing, much discussion focused on recreational user fees for nonresidents participating in Boca Raton sports programs.
    The city had proposed raising an existing $40 user fee for nonresidents to $75 per sport, per season, per child, but revised that sum to $55 after many parents said children may be forced to drop out of the sports leagues because of cost. The fee had not been increased since 2009.
    One mother choked back tears as she begged city officials to reconsider the sum, saying the 87.5 percent increase with little notice would make the local sports leagues unaffordable for many children.
    Deputy recreation services director Buddy Parks said the $75 sum was based on costs associated with maintaining the city sports fields. Boca Raton residents do not pay a user fee to participate in league sports in the city, he noted.
    “Is there a more equitable way for us to do this?” asked Boca Raton Mayor Susan Haynie. “I think the $40 to $75 is a lot of sticker shock. How did you come up with that figure?”
    Parks said annual maintenance of the city’s 30 sports field costs $3 million, about $100,000 per field. He agreed there is no simple way to equitably recoup the costs.
    Haynie suggested the proposed fee be lowered to $55.
    Council member Scott Singer also opposed hiking the fee to $75.
    “We’re not a business. We’re not expected to recoup every dollar,” Singer said. “What concerns me is the lack of notice.” He suggested an even lower amount of $50.
    Council members ultimately agreed to $55.
    For nonprofits, the council unanimously approved $30,000 for building repairs at the Boca Raton Children’s Museum, including installation of ramps for improved accessibility.
    The council allocated $50,000 to the Boca Raton Historical Society to help fund a welcome center and additional programming.
    Other budget details include:
    • A 1.2 percent increase in water/sewer fees, totaling about 55 cents for the average user.
    • A 1.2 percent increase in the stormwater utility fee, effective June 2015.
    • A decrease in the false alarm fee from $110 to $28 for both police and fire.
    • A 1.2 percent increase in golf course and cemetery/mausoleum fees.
    • An increase in annual permit fees for beach entry from $55 to $57.
    • A 2 percent increase for all residents and nonresidents for camp program fees.
    • A $50 increase for downtown library community room rental for residents.
    • A $200 increase in the fee to rent the Spanish River Library lakeside patio (the nonresident fee is twice that for residents).

    Renewing an annual beach parking permit in Boca Raton no longer requires face time.
    City officials in September agreed to give residents the opportunity to renew their beach permits online. Previously, beach permits for Spanish River Park, South Beach Park and Red Reef Park could only be renewed in person.
    The change now permits residents to scan proof of residency and vehicle ownership and submit them electronically or by regular mail.
    The permits also will be referred to as beach “entry” permits instead of “parking” permits, according to city ordinance. The change reinforces the intent that vehicle access to the ocean parks requires payment of a fee.
— Sallie James