The Delray Beach water treatment plant, a few blocks south of downtown, has not received a major upgrade since the early 1990s. The city says it plans to improve cleaning and other maintenance at the aging plant, watching for trouble more closely than ever before. Google map image

Related story: Utility director: ‘Safest reclaimed water system in country’ once all service is restored

By Rich Pollack and Jane Smith

One morning in late March residents throughout a large portion of Delray Beach woke up to find water coming out of their taps that just wasn’t right.
Some complained of a yellowish or reddish tint to the water while others complained of a strong odor.
Residents Reeve and Anne Bright noticed that even the ice coming out of their ice maker looked strange.
“There was black and brown stuff, like little pieces of dirt, that came out with it,” Reeve Bright said.
Concerned, the Brights threw away the ice. They now suspect the discoloration may have been the result of a series of system failures at Delray Beach’s water treatment facilities that resulted in what the industry refers to as a “slug” getting into the city water lines.
A “slug” is sediment that gathers at the bottom of storage tanks and is unintentionally released. It does not generally pose a health threat to those using the water, according to people in the water treatment industry.
“It’s not unhealthy, it’s just visually unacceptable,” says Chris Helfrich, Boca Raton’s director of utilities. “It’s not common, but it’s something that happens more than it’s advertised.”
Still, the slug that made it into Delray Beach’s drinking water on March 27 may have helped to bring attention to maintenance and operational issues plaguing Delray Beach’s aging water plant — which has not seen a major upgrade since the early 1990s.
Correspondence between members of the city’s Utilities Department and county health officials responsible for ensuring state regulations for safe drinking water are followed, as well as internal city documents, detail how a series of malfunctions and missteps led to the unwanted release of sediment in March.
These documents, along with reports filed by health inspectors, highlight maintenance issues that likely contributed to the release of the discolored water. These issues were a concern to regulators.
Since the appearance of the slug, the city has taken a series of steps to address a variety of issues, including long overdue cleaning or the scheduling of cleaning of groundwater storage tanks and repairing malfunctioning equipment.
In June, Hassan Hadjimiry came on board as Delray Beach’s utilities director, filling a spot that had been vacant for 14 months since the departure of Marjorie Craig in April 2019.
Hadjimiry, who had been deputy director for the Palm Beach County Water Utilities Department, is well respected by utility directors in Delray Beach’s neighboring communities.
With the departure earlier this year of the water plant manager and a supervisor, one of the city’s deputy directors of utilities has been given expanded oversight of the plant’s day-to-day operations.
“We’re watching the plant much, much more than ever before,” says Hadjimiry.
The city also has sent out notices and used social media to assure residents that the drinking water is safe. On its website, the city points out that the water is tested daily and assures compliance with all state safe drinking water regulations.
“The water we send out meets all state standards,” Hadjimiry said.

Sediment in the water
It was about 10:30 p.m. March 26 when a telemetry system, which uses an automated communication process to collect and send remote data, failed to forward real-time information about a storage tank abnormality to plant operators, according to information provided by the city.
A low-level shut-off system at the groundwater storage tank serving the city’s north side also failed to work properly, allowing water levels in the tank to drop to about 3 feet, far below the normal 7- to 12-foot level, according to the city.
When that occurred, sediment that accumulated at the bottom of the tank seeped into the drinking water.
The plant operator at the time noticed that the telemetry system was not working but didn’t visibly inspect the tank, according to Deputy Utilities Director Bryan Heller.
The problem was not noticed until 7 a.m. the next day when the day shift came in, and city utility leaders didn’t become aware of the issue until after residents began calling to complain about cloudy or discolored water, according to information obtained from the city.
The Utilities Department was able to move the water from the north storage tank to another tank and discharge it into a pond from there.
Heller said that senior utilities department managers were not notified of the incident shortly after it was discovered. He said that had the information been forwarded sooner, hydrants could have been flushed before the slug reached customers.
A notice was sent to residents of the north end of the city, who were told that the water was safe but not treated to the city’s color and taste standards. The city advised residents who continued to have problems to run their water for about 10 minutes and flush the system.
The sediment that entered into water lines was likely from an accumulation at the bottom of the storage tank of tiny particles of minerals found in water, particularly lime, which is used in the city’s lime softening treatment operation.
“There’s nothing in that tank that isn’t already in the water,” said Colin Groff, Boynton Beach’s assistant city manager for public services, who oversees water treatment operations.

Maintenance issues
What may have been an issue in Delray Beach, however, is the quantity of the sediment in the tank — which has a capacity of about 2 million gallons — and how long it had been there.
Under state Department of Environmental Protection regulations, groundwater storage tanks must be inspected and cleaned every five years. Yet in an April 20 memo to then-City Manager George Gretsas through an assistant city manager, Heller wrote that the slug may have been caused by noncompliance.
“The sediment was the result of the north storage tank having not been cleaned every five years as required by regulation,” Heller wrote in the memo, in which he recommended disciplinary action against then-water plant manager John Bullard.
In the memo, Heller also noted that two other water storage tanks at the main water plant did not appear to have been cleaned every five years.
The memo also makes reference to a failure of the water plant operations team to clean the clear well — a large tank below a series of filters that contains water as it flows through the treatment process. The clear well, however, is not subject to the same five-year inspection requirements as are water storage tanks.
“The tank inspection report for the clear well, dated May 12, 2016, specifically indicates the presence of ‘large accumulations of silt, sediment, and other debris. This accumulation of debris should be removed immediately to help prevent future water quality testing issues,’” Heller wrote. “When Bullard was questioned about the clear well sludge, he indicated it had not been cleaned since 1972.”
The city since has cleaned the north tank and has scheduled cleanings of the two south tanks at the end of this year or early next year. It also has scheduled the cleaning of the clear well, which is expected to take a week and should not interfere with service to residents.
Bullard, who started with the city in 1982 and became water treatment plant manager in 2000, resigned at the request of the city manager on May 6, according to Heller. A supervisor and operator involved in the incident both resigned on their own, Heller said.
Delray Beach utilities also made several corrections after a December 2019 state-mandated “sanitary survey” by the health department found 27 deficiencies in five areas. That number is considered high, according to utilities directors from other communities, but they say most of the deficiencies didn’t affect water quality issues.
Three of the deficiencies were considered significant. They included several wells not properly sealed, filter walls leaking and vents missing proper screens, city records show.
In a Feb. 13, 2020, memo, Heller addressed each of the issues and documented improvements to the three significant issues as well as all others, which ranged from labeling unmarked chemical storage areas to removing algae and bio-growth from exterior portions of the plant.
In neighboring communities, utilities keep regular maintenance schedules to ensure tanks are clean and sediment is removed. Boynton, for example, does not wait for the five-year intervals as required by state regulations to do maintenance on tanks.
“We clean our tanks when they need to be cleaned,” Groff said.
Both Boynton Beach and Boca Raton have been through major upgrades to their water treatment and distribution systems, with Boynton Beach spending about $55 million for a renovation and increased capacity in 2017 and Boca Raton spending about $20 million on a water system upgrade within the past five years.
Delray Beach has not done a major upgrade at its plant for more than two decades, but Hadjimiry says the department is planning significant improvements in the next year, including replacing major filters used in the lime softening process that are critical in assuring high water quality.
He said the department is also focused on preventive maintenance and building an inventory of spare parts.
Although an engineering study authorized by the City Commission in 2019 found that a new plant using reverse osmosis and nano-filter technology could be built for as much as $132 million, Hadjimiry says he is leaving the door open as to what should be done with the plant and is exploring all options.
“Right now we’re looking at determining what is the most we can do with what we have in order to get the best quality of water,” he said.

I stepped on a bee. A tiny, industrious bee. This stinging encounter — on the beach, of all places — put me into bed for a day with a purple, swollen foot iced-down and elevated on a pillow.
The bee died, of course, so obviously its experience was worse than mine. In my case, Benadryl cream worked wonders, and I was back on my feet the following day. I didn’t even miss a day at work, but it got me thinking:
What if I couldn’t wear flip-flops to the office, but instead had to pull on steel-toed work boots, or lace up foam-soled nurses’ shoes or slog through damp places in rubber waders?
What if I didn’t get paid if I didn’t put on that footwear and punch the time-clock?
What if one brief encounter with an angry bee had kept me home for a day and made it difficult to pay the rent or the phone bill or buy groceries? Even one day’s pay makes a big difference to people living paycheck-to-paycheck.
And right now, that may be many more people than we here realize.
As Labor Day comes around, I’m thinking of all the people who put on work shoes, masks and other COVID protection to go to work and allow our community to feel “normal” in very abnormal times.
In this edition, you’ll meet some of these hardworking people. In their professions, they see the best of us and the worst — especially during trying times. I am grateful for their efforts to keep us healthy, safe and informed during this unprecedented pandemic.
This Labor Day, as you’re making plans for your own long weekend, please pause for a moment and say “thank you” to our neighbors on the front lines.
And if you make it over to the beach, be sure to watch where you step. …

— Mary Kate Leming, Editor

Steven Bernstein and instructor Sayra Vazquez-Brann show one of their dance moves. Tim Stepien/The Coastal Star

By Mary Thurwachter

Steven E. Bernstein conquered the corporate world a few decades ago. The company he started in 1989 — SBA Communications Corp. — owns and leases communications towers to the cellular and wireless industry.
SBA went public in 1999 at $9 per share on Nasdaq. Today, the company owns more than 30,000 towers in 12 countries, has more than 1,000 employees, boasts revenues approaching $2 billion and has a stock price of about $240 per share.
But how will this savvy Highland Beach businessman — chairman of the board at SBA — fare on the dance floor Sept. 26 as one of eight contestants in the Ballroom Battle, a spinoff of Dancing With the Stars that raises money for the George Snow Scholarship Fund? The evening pits eight local dancers and their professional partners against each other for the Mirror Ball trophy, awarded to the top male and female fundraisers. 
“I can’t dance, have no rhythm and I’m not fond of dancing,” the exec admits. “But I’m always up for a challenge and a good cause and I’m dedicated to nailing it.”
To that end, Bernstein, 59, rehearses three times a week at the Fred Astaire Dance Studio in Boca Raton with his professional dance partner, Sayra Vazquez-Brann.
He is making strides, he says, but it’s not easy.
“I find it more of a mental workout than a physical workout because learning the steps and learning the routine and then improving that just takes time,” he says. “And when you’re not a natural at it, it just seems to take longer. But my instructor is great, and we are breaking it up into pieces and we’ve gone through the routine. Now we’re cleaning it up — meaning having the proper embellishments, the proper hand moves, the proper facial moves.”
This year, because of the pandemic, dancers are training while wearing masks.
“When you’re dancing and moving and breathing heavy and doing it with a mask on it adds another element,” Bernstein says.
Unlike previous years, the event will not be held at the Boca Resort ballroom. Instead, it will be televised live at 7 p.m. Sept. 26 from the WPTV-TV studios, with viewers calling in pledges for their favorite dancers.
Last year’s dance-off raised $650,000.
The whole process has given Bernstein, who was born in New York, a new respect for dancers. Tennis or golf is more his style.
“Being a dancer is one heck of a sport,” he says. “You’re an athlete if you’re a dancer, but it’s so underrated. There’s a lot of work to dance. My hat’s off to anybody who does dance as a profession.”
Dancing is only part of what it takes to win the Ballroom Battle. The other is fundraising, something Bernstein finds much less arduous. By the end of July, he had already collected more than $70,000 in pledges. His goal is $100,000 — and he intends to match every dollar he raises, so if he meets his goal, he’ll have amassed an impressive — perhaps record-breaking — $200,000.
He doesn’t really care about winning, he insists, but he does care about giving back to the community, especially children. His foundation, the Steven E. Bernstein Family Foundation, has been the most rewarding part of his journey, he says. He and his daughter Abby run it.
“The philosophy of the foundation is not to just give money where it is needed, but to give of your time,” Bernstein says. The foundation has donated to many nonprofit organizations, and Bernstein sits, or has sat, on the boards of several local charities.
Bernstein, who is single, received his bachelor of science degree in business administration with a major in real estate at the University of Florida and has served as an adjunct professor at Lynn University.
The other dancers are Boca Raton attorney Robin Bresky, Dr. Gwenesia S. Collins from Boca Raton Regional Hospital, William Donnell of NCCI, Tara Lucier of integrated supply chain company Inspirage, Kirsten Stanley of Tammy Fender Holistic Skin Care, Kyle Stewart of Wells Fargo and Ross O’Connor, a financial adviser at Morgan Stanley.

Ballroom Battle
What: Eight community leaders compete in a ballroom dance competition paired with professional dancers from Fred Astaire Dance Studios.
When: 7 p.m. Sept. 26
Where: Broadcast on WPTV Ch. 5 and livestreamed on WPTV and George Snow Scholarship Fund websites.
Donations: To financially support to your favorite dancer or purchase raffle tickets, visit scholarship.org/ballroom-battle/
Info: 561-347-6799 or scholarship.org/ballroom-battle/

The Coastal Star brought home top honors in breaking news, local government reporting, sports photography and sports coverage in this year’s Weekly Newspaper Contest sponsored by the Florida Press Association.
The newspaper also collected five second-place awards and seven third-place awards.
First-place trophies went to the staff and Ron Hayes in the breaking news story category for Hurricane Dorian coverage; to Jane Smith and Rich Pollack in local government reporting for their work on Delray Beach city managers; to Publisher Jerry Lower in the sports photo category for a surfing image; and to Willie Howard and Brian Biggane in the sports page or section category for stories on the outdoors, a college baseball player from Ocean Ridge and tennis in Delray Beach, including teenage phenom Cori “Coco” Gauff.
Coming in second place were: Tracy Allerton, page design; Rachel O’Hara, feature photo; Rich Pollack, Mary Thurwachter and Arden Moore, best obituary; Cheryl Blackerby, agricultural and environmental reporting; and Jan Engoren, arts, entertainment and review.
In third place were: staff, overall graphic design; Tim Stepien, portfolio photography; Mary Hladky and Jane Smith, business reporting; Charles Elmore, roads and transportation; Gretel Sarmiento, arts, entertainment and review; Rich Pollack, in-depth reporting (non-investigative); and Executive Editor Mary Kate Leming, serious column.
The Tallahassee-based press association announced the awards on July 31. The Coastal Star competed in Division A for the state’s largest weekly and monthly newspapers with a circulation of more than 13,000.
— Steve Plunkett

By Dan Moffett

In March, South Palm Beach voters overwhelmingly approved a charter amendment that gave the mayor the power to declare emergencies.
When the Town Council debated putting the referendum on the ballot late last year, the thinking was the charter change would allow town officials the latitude to react quickly to natural disasters — hurricanes, in particular.
No one saw the COVID-19 pandemic coming, however.
Now the council is poised to take a second look at the measure to see how to adapt it to deal with a broader range of emergencies beyond storms.
“It has to be reshaped and discussed,” Vice Mayor Robert Gottlieb said during the council’s meeting on Aug. 11.
“We don’t want to rescind it,” said Mayor Bonnie Fischer. “We want to revise and rewrite it.”
Councilman Ray McMillan, who won his seat in the March election, has complained that the mayor’s declaration of emergency has resulted in transferring too much power to the town manager.
Fischer declared a state of emergency shortly after the election because of COVID-19. The council approved it in a resolution that gave the manager the authority to suspend town meetings and activities, reschedule events and close Town Hall, until the mayor declares the emergency ended.
“One person has a whole lot of power,” McMillan said of the manager.
“And I have used the power very judiciously,” said Manager Robert Kellogg, who told the council he wouldn’t hesitate to “shut down Town Hall for the safety of the staff” again.
The mayor said the council should have a role in making decisions related to emergencies, and the language in the charter change doesn’t cover this.
“We need to provide some oversight,” Fischer said. “I don’t think we’re serving the town’s people if we have one person managing every aspect of the town.”
Town Attorney Glen Torcivia told the council he would look at possible revisions that might give the council more control and make emergency declarations flexible enough to deal with potentially long-running crises, such as the pandemic may be. The council expects to discuss the issue again at its regular meeting on Sept. 8.
In other business, council members, during budget workshops this summer, had approved setting the 2020-2021 tentative tax rate at last year’s level of $3.59 per $1,000 of taxable property value.
But that could change.
Gottlieb says he wants to push the rate lower and give taxpayers a break. “I’m in favor of a millage reduction as we have done in previous years,” the vice mayor said.
The council scheduled its first public budget hearing at 5:01 p.m. on Sept. 8. By law council members can reduce the proposed $3.59 millage between now and the beginning of the new fiscal year but cannot increase it.
Taxable values are up 22% in South Palm Beach, more than any other established municipality in Palm Beach County, thanks largely to the opening of 3550 South Ocean Boulevard, a $72 million luxury condo building.
The council has lowered the town’s tax rate in each of the last four years, Gottlieb said.

By Dan Moffett

Several Ocean Ridge commissioners have suggested that this could be the town’s most challenging budget year since the Great Recession.
That probably would have been the case even without the COVID-19 pandemic. But with the public health crisis, and the resulting depletion of state and county revenue contributions to the town, the fiscal picture gets more challenging still.
Ocean Ridge finds itself trying to close a $725,000 hole in the 2020-2021 budget. A resident sent a written question asking Town Manager Tracey Stevens what cuts the commission was looking at making.
Stevens answered with a long list of slashed expenses: travel, training, vehicle maintenance, postage, phone service, office supplies, uniforms, gas, oil, equipment, holiday event downsizing and yes, even electricity. Employees are mindful to turn off lights when they leave a room.
Ocean Ridge taxpayers do have some hopeful news, however. Stevens said the town could wind up with unspent dollars at the end of this fiscal year: “Stab in the dark, maybe $300,000, or maybe $250,000.”
That surplus could take a sizable chunk out of next year’s shortfall. Also, the town has been fiscally prudent for years. It has general fund assets that exceed committed expenses by about $5.4 million; in other words, plenty of financial firepower in reserve to easily cover next year’s rising costs.
Mayor Kristine de Haseth said one of her goals was to base the level of the town’s reserves more on the amount needed for emergency operation, such as disaster response, rather than adhering to a predetermined percentage of the overall budget. She said the town has made a “herculean” effort to reduce the looming deficit to where it is.
During their July workshop, commissioners agreed to continue the aggressive cost-cutting, keep the millage at last year’s $5.35 per $1,000 of taxable property value, and cover the shortfall from reserves.
With the town’s property values up about 4.26%, the proposed millage maximum is well above the rollback rate of $5.17 that would hold taxes flat year-over-year. The first public budget hearing is Sept. 8 at 5:01 p.m.
The increased expenses the town faces include:
• A proposed $395,000 for legal services, up about $250,000 or 172% over last year, largely because of civil litigation against Ocean Ridge and revisions to the town’s charter and codes.
• A proposed increase of about $127,000 or 3% over last year for police and fire-rescue services, caused by incremental hikes in contracts with Boynton Beach and the police union.
• A salary increase of about $26,000 for town administration, including a pay raise for the manager, who transitioned from an interim position to permanent status.
• About $45,000 in new costs for stormwater drainage improvements, landscaping and pest control, an increase of about 10% over last year.

In other business:
Ocean Ridge voters made a strong statement in the Florida primary on Aug. 18 that they like their town’s Police Department and aren’t in the market for mergers with outside agencies.
By an overwhelming margin, 87% to 13%, voters approved a charter amendment that makes it considerably more difficult to change the department’s independent makeup.
The new law requires a ballot referendum to approve a merger, and it requires a four-vote supermajority of the Town Commission to put the issue on the ballot in the first place.
“I’m delighted,” de Haseth said. “I totally support the voters having a voice in what happens to their Police Department.”
Turnout was relatively high as 567 residents voted, or 34%, compared with 26.5% overall in Palm Beach County.
• Town officials have spent weeks studying and debating what to do about code violators — in particular, residents who don’t cut back their coconut trees before storm season. Dozens of the trees are in violation, officials say, and many encroach on the town’s rights of way.
After a lengthy debate on Aug. 3, the commission unanimously voted to approve the second reading of an ordinance mandating coconut tree maintenance. However, commissioners also decided not to send violators to a magistrate hearing until staff develops a tiered plan for code enforcement penalties.
• In July, the town hired Durrani Guy, 45, as its new building official, replacing Wayne Cameron, who resigned to take a similar position in North Palm Beach.
Guy comes to Ocean Ridge from C.A.P. Government, the building services company that works for numerous South Florida municipalities. Guy has an associate’s degree in building environment from the Caribbean School of Architecture and two decades’ experience in the construction industry. Guy will earn $89,250 annually. Ú

By Charles Elmore

With a sped-up 2020 U.S. Census deadline fast approaching Sept. 30, 11 towns and cities along Palm Beach County’s southern coast risk what one mayor calls a “10-year hurt” as their response rates lag behind U.S. and Florida averages.
As of Aug. 23, response rates ranged as low as 42.4% for households in South Palm Beach, with Ocean Ridge and Highland Beach also under 50% and all 11 trailing Florida’s average of 60.9%, federal records showed. The U.S. average was 64.2%. 
Lantana stood at 52.5%. Its lowest response levels came in the town’s easternmost census tract in its Hypoluxo Island neighborhood, where the rate was 41.4%. 
The response snapshot can change with each passing day, but the stakes do not. Hanging in the balance is funding estimated at $1,600 lost annually for each person missed, for roads, schools, environmental and other programs, not to mention Florida’s chances to gain more seats in Congress. The effects last for a decade.
Lantana Mayor Dave Stewart had a message in an Aug. 24 meeting for any residents who have not acted because they don’t care or think it is not important.
“It’s going to hurt bad,” Stewart said. “It is a 10-year hurt, that’s what people don’t understand. We’re stuck with those numbers for 10 years.”
Among other enticements, Lantana is raffling off a 65-inch TV for residents who show proof of responding to the census.
“Our message to residents is RESPOND NOW,” Nicole Dritz, Lantana’s development services director, said in an email. “Don’t wait for the Sept. 30th deadline. If our residents respond now to the census, it will yield a favorable response rate for the town.”
A federal review concluded about 94,000 people who should have been counted in Palm Beach County, or 7.2% of its population, failed to make it on census rolls in 2010.
In an eventful 2020, it’s not immediately clear to local officials how much about the response rates can be explained by disruptions related to COVID-19, or seasonal residents who wound up in other places during the pandemic, or immigrants wary of being counted, or residents who are here but just forgot or did not bother.
“It’s hard to say at this time what impact COVID-19 will have on the reporting since everyone is trying to navigate these new waters,” Dritz said.
As of Aug. 23, Boca Raton showed a 60.8% response rate, within an eyelash of the state average.
“As a city we’re not lagging, but I’d prefer we be leading,” Mayor Scott Singer said. “That’s why the city has continued to communicate the importance of responding. It takes a minute online and will avoid the need for enumerators to visit your home.”
The 2020 census marks the first to allow wide-scale responses online as well as by mail or phone, but that had not raised overall participation rates by late August in southern Palm Beach County.
Things got even more urgent when the Census Bureau moved up the deadline for all self-responses as well as field visits by census workers to the end of September, a month earlier than previously announced.
“We will improve the speed of our count without sacrificing completeness,” U.S. Census Bureau Director Steven Dillingham said in a statement Aug. 3. “Under this plan, the Census Bureau intends to meet a similar level of household responses as collected in prior censuses, including outreach to hard-to-count communities.”
U.S. Senate minority leader Chuck Schumer questioned why officials were “rushing the census count in the middle of a pandemic” and called for an investigation into possible political pressure from the Trump administration. At a national level, Democrats have expressed concern that immigrants, lower-income residents and others might get undercounted on a faster timetable. At least one lawsuit by a coalition of urban groups has sought to extend the deadline.
But in South Florida this year, relatively affluent coastal communities are also struggling to reach their 2010 response rates.
Highland Beach, for example, showed a 45.6% response rate by Aug. 23, compared to 49.8% in 2010, according to 2020census.gov. 
Census officials did not respond to requests to discuss how well they have met local hiring goals for workers to check on non-responsive households, or whether any problems have occurred with handling responses online.
An oversight report prepared for Congress in February noted the Census Bureau had, fairly late in the process, changed to a backup online system after the first one struggled with high-volume testing.
Whatever the reasons, response rates in the region have lagged.
With little more than a month to go, Delray Beach (51.8%) trailed its final 2010 response rate (61.3%) by nearly 10 points.
There’s still time to change the numbers and things could look different as September unfolds. 
But as of Aug. 23, Briny Breezes (54.2%), Boynton Beach (58.7%), Gulf Stream (54.2%), Hypoluxo (50.9%), Manalapan (50.2%), and Ocean Ridge (48.2%) had yet to match their final 2010 self-response rates.

Mary Thurwachter and Mary Hladky contributed to this story.

More info
Check census response rates in your town:
https://2020census.gov/en/response-rates.html?
A statement about why census deadlines were moved one month earlier:
https://www.census.gov/newsroom/press-releases/2020/delivering-complete-accurate-count.html

By Steve Plunkett

Prompted in part by a wave of car thefts, the town will soon hire an additional police officer to combat crime.
Police Chief Edward Allen reported two cases of grand theft auto at the Town Commission’s July meeting. At the August meeting he said one had been recovered but three more were stolen, making a total of eight this year. Two other vehicles were burglarized.
“We’ve gone door to door really, requesting people, reminding them to be safe and remove their belongings and lock their cars,” Allen said.
Mayor Scott Morgan aimed some “finger-wagging” at residents who leave keys in their vehicles or leave them running or with doors open. Most late-model cars come with key fobs that make starting easy, he said.
“You leave it in the car — all you have to do is depress the brake and push a button and off they go,” the mayor said. “We find them driving down the road, we catch them on the cameras either north or south. But there’s nothing you can do after that point but locate the car at some point.”
Last year Gulf Stream had only one automobile stolen and in 2018 none, Morgan said.
The budget for fiscal 2021, which starts Oct. 1, includes $88,812 in salary and benefits for the new officer. The addition will allow three cruisers to be on patrol at the same time instead of two.
“That’s a 50% increase in coverage in our town,” Morgan said.
Commissioners also approved spending $28,058 from this year’s budget for 12 body cameras for its police force. Last year they set aside $25,000 to replace aging in-car cameras, but Allen and Town Manager Greg Dunham decided body cameras were more beneficial.
“With a car camera, if you do like a traffic stop and you step 2 feet out of the range, you’re out of the picture, you have no more picture at all,” Allen said. A body camera “stays with the person.”
Commissioners also set a tentative tax rate for the coming fiscal year at the rollback rate, $3.76 per $1,000 of taxable value. It was the fifth year in a row they have set taxes either at or below the rollback rate. The levy will generate $4.6 million for town operations, the same amount as the current fiscal year.
Big-ticket items include $200,000 for “smart” water meters and $200,778 for planning road and drainage work in the north Core area, part of the 10-year capital improvement plan. Virtual public hearings on the 2020-2021 budget will be at 5:01 p.m. on Sept. 11 and Sept. 22.
In other business, commissioners learned that the new water main on State Road A1A from Golfview Drive to Sea Road would need to go under the southbound lane instead of next to the highway. The area between the road and Gulf Stream’s Australian pines was too crowded with other utilities, their engineering consultant said. The entire lane will be resurfaced as part of the project.

By Jane Smith

Delray Beach commissioners sent staff back to find more cost savings at an Aug. 11 budget workshop, even though the interim city manager advised that additional cuts could lead to layoffs. Commissioners were against using reserve money to cover the entire $9 million budget shortfall.
The commission was opposed to balancing the proposed $151.1 million budget by raiding the reserves by about $4 million to pay for ongoing operations. But they did agree to take about $4.6 million from reserves to pay for one-time expenses, such as the proposed $1.05 million software purchase that will allow the city to begin doing online permitting.
City staff had found $4.6 million in possible cuts, interim City Manager Jennifer Alvarez told commissioners, and suggested dipping into the reserves to cover the additional $4.4 million in operating costs to make up the difference.
“We went back to the departments and asked them to cut more,” Alvarez said. “We have a hiring freeze, trimmed contracts and reduced travel and training budgets.
“We may have to cut jobs to get it down (more),” Alvarez added. “It is what it is.”
The reserves fund is expected to hold an estimated $39.3 million at the start of the next budget year, Oct. 1.
The commission, though, insisted more cuts could be made.
“We still don’t know all of the COVID effects on our economy,” said Mayor Shelly Petrolia. Delray Beach and other cities statewide shut down on March 13 with gradual reopenings. Palm Beach County has a mandatory mask ordinance as part of the reopening, with restaurants and shops limited to 50% capacity during Phase 1.
“The timing is wrong to raid the reserves, which should be about 25%” of the general fund, Petrolia said. “We do not have to have that level, but it is proper to carry that much because we are sitting along the coast and subject to hurricanes.”
She pointed out that the city has been waiting nearly four years for reimbursement for Hurricane Matthew expenses. The hurricane brushed the coastline in October 2016.
Finance Director Marie Kalka said the coronavirus has cut into sales tax revenue by at least 15% during the current budget year, with impacts continuing into next year’s budget. Parking revenue is down by $960,000 this budget year, she said. The fee for metered parking was eliminated during the initial COVID-19-related closings, but the commission is considering charging again.
Commissioner Adam Frankel suggested that staff go line-by-line through the budget to determine “what is necessary and what is a luxury.”
Deputy Vice Mayor Shirley Johnson said a $1 million economic development fund, not used since 2012, could be diverted to the general budget.
Commissioner Juli Casale applauded the Police Department because it is asking for only a 3.1% increase.
But she was unhappy that the Fire Department wants 12.8% more for the next financial year. Casale said cuts could be found in that department.
She compared Boynton Beach to Delray Beach in terms of size — both are approximately 16 square miles. Boynton Beach has 10,000 more residents. To make her point, she cited the number of battalion chiefs and captains each fire department has. Delray Beach has 42 battalion chiefs and captains, while Boynton Beach has 17 total.
Then, Casale launched into a critique of the SAFER (Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response) grant from the Federal Emergency Management Agency. She called the grant “flawed and deceptive. We traded our hiring authority for five years for a $1.6 million grant.”
The grant covers partial salaries of eight firefighter-paramedics and expires in three years. But the grant requires the city to maintain the firefighter staffing level for five of the eight for two years beyond the grant period.
That’s one reason Casale and Petrolia voted against accepting the grant retroactively in May. At the time, they were told four of the hires would be assigned to the Highland Beach station.
But the town of Highland Beach did not want the four extra firefighters because it could not afford the increased cost, Casale said.
Kalka told commissioners that FEMA gave them a one-year reprieve from not hiring five of the eight positions, saving the city $305,000. But the city will be required to retain the positions the following year.
Both health insurance and pension costs are rising in Delray Beach, which has a large impact on budget planning.
Health insurance will increase by $1.35 million, Kalka said, and union negotiations would be required to change how insurance plans are structured.
“To increase employee contributions, the extra cost would have to be negotiated by our unions,” she said.
Pension costs are another big-ticket item in the budget. Pension costs for police and fire went up $2.03 million because of reduced rates of return on investments, Kalka said. The city is funding only about 60% of its retirement funds, she said.
Even so, the forecast for the next budget year is not entirely gloomy.
The city will still put up its 100-foot Christmas tree, Alvarez said. But the surrounding events may be canceled because of COVID-19 restrictions on crowd size.
In July, the commission approved using $2.3 million from the reserves to cover unexpected shortfalls in the current budget year that ends Sept. 30. Most of the expenses were from coronavirus-related impacts.
The city’s revenue was also reduced by franchise fees that it had to reimburse.

By Steve Plunkett

Building a municipal sewer system will cost the town at least $11.2 million, Gulf Stream’s engineering consultants say.
But the price does not include roughly $5 million to take over about 250 privately owned low-pressure “grinder pump basins” that now service the town’s core district, said Jockey Prinyavivatkul, the project manager at Baxter and Woodman Consulting Engineers.
Those pumps send sewage to Boynton Beach for treatment via a 10-inch force main under the Intracoastal. In Baxter and Woodman’s plan, the 10-inch main would be upgraded to also handle waste from the area east of State Road A1A from the Gulf Stream Golf Club to Sea Road.
Sewage from the south part of the town and from Place Au Soleil would be treated by Delray Beach under the plan.
The new townwide system would also need approximately 35,000 linear feet of low-pressure mains, 2,000 linear feet of force mains and pump upgrades at three lift stations in Delray Beach.
Baxter and Woodman also looked at installing a gravity sewer system — the most common type but in Gulf Stream’s case also the most expensive — and a vacuum system that would have required three vacuum pump stations each the size of a small house.
“Imagine a 2,000-square-foot home with a basement, OK? So this is significant,” Prinyavivatkul said.
Town commissioners made no decision at their Aug. 14 meeting on how to proceed with a sewer project. But Commissioner Paul Lyons asked whether the work could be done at the same time roads are being rebuilt and was assured that it was possible.
Gulf Stream is in its second year of a 10-year, $10 million capital improvement plan for streets and water pipes — and now is installing a new water main along the northern part of A1A.
In other business:
• The town will put “No Parking” signs at the western end of Golfview Drive to deter people from hopping over the guardrail to fish in the Intracoastal Waterway. “It’s not constructed to have safe fishing like that in that area. I mean there’s huge boulders and rocks there,” Town Manager Greg Dunham said.
• Gulf Stream will again hire Nowlen, Holt and Miner as its outside auditor. The firm has audited the town since 2000, and state law required that the contract go out to bid again after 20 years. Lyons, Manalapan Town Manager Linda Stumpf and Ocean Ridge Town Manager Tracey Stevens made up the auditor selection committee and reviewed two bids. The county Office of Inspector General scolded Gulf Stream in 2018 for renewing Nowlen, Holt’s contract four times without competitive bidding.

By Dan Moffett

Manalapan’s high property values likely won’t be enough to insulate the town from a modest increase in the tax rate for the next fiscal year.
Like all Florida munici-palities, Manalapan faces a reduction in state and county revenue streams because of economic damage done by the COVID-19 pandemic.
But the biggest hit to the town’s budget comes from its neighbor to the north.
This year South Palm Beach’s property values shot up 22% because of the opening of the $70 million 3550 South Ocean building and its 30 luxury condos. While South Palm had the county’s highest valuation increase, Manalapan had the lowest at a mere 1.23%.
The impact of the South Palm condo opening on Manalapan is a significant increase in the cost of paying for fire rescue services from Palm Beach County. The town and South Palm Beach partner on the same contract with the county, and it has an annual price tag based on property values. So, next fiscal year, the two towns’ taxpayers will have to split evenly a bill for about $3 million from the county. For Manalapan, that $1.5 million represents a $274,402 increase over last year. “I have no control over the fire rescue cost,” Town Manager Linda Stumpf told commissioners during their July budget meeting. “There’s nothing I can do about reducing that number.”
To cover the fire rescue increase, the Town Commission is considering raising the current property tax rate of $3.03 per $1,000 of taxable value to about $3.17 and taking roughly $175,000 from reserves to balance the 2020-2021 budget.
“My personal preference is not to raise the millage rate at all,” said Mayor Keith Waters. “I call that the September goal.”
Waters and the commis-sioners grudgingly approved a tentative millage maximum rate of $3.30 per $1,000 of valuation and set the first public budget hearing for Sept. 18 at 5:01 p.m. The commission held no meeting in August.
Stumpf anticipates Manalapan’s final rate to come in significantly lower, probably at around $3.17. The rollback number, the rate that would hold taxes flat year-over-year, is $3.01. She expects the current budget year to end with a surplus of about $370,000, so there should be plenty of cash on hand to patch the holes in next year’s fiscal plan.
The new proposed budget includes a 3% raise for town employees and covers the full staffing of the Police Department, which has undergone a major expansion over the last two years.
In other business, commissioners unanimously approved an ordinance that revises the town’s rules on signs.
The changes set new requirements for the size and placement of signs and satisfy constitutional concerns, said Town Attorney Keith Davis.
“The main thrust of the ordinance is to deal with temporary signs,” Davis said.
Commissioners wanted to complete the changes before the election season, when the placement and size of campaign signs have often raised complaints in previous years.

By Dan Moffett

When it comes to preparing municipal budgets, Bill Thrasher has seen about every extreme South Florida has to offer.
Before taking over as Briny Breezes town manager in January, Thrasher spent 21 years as the manager next door in Gulf Stream, one of the state’s most affluent enclaves. Before that, he started his career in government as the financial director of Pahokee, a hardscrabble town next to Lake Okeechobee.
Now Thrasher has to deal with Briny’s unusual marriage of municipal and corporate interests as the mobile home community tries to navigate through a period of often uncertain property valuations and unreliable revenue streams.
The COVID-19 pandemic added one more complication. Like municipalities across the state, Briny faces loss of revenue-sharing funds from state and county taxes because of coronavirus damage to the economy.
“We are targeting certain revenues to come in below the actual figures of 2019,” Thrasher said. “I don’t think anybody really has a clear idea of the financial effect this COVID-19 is going to have on all aspects of budgets and forecasting.”
Because of COVID-19, county sales tax revenue is likely to be down from about $35,000 last year to $25,000. Revenue sharing from the state is also estimated lower.
Even with the losses, Briny has some costly repairs to make. The town has seven lift stations that pump stormwater from streets and need a major overhaul.
The work took on new urgency with the construction of the Gulf Stream Views townhouse project along Briny Breezes Boulevard.
Residents in Briny Breezes and the County Pocket say the development has significantly contributed to worsening drainage problems in the neighborhood. In May, thunderstorms sent torrents of rainwater off the elevated property, flooding adjacent streets and yards.
The cost of repairing and rebuilding each lift station runs between $10,000 and $15,000, and the council wants to phase in the work over the next several years.
“It would be nice to make sure all of them are in tiptop condition,” Thrasher said of the stations during the council’s meeting on July 23. “I think this is a priority.”
Briny has maintained the maximum tax rate of $10 per $1,000 of taxable value since 2009. The town counts on a contribution from the Briny corporation to cover its largest operational costs.
The corporation is expected to pay about 36% of the $192,300 bill for police services from Ocean Ridge and 36% of $417,451 for fire rescue services from Boynton Beach.
Briny’s property values were up 11.1% year-over-year, one of the largest increases among Palm Beach County municipalities.
“This is a positive thing we have that’s going to help us offset some of our losses,” Thrasher said.
Briny plans to use some of the $60,000 set aside for legal services to pay lobbyists in Tallahassee to seek grants and persuade legislators to give more relief assistance to smaller municipalities.
“We’re going to have increased expenditures to lobby for things we might get paid back on in the future,” Mayor Gene Adams told Thrasher. “I support the direction you’re moving in fully.”
During the town’s monthly meeting on Aug. 27, the council scheduled a first hearing on the tentative budget for 5:01 p.m. on Sept. 10 and a final budget hearing for 5:01 p.m. on Sept. 25.Ú

By Jane Smith

Delray Beach city commissioners unanimously levied nine misconduct charges against suspended City Manager George Gretsas at their Aug. 24 special meeting.
The charges, though, do not include the bullying and intimidation accusations that led to his suspension on June 24. Gretsas allegedly badgered Assistant City Manager Suzanne Fisher so much that she went on medical leave May 15.
The new charges were made because the city was following the terms of its contract with Gretsas, City Attorney Lynn Gelin said. In October 2019, she had warned the commission of his lengthy termination process: notice to terminate, meeting 60 days later to decide written charges and then a special hearing 60 days later. He refused to come to Delray Beach without them, Gelin said. The City Commission plans to hold the public hearing at 10 a.m. Oct. 23.
Gelin outlined some of the charges against Gretsas:
• Improperly hired two people he knew at inflated salaries without going through the city’s hiring process and providing written justification for paying them extra.
• Created potential violations of the state’s Public Records Act by installing a private network in his office, outside the administration of the city’s Information Technology Department. The department should have been involved to maintain the safety and security of the city’s information.
• Wrote a 66-page presentation on Fisher that violated her privacy rights. Gretsas shared that document with certain staff members and one leaked it to the media.
• Created a television studio at the Arts Garage, a city-owned property, to broadcast daily updates on the COVID-19 pandemic. To outfit the studio, Gretsas directed staff to buy various pieces of equipment, costing more than $25,000 total. Even though it was an emergency, Gretsas did not document the reasons for the studio.
• Sent a 12-page letter on July 31 to the mayor and city commissioners, bashing Fisher, the reclaimed water program and the drinking water system. Fisher had supervised the Utilities Department. He wrongly compared the city drinking water quality to that of Flint, Michigan, where lead was found in the water. Gretsas widely distributed that letter to Delray Beach residents, who became fearful of drinking city water.
“The uncovering of what we have found is just mind-blowing,” Mayor Shelly Petrolia said. “I can’t understand how someone — in just six months — can get in so deep into the dark areas of nondisclosure.”
Gretsas joined Delray Beach on Jan. 6. He is the fifth city manager in just eight years. The previous city manager, Mark Lauzier, was fired on March 1, 2019. He sued the city for breach of contract and filed a whistleblower’s complaint on April 29, 2019. The whistleblower’s complaint was dismissed, but the breach of contract count is proceeding.
“The machine gun is now aimed at me,” Gretsas said Aug. 25. “This (proceeding) damages my reputation and creates a revolving door of city managers. … The constant turnover is very damaging to the public.”
His attorney, Carmen Rodriguez, spoke at the Aug. 24 meeting.
“The computer was purchased and installed through the city,” she said. “You all have private networks, too. It’s called a cellphone.”
Rodriguez called the charges administrative issues, not fireable offenses. “They are more Mother-May-I issues,” she said, referencing the kids game of asking for permission before moving.
The commission had voted on June 24 to suspend Gretsas, based on a summary of an investigation into bullying and intimidation charges brought up by Fisher. The vote was 3-2.
Fisher has since agreed to resign from the city on Sept. 7. Her attorney negotiated a separation package that includes payment for all her unused vacation days and 50% of her unused sick time. Until she leaves, she will be paid her salary of $165,692.80. In return, Fisher agreed to not bash the city.
Vice Mayor Ryan Boylston and Commissioner Adam Frankel initially voted against suspending Gretsas. Both wanted the bullying accusation included in the charges.
The June investigation into Fisher’s complaint “created a divisive and disruptive environment. It became a situation of whose team you are on,” Gelin said. “Why put the city in a negative light when you have policy violations that are valid?”
Then, she added, “It’s up to the commission whether to include the bullying charges.”
The city issued a news release about staff intimidation after the June 24 meeting, but it is not legally binding, Gelin said.
“On July 7, the commission directed its internal auditor to lead the investigation,” Gelin said, referring to Julia Davidyan.
Frankel called the whole process “troubling.”
“We are here because of the bullying allegations. I understand Gelin’s point that to add that charge would be too much stress on staff in the middle of a pandemic,” he said, then told Rodriguez, “But I believe your client’s due process rights have been violated.”
Davidyan cautioned about looking at just one charge. “Gretsas had a pattern of ignoring policies,” she said.
As an example, she said, Gretsas had installed the Basecamp software program on his computer to discourage public access.
The project management program assigns tasks and deadlines to individuals and alerts the manager about the status of projects, including deadlines.
“After 30 days, all projects are deleted from their servers,” Davidyan said she learned after emailing the Basecamp customer service people in the UK.
“She must not have asked the right question,” Gretsas said on Aug. 25. “Basecamp has an archive function and it is searchable.”
Boylston, who uses Basecamp daily in his marketing business, asked Gelin for some examples of public records not being filled because they were not accessible in Basecamp. Gelin said she would search for an example before the Oct. 23 hearing.
Gretsas said he has emails with the then-purchasing director about buying TV studio equipment quickly. She suggested an out-of-state vendor with the lowest price, but it would be held up in the mail because the Postal Service has special conditions for mailing electronics with lithium-ion batteries installed.
Staff then used the city’s purchase cards to buy the equipment locally, Gretsas said.
Gretsas continues to receive his $265,000 salary until his hearing Oct. 23.
“I don’t see a genuine acceptance of the magnitude of this proceeding,” Rodriguez said Aug. 24. “It’s absurd to say we’re going to give you notice that we intend to fire you and then we will figure out the charges.”

By Rich Pollack

Faced with another year of rising costs for fire rescue service from Delray Beach, Highland Beach is once again exploring alternatives to the multimillion-dollar annual contract with the neighboring city, including starting its own fire department.
During an August meeting, town commissioners agreed to pay $40,000 to have California-based Matrix Consulting Group look into the feasibility of Highland Beach providing its own fire department or having a hybrid system where it receives some services from a private provider.
“What we’re looking for is an appropriately funded fire-rescue response,” Town Manager Marshall Labadie said. “The costs should be proportional to the services provided.”
Since signing a new 10-year contract with Delray Beach for fire service in 2016, Highland Beach officials have raised concern about continued escalating costs that they fear could be unsustainable.
During fiscal 2019, for example, costs for service jumped 8.6% to $4.26 million. During fiscal 2020 costs are expected to increase by about 5% to $4.47 million. And for the upcoming fiscal 2021, costs are expected to jump between 5% and 7% to $4.78 million.
Following a presentation by Robert Finn, a lead analyst for Matrix Consulting, commissioners agreed that looking at alternatives to fire service from Delray was a necessary step.
“We have no choice,” said Mayor Doug Hillman. “We’re obligated to our residents to do what’s best for our town.”
During a subsequent presentation to the commission, Delray Beach Fire Chief Keith Tomey said he welcomed the consultant study commissioned by Highland Beach.
“We’re happy to see you are hiring a consultant,” Tomey said. “We feel we are the best force for you and believe the consultant will point that out.”
Tomey noted that the town is considered part of Delray Beach’s service area and as such receives a long list of services both direct and indirect — ranging from backup vehicles in case of a major fire to apparatus repair.
Hillman, in responding to the fire chief, made it clear that Highland Beach is pleased with the quality of services it receives from Delray.
“The service we get is top-notch,” he said. “This is purely a financial situation. It’s nothing more than dollars and cents.”
Currently, Delray Beach provides all fire/rescue services in Highland Beach and staffing for the town-owned fire station, with the town paying for the cost of 22.5 firefighter/paramedics and some administrative services.
Delray Beach had originally requested that Highland Beach amend the contract to add four more personnel, with part of the cost for the first three years being covered by a grant from the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
In all, the grant would have covered the partial cost of eight Delray Beach firefighters over three years — four assigned to Highland Beach — with the portion paid by Delray Beach and Highland Beach increasing each year.
Highland Beach rejected the amendment and Delray Beach appealed to FEMA, asking for a hardship case because of the coronavirus pandemic. FEMA is now allowing Delray Beach to fill only three of the eight positions for the first year, a reduction of $350,000 to the city’s expense, but will require the city to fill all eight positions ­— including the four in Highland Beach — the following year.
In addition to giving Highland Beach a detailed plan for forming its own fire department — and listing the expected cost — Matrix will review the services provided by Delray Beach over the last three years.
The audit will look at the costs and examine Delray Beach performance compared to the requirements in the agreement with the town.
“The commission wants to be sure we are being charged correctly pursuant to the contract,” Labadie said.
Matrix, which several years ago was hired to explore the possibility of creating a barrier island fire department in South County, expects to have a study completed in three or four months. The barrier island fire department concept was dismissed as too costly.
Labadie believes the findings of the new report could help the town decide how best to proceed and that could include finding a way to continue the relationship with Delray.
“We’re hopeful that the study will bring the parties together and we’ll come up with an amicable solution for a long-term partnership,” Labadie said. Ú

Mason Slaine of coastal Boca Raton serves on the board of Boca Raton Regional Hospital and recently donated $1.5 million to the hospital’s ‘Keeping the Promise’ expansion campaign. Photo provided

In these trying times, hospitals need more friends like Mason Slaine.
Slaine moved from Greenwich, Connecticut, to coastal Boca Raton in 2014 and very quickly became involved with Boca Raton Regional Hospital, being named to its board of directors a year later.
“I wanted to participate in the community, which I’ve done in other places I’ve lived,” he said. “I’ve always been interested in health care, and particularly in South Florida, where the predominance of elderly people makes the need for top-notch health care more intense.”
Slaine has held a number of high-profile positions in the information and technology realm over the years, including CEO of business information publisher Thomson Financial (now Thomson Reuters) from 1994-96. He said conversations with medical professionals prompted him to become one of Boca Regional’s most prominent donors.
His first significant donation went to the Marcus Neuroscience Institute at Boca Regional, where the adjacent courtyard bears his name. And his most recent gift, in the amount of $1.5 million, has become a driving force in the hospital’s ongoing fundraising campaign titled “Keeping the Promise.”
“Mr. Slaine has been an extraordinary advocate and very active in our plans since he became involved with Boca Regional a few short years ago,” said Lincoln Mendez, CEO of Boca Raton Regional Hospital. “We are delighted to have him as a member of our family, as a foundation board member and as a lead donor to our campaign.”
Slaine, 67, said he has been involved in “some big decisions” since joining the board, including the hospital’s aligning itself with Baptist Health South Florida a year ago.
“That was a big issue, and the building on the (Boca Raton) campus in the coming years is going to be significant,” Slaine said.
The ongoing pandemic has intensified the spotlight on Boca Regional and other area hospitals.
“Dealing with COVID-19 is a very serious thing,” Slaine said. “So aside from giving my time I give energy, and I have an emotional interest in making sure we have good health care in the area.”
Slaine’s other investments include purchasing a 7% share in Tribune Publishing earlier this year. According to the Chicago Tribune, Slaine spent $13.9 million to buy 1.58 million shares of the company between Feb. 3 and March 17. The average price was $8.79 a share; the stock was trading at almost $11 a share in mid-August.
Slaine, who has expressed confidence in the future of newspapers as a digital entity, also attempted to buy the Sun-Sentinel from Tribune Publishing two years ago but was turned down.
Slaine, who is divorced, serves on the executive and audit committees at the hospital, working as chairman of the audit committee. He is also active in Temple Beth-El of Boca Raton, where he serves on the finance committee.
— Brian Biggane

Q: Where did you grow up and go to school? How do you think that has influenced you?
A: I grew up in the Boston area in a blue-collar neighborhood. I was fortunate enough to attend Amherst College, majoring in political science, and graduate magna cum laude. I then received immediate acceptance into Harvard Business School and graduated at age 24.

Q: What professions have you worked in? What professional accomplishments are you most proud of?
A: I have principally worked in the information/technology field for the past 35 years. I have participated in developing and building many businesses, including Iparadigms, the publisher of Turnitin.
Turnitin, which is an internet-based plagiarism detection device, is used in most colleges throughout the world and in many high schools.
I helped build Interactive Data Corporation, the leading provider of fixed income pricing data in the world. I was president of Thomson Financial (now Thomson Reuters) for many years.
Altogether I have built businesses in a broad range of areas, including tax software, intellectual property, science, chemistry, medtech, fintech, health care, financial and trade publishing, energy analytics and private company databases.

Q: What advice do you have for a young person seeking a career today?
A: Get the prerequisite training first and study hard and long!

Q: How did you choose to make your home in coastal Boca Raton?
A: I have friends and family in the area and like the weather.

Q: What is your favorite part about living in coastal Boca Raton?
A: Being near the water. Obviously, Florida has a great climate most of the year, and I love being outside as much as possible. I do a little boating and haven’t gone fishing for a while, but I just like being there, walking on the beach, that kind of thing.

Q: What book are you reading now?
A: John Bolton’s recent book, The Room Where It Happened; Nelson DeMille’s latest novel, The Deserter; The Stranger, by Albert Camus, and The Varieties of Religious Experience, by William James.

Q: What music do you listen to when you want to relax? When you want to be inspired?
A: I generally like ’80s music and find Dvorak and Tchaikovsky inspiring.

Q: Have you had mentors in your life? Individuals who have inspired your life decisions?
A: I was fortunate to have had a mentor at the beginning of my career named Theodore “Ted” Lamont Cross. Ted was a brilliant businessman and was also a great fighter for justice. He was also a world-class bird photographer.
Ted marched with Martin Luther King Jr. and wrote two books on how to improve business opportunities for people of color: Black Capitalism and The Black Power Imperative. He also published The Journal of Blacks in Higher Education and Business and Society Review. Ted was Caucasian. Learning from a true Renaissance man who combined interests in science, social well-being and business provided me with the “weltgeist” to become the person I have become.

Q: If your life story were to be made into a movie, who would play you?
A: Matt Damon — he would get the accent right!

Q: Is there something people don’t know about you but should?
A: I am no longer interested in making money. I intend to spend more of my time and resources on public service endeavors, especially in health care and children’s services.

Kristine Kreidler has received $98,000 in grants for the library in less than one year on the job. Coastal Star file photo

By Mary Thurwachter

Kristine Kreidler hasn’t even been at her job a year and already Lantana’s new library director has amassed six grants worth $98,000.
Her good work isn’t going unnoticed. During a municipal meeting in July, Town Manager Deborah Manzo announced one of Kreidler’s most recent wins, a Library Services and Technology Act grant awarded by the state from the Institute of Museum and Library Services.
“Kristine, you have been such a tremendous asset since you’ve been here for the town, I really appreciate everything you’ve been doing,” Manzo said. Kreidler started working for the town last November.
The grant money will be used to create a 21st century community library and to fund the LABtana concept with early literacy computers for the youngest patrons, coding robots for kids, and recording equipment and Apple computers for teens, according to Kreidler.
“For the adults, we will be purchasing a smartboard for the meeting room, along with a camera and podcasting equipment,” she said. “The idea is that the space could be used for patrons who are trying to start small businesses, whether that is online or traditional brick-and-mortar businesses.
“We also want to hire instructors who mirror Lantana’s population and create a thriving space where they can bounce ideas off of each other and more.” 
Other grants the library has secured this year are a Young Adult Library Association Collection Development Grant; a Public Library Association Inclusive Internship Initiative Grant, which funds a summer internship and travel for the mentor and student to attend workshops in Washington, D.C., and Chicago; an American Library Association Census Equity Fund Grant; Florida’s State Aid to Libraries Grant; and a CARES Act grant from Florida Humanities for COVID-related supplies and a virtual homework helper. It is designed for kids who may be having problems with distance learning.
Kreidler, 38, who grew up in Lantana and attended Lantana Elementary School, Lantana Middle School and Santaluces High School, said she enjoys the grant application process.
“I have always loved writing and once upon a time, I wanted to be a creative nonfiction/memoir writer. My bachelor’s specialization was in English/creative writing and women’s studies,” she said. “I love grant writing and trying to find that unique angle that catches the eye of grant panels.”  
The library, at 205 W. Ocean Ave., is about to undergo a $748,636 renovation expected to begin this fall.
“Hopefully, it will be complete in time for Lantana’s centennial in April,” Kreidler said. “If we are lucky enough to be through our COVID days, we would like to have an exhibit opening here and programs to help celebrate the centennial.”

Chef and restaurant owner Louie Bossi, who speaks openly about his recovery, is joined by staff members at Louie Bossi’s Ristorante in Boca Raton. Bossi often hires recovering addicts at his restaurants, and says at least three members of his staffs have relapsed since the arrival of the novel coronavirus. Tim Stepien/The Coastal Star

By Charles Elmore

Tony Allerton calls it a situation “we’ve never been through before.”
Amid a COVID-19 pandemic, overdose deaths have doubled in Delray Beach in 2020 and emergency response calls for opioids have climbed by a third in Palm Beach County, reports from police and rescue agencies show.
“It’s a time of survival, whether it’s from the drug of choice or the pandemic,” said Allerton, executive director of the Delray Beach-based Crossroads Club, formed in 1982 to help people cope with drug and alcohol addiction.
Support groups and agencies say they see inspiring efforts every day by people to help themselves and others, but these are conditions that virtually no one anticipated. The virus not only threatened lives and jobs, but in many cases it also closed meeting spaces for 12-step and other recovery groups. 
Organizers scrambled to hold meetings by way of Zoom or other online services, racing to stay connected with people at risk. Some groups met outside.
Because of fears of COVID-19 exposure, virtual meetings remain common even as some in-person gatherings have resumed in recent months, typically with masks and distancing. But it has been a difficult battle to break through isolation and despair.
In the third week of March in Delray Beach, “when everything was shut down, there were 17 reported overdoses in one week,” said Ariana Ciancio, service population advocate for the Delray Beach Police Department.
That was roughly triple the weekly average for the first seven months of 2019, when the department responded to a total of 171 overdose calls.
In the first seven months of 2020, the city recorded 229 overdose calls, an increase of 34%.
Overdose deaths in 2020 tracked by Delray Beach police doubled to 42 through July 31, compared to 21 in the same period of 2019.
“No one was prepared for coping with this kind of situation,” Ciancio said. “I have spent years talking about learning proper coping skills, but a global pandemic isn’t something that is frequently discussed in relapse-prevention planning or discharge planning. It is a difficult situation for everyone experiencing it and the only way to get through it is together.”
Her advice for people struggling with addiction: “Utilize support systems, either in person or by Zoom. Utilize family and friends, old connections and sponsors. Even though you are physically distant you have to remain socially connected.”
Nationwide, there are signs the problem may be getting worse as the pandemic drags on. 
Preliminary data shows suspected overdoses nationally increased 18% in March, 29% in April and 42% in May, compared to year-earlier periods, according to a Washington Post report. It cited the Overdose Detection Mapping Application Program, a federal initiative that collects information from ambulance teams, hospitals and police. 
Other parts of Florida have seen similar spikes. By July, Jacksonville was reporting a 40% increase in overdose calls. Manatee County reported a 44% rise.
An annual fundraiser for Crossroads Club in Delray Beach organized by chef and restaurant owner Louie Bossi and colleagues had to be canceled in June because of the coronavirus.
Bossi, who speaks frankly about his own recovery from addiction, said at least three employees at his restaurants relapsed during the pandemic. Bossi is a partner in restaurants including Louie Bossi’s Ristorante in Boca Raton and Fort Lauderdale and Elisabetta’s Ristorante in Delray Beach.
Workers came to him to express “fear and difficulty,” Bossi said. “I relate to everything they talk about. I’ve been there and done that.”
Born in New York and raised in New Jersey, Bossi has talked about his own previous years of addiction as daily “torture” before he began a different path at Crossroads. He sees the stress in the eyes of people he wants to help.
“It’s caused a lot of relapses and a lot of deaths,” he said.

A different story from 2019
A little more than one year ago, things looked different. Palm Beach County Fire Rescue reported a 21% decrease in opioid overdose patients in the first half of 2019, compared to the first six months of 2018. Since 2017, there had been a 61% decrease in county emergency responses to overdoses, State Attorney Dave Aronberg, working with a Sober Homes Task Force, announced at the time.
By July 31, 2020, Palm Beach County Fire Rescue had logged 1,063 overdose calls for 1,086 patients during the calendar year, according to the department. That compared to 799 calls for 814 patients in the first seven months of 2019, a 33% increase in calls.
A spokesman said he did not have information on overdose deaths.
People who count on meetings for support said isolation was a big factor as the initial impact of COVID-19 began to hit.
“The most immediate concern was meetings — meetings generally held in public spaces,” said one participant, who asked not to be identified, in a recovery group that gathers regularly in southern Palm Beach County. “Once public spaces were shut down, it was challenging. Some people weren’t as open to trying Zoom.”
The pressure has not let up, with one participant in the group dying of an overdose in July, she said. “He had started to get to know people and was really excited about making a new life.”
The COVID-19 pandemic has affected people in different ways, she said.
“Some people are like, ‘oh my God, I have to get out of my house,’” she said. “There are others saying, ‘oh my God, I have to go to work every day in public.’”
For some people in recovery, 2020 will go down as the year one epidemic met another.
“Individuals working for their recovery are now in a life-and-death struggle,” said Jeffrey Fiorentino, CEO of KipuHealth in Coral Gables, a software provider serving the substance abuse, mental health and eating disorder communities. Palm Beach County’s Sober Homes Task Force posted written remarks from him in meeting materials.
“The two great epidemics of our generation — opioid addiction and COVID-19 — are intersecting in ways that impact and worsen each other,” Fiorentino said. “For individuals in recovery, the social distancing, lack of work, homelessness, anxiety, shattered treatment models, fear of the future and the crushing loneliness of isolation has, in many cases, derailed sobriety. …”
That requires a “reset,” he said, of efforts to help.
Jane Smith contributed to this story.

Overdoses in Delray Beach
Jan. 1 to July 31, 2020        Jan. 1 to July 31, 2019
Overdose calls    229                        171
Overdose deaths  42                          21
Source: Delray Beach Police Department

By Sallie James

OCEAN RIDGE — Longtime Ocean Ridge resident Gerald Allen “Jerry” Goray, the dedicated chairman of the town’s Planning and Zoning Commission and a devoted philanthropist, died on June 30 of heart disease. He was weeks shy of his 81st birthday.
“He will be sadly missed,” said Mark Marsh, a colleague on the Planning and Zoning Commission who took over after Mr. Goray stepped down. “It was a pleasure to work with him. His heart and soul were in Ocean Ridge.”
The real estate developer had lived in the quiet beachside town for 30 years with his wife, Donna, and kept close watch on what type of development was permitted there. His goal was to preserve the quality, character and uniqueness of Ocean Ridge, Marsh said. Mr. Goray was also chairman of the town’s Infrastructure Surtax Citizens Oversight Committee.
“I worked with him at least seven years. Our Planning and Zoning Commission was quite parochial and we both worked to try to get it where it is today, where we have some say as to what is developed in the town,” Marsh said.
Mr. Goray was a Michigan native, born Aug. 22, 1939, in Detroit. He grew up there, attending Detroit Catholic Central High School, the University of Detroit and the University of Michigan Law School. He married his high school sweetheart, Donna, in 1958 and spent the next 62 years with her.
His wife remembered her husband as a complicated, brilliant person who loved to talk, and always tried to do better than he had done before.
“He was constantly thinking more should be done, more can be done, let’s do some more,” Donna Goray said. “Quiet wasn’t him. He loved to talk.”
Mr. Goray practiced law in Detroit for several years, became area counsel for HUD, and then co-founded a law firm specializing in real estate law.
His career in real estate development began in the 1970s, when he began building houses and developing subdivisions in suburban Detroit.
The couple moved to Florida in 1981 and built their house in Ocean Ridge in 1989. In Florida, Mr. Goray developed self-storage units, apartments, senior housing and other properties.
In 1979, Mr. Goray founded In the Pines, Inc., a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to providing affordable housing for low-income, immigrant farmworkers. The organization operates two low-income housing complexes in Delray Beach.
“He was always very prideful when he talked about it, but you never felt pressure to participate,” Ocean Ridge Mayor Kristine de Haseth said.
Donna Goray said her husband completely rebuilt the two apartment buildings because he was always driven to do more.
“They are absolutely lovely. Very well maintained, and really beautiful,” she said. He worked until he died, said his son Brian.
“No one ever knew he was sick until he had to quit coming to meetings. He was very humble in that way. He never wanted the limelight on himself,” de Haseth said.
Mr. Goray loved cars, contemporary art and his work.
“He enjoyed what he did,” his son Brian said. “He had a lot of friends and he enjoyed life. All of his adult life he owned one sports car or another, starting with a Corvette. His last car was a Porsche.”
People who knew him described him as witty, thoughtful, dedicated and inclusive.
“He was dedicated to the town, he was dedicated to his family or any project he got involved with, whether it was assisted living, his nonprofit, or the McCormick Mile Beach Club. Anything that was community-minded he supported,” de Haseth said.
“He always made everyone feel very warm and welcome. He was very active in the community not only in a leadership role but was also very supportive of the McCormick Mile Beach Club. Every year he would sponsor a Ben and Jerry’s ice cream truck in front of his house so the community could watch Fourth of July fireworks in his front yard.”
De Haseth also remembered Mr. Goray as forward-thinking and respectful of varying opinions.
“That made our job much easier to have that kind of leadership — well thought out, very even-handed and very well-researched. I really appreciated it. I had an even deeper respect for what Jerry did for the town after I became mayor,” she said.
Mr. Goray is survived by his wife; sons Brian and Greg; a brother, David; a sister, Christina, and numerous nieces, nephews and grandchildren.

GOLF — Johan Erik Hvide died at home July 15, surrounded by loved ones. He was 71.
Born Sept. 5, 1948, in Glen Cove, New York, son of Hans Johan and Elsa Mosse Hvide, Mr. Hvide spent his life defying odds. He possessed the stubborn determination of a true Viking. He was diagnosed at age 7 with polio and his doctors said that he would not survive — but he did. His doctors said that he would never get out of an iron lung — but he did. His doctors said that he would never get out of a wheelchair — but he did, going on to become a varsity golfer for Saint Andrew’s School in Boca Raton, where he graduated in 1965.
He went on to the University of Miami, where he was president of Alpha Kappa Psi business fraternity and a member of ODK, the highest national leadership and scholastic fraternity. He graduated in 1970 with a BBA. He did continuing education through Harvard. But, as the Beach Boys sang, Mr. Hvide loved and was true to his (high) school for the rest of his life.
He married his sweetheart, Betsy Frances Schmidt, in the Chapel of Saint Andrew on May 29, 1971, and both of their sons, Leif-Erik and Johan Anders, were also graduates. He served on the board of trustees for 12 years, including as chairman. Under his leadership, the school began a new era, calling the Rev. George Andrews as the new headmaster, implementing a long-range master plan, and successfully launching its first capital campaign.
Mr. Hvide’s donations were responsible for the construction of the Saint Andrew’s Lower School, but true to his quiet modesty, he would not permit the facilities to be named in his honor.
Mr. Hvide was a consummate businessman who loved his work with absolute passion. He joined his father at Hvide Marine in 1970 and went on to become its president in 1981, CEO in 1991, and chairman in 1994. Under his leadership, the company grew from a small family tugboat operation into a global shipping company with offshore and harbor tugs, offshore supply vessels and chemical tankers. He led the company in an initial public offering in 1996, raising $1.5 billion in capital and growing the company from 23 vessels to one of the world’s leading providers of global marine support services with a fleet of 273 ships, 2,500 employees, operations in 20 countries and revenues of $400 million.
Hailed by Maritime Executive as an “unquestionably innovative, undoubtedly brilliant” leader in the maritime industry, Mr. Hvide invented the revolutionary Catug tanker and the SDM tugboat for which he held two patents in vessel design.
His accolades include induction into the International Maritime Hall of Fame, Master Entrepreneur of the Year by Ernst and Young, International Executive of the Year by the Fort Lauderdale Chamber of Commerce, congressional appointee to the U.S. Coast Guard, council member of the American Bureau of Shipping, and member of various industry, corporate and bank boards.
Mr. Hvide also loved to serve his local and religious communities, having served for various parishes in South Florida as well as having lobbied the state of Florida to protect the natural tree corridor along A1A in Gulf Stream, and was made mayor for the day.
He was a member of the Gulf Stream Bath and Tennis, Lauderdale Yacht Club, Royal Palm Yacht & County Club, Country Club of Florida and Cat Cay Yacht Club, where he spent many years at his home, Manor House.
He is predeceased by his parents and sister Elsa. In addition to his wife and sons, he is survived by grandchildren Magnus Johan, Hans Kristoffer and Hákon.
Mr. Hvide will be remembered as a giant among men, but his greatest accomplishments were not the ones that made the papers but rather the quiet ones he shared with friends and family.
To him we say: “For us you were a truly special husband, father, and friend and a shining example of how we should all lead our lives. We want to say thank you. Thank you for the many sacrifices you made, teaching us to put others first and that family is more important than anything. Thank you for teaching us the art of storytelling; you always had us hanging at your every word and we can only hope to be as captivating as you.
“Thank you for all of the incredible adventures; together we learned to appreciate the journey and the world around us. Thank you for teaching us the value of dedication and hard work; the standard you set is golden. Thank you for your determination and perseverance; you had the heart of a lion and we can only strive to be as brave as you. Thank you for teaching us to truly listen. You were always 110% in the moment, and there is nothing more powerful than to hear what others have to say.
“Thank you for your unflappable calmness in the face of adversity; you are the original ‘keep calm and carry on.’ Thank you for showing us that anything is possible if you put your mind to it; there is nothing more satisfying than defying the odds and the critics. Thank you for your kindness — you always had time for anyone and everyone. Thank you for teaching us faith, forgiveness and unconditional love; you are the perfect example of Christ’s teachings. You will be greatly missed and eternally loved.”
— Obituary submitted by the family