Shorty Rossi will bring his pit bull Hercules to the Amazing Pet Expo

at the South Florida Fairgrounds.

Photo provided

By Arden Moore

    Shorty Rossi, with his signature fedora and thick cigar, will headline the Amazing Pet Expo at the South Florida Fairgrounds in West Palm Beach on March 15. The star of Animal Planet’s Pit Boss will be accompanied as always by Hercules, his 9-year-old pit bull, who has probably logged more miles by air and limousine than most people.

    Yes, Hercules is a pit bull, perhaps the dog breed among the 150 or so recognized by the American Kennel Club that generates either unabashed love or downright fear in people. Pits and other bully breeds have garnered headlines for dog fighting rings and attacks on children. But they serve as stellar therapy and service dogs for people in need of physical, mental and emotional support as well as war dogs in combat. A century ago, they were referred to as nanny dogs for their gentleness and devotion to children and babies. 

    Rossi, a former teen gang member from Los Angeles who served a decade in a federal prison after being convicted of several felonies, credits pit bulls for turning his life around and enabling him to become a successful talent agent, television celebrity and owner of a thriving cigar business. And as a little person standing 4 feet tall, Rossi can relate to this misunderstood breed.

    “Pit bulls and bully breeds are very much misunderstood,” he declared during my recent in-person interview with him at his rented casa in Mexico that he shares with seven bully breed dogs. “Because of the media hype, some people judge them for what they hear and not for what they really are. I can relate to that because little people get misunderstood or not taken seriously. We are not circus freaks. Little people are doctors, lawyers and business owners. Being a little person and being an ex-convict, I’ve been misjudged, too. So this bond I have, it’s like, I can relate to them. I know how they feel.”

    So where do pit bulls stand in Palm Beach County? It depends on where you live and your homeowner insurance carrier. Pit bulls top the list of banned breeds for some homeowner association developments as national insurance carriers.

    Little wonder why pit bulls and bully breed mixes represent a high percentage of dogs seeking adoption at the Peggy Adams Animal Rescue League in West Palm Beach and shelters across the country. Two advocates of bully breeds working to separate fact from fable about these dogs at Peggy Adams are Huck Nawaz, staff behaviorist, and Michelle Christmann, marketing coordinator.

    “The majority of pit bulls today make great house dogs and are very personable and gentle with people and children,” says Nawaz. “The most important thing to do when adopting a pit bull or any other dog is to properly socialize them and train them. At Peggy Adams, we offer a wide array of classes in basic obedience, socialization and more.”

    To improve the adoptability of pit bulls, shelter officials display “fact or fiction” posters next to their cages to educate prospective adopters. Christmann shared a few examples, so let’s test your knowledge of pit bulls. 

Fact or fiction:

    American pit bull terriers lock their jaws. Answer: fiction. Studies show that the jaw of a pit bull is in proportion to his size and is no different than any other breed of dog. There is no evidence that any kind of locking mechanism exists in the American pit bull terrier. 

    Pit bulls serve as therapy dogs. Answer: fact. Pit bulls have long served as therapy dogs. In fact, Helen Keller’s canine helper was a pit bull.

    All pit bulls are mean and violent. Answer: false. According to the American Temperament Test Society, pit bulls achieve passing scores of 82 percent or higher. 

    One of the recent pit bulls adopted from Peggy Adams also was named Hercules.

    “He came in as a stray and was fearful and under socialized,” notes Nawaz. “We worked with him to improve his confidence and to teach him coping skills. Happily, he showed great improvement and was recently adopted by a young, active couple who are bringing him for our training classes. Hercules is adjusting very well and has found a great home.”

    It doesn’t matter whether the dog is a pit bull or a pug or anything in between. The key to a happy, well-adjusted dog centers on positive reinforcement training, healthy nutrition, daily exercise that provides both mental and physical stimulation and feeling that it is safe and loved. 

For more on the Amazing Pet Expo on March 15, visit www.southfloridapetexpo.com.

Arden Moore, Founder of Four Legged Life.com, is an animal behavior consultant, editor, author, professional speaker and master certified pet first aid instructor.  Each week, she hosts the popular “Oh Behave!” show on Pet Life Radio.com.More at www.fourleggedlife.com.

Cheryl Wise Busch from Busch Wildlife Sanctuary allows parents and children

to get hands-on with a baby alligator during the Florida Wildlife Encounter

held outside the Ocean Ridge Town Hall.

Jerry Lower/The Coastal Star

The Grass River Garden Club presented a $5,000 check to the Delray Beach Historical Society

in front of the The Ethel Sterling Williams Archive and Learning Center

in Delray Beach. The gift was to enable installation of flowering, native landscaping

around the archive building. Pictured: (l-r) front row: Delray Beach Historical Society Board member Mike Cruz,

Grass River Garden Club President Holly Breeden, DBHS Co-President Leslie Callaway,

and GRGC Founder Winkie Sutter. Back row: DBHS board members Tom Stanley, Roy Simon,

Mary Renaud and Patti Alexander.

Kurtis Boggs/The Coastal Star

The grounds of the Freedom North Lakeside Garden provide

a healing place for people to be with nature including coral honeysuckle (below).

Photos by Jerry Lower/The Coastal Star

By Deborah S. Hartz-Seeley

    As you sit on a wooden bench in the shade of an elm tree, you aren’t alone. Next to you, a cat basks in the sun, licking its dark fur. On the edge of the nearby lake, a Muscovy family includes four fuzzy yellow ducklings.

    The birds call to each other from their perches in the pink crape myrtles. And the butterflies don’t have to go far to drink the nectar of a blue plumbago flower or a red jatropha bloom. 

    This garden that measures only about 100-by-70 feet also is popular with people who traverse the cement paths in wheelchairs or on walkers. After all, it is attached to the 120-bed Community Living Center on the grounds of the West Palm Beach Veterans Affairs Medical Center. 

    “It’s a healing place for people to just go and sit and be with nature,” says nurse practitioner Maura Miller, who is director for the center’s hospice and palliative care program as well as the powerhouse behind this bit of nature.

    The patients include vets who need rehabilitation after knee replacement surgery or a stroke. They may be here because they suffer cognitive impairment or advanced Parkinson’s disease and can no longer live at home. Or they may be looking for peace in the center’s hospice unit.

    In 2005, Miller started the gardening program after asking the veterans what more the center could offer them. They told her they wanted to be more active in their day-to-day lives and to do things they remembered from childhood, such as gardening.

    She started the program indoors with the vets growing seeds in pots. But they soon told her they preferred being outdoors in the dirt. 

    So in 2010, she approached the Mounts Botanical Garden in West Palm Beach and discovered a dedicated group of volunteers willing to help create this therapy garden on the east side of the center. Today some are still involved with the garden’s upkeep.

     For many of the patients and their visitors, this garden is a cherished spot. Just ask David Corsi of Boynton Beach who has been at the center for two and a half years battling cancer. 

    “I love the garden. I go out there to pray, have a cigarette and relax. It’s the best part of the hospital,” he says.

    You’ll find him watering the tomatoes in their oversized pots or wheeling himself past bright yellow, green and pink bromeliads as well as crotons with yellow speckled leaves that really stand out. 

    The concrete garden paths make three circles that pass by orchids, an antler fern, red and green copper leafs and the pink-touched leaves of snow on the mountain. 

    Or you can stop and view a Dutchman’s pipe, which attracts swallowtail butterflies. The vine with its pipe-shaped purple flowers grows over a support that keeps it off the ground and makes it visible from just about any height including Corsi’s wheelchair.  

    “If you stay here long enough, you can watch the butterflies lay eggs, caterpillars grow and butterflies pop out,” says Miller. There’s also plenty of milkweed for the monarchs. 

    “The garden represents the wholeness and freedom of nature, and that’s why our patients like it,” says Dr. Michael Silverman, who is chief of geriatric and extended care at the center. 

    Open 24 hours a day to patients and their guests, this garden is a popular place, and there are plans to expand it.

Deborah S. Hartz-Seeley is a certified master gardener who can be reached at debhartz@att.net when she’s not in her garden.

Police and licensed trappers capture a rare American crocodile Jan. 5 on the Little Club Golf Course

in Gulf Stream. This same crocodile also may have been spotted along the Intracoastal Waterway

from Boca Raton to Lake Worth. It was transferred to Miami-Dade County. Trappers

(from left) Will Gilmartin, Richard Cochran, Gulf Stream Police investigator John Passeggiata

(with flashlight) and trapper Bill Gilmartin.

Photos by Jerry Lower/The Coastal Star

The 8-foot, 6-inch croc, seen relaxing along this pond at the Little Club in Gulf Stream,

appeared to be well-fed. Since the club is just a block away from Gulf Stream School,

the reptile was captured and moved to Miami-Dade County. 

Neighbors watch the action.

By Cheryl Blackerby

    The female crocodile made her way north from Key Largo, where she had already been trapped twice in the same swimming pool, to a small pond on the Little Club Golf Course in Gulf Stream. 

    Along the way, she was spotted at Lighthouse Point, near Two Georges Waterfront Restaurant in Boynton Beach and at the spillway in Lake Worth Lagoon. Her journey ended Jan. 5 when she was captured at the Little Club.

    Most everyone thought she was an alligator, which are common in south Florida. Crocodile sightings in Palm Beach County, however, are few and far between.

    “The crocodile population is recovering and we’re seeing crocodiles where we haven’t seen them in decades, but they’re still quite rare,” said Lindsey Hord, biologist and crocodile response coordinator for the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.

    “Several decades ago we had 200 to 300 in the state and they were on the endangered list. Now we have about 2,000 non-hatchlings (over a year old),” he said. The number is far less than the 1.3 million alligators in the state. Florida crocodiles are now classified as threatened.

    Most of the crocodiles are in or near the Everglades National Park, but they’re moving into their historic range, which, a few decades ago, reached up to Lake Worth Lagoon.

    The number of Florida crocodiles has been increasing because the nesting population slowly is increasing, both in number and nesting range, according to FWC. And protection of the remaining crocodile habitat in Florida, and the enhancement of Everglades’ ecosystems is ensuring their survival.

    Hord is happy to see the comeback and believes they can coexist with people. Shy and reclusive, the American crocodile (Crocodylus acutus) lives in brackish and saltwater areas, particularly around Florida Bay. 

    A crocodile has never bitten anyone in Florida (there aren’t any reports), but Hord reminds people to keep pets away from canals, lakes and Intracoastal lagoons. Crocodiles are not trapped unless they are on private property and someone asks that they be removed, or if they appear to be a threat because of their size.

    The crocodile found at the Little Club is familiar to FWC officials. Her official moniker is Blue 8 — the color of her tag and her number designated by FWC when she was first tagged in Key Largo.

    She is about 8 years old, 8 feet, 6 inches long, and 178 pounds. She appeared healthy and well-fed. Crocodiles grow faster than alligators, about a foot a year. The state record for a female crocodile is 12 feet, said Hord.

Found her way to Gulf Stream

    The crocodile stretched out in the sun on the bank of a Little Club pond, attracting a crowd of golfers. General Manager Colin Cage was alerted and asked the FWC to remove the crocodile because of the children who attend Gulf Stream School, just 500 yards away, and the pets belonging to neighboring residents. Cage is from South Africa, where he had seen plenty of crocodiles, but never one in Florida. “It was napping, enjoying the view and the amenities,” he joked. “Maybe we should put up signs that say, ‘No crocodiles permitted beyond this point.” 

    The Gulf Stream police were called, and FWC sent a trapper but one who was qualified to trap alligators, not crocodiles. A crocodile trapper from Broward was called in, and after four or five hours Blue 8 was finally on a truck, tied and taped up. 

    Later that night, she was freed in the Everglades eco-system between Homestead and Key Largo. Officials hope she’s not looking for that swimming pool in Key Largo. 

     “It was kind of shocking to see it. There are so few crocodiles in this area to begin with and in Florida as a whole,” said Gulf Stream Police Investigator John Passeggiata. He kept the small crowd of golfers, some in golf carts, and onlookers at a distance.

    The crocodile stayed still on the bank, seemingly oblivious to the crowd. Her only movement was opening and closing her mouth, called “gaping,” which helps regulate the body temperature, and doesn’t mean that the crocodile is acting aggressively, as some observers thought.

    “It hadn’t moved all day but as soon as the trapper approached as the sun was going down, he went into the water,” said Passeggiata. “He would come up and we could see his nose and eyes. But the trapper was able to hook him and brought him to land. We assisted pulling the ropes.”

    Richard Cochran, a Boynton Beach senior electrical engineer who is a volunteer trapper for the statewide nuisance alligator program at FWC, was the first trapper on the scene.  He immediately saw that it was a crocodile and waited for the crocodile trapper from Broward, Bill Gilmartin. This was the first crocodile Cochran had seen in the wild.

    “They told me it was a 9-foot alligator on a golf course. That’s a normal thing. We got a hundred or more calls for alligators last year,” he said. “But I knew it was a crocodile. The coloring is different and the snout’s different.”

    And there was another big difference. “Instead of being defensive, it was a little more offensive (than an alligator). When we brought him on dry land, instead of sitting down and waiting, he was interested in coming after us,” he said.

    They hooked the crocodile — the hooks don’t penetrate the skin — then put a lasso around its neck and two lassos on the snout.  “It took about 15 to 20 minutes to pull him in. It took three of us,” Cochran said. 

    Barbara Sloan watched the capture with her sister Peggy Runnette, both sitting in Runnette’s golf cart. “The trappers were able to lasso him and he started to roll away and started walking,” said Sloan, describing the capture. “The trappers were very gentle with him.”

    Patsy Randolph saw the crocodile from her condo and took her camera to the golf course. “It’s the first time I’ve ever seen a crocodile. The trappers were wonderful. They wrapped her face and eyes. I was so impressed with them.”

    Meanwhile, another crocodile has been sighted in North Palm Beach. On Jan. 16, Hord shined a spotlight on a 4.5-foot crocodile on Lost Tree Club golf course, but the crocodile escaped into the water.

    “We’ve caught him twice already. Like all animals, some are smart and some are not, and he’s smart. He’s very wary. I’m going to need a little bit of luck to catch him,” Hord said.

Croc vs. Gator

Differences between a crocodile and an alligator, according to the FWC:

Crocodile: Grayish green color. Fourth tooth on lower jaw exposed when mouth is closed. Narrow tapered snout. Young are light with dark stripes.

Alligator: Black in color. Only upper teeth exposed when mouth is closed. Broad rounded snout. Young are dark with yellow stripes.

Residents watch testimony presented by project appellants at the Jan. 21 Delray Beach City Commission meeting.  

Jerry Lower/The Coastal Star

SOURCE:  The developer and DOT

By Tim Pallesen

    Atlantic Crossing has its final city approval — but with a warning by the mayor that its traffic might degrade the surrounding residential neighborhoods.

    City commissioners gave final approval for the project’s site plan by a 3-2 vote on Jan. 21 in packed chambers. Construction may be underway this summer.

    Coastal residents who joined in opposition with residents living north and south of the Atlantic Crossing site failed to get a street entrance off Federal Highway to relieve traffic on East Atlantic Avenue and into their neighborhoods.

    Mayor Cary Glickstein cautioned commissioners that affected neighborhoods represent 30 percent of city taxable property values.

     “I see the site plan as deeply flawed,” Glickstein said. “It’s almost inconceivable to me how the traffic flow could ever work.”

    Commissioners Al Jacquet, Angeleta Gray and Adam Frankel voted to approve the final site plan stressing  the economic stimulus the project will bring to the city. Glickstein and Commissioner Shelly Petrolia opposed.

    “This is an opportunity to bring something that we’re proud of onto that site,” Jacquet said. “It needs to go forward.”

    The site plan shows two entrances to Atlantic Crossing on north-south Northeast Seventh Avenue: at Atlantic Avenue and Northeast First Street.    

    The developer also agreed to build a ramp from Federal Highway into an underground garage. But opponents want an actual east-west street at ground level for traffic from Federal Highway to reach Northeast Seventh Avenue, the project’s only internal road.

    “We don’t want people driving through neighborhoods to get to Northeast Seventh Avenue,” said Susan O’Rourke, a traffic expert hired by the opponents.

    Coastal residents also fear that the $200 million mix of restaurants, shops, apartments and offices will cause a traffic backup on Atlantic Avenue.

    “This is a massive project so close to the Atlantic Avenue drawbridge that it will cause gridlock,” resident Jack Barrette said.

    “This is the city’s biggest project. Don’t let your citizens down,” Barrette pleaded to commissioners. “To approve it without a traffic solution would be the city’s biggest mistake.”

    The city’s land development regulations require city commissioners to consider traffic volumes and circulation patterns to protect neighborhoods near new developments from being degraded. 

    “This is an actual law that three commissioners voted not to enforce,” Carolyn Patton, a property owner in the Marina Historic District, said after the 3-2 vote.

    Neighbors who failed to get the east-west street say they will continue to address Atlantic Crossing traffic.

    “I believe residents will be working with the city and developer to try to get the traffic situation as good as it can get,” said Florida Coalition for Preservation President Robert Ganger, who acted as a facilitator for the neighbors.

    Glickstein predicted nearby neighborhoods also will be burdened by overflow parking when the Atlantic Crossing underground parking garage floods. 

    “We have 1,000 parking spaces essentially being built in a bathtub,” the mayor said. “What happens if that parking lot is shut down?”

Editor’s note: Carolyn Patton is a founding partner of The Coastal Star.

Cory Lambe (left) clears out drains along Lands End Road on Hypoluxo Island.

Photos by Jerry Lower/The Coastal Star

Bill Otis and Challis Thompson chat while checking out flooding on the north end

of McKinley Park on Hypoluxo Island. 

By Dan Moffett

    The town of Lantana completed more than $1 million worth of drain, sewer and road improvements on Hypoluxo Island last summer, and officials told residents in the flood-prone neighborhoods they would be good until the next 100-year storm.

    What no one knew then was that the next 100-year storm was only a matter of months away.

    On Jan. 9, lines of powerful thunderstorms unexpectedly collided with a stubborn cold front and dumped torrential rains throughout the coastal communities of Palm Beach County, some areas recording as much as 22 inches in a five-hour period on that stormy Thursday night.

    And, despite all the improvements, Hypoluxo Island took one of the hardest hits, as it has many times before.

    Streets turned into rivers and cars died in the wakes. McKinley Park became Lake McKinley. The rising water crept into driveways, garages and homes. Residents pulled out the pumps they thought they’d never have to use again and did what they could to turn back the flood.

    “I’ve lived on North Atlantic Drive for over 20 years,” said Ken Hilgendorf, who wondered aloud what good all the drainage projects had done. “Why spend that much money and not have it work? Guess what? The problem’s not corrected. It’s still a problem and we need to do something about it.”

    Hilgendorf’s neighbor, Lantana Mayor Dave Stewart, was in the streets during the storm, armed with a rake to clear debris from the drains and a jack to move a stalled car.

    “I understand your frustration,” he told residents, “when you see the water go from six inches, to a foot, to two feet, to three feet and start getting into your garage or house and the pump seems not to be doing anything.”

    Stewart questioned whether the new pumping system was performing as efficiently as it should. “Something doesn’t seem right,” he said, noting that the pump seemed to make no progress against the rising waters until the next morning, when it seemed to suddenly come to life and drop the water level at a rapid rate.

    Town Manager Deborah Manzo said the pumping system was overwhelmed by the sheer volume of the deluge.

    “It was designed to take about eight inches of rain in a 24-hour period and keep up with that amount of rain,” Manzo said. “We got about 22 inches in a three- to five-hour period.”

    She said the town’s engineer would be checking the system to ensure it is working properly.

    “There’s only so many things you can do,” Stewart said. “A lot of it had to do with the volume and the time period it happened. … We’ve been through hurricanes, but not had them dump 21 inches in a five- to six-, to seven-hour period. That’s more rain than you usually get in three months. It was one of those freaks of nature.”

    While Lantana residents on the north end of the island were trying to keep the flood waters out of their homes, Manalapan residents on the island’s southern point had few problems — unless they tried to drive into the streets.

    “We had about eight cars that stalled in the water,” said Town Manager Linda Stumpf. “But we didn’t have any flooding in garages or homes.”

    Town police officers used SUVs to ferry residents through the street waters, which peaked out at a couple of feet. Three sea walls also were compromised during the storm.

    “We tried to warn residents to stay in their homes,” Stumpf said. “Overall, we came through it pretty well.”

    Stumpf said that longtime residents say Point Manalapan hasn’t had a significant flooding problem in the last 35 years, probably because the homes are high enough and far enough from storm waters, and also because of a good network of catch basins.

    Hypoluxo Island resident Vince Denchy said neighbors on the Lantana side contributed to the drainage problems by leaving out their garbage containers and recycling bins.

    “We’re our own worst enemies,” Denchy said. “People should have pulled their recyclables and garbage back in. They shouldn’t have been left out the night of the storm. Plastic bags and recyclables plugged up a lot of drains and was a major problem.”

    Denchy said he worked to remove the debris from the drains. “Once we got them unclogged,” he said, “the water went down like a whirlpool. In 45 minutes it was gone.”

    Jerry Darr, the town’s utility director, said the bags and recyclables were a nuisance but not the main reason for the problems. He said the system was pumping at its maximum level, pushing about 2,000 gallons a minute off the island.

    “There were recycling bins floating all around,” he said, “and there were also tree limbs that clogged things up. But it was just a lot of water that came down in a short period of time. It was pumping as fast as it could.”

    Richard Schlosberg said the poor performance of the new system in his neighborhood doesn’t inspire confidence in the town’s plan to put in a new drainage system at the flood-prone Lantana beach parking lot. “That may be vulnerable, too,” he said.

    But the mayor is advancing the hope that the January storm was an extraordinary event that the town isn’t likely to see again anytime soon.

    “They talk about a 100-year storm. That doesn’t mean one that happens every 100 years,” said Stewart. “That means the volume and the amount of water. If you want to look at that, this was something that would happen in a 1,000-year storm. Hopefully, it doesn’t happen again.” 

Perry O’Neal has stepped down as president of the board

of Wayside House, but will remain active with the center,

which helps women battle addiction.

Tim Stepien/The Coastal Star 

By Linda Haase 

    Perry O’Neal’s message is simple: There is help. There is hope. And women who are battling addictions can find it at Wayside House.

    O’Neal, who lives in Gulf Stream, just stepped down as president of the Wayside House board of directors, a post he has held since 1992. He is passionate about the nonprofit treatment program for women who struggle with substance abuse; and his commitment to the Delray Beach facility won’t wane after he leaves his post, he promises (he’ll remain a member of the board).

    “People used to say Wayside was the best-kept secret in town, but we have made ourselves known. We have expanded to 31 beds and have helped many women,” said O’Neal, who, as a member of Alcoholics Anonymous, knows the pitfalls of addiction.

    “Every month people come back to Wayside to celebrate being sober, and they tell their story to those who are undergoing treatment. They learn that there is life after substance abuse. It is very inspiring.”  

    That’s why the 84-year-old retired banker is doing his part to promote Wayside House’s Spring Boutique and preview party Feb. 24-27. The popular event, which lures vendors from across the country, raises money for the facility’s programs.  

    The event began more than 20 years ago in one room, he said. It has grown tremendously, he said with pride.  “It gives people a chance to learn about Wayside House and buy things from stores that aren’t in the area.”

    O’Neal turned to AA when he was 48 to get help with his drinking problem.

    “My drinking increased as I got older, but I went to work every day and was careful about not drinking too much in public, so people were surprised to hear I was in AA,” he explained, adding that the stigma of getting treatment was much stronger back then. “If the bank I worked for knew I was in AA, I would have been fired. They would have thought I couldn’t be trusted with money if I was an alcoholic.”

    O’Neal worked at Indiana National Bank for 25 years as a vice president and trust officer.

    “My sister suggested I go to AA. I saw all these happy people, and I knew I wanted to be one of them. Life became good without alcohol. Some people say ‘oh poor you, you can’t drink.’ They don’t know how lucky I am that I found AA and am able to live a clean and sober life.” 

    His experience makes it easier to relate to those who seek help at Wayside House, which was founded in 1974 (the new clinical wing will be dedicated to O’Neal this month). 

    O’Neal, who is a Yale University grad and has a law degree from University of Virginia School of Law, moved to Gulf Stream in 1986 and began helping Wayside House shortly after. 

    Although Gulf Stream is very different from Indianapolis, where O’Neal was born and grew up, the bachelor quickly came to love the area. He served on the town’s Architectural Review Board for 12 years and is the former president of the Gulf Stream Civic Association. “It is peaceful and quiet. It is a nice place to live,” says O’Neal, who keeps active and goes to the gym several times a week.  

    “I have plenty to keep me busy. I’m never bored.”

    I agree with you that public funding for sand replacement on beaches should allow access to public beaches. 

    In Ocean Ridge we have four public parks either within or adjacent to the town. Three of these parks front the ocean. The town also has a number of public walkovers to allow individuals access to the public portion (legal high tide water line to ocean). 

    I don’t live on the ocean nor do I own any beach property. I do have a deeded easement that allows me access to the beach. This allows me access to the public portion of the beach but in no way gives me any right to use the private property my easement passes through. 

    So far as working something out with Boynton Beach, that was done when Ocean Ridge originally became a town and provides residents of Boynton Beach a public beach park in the middle of Ocean Ridge. 

    Given your argument that public funds are used to maintain the beach, so everyone should be given access to the private properties on the beach makes no more sense than saying that public funds maintain the roads where you live, so therefore everyone should get to enjoy your backyard by having parties there any time of day or night and then just leave their trash when they go home. 

    If you believe Ocean Ridge limits access to the ocean, then you should really be after the towns to the north and south of Ocean Ridge.

Earl Jones

Ocean Ridge

    Editor’s Note: Our January editorial did not say or even suggest that “everyone should be given access to the private properties on the beach.” The wording was: Ocean Ridge: Public beaches get public funding for maintenance renourishment and storm repair. Private beaches do not. If you don’t like people coming across the bridge to use “your” beach, talk to Boynton Beach.

By Dan Moffett

    Ocean Ridge commissioners, who have struggled for months trying to decide how to manage access to their public beaches, got some free legal advice from a resident who also happens to be a Palm Beach County circuit judge.
    Lucy Chernow Brown, who has lived in Ocean Ridge for more than 20 years and who has been a judge in the 15th Judicial Circuit since 1991, told them to be careful about confusing beach access issues with beach enforcement issues. 

    “You can’t justify closing a public beach just because some people behave badly when they use it,” she said. And she told them to be very careful about putting up implied barriers that keep the public away. Brown said the town of Palm Beach tried using unlocked gates to deter foot traffic to its beach and wound up taking a beating in court.
    “I think you want to be careful and not raise this question of a barrier to public access,” she told commissioners during their Jan. 10 meeting. “Believe me, the people in Palm Beach said a lot of the same things that the people in Ocean Ridge are saying — that ‘there are too many people using our beach.’ ”
    Commissioners have been wrestling with beach sign issues since October when residents near the Beachway Drive dune walkover put up “private beach” signs to keep people off their beachfront backyards. Property owners have complained that the town’s “public access” signs are attracting too many out-of-town beachgoers and are really unwarranted advertising that the commission should stop.
    “When you talk about not advertising it, it can be interpreted as a barrier to the kind of public access that has been historical in Florida,” Brown told the commission. “You want to be careful that you don’t run into the kind of lawsuit that other towns in Florida have run into.”
    The courts may view Ocean Ridge’s “private beach” signs the same way as Palm Beach’s unlocked gates, Brown suggested.
She cited two cases: a 1974 circuit court ruling that said barricades to public beaches are illegal; and a 1990 case in which one of Brown’s former colleagues, retired Circuit Judge Edward Rodgers, excoriated Palm Beach for putting up the unlocked gates that impeded access to the town’s beaches.
    “Gates, even though unlocked, present a barrier and suggestion of private property, especially in Palm Beach, a town internationally known for its private estates secured by gates,” Rodgers wrote in ruling against the town. “The public should not be denied access to the places it has a right to be.”
    Commissioner Ed Brookes said he agreed that enforcement and access were separate issues. He said bad behavior by some isn’t reason to punish the public at large.
    “If people are acting badly anywhere, we have enforcement issues,” Brookes said. “If people are on private property, that’s an enforcement issue. If we keep combining them I think we’re wrong, because we take it as if we just stop everybody who has right to cross the crosswalk and then all the problems will go away.”
    The commissioners decided against acting on the beach signs and instead instructed staff to come up with a fact-finding process using the town’s planning and zoning board to get more input from residents. Town Attorney Ken Spillias said the issue should have a regular spot on the commission’s monthly meeting agenda to help track the process.

In other business:

    • The commissioners gave Town Manager Ken Schenck mostly satisfactory marks in his annual evaluation. Schenck won praise for his good working relationships with the commission and staff but drew criticism for not taking a more proactive approach and not showing more aggressive leadership.
    Mayor Geoff Pugh said Schenck’s “work with the town on the budget was excellent last year” but doubted that his overall performance was likely to improve.
    “You do a good job,” Pugh said. “I don’t expect any fireworks display. You do what you’re supposed to do. That’s what we have as a town manager. I don’t think at this point in your life there’s going to be any huge change in the way you manage. The town as a whole should get used to that or get someone else.”
    • Two commission seats are open for three-year terms in the March 11 municipal election. The filing period for candidates runs from Jan. 28 at noon until noon on Feb. 11.

By Dan Moffett

    Gulf Stream commissioners came to their first meeting of the new year primed for a lively discussion with the town’s civic association over a charter change to staggered elections.
    What commissioners got instead was another debate among themselves after no one from the association showed up to make the case for a new process.
    “I’m a little disappointed that the civic association is not participating in this dialogue,” said Commissioner Robert Ganger. “On one hand, you’ve got to congratulate them for starting this conversation. On the other hand, I think you better get on with it and set some real goals.”
    In November, the association sent a letter to the commission urging the change from the current schedule that makes Gulf Stream one of only a few South Florida municipalities that elects all its commissioners in the same year. 

    But the civic association has had little to say since.

    Patsy Randolph, who heads the association’s charter review committee, said there was “misunderstanding and miscommunication” between her group and the commissioners about attending the meeting. “The bigger picture is charter review,” she said, and the association is looking forward to working with the commission on that in the months ahead.
    Running out of time before the March election deadlines and running out of patience for the no-show civic association, commissioners voted 5-0 to deny final approval for the staggered terms proposal.
    Instead, they decided to keep the lines of communication open with residents and explore the issues of elections and other possible charter changes through workshops down the road.
    Commissioner Garrett Dering, who says he won’t seek re-election when his term ends in March, argued that the commission shouldn’t defer its leadership role to the civic association as the dialogue over charter changes moves forward.
    “Why is the civic association driving this?” Dering asked. “Shouldn’t the commission be doing it?”
    Dering said that if members of the civic association “want to be driving the boat,” then they should run for office and be on the commission.
    Ganger, former president of the civic association, said it was important that commissioners take cues from the association because it “represents 75 to 80 percent of the residents in the community.”
    Countered Dering: “Well, we represent 100 percent.”
    Mayor Joan Orthwein said she believes that some members of the association still support staggered terms, but the group isn’t ready yet to jump into the politics surrounding the issue.

    “I think they’re researching other charters and communities to help decide what to do and what not to do,” she said.
    On the prospects for a wider charter review, Town Attorney John “Skip” Randolph echoed Dering’s warning to avoid “knee-jerk reactions.” Randolph made the case for restraint and a thoughtful approach before changing the town’s blueprint for governing. He said there was nothing in it that was “begging for review.”
    “The charter has worked well for you for a lot of years,” Randolph said. “It has served you well. The more simple the charter, the better. Your charter addresses everything you need to address in a charter.”
    Gulf Stream has not had a commissioner who has gone through an election for a seat since 1993 and has had only one contested race since 1978.
    “What good is a staggered election going to do to change that?” Dering asked.

    In other business, commissioners decided to defer action on a proposal brought forward by Town Manager William Thrasher that would standardize construction markers for the grass areas along the town’s roadways.
    Thrasher said the proposal was in response to a “cry for help” from property owners who have to make repairs to sodded areas that large construction and delivery trucks tear up when they drive off the pavement. He said currently residents use a hodgepodge of different markers — PVC pipe, concrete buttons, wooden stakes — to keep traffic off the grass.
    Thrasher has proposed using golf course-style tee markers, but commissioners have concerns about liability issues and decided to solicit more research and revisit the issue later.

    Two of Gulf Stream’s harshest and loudest critics have picked up campaign packets from the town clerk and are considering a run for the Town Commission in the March 11 municipal election.

    Martin O’Boyle, who took the town to court last year in a dispute over renovations to his waterfront home, and Christopher O’Hare, who runs an Internet website that lampoons town officials, have until Feb. 11 at noon to submit their documents and formally enter the race for the five open commission seats.

    Mayor Joan Orthwein and Commissioner Robert Ganger also have received campaign papers from Town Clerk Rita Taylor. Commissioner Garrett Dering announced in December that he would not seek re-election for the two-year term.

— Dan Moffett

Admiral is a 40-foot fiberglass boat licensed to carry 43 people. It will depart Boynton Harbor Marina.

Photo provided

By Jane Smith

    After four years and $20,253 in federal tax money, the Boynton Harbor Marina has a water taxi operator. 

    Capt. Dane L. Mark returned to South Florida to set up the service. He had operated the Ramblin’ Rose Riverboat in Delray Beach in the 1990s.

    “We’re thrilled,” said Michael Simon, development director for Boynton Beach. “That means our marina is completely leased. We have dive boats, deep-sea fishing boats, pleasure boats for rent.”

    Mark chose Boynton Harbor Marina because it had dock space available for Admiral, his 40-foot fiberglass boat licensed to carry 43 people. 

    Plus, the marina has free, covered parking for guests, Mark said.

    Separately, the county’s League of Cities is working on a countywide ordinance to make it easier for boat owners to operate a water taxi service, said Richard Radcliffe, executive director of the Palm Beach County group and coordinator of its water taxi task force. 

    In late January, the League’s board approved the ordinance. It streamlines the paperwork for boat owners by allowing them to register with the county for $100 and pay the business tax to the city where they are based, not to all the cities where they stop. The registration is good for two years.

    The county’s boat owners are in favor of it, said John Sprague, who sits on the legislative affairs committee for the Marine Industries Association of Palm Beach County. “As long as it pertains only to water taxis, we have no problem with it.” 

    The League is working with the county’s Metropolitan Planning Organization to make better use of the eight new water taxi docks that were built using federal tax dollars, a total of $842,163 in the past five years.

    The ordinance returns to the County Commission to be heard sometime soon. It will cover all water-taxi docks along the Intracoastal Waterway.

    But Mark is setting up his business now. He has a daily schedule of morning trips from Boynton Beach to Deerfield Beach where guests can cruise down the Intracoastal, marveling at the mansions along the way, then get off for a 90-minute lunch at the Two Georges at The Cove Restaurant. The cost of the 5½-hour round trip is $28, not including food. His vessel is not equipped to do credit card processing, so he suggests visiting an ATM before boarding.

    Although the Admiral is licensed to carry 43 people, Mark will take only 33 on those day trips.

    Thursday through Saturdays, he plans an evening trip to Delray Beach for those who want to dine there or even just visit that city and its funky downtown. The Admiral leaves the Boynton Beach marina at 6 p.m., arrives in Delray Beach at 6:30 p.m. Then departs Delray Beach at 9 p.m. and arrives in Boynton Beach at 9:30 p.m. 

    Mark left South Florida for a variety of reasons, including that he was just starting a family and wanted to raise his children in small town up North where he and his wife are from.

    During that time, he maintained his captain’s license and operated a water taxi service on Lake Erie. His business is dependent on the weather, and last summer was very rainy in northeastern Ohio. So he is back in South Florida, hoping to complete his paperwork and be in business by Feb. 1.

    For reservations (recommended), call 400-9054 or visit palmbeachfl.com-thingstodo/attractions.

    With five years of publishing this local newspaper under my belt, my skin has grown a little thicker. 

    I still dread phone calls the Monday after we deliver since I worry we’ve made some error, or omitted some item or caused some reader distress by our choice of words or photograph. 

    All of us at The Coastal Star try hard to get things right, so when readers and advertisers are upset, I get upset, too. Still, I’ve learned that mistakes do happen and amends can usually be made.  

    Sometimes, though, it’s the content of our advertising that makes people uneasy: Businesses challenge the promotional claims of their competitors or political candidates come out swinging. 

    We try to keep these paying customers honest while still recognizing their freedom of speech.

    As you’ll see in this edition, election campaigning has started and we had a more challenging-than-usual month.

    But by far, the most difficult challenge we faced this past month was saying goodbye to a dear friend and colleague. Coastal Star reporter Tim O’Meilia died Jan. 11 after battling cancer for several years. On Page 28 you will find a lovely tribute by Tim’s longtime colleague Ron Hayes.

    We don’t usually run such lengthy obituaries, but for writers (and editors), putting words in print is sometimes the only solace for an aching heart. And all our hearts are aching. Rest in peace, dear friend.

— Mary Kate Leming, 

Editor

Plans for the condo at 3200 S. Ocean Blvd. call for 20 units. 

Rendering provided

By Rich Pollack

    A developer with a reputation for building high-end projects in south Palm Beach County has become the latest in a long line of owners hoping to finally construct Highland Beach’s first new high-rise condominium in more than a decade. 

    3200 Seagate LLC recently purchased the long-vacant property at 3200 S. Ocean Blvd., from 3200 S. Ocean Blvd. LLC, with plans to continue building a 20-unit luxury condominium. 

    The property, on the west side of A1A, was purchased, according to records from the Palm Beach County Clerk and Comptroller’s Office, for $5 million.

    The new owners, who essentially represent the same group that developed the Seagate Hotel and Spa, Seagate Beach Club, Seagate Country Club and the Seagate Residences in Delray Beach, became the fifth owners of the property in the last 15 years. 

    Attorney Tom Carney, who represents 3200 Seagate LLC, said the developer plans to keep the basic development plans presented to the Highland Beach Town Commission last year when the then-owners asked for a one-year extension of a variance to the town’s height limitation of 60 feet. 

    The seven-story building is projected to be 90 feet tall and is likely to include luxury units with a minimum of 2,500 square feet and a minimum price of $1.25 million. 

    Town officials say Seagate LLC has until June to file building permits in order for the variance extension to remain valid. 

    E. Anthony Wilson, chairman and CEO of Seagate Hospitality Group, said the company is dedicated to becoming the final developer to purchase the property.

    “We have no interest in flipping the property,” he said. “We wouldn’t have bought it if we didn’t plan to develop it.” 

    Buyers of units in the new condominium building will have access to other Seagate properties, Wilson said, including the beach club and the country club.

    Residents living in buildings adjacent to the vacant property say they are optimistic that the site will finally be developed and that the eyesore created by previous failed development attempts will be eliminated. 

    “Everyone in our building is very pleased,” said Highland Beach Town Commissioner Carl Feldman, who is also president of the condominium association at Villa Costa, immediately south of the vacant property. “We’re confident they’re going to take care of the unsightly problems.” 

Gerard Laurore walks the jetty at the Boynton Inlet, where he serves

as live-in caretaker for the county’s Ocean Inlet Park.

Photos by Tim Stepien/The Coastal Star 

Laurore stands in front of the apartment that is provided to him

by the county at Ocean Inlet Park at Boynton Inlet. 

By Ron Hayes

    You could pay millions for an oceanfront estate that stretches from the Atlantic to the Intracoastal Waterway.

    Or you could be Gerard Laurore.

    His 11.3-acre spread boasts 600 feet of oceanfront property. His backyard borders the waterway. He has a boat slip, a sightseeing tower, extensive parking, a picnic pavilion and a fishing pier. Two fishing piers, in fact.

    And you are paying him to live there.

    In January, Laurore marked his first anniversary as the 24/7, live-in caretaker at the county’s Ocean Inlet Park in Ocean Ridge.

    If trash cans have been emptied, the restrooms are clean and the barbecue grills in good shape, thank him. If not, tell him. Either way, say hello the next time you visit. He’s a gentle man, and a gentleman.

    “There’s something to do all the time, and I like to keep moving,” he will tell you. “A lot of people know me and say they’re happy when they see me working here.”

    One of those people is Carlos Duenas, who supervises employees at 22 of the county’s 83 parks, including Ocean Inlet.

    “I was on the interview panel when we hired him,” Duenas recalls, “and what I remember was his demeanor. He’s a great employee, and his work is impeccable. If he has to clean up something at midnight, he’ll do it.”

    Born in Haiti, Laurore, 50, lived on the island of St. Martin for eight years before emigrating to Palm Beach County in 1995 and finding work with a company that provided janitorial service to the South County Courthouse in Delray Beach.

    “Then one of the judges (Circuit Court Judge Gary L. Bonhof of the 15th circuit) told me, ‘You are a good worker, Gerard, why don’t you try to get a job with the county?’ ”

    Laurore began perusing county park listings and was hired in 2003. For nine years, he was a maintenance worker at various South County parks, until the live-in opportunity arose in January 2013.

    “Gerard is the perfect fit for this facility,” Duenas says. “I have to remind him to take time off.”

    Actually, Laurore is on call 24/7, but that doesn’t mean he can’t leave the grounds. He works 10 days straight, 5 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., with four days off. And his schedule rotates with other employees, servicing Gulfstream Park, R.G. Kreusler Park at Lake Worth beach and Ocean Ridge Hammock park, as well as Ocean Inlet.

    He’s paid $15.67 an hour and has both medical and dental insurance, as well as participation in the county’s retirement plan.

    His Ocean Inlet home is not a mansion. It’s a modest, unobtrusive apartment beside the Boynton Beach Inlet, but it’s rent-free. Laurore pays the utilities, and that’s fine with him.

    “I’m not an out person,” he says. “I get home from work and I stay here. Why go out? You just get in trouble.”

    He maintains the fishing piers, but he doesn’t use them.

    “No, I don’t fish,” he says. “After work, I like my basketball and my football. The Heat and the Dolphins.” And his face falls. “My Dolphins are gone.” He shakes his head. “Didn’t even make the playoffs …”

    At sunset, Laurore closes the gates to the south pavilion and central parking lot. Late-night visitors are directed to the northern parking lot, where fishing is permitted 24 hours a day. Night falls, and he is the man in charge.

    Sometimes the lot is so full, even at 3 a.m., that he has to turn cars away. 

    “If someone’s doing something wrong, I just talk to them,” he says, “and most are OK. It’s all in the way you talk to people.”

    If it’s not OK, he can contact the Ocean Ridge or Manalapan police, as well as the county sheriff’s deputies. They all patrol the park, and they know him.

    “Everyone has my phone number,” he says.

    Sometimes, after the games, he will get up and walk around his oceanfront spread in the moonlight.

    “No, it’s not really scary,” he says. “No alligators. Just rats and cats.

    “I do my job and my boss is happy. And if I’m working for someone who’s happy, I like it, and I’m happy, too.”

Main Story: Echoes of yesteryear in new beach pavilion

    With the new beach pavilion rising and the economy rebounding, Delray Beach residents have begun lobbying city officials to enact other beach improvements spelled out in the 2009 Beach Area Master Plan. 

    Highest ranked on the community’s wish list: opening up the ocean vista where Atlantic Avenue terminates at A1A to restore the view Delray residents enjoyed in years past. But sea turtle protection measures would need to be devised and approved by a host of government agencies, which takes time. “We’re not holding our breath on that one,” says architect Bob Currie.

    All other improvements on the list would need only city approval, according to Beach Property Owners Association Vice President Andy Katz. These include:

    • Removing coin parking meters along A1A and replacing them with multispace credit card meters.

    • Widening the beachside walkway, adding paths for pedestrians and bicycles.

    • Replacing the two deteriorating gazebos (one opposite Laing Street, the other opposite Nassau Street) with new structures matching the pavilion.

    • Replacing benches, trash cans and beach showers with updated versions.

    • Removing the mishmash of signs and replacing them with more tasteful, standardized signage.

    • Erecting two “entrance element” pergolas at the north and south ends of the public beach, designed to match the new pavilion. 

— Paula Detwiller

A game of volleyball is played in front of the original 1929 pavilion, which sat at the beach end

of Atlantic Avenue (BELOW) across from the old Seacrest Hotel.

INSET BELOW: Today’s new pavilion is located in roughly the same spot,

behind a protective, vegetated dune. 

Photos provided by The Delray Beach Historical Society and Currie Sowards Aguila Architects

Related Story: A glimpse into the future?

By Paula Detwiller

    The year was 1929. Delray Beach was feeling the loss of its popular beachside pavilion, which was damaged, then destroyed, by hurricanes in 1926 and ’28. 

    Who would pay for a replacement? The city was in no shape to do it.

    “The Depression started early in Florida, due to the land bust of 1927,” explains archivist Dottie Patterson of the Delray Beach Historical Society.

    Still, the community wanted a new beach pavilion — so the community pitched in and made it happen.

    That “can-do” spirit in the face of economic downturn — not to mention the fanciful design of the pavilion — has now been replicated at the corner of A1A and Atlantic Avenue in Delray Beach. When the finishing touches are put on the new, green-and-white-roofed beach pavilion this month, you’ll be looking at history repeating itself.

    It just took a little longer the second time around.

The original structure

    On Oct. 11, 1929, the Delray Beach News reported that construction on the new pavilion would begin the following week because “sufficient funds are on hand to begin the work.

    “The work has been made possible by the cooperation of local merchants, the carpenters and painters union, and the assistance of residents and winter visitors,” the story read. 

    The Kiwanis Club led the fundraising effort, successfully collecting cash donations from dozens of donors, including Love Drug Company ($25), The Rista Hotel ($12), Novelty Dress Shop ($9), and Friedlander Tire Company ($6).

    The Delray Lumber Company furnished all building materials at cost. The Delray Electric Company donated the electrical wiring plus installation. Two local plumbing companies volunteered to build showers for the benefit of bathers. Union carpenters and painters pledged to work free, and local prisoners were enlisted to handle the “common labor,” such as sinking the pilings and building the foundation.

    Aron Smock, a local artist whose paintings still hang at the Historical Society, drew the pavilion’s design. “It was rather whimsical,” Patterson says.

    Total cost of the project: $720. The pavilion enjoyed an active 17-year life, providing shade, ocean views and a gathering spot for events such as the annual Easter sunrise church service. In 1947, a hurricane blew it down.

The modern-day replica 

    Construction of today’s new pavilion also had grass-roots beginnings. 

    The year was 2009. The U.S. housing bust, fueled by the sub-prime mortgage debacle, had severely weakened the economy. City budgets were thin.

    Still, the community had a vision for beach-area improvements that included a new pavilion. The Beach Property Owners Association held a public workshop that ultimately produced a beach master plan. A shiny new beach pavilion (to replace a smaller, rotting one from 1984) was to be Phase One of the plan’s implementation. 

    Delray Beach architect Bob Currie offered to design the pavilion for free. 

    He says he chose to pattern it after the one built 80 years earlier because “that’s what the people wanted.” 

    The BPOA spearheaded fundraising, holding local talent shows at the Crest Theater in 2011 and 2012 that netted almost $60,000. Show-goers paid $100 for their tickets, while sponsorships and donations came from 20-plus local businesses, including Caffé Luna Rosa, The Colony Hotel, Sea View Optical and Delray Blueprint.

    After years of red tape that could never be imagined in 1929, the city of Delray Beach approved funding for the remainder of the $249,000 project and awarded it to the lowest bidder, All Phases Roofing and Construction. Estimated completion date: Feb. 28.

    Will a hurricane ever blow the new pavilion down? Hopefully not. 

    “This one will have structural beams and columns and a standing-seam metal roof,” Currie says. “It’s designed to withstand hurricane-force winds up to a Category 3.”

By Dan Moffett

    Manalapan’s Audubon Causeway bridge project took on a new sense of urgency seconds after Town Manager Linda Stumpf told commissioners how long engineers say it will take to get it done.

    “Just so you know, from the time you decide to move forward with the engineering, to the estimated completion is 580 days,” she said.

    “Five hundred and eighty days?” said an incredulous Mayor David Cheifetz. “Nineteen months?” 

    “If you look at the construction, I think that’s totally unacceptable,” said Commissioner Peter Isaac, who wondered why Manalapan’s little bridge would take about as long as the newly minted, grand Lantana Bridge. “I’ve run construction projects. I’ve built dams in less time.”

    Stumpf, unflappable in the face of disbelief, told the commission that it takes about 120 days just to get the federal, state and local permitting done. And keeping one lane open to allow homeowners to come and go will delay completion, too, she said.

    “All I can say is that this is what the bridge engineer gave as the possible time frame in which to build this bridge,” she said.

    Commissioners, who came to the Jan. 28 meeting entertaining thoughts of sorting through artists’ renderings of design choices or kicking the project down to the town’s Architectural Commission for advice on ornamental touches — hand rails, colors, landscaping and such — figured there was no time to waste. Contemplating details can wait.

    They unanimously voted to move the project forward as quickly as possible, sending it to engineers to draw up the construction plans so it can be put out for bid as soon as early as March.

    “This is going to be a pain in the neck for everybody,” Cheifetz said.

    The town intends to spend about $750,000 to replace the aging 30-yard, two-lane span, taking most of that amount from unassigned reserves. Commissioners had hoped to wrap up the project before the next tourist season. But the engineers’ estimate would appear to make that goal farfetched.

    Boynton Beach attorney Ken Kaleel, who served several terms as the mayor of Ocean Ridge, told commissioners he had a similar experience five years ago, when his town rebuilt the Island Drive Bridge, a similar two-lane span.

    “We had the same angst,” Kaleel told them. “We did it one lane at a time. … The permitting was a pain. They may have to move piping, they may have to move cables. There’s a lot to it.”

    In fact, construction workers will have to replace the aging water lines that run across Audubon bridge, an additional expense that will eat up more of the reserve budget and also more time.

    What’s Kaleel’s guess of how long the Manalapan project will take?

    “I would say a good year,” he told them, and offered some advice on time estimates: “I think you get a better idea from the construction guy, as opposed to the bridge design guy.”

    Already, the pain has begun for residents near the point.

    Peter Lamelas is trying to build a house on Spoonbill Road, but he’s having trouble getting construction materials to his lot. Last month, the commission heeded the instruction of Florida Department of Transportation officials who said new weight limit should be put on the bridge because of its poor structural integrity.

    Lamelas told the commission he can’t get roofing tiles to the site because the delivery trucks exceed the bridge’s 13-ton limit and asked that it be waived temporarily. “All I’m asking is for a little flexibility,” he said.

    Stumpf promised the town would work with his contractor to set up an offload site near the foot of the bridge so trucks could lighten their loads and make deliveries in several trips. But the limit would have to stand.

    “We do not want to shut your project down,” she told him.

    Three residents of Point Manalapan have received campaign packets from the town clerk and could compete for two of the three open Town Commission seats in the March 11 municipal election.

    The potential candidates include: Kelly Gottlieb, who served as Manalapan’s first female mayor from 2010-11; Keith Waters, chairman of the Zoning Commission; and Ronald Barsanti, a member of the Architectural Commission.

    The town’s charter sets neighborhood residency requirements for some races and designates commission seats as coastal, point or at-large. 

    The three point residents could challenge incumbent Commissioner Howard Roder for his point seat, or incumbent John Murphy for his at-large seat. The ocean seat held by Commissioner Louis DeStefano is also up in the March election.

    The potential candidates have until Feb. 11 at noon to complete their paperwork and formally enter the race. Town commissioners serve two-year terms.

                      —Dan Moffett