By Tim O’Meilia

Start saving your change for extra gas money. Not because gas prices may reach $4 a gallon this summer, but because the round trip from South Palm Beach, Hypoluxo Island or Manalapan to the mainland will be six to 10 miles longer by Thanksgiving.
Replacement of the 61-year-old East Ocean Avenue Bridge in Lantana is expected to begin by November and last two years, Palm Beach County road officials estimate. And that’s without accounting for hurricanes or other natural disasters.
“We’re all going to have to go through something very traumatic — for businesses and for residents,” said Ron Washam, president of the Greater Lantana Chamber of Commerce. “We know folks are upset. We know it’s going to be a major inconvenience.”
The two-year gestation will produce a taller, wider, safer and quieter bridge designed to last until at least 2088. But not without birth pains.
Merchants and residents raised an array of concerns at two meetings in January, including emergency rescue response time, business losses along East Ocean Avenue, possible lack of parking for boaters in parks on the west end of the bridge, travel time to grocery stores and even the color of the new drawbridge (orangey-brown).
The 30 or so businesses lining Ocean Avenue west of the bridge will be cut off from coastal residents who will drive north to Lake Worth or south to Boynton Beach for their needs. Merchants in the Plaza del Mar shopping center east of the bridge fear losing mainland customers.
At a meeting of merchants organized by the chamber, Lantana Town Manager Mike Bornstein urged business owners to organize themselves and present their concerns.
“We should celebrate the bridge going down, because we don’t have any other choice,” said Wayne Cordero, co-owner of the Old Key Lime House restaurant on the avenue. He and others suggest creating festivals, exhibitions and celebrations to bring customers to the area.
Business owners said they may seek a relaxation of parking restrictions to accommodate larger events that might overwhelm the area.
Hypoluxo Island residents are already discussing holding a demolition party when the project begins.
Although the estimated $35 million replacement has been nearly 10 years in the planning, not everyone is convinced it’s necessary. “This is a make-work project. It doesn’t need to be replaced. I drive it every day. There’s nothing structurally that cannot be repaired,” said South Palm Beach resident Evan Geilich.
The bridge is rated a 38 on a scale of 100, not far above the 30 mark of being declared dangerous. Palm Beach County engineers say the pilings are deteriorating, the bascule spans are corroded and weight restrictions have been put on the bridge.

The new span will be more than 11 feet taller at the center of the channel, at 24.5 feet, and 15 feet wider at 52 feet. The height will allow for 40 percent fewer openings.
The navigation channel will be safer for boaters at 125 feet wide, compared with the current 90 feet.
Although the two driving lanes will remain 12 feet wide, 5.5-foot shoulders/bicycle lanes will be added that don’t exist now. A concrete barrier will separate the driving lanes and shoulders from the sidewalk, which will be 6 feet wide, almost double the current bridge’s 3-foot width.
Bornstein hopes a $400,000 fishing pier planned to be built beneath the west end of the bridge will encourage fishermen to abandon casting from the span itself, but the town cannot ban fishing outright from the bridge.
Although construction had been set to begin in July, current plans call for bids to be sought by May and a contract awarded by August. Demolition could start in November.
County project engineer Kristine Frazell-Smith said the bridge design is not yet complete and final permits have not been issued.
The town of Lantana hopes to lease part of the parking lots at Bicentennial and Sportsman’s parks to the contractor for use as a staging area. The money would be used to refurbish the parks. This idea has boaters worried that parking will be scarce
as a result.                          

A palm tree husk tied with raffia cradles a hot-pink eyelet sundress from The Petite Connection in Delray Beach. Photo by Tim Stepien

By Paula Dettwiller

When Don Draper of the hit TV series Mad Men needed a Valentine’s Day gift for his wife, his loyal secretary would slip out of the office and into a nearby downtown department store. She would return with a lovely box, wrapped in colorful paper and embellished with ribbons and lace — courtesy of the department store, of course.
Complimentary gift-wrapping is almost as rare today as Don Draper’s fedora. But a few select retailers in the coastal area still offer it, for Valentine’s Day and any other occasion when a gift-wrapped package can warm someone’s heart.

Gifts from Lifestyles of Lynne in Boca Raton, like these heart-shaped Romero Britto salt and pepper shakers, are tucked into specially dyed gold boxes and tied with Lynne’s signature ribbon.
Photo by
Tim Stepien
It’s a tradition appreciated by shoppers at Lifestyles of Lynne in Boca Raton’s Royal Palm Place. On a recent morning, Boca real estate agent Brian Jones stopped into Lynne’s to buy a housewarming gift for a client. He was happy to learn that owner Lynne Reiss would wrap the gift in her signature gold box with leopard-print chiffon ribbon.
“I went shopping over the holidays at Macy’s in Water Tower Place in Chicago,” Jones told her. “You know — the upscale tower where Oprah lives? I was shocked to find that Macy’s stopped gift-wrapping. How can you be Macy’s and not do gift wrapping?”
Reiss just nodded and kept wrapping. “I’ve always felt that if someone comes into a gift store, they want the entire gift experience, soup to nuts,” she says. She’s been wrapping gifts, complete with free gift card enclosures, since opening the store in 2002.
“In the beginning, it was a major bone of contention with my accountant, who was looking out for the longevity of my business,” Reiss says. “He suggested I do away with gift wrapping to cut back on expenses. I told him, ‘Don’t even go there, it’s not going to happen.’ ”

Natural Wrap
The Petite Connection on East Atlantic Avenue in Delray Beach is similarly committed to complimentary gift-wrapping. They’ve been doing it since the business opened in 1989. They also offer free gift delivery. Owner Theresia Frost says people remember that extra level of service and keep coming back.
“We have a few husbands who call and say ‘Pick out something nice for my wife, wrap it, and deliver it,’ ” Frost says. And they do.
Even Don Draper didn’t have it that good.
Instead of wrapping paper and ribbon, The Petite Connection uses items from nature, both to contain and decorate the gifts. It’s a reflection of the store’s interior design, where scarves hang from a bamboo rod, necklaces drape over bits of driftwood, and a stylish handbag perches on a weathered log.
The natural look is the work of gift-wrap specialist Sandy Remo, who has worked at The Petite Connection for 12 years.
“After windstorms I run around and pick up branches and all the stuff that falls out of trees,” Remo says. “I take them home, put them on my porch to dry, wash them, and they’re ready to go.”
Remo wraps every gift differently, depending on its size and the “sticks and stones” she has on hand. “Men tend to like it, and I’m not quite sure why,” Remo says with a laugh. “But I always ask the customer first: Do you want it wrapped with traditional paper and ribbon, or my way?”
A sleek red leather jewelry pouch doubles as gift-wrap for a sparkling bauble or a gift certificate from Private Jewelers in Delray Beach.  Photo by Tim Stepien

Cupid’s Artistic Touch
Across the street at Private Jewelers, the Valentine’s Day gift wrap is itself a gift: a soft red leather travel pouch for jewelry. Tied with a silk ribbon, the pouch has several zippered compartments inside to hide a pin, pendant or set of earrings. The pouch is also a clever way to give the gift of shopping: It can be folded around a gift certificate.
“Men are spontaneous shoppers for Valentine’s Day,” says one sales representative. “They tend to shop at the last minute. Their gift choices come from the heart — whatever they’re feeling at the moment. But if they’re just not sure about her tastes, we have a luxurious way to present a gift certificate.” 

Pre-wrapped gifts in all sizes and price points are lavishly wrapped in Joy of Palm Beach’s distinctive chocolate brown and sky blue palette. Photo by Jerry Lower
Last-minute Romeos who drop in at Joy of Palm Beach on Royal Poinciana Way on Palm Beach not only get free gift wrap, they also avoid the wait. Gifts of all shapes and sizes are pre-wrapped in Joy’s signature colors of chocolate brown and sky blue, and displayed next to a sample of whatever gift is inside the box. Co-owner Joyce McLeary says customers love it.
“They can pull right up to the store, run in, and get something in their price range that’s already beautifully wrapped,” she says. “It makes their life easier.” For those who buy the more expensive gifts, the store is also happy to deliver.
McLeary, who opened her store Nov. 1, hopes her distinctive brown and blue gift wrap becomes as recognizable and desired as Tiffany’s little blue box. For now, one thing is certain. In the words of one male shopper: “My wife’s
gonna know I didn’t wrap this.”               

Our private clubs: An occasional series

By Emily J. Minor

There’s nothing tricky about understanding why the longstanding Little Club in Gulf Stream is called the Little Club.
There’s no Mr. Little who grew up in a little town a little bit down the road.
 Little Club is called the Little Club for one very big reason.
“They wanted something little, something intimate,” says Douglas C. Dugan, the doting general manager of the 43-year-old private club. “It was as simple as that.”
Today, this 322-member club with the cozy clubhouse and challenging par-3 course prides itself on that same intimacy.
“We think we’re a bit more personal than some of the other country clubs,” says club President Bob Victorin.
“It’s a different atmosphere,” says past president Nancy Young.
Tucked not far from Town Hall, between A1A and the Intracoastal Waterway, the Little Club has a fascinating history. In 1998, when the club celebrated 30 years, Gulf Stream resident Elizabeth Matthews Paton — herself a bit of a local historian — compiled in great detail the story of the club that began after polo had its heyday here on the island.
“The Little Club today is a fine and fitting monument to the vision of those daring thirty five Founders,” wrote Paton, who died in May 2009. “Some of the general affection which its members have for The Little Club may well be related to the connotation of the word ‘little,’ ” she wrote, adding that “little” means intimate and disarming, warm and friendly.
Nancy Young couldn’t agree more. Indeed, she loves to tell this down-to-earth story about her beloved club.
“In the old days, if you golfed and came in and wanted something to eat, you opened up a can of Campbell’s tomato soup,” she says.
My, how things have changed.

Swamp not an obstacle
The Little Club’s land goes back to the early island days, when Henry Phipps — who had partnered with Andrew Carnegie in starting the U.S. Steel Co. — moved his family to Florida. Phipps was a brilliant businessman and realized the financial potential of this magnificent island. He and two of his sons, John and Howard, built mansions for their own families. They also invested in land where they would, eventually, build so-called “spec” houses.
The Phipps family was key in the development of the island, and in the establishment of Gulf Stream as a favored destination for the wealthy and influential. Even back in 1926, Gulf Stream was a town to be reckoned with.
It was Howard Phipps, according to Paton’s historical accounts, who came up with the idea of buying up the land and using it for polo grounds. He was so committed to the idea that by 1926 he had sunk nearly $600,000 — about $7 million in today’s money — into what was called the Gulfstream Polo Club.
Despite the obstacles — the land was swampy and there wasn’t ample room for stables — the polo operation was an immediate success, drawing large numbers for the matches, held three times a week.
But this success added a problem: more people and more development.
Pretty soon, magnificent homes were being built to serve the community. They were also squeezing out the polo fields.
After World War II was over — during the war, the stables housed horses for the government’s Shore Patrol program — polo saw a quick rebirth. Mike Smith, Stewart Iglehart and George Oliver built new fields and the polo grounds blossomed during those years, into the early 1950s.
But with continued population growth — and continued real estate possibilities — that team lost interest. The land was sold to developer Henry Pope. From 1958 to 1964, Pope built homes on what used to be the southernmost polo fields.
The northernmost field had a special destiny all its own: the Little Club.

Polo out, golf in
With polo now gravitating elsewhere in the county, the land that once comprised the northern polo field held the town’s interest.
What would become of those 40 acres?
The land could be developed into houses, although the island’s rather quick development was already causing serious drainage problems. Town officials weren’t sure that’s what they wanted.
Re-enter Stewart Iglehart — a five-time winner of polo’s U.S. Open Championship — who eventually partnered with retired insurance magnate Mel Dickenson. And the partnership was based on a single idea: golf.
The Palm Beach Par 3 course was already a success on the island and Iglehart thought the old polo field would make another perfect par 3 course. First, though, they had to approach the big boys with their idea. The Gulf Stream Golf Club was the town’s existing country club, and the Iglehart team needed the blessing from the club’s board of directors.
The first time around, they walked out with their tails between their legs.
Realizing the potential, however, they refigured their financial plan — this time approaching Gulf Stream residents with the idea. Before long, they had 35 residents willing to put up $10,000 each.

Differentiating clubs
The duo established a corporation, which they named Oleander after the street Dickenson lived on. In Paton’s historical account, the name the Little Club came from Iglehart’s wife, Linda.
“The name was probably intended to be in contrast with the Gulf Stream Golf Club, the existing “big club,” she wrote in 1998.
After its opening in 1968, the clubhouse changed to keep pace with progress.
Since it was built, renovations have included a new kitchen, dining room, pro shop, cart barn and offices, plus space reconfigurations and cosmetic changes like carpeting, upholstery and drapes.
Because of the area’s changing demographics, more and more young families are now a part of this multi-generational legend enjoying the par 3 and the updated clubhouse with made-to-order meals and custom mixed cocktails.
Perhaps the best part?
While the Little Club is still little, lunch is no
longer a can of Campbell’s
soup.                                    

By Emily J. Minor

About 50 residents packed the Briny Breezes Town Council’s January meeting to listen to a civics lesson on why the town handles its money the way it does.
“Many people don’t understand what we are forced to spend money on,” said Mayor Roger Bennett.
Although the turnout for the meeting was far above average, most residents just listened. Few spoke.
Relying on a written Q&A that she had prepared in advance, Clerk Kathleen Bray went through the town’s money matters step by step, explaining everything from the timing of the budget hearings to why the town hires someone to read the meters.
(All Palm Beach County municipalities start their budgets in the summer, and the town uses someone to read the meters because when the corporation handled it, there were too many equipment problems and errors.)
The January meeting was moved to the roomier community center after questions arose at the December meeting about the timing of the budget hearings. Most residents are gone when town officials debate the budget during the summer, but Bray encouraged residents to write in their comments. “In the past, they (residents) have seldom sought to do so,” Bray wrote in the Q&A.
Still, the presentation was for information only. Bray said she put the report together at the request of the town’s corporate side. “The town has passed its budget,” Bray told the crowd. “There’s no going back.”
In addition to the timing of the budget hearings and the meter reader question, Bray also addressed things like Town Hall rent, the millage and improving communication between town and corporation officials.
A copy of the entire Q&A is available at Town Hall.
In other business, officials and residents:
• Listened to an update on the state-required Evaluation and Appraisal Report recently filed with the Department of Community Affairs. After comments from state officials and nearby towns, the Planning and Zoning Board now begins work on the Comprehensive Plan.
The revisions to the town’s existing plan would allow for changes in what kind of homes can be built in Briny Breezes, something considered crucial for weathering future hurricanes. Now, the town’s residential units are limited to mobile homes.
• Heard from Mayor Roger Bennett that he will be running for re-election. Bennett had said earlier he would step down for health reasons, but told residents he was feeling better. The town election is
March 8.                      

Charles Benoit (left) gets a chuckle from comedian Eddie Brill who entertained  hundreds Jan. 28 at the Delray Beach Marriott, during the 5th Annual Laugh with the Library fundraiser to benefit the Delray Beach Public Library.
Photos by Jerry Lower

By Thom Smith

After more than 2½ years of darkness and silence, the heavens are once again embracing Lake Worth: The Bamboo Room is back.
The only blues club in this county that features top regional and occasional national acts will reopen at 25 S. J St. on Feb. 17. David Shelley will open, followed on Friday by J.J. Gray from Mofro and Iko Iko and Blues Dragon wrapping up on Saturday.
“Ever since we closed, we’ve had so much good will,” owner Russ Hibbard said. “We kept the website up, and over the past year and a half we got so many e-mails. We were fortunate that we owned the property, so even though we were closed we were able to make improvements. Our old staff is back, and our intention is to keep the caliber of entertainment that we had before.” (www.bambooroomblues.com or 585-2583)

                                        ***

Butch Trucks is one of the many top musicians who’ve played the Bamboo Room. For nearly a half-century, Trucks has been singing and playing the blues, most notably as the drummer for the Allman Brothers Band … And he’s still around to tell about it — the highs and the lows.
On Feb. 13, he will tell some stories, some of them about the highs and the resulting lows, at the 16th annual luncheon of CARP, the Comprehensive Alcoholism Rehabilitation Programs, at the Ritz-Carlton in Manalapan. The luncheon ($150) will feature performances by singer Avery Sommers and pianist Pepe Morreale.
Trucks says he won’t pull any punches. “What I’m gonna talk about is what happens to idiots, not to idiots, but to normal people when they get deified, especially in their early ages,” Trucks said. “And why things like CARP are needed for idiots like us and for other people who can’t quite cope.
“My perspective is from that perspective: about fame and wealth coming much too fast, much too early, unexpected and then all the sycophants around you telling you how great you are.
“We used to fly around in a jet called the Starship. It had the ‘Allman Brothers Band’ written on the side of it. In the back was a bedroom with a big round bed with fur all over it, mirrors on the ceiling and all the walls and two very willing stewardesses. There was a den with a fireplace in it, and we put bean bags on the floor and that’s where everybody smoked reefer.
Some stories will be funny and some will be sad; he might even tell some about Cher, said Trucks, who’s battled his own demons. Thirty years ago, he quit drinking liquor. He continued to drink wine, but it made him aggressive and turned him into “a total jerk.”
“I finally decided eight years ago last October that if I couldn’t stop then I wouldn’t start,” he said. “That was the last sip of any alcohol I have had.”
“Talking about CARP is easy. I have never seen anything like CARP, and it’s free, and I still don’t know how they do it.

***

 Heaven help us all.
The Palm Beach Par 3 Golf Course, recently revitalized, is being featured on the Golf Channel.
Blame the Haney Project and its host Hank Haney. In his two previous seasons, the renowned swing coach — who helped improve the game of Tiger Woods, that young duffer who has that fortress just up the beach on Jupiter Island — worked with the likes of Ray Romano and Charles Barkley. In version No. 3, which debuted Jan. 25, he really goes off the deep end: His new student is Rush Limbaugh.
Watch as the king of bombast blasts cigar smoke in his host’s face. Watch as his chip shot rebounds off a cart and almost beans him. Watch as he pontificates: “I actually think I’m too smart for the game. If you look at the people that can do this game very well, their minds are vacant.”
Limbaugh admits he never practices, as he swings away and declares, “Nothing good ever happens when you go left.” Of course, the aim in golf is to go straight; not much chance of that with Rush either.

***

 If you’re not a bum, but you’ve got a good bum and a desire to serve, then you might be just right for … Butlers in the Buff.
“The male order company” offers living party rentals — in white collar and cuffs, black bow tie and black apron (not wrap-around) — to serve drinks and hors d’oeuvres. All fully above board. Conceived in England, where more than 250 tie one (apron) on, the concept spread to Australia and has now reached the colonies with the first franchise in Florida.
Prospective butlers — and customers — should visit  www.ButlersInTheBuff.com or call (941) 309-5430.

***

 From Atlantic Avenue to Hollywood and Vine: Former Delray Beach millionaire, socialite and politician Nick Loeb apparently has recovered sufficiently from a car crash to accompany his new squeeze, actress Sofia Vergara, to the Golden Globe awards bash on Feb. 16. Tagging along with Vergara, star of Modern Family, trust-funder Loeb, who has run unsuccessfully for Delray City Commission and Florida Senate, even managed a little face time on some of the gossipy entertainment shows. He showed no ill effects from the crash last August that put him in intensive care with a broken leg and pelvis.
Now, apparently, his intensive care comes from Vergara, although he hasn’t given up on politics. He told Access Hollywood’s Billy Bush he’s thinking about running for the U.S. Senate in 2012.

***

                                      
What will islanders do?
“I don’t know if I should be laughing or be scared,” Maurizio Ciminella said with an uncharacteristically muted chuckle. Ciminella just opened Amici Market on North County Road, and come spring he’ll be the only grocer in Palm Beach. That’s when Publix plans to begin rebuilding its only store in Palm Beach County east of the Intracoastal Waterway.
The new store, 50 percent larger at 44,018 square feet, will be ready no sooner than December.
“Imagine the possibilities! Maybe I’ll fill the coolers with bread, milk and eggs,” Ciminella said, noting that some Publix regulars are already checking out his market. “People are coming in and asking if we are going to be open on Sunday. And we always deliver. We’ve already delivered to Manalapan.
“They’re closing around Easter, and we’ll start opening Sundays on Easter … with the blessing of the church, of course,” he said, referring to St. Edward’s Church across the street.

***       

For two decades JAMS, the Jazz Arts Music Society, has been about the only source for live jazz in the Palm Beaches. Its concert series at “the Harriet” in CityPlace already is into its 11th season, and pianist Marian Petrescu will headline the anniversary celebration on Feb. 22.
Should you prefer a little dinner with your jazz, head to the Four Seasons Resort, where JAMS has introduced its new Living Room Series. Take in a concert in the resort’s Living Room ($25 for JAMS members, $35 non-members) plus pre-concert three-course prix fixe dinners in either the Bistro ($35) or the Restaurant ($45). Call 582-2800 for dinner reservations, (877) 722-2820 for concert info and tickets. Next up, Feb. 7, saxman Harry Allen and his quartet.

***

 Meanwhile, down the road in Manalapan, the Ritz-Carlton is embracing a new angle with the reopening of its signature restaurant, appropriately named Angle. Most of the fixin’s, from greens and produce to line-caught fish, comes from local farms, and boutique purveyors who support the “slow food movement.” It’s an American supper club with modest prices — starters from $10, entrees from $26. Of course, you can go all out and request a special dining experience at the Onyx Tasting Table, glowing onyx and amber, that features Far Niente Wines, chef’s plates and special Taste Makers dinners. (540-4924)

***

 Newest Delray opening is the Atlantic Ocean Club and Buddah Sky Bar (217 E. Atlantic Ave.), just west of the tracks.  Jamie DeRosa, mostly recently at Taste Gastropub is running the kitchen, stressing fresh, local, sustainable, organic fare. DeRosa is Florida-raised but raised the level of his craft with Wolfgang Puck for five years and then at the Michelin-rated Fat Duck in London.  Open only since Jan. 24, AOC is already earning good notices, with raves about the seafood, especially the crab cakes.

***

 Enjoying some down time in Delray at the Seagate Hotel, actor Morgan Freeman … Semi-hometown boy Andy Roddick headlines the Delray Beach International Tennis Championships, Feb. 18-27, and John McEnroe once again will play a few games in the middle of Atlantic Avenue. Big Mac’s opponent will be Swede Mats Wilander for the “Grand Slam grudge match” at 5:30 p.m. on Feb. 18. No charge.

Thom Smith is a freelance writer. He can be reached at thomsmith@ymail.com

Architect Bob Currie has designed a beach pavilion to replace the current one at Atlantic Avenue and A1A in Delray Beach.
Photo by
Tim Stepien

By Mary Jane Fine

Right now, the project has something of the feel of a Mickey Rooney “Hey gang, let’s put on a show!” movie, all vision and enthusiasm and tons of raw energy. And project architect Bob Currie will be the first to tell you that it’s definitely a group undertaking; to date, it has involved the city of Delray Beach and its officials, the Beach Property Owners Association, the Community Redevelopment Agency, Northern Trust Bank, Ocean Properties and everyone involved in the planned talent-show fundraiser.
The only thing missing just now is the money to pull all this off.
The project? A brand new beach pavilion, down where Atlantic Avenue meets A1A and the ocean.

A rendering of Bob Currie’s design, a replica of the original 1927 Delray Beach pavilion, which was destroyed in a hurricane.

The idea is hardly a new one; it’s been envisioned and argued over and planned for, its need agreed upon, for years.
“It grew out of this frustration that this is our most important place in town, and it’s totally neglected,” Currie is saying, sitting on one of the half-dozen gray-painted benches that occupy the current pavilion. “Well, not totally neglected, but pretty neglected.”
He glances up and points out one of the flaws: “See, this is just a standard truss that you can buy in a store. And that” — he indicates the underside of the roof itself — “is just plywood.” The new pavilion, the one pictured in his hand-drawn rendering (“I’m a dinosaur,” he says, explaining his non-use of computer design-software) will employ “real dimensional lumber” and tongue-and-groove decking.
But such talk is putting the pavilion cart before the funding horse — Andy Katz, a vice president of the Beach Property Owners Association, says that “money seems to be guiding all city issues these days, for obvious reasons,” alluding to the economic woes that have kept city purse strings tight.
The BPOA itself has promised $10,000 toward the project, its estimated total cost about $240,000.
In hopes of closing that yawning gap, the city will host, on March 10 at the Crest Theater, “Delray’s Got Talent,” an event described in the press release sent by the BPOA’s Susan Hurlbert as “a red-carpet evening of music … headlining many of the best classical, jazz, country and rock ’n’ roll performers in the area.”
The $100 tickets are available through Old School Square.
The project specifics grew out of the Beach Area Master Plan charrette, emceed by Perry King Neubauer and held at the Marriott in November 2009:
The pavilion is Phase One of an overall overhaul of the beach area. Replacing benches and trashcans and beach showers with classier versions. Trading coin parking meters for, perhaps, the pay-by-numbered-space style. Designing dual paths for walkers and bike riders. Redoing signage in the area.
In August, the city accepted the plan.
The pavilion itself will be a replica of the original 1927 pavilion, which cost $720 to build and succumbed, not long afterward, to a hurricane. Its updated descendant will be built to withstand a Category 5 storm, a green-and-white-striped aluminum roof that will look like but outperform its canvas ancestor.
“Oh, but you know what the most important thing is?” the architect asks, before answering his own question. “People want to see the ocean. You want to come here and you want NOT to be in Kansas. You want to see the ocean.”
The man working to ensure that ocean view is working gratis. “It’s my town,” Currie  says. “I’ve been here for 40 years, and this town’s been good to me.” And he to it. Among his many architectural projects: Caffe Luna Rosa, the original Marriott hotel, Berkshire by the Sea, the Waterway East offices, Veteran’s Park, Old School Square, the Sundy House restaurant, Delray’s City Hall.
The timeline for the beach-area renovation remains somewhat flexible, dependent on the tides of good fortune — of the spendable kind.
“We’re hoping in the one- to two-year horizon for the pavilion” — a kind of project kick-start, says Katz, “to set the tone for the rest of the work.”
And the determination is there that this show must go on. Its architect and all those involved can see it clearly:
the new made old again.   

IF YOU GO
WHAT: “Delray’s Got Talent,” a limited-seating fundraiser for the new Beach Pavilion
WHEN: March 10
WHERE: Crest Theatre, Old School Square
HOW MUCH:  Tickets are $100, available through Old School Square
FOR MORE INFO: Call 243-7922

It maybe snow season up North, but it’s municipal election season in Palm Beach County.    
Since it’s hard to tell the candidates apart without a candidate forum, several have been scheduled in south county municipalities where elections are expected to be contested.
With any luck, the candidates will wear name tags.
The nonpartisan League of Women Voters of Palm Beach County is sponsoring two forums, possibly more, if the field of candidates warrants it.

OCEAN RIDGE: Feb. 24, Town Hall commission chambers, 6450 N. Ocean Blvd., 7 p.m.
LANTANA: Two candidate events are on the calendar, both on Feb. 24. The Greater Lantana Chamber of Commerce will sponsor a 7 p.m. forum at the Old Key Lime House restaurant at 300 E. Ocean Ave. Earlier in the day, the Friends of the Library is the host for a forum at the Lantana Public Library, 205 W. Ocean Ave.
Election Day for all county municipalities is March 8.