By Mary Hladky

Suspended Boca Raton Mayor Susan Haynie likely will go to trial in October on seven public corruption charges.

At a brief Jan. 15 court hearing, Circuit Court Judge Glenn Kelley agreed to an October trial and said an exact date could be set at the next hearing on her case on April 15.

“We are progressing fairly well in the case,” Assistant State Attorney Brian Fernandes said.

Speaking after the hearing, Haynie's criminal defense attorney, Bruce Zimet, said no plea deal is in the works.

“We are going to trial,” he said, adding that Haynie is looking forward to being vindicated.

Haynie, 63, a fixture in Boca Raton politics for 18 years, did not appear at the hearing. She has pleaded not guilty to the charges.

Haynie was arrested on April 24 on public corruption charges, including official misconduct, perjury, misuse of public office and failure to disclose voting conflicts. She faces more than 20 years in prison.

Former Gov. Rick Scott suspended her from office, but she has not resigned. Scott Singer was elected mayor on Aug. 28.

Prosecutors contend that Haynie used her position on the city council to vote on four matters that financially benefited James Batmasian, the city’s largest downtown commercial landowner, and failed to disclose income she had received from him.

The investigation by the Palm Beach County  State Attorney’s Office found that Haynie failed to report $335,000 in income on financial disclosure forms required by the state, including $84,000 from Batmasian or his company Investments Limited, from 2014 through 2017.

Before her arrest, the Palm Beach County Commission on Ethics, which also investigated Haynie for voting on matters that financially benefited Batmasian, reached a settlement with her in which they reprimanded and fined her for failing to disclose a conflict of interest, but dismissed a second allegation that Haynie misued her public office.

The Florida Commission on Ethics in October found probable cause that Haynie violated state ethics laws in eight instances.

The state commission, which also probed Haynie’s financial links to Batmasian and Investments Limited, found that she failed to disclose income, acted to financially benefit herself and her husband and improperly voted on matters that benefited Batmasian and his wife, Marta, without disclosing a conflict of interest.

The probable cause findings are not a determination that Haynie violated state laws, but are a conclusion that there is enough evidence of violations to allow the investigation to proceed.

Zimet has said she will seek an evidentiary hearing before the state commission. Her ethics attorney, Mark Herron, has not commented.

The state commission has the power to seek her removal from office, but that rarely happens. More typically, a public official is fined up to a maximum of $10,000 per violation.

The evidence gathered against Haynie by the three agencies is similar. One key difference is that while state prosecutors determined Haynie voted on four matters that financially benefited Batmasian from 2014 through 2017, state ethics investigators found 17 votes between 2012 and 2016.

State commission advocate Elizabeth A. Miller, an assistant attorney general, issued a stinging report to the commission in which she recommended that it find probable cause.

Haynie “consistently voted on measures benefiting the Batmasians and/or their affiliates between 2012 and 2016 while surreptitiously reaping the financial rewards of their business association,” she wrote.

“When confronted with the possibility of impropriety, (Haynie) consistently denied any association, involvement or knowledge. The bank account records revealed her deception. These acts and omissions indicate corrupt intent.”

By Rich Pollack

David Del Rio, the west coast Florida financial advisor charged with siphoning close to $3 million from the life savings of a murdered Highland Beach widow has been released on bail after being locked up since mid-September. 

Judge Glenn Kelley had originally set bond of $463,000 in November for Del Rio but a hold was put on his release, until defense attorneys could prove that money used to post bond wasn’t obtained through unauthorized withdrawals from the account of Elizabeth “Betty” Cabral.

The body of Cabral, whose throat had been cut, was discovered in her Highland Beach condominium in April. No charges have been filed in the homicide.

On Jan. 2, Kelley agreed to lift the hold on Del Rio’s release after prosecutors agreed that funds from nine friends and family members used to post bail did not come from Cabral’s accounts. Del Rio was released from jail Jan. 8.

“The defendant shall be permitted to post bond in the amount set on Nov. 9,” Kelley wrote in his order.

Under the terms of his release, Del Rio is on house arrest and cannot make contact with any members of Cabral’s family.

Among those putting up money for bond were Anjelica Ortiz, Jose Ortiz and Daniel Ortiz –  believed to be longtime friends of Del Rio’s – who posted a combined $18,000.

Also agreeing to help post bond was Del Rio’s sister Jennifer Alfaro, who contributed $9,600. Relatives of Del Rio’s wife Rose also provided funds.

All agreed to notify the court immediately if Del Rio, his wife or anyone on their behalf attempts to reimburse them.

Del Rio, of Lee County, has been charged with several counts of grand theft, exploitation of the elderly, money laundering and fraudulent use of personal identification information, stemming as far back as 2013, stemming from his time as a financial advisor to Betty Cabral and her husband William, who died in 2017.

Investigators have also said in court documents that they believe Del Rio fraudulently changed the will of Betty and William Cabral making himself the sole beneficiary of the estate.

Detectives are continuing to investigate Cabral’s murder and still have not allowed anyone to enter her unit in the Penthouse Highlands condominium, according to neighbors.

Robert Sloat, a 20-year resident of Ocean Ridge, reacts after his appointment to the commission. He said he would not run in the March 12 election. Jerry Lower/The Coastal Star

By Dan Moffett

Seven candidates came forward in Ocean Ridge and volunteered to serve the next three months in the commission seat of former Mayor James Bonfiglio, who resigned in November in an unsuccessful bid to win election to the state legislature.

It took the four sitting commissioners three rounds of voting on Dec. 10 to determine who should replace Bonfiglio until the March 12 municipal election.

They chose someone they’ve seen a lot of — Robert Sloat, a frequent participant at commission meetings, workshops and “coffee with a cop” sessions.

Sloat, a 20-year resident of the town, cited his civic involvement and experience as a former university professor and administrator as reasons he’s a good choice. That work included time on the faculty at Florida Atlantic University.

“In my past life as an administrator, I’ve managed multimillion-dollar budgets, I’ve supervised up to 60 people and I currently work for an organization that does police promotions,” he told the commission.

“I would like to participate further in Ocean Ridge activities. And I assure you that if I’m offered the position, I will not run for an office again.”

Sloat won the votes of Mayor Steve Coz, Vice Mayor Don MaGruder and Commissioner Phil Besler to claim the seat. Commissioner Kristine de Haseth voted on all three ballots for Zoanne Hennigan, a former commissioner and chair of the town’s charter review committee this year.

The other five candidates were: Ed Brookes, a 16-year resident and former commissioner; Martha-Lisa Denavea, a registered nurse and business owner; Susan Hurlburt, who has worked as a historic preservation advocate in Delray Beach; John Lipscomb, the property manager of the Villas of Ocean Ridge and a former business owner from St. Louis; and Paul Pantozzi, a retired New Jersey bank CEO and board chairman.

While Sloat won’t enter the March election, Lipscomb and Hurlburt intend to. The two have qualified to run for the commission along with Coz, who is seeking another three-year term.

The top vote-getter will win a seat until 2022, and the second-highest vote-getter will serve out the year that’s left in Bonfiglio’s term.

In other business:

• Police Chief Hal Hutchins says it won’t be too long until the town has a network of license plate recognition cameras online and running.

“We have three nodes up and working,” Hutchins told the commission. “We’re in a testing phase with dispatch. We had some difficulty getting wireless connectivity, so we had to switch vendors from Verizon to AT&T. That set us back a little bit.”

The network will have cameras positioned at points of entry on State Road A1A and east of the bridges on Woolbright Road and Ocean Avenue.

“It is working correctly,” Hutchins said of testing in December. “We are capturing data. We’re tweaking a few things and doing well in the scheme of things in the LPR world.”

• Commissioners told Town Manager Jamie Titcomb to begin negotiating contracts for pest control — including mosquitoes, no-see-ums and iguanas — and bring them back for consideration. The contracts will cover only services for town properties, but residents likely will be able to sign on with the contractors and purchase pest control plans for their homes and lots. 

By Jane Smith

Delray Beach residents who live in the southern section of the barrier island will have to wait until at least mid-January for an extensive water project to be finished.

“The water mains are installed and reclaimed water lines are finishing up,” the Public Works staff responded via email through Jeff Goldman, acting assistant city manager. “Road work is well in progress.”

The $4 million-plus construction work began in January 2018 on five streets, from Lewis Cove south to Del Haven Drive. Water and sewer lines were replaced, stormwater drainage was improved, lines were added for irrigation with reclaimed water and new fire hydrants were installed. To do that work, the streets had to be dug up and replaced.

The work was supposed to be “substantially completed” by early October, with final completion by Dec. 6.

But the city’s contractor, Lanzo Construction, fell behind for a variety of reasons, including the discovery of a cracked pipe, the need to move water meters and the need to install a valve to bypass an existing water main. The water main’s location was different from the one shown in the preliminary engineering drawings, the Public Works staff explained. 

The contractor also might not be able to make the revised mid-January deadline.

“The issue is primarily focused on drainage improvements involving obtaining and installing a check valve, as well as lining a drainage pipe,” the Public Works email said.

Realtor Iris Cohen said that Rhodes Villa Avenue is in “100 percent better condition than in the summer.”

That’s when she traversed Rhodes Villa twice daily to feed her ex-husband’s Maine coon cats. It should have been an easy drive from Lang Realty’s East Atlantic Avenue offices, but it wasn’t.

On Rhodes Villa, she had to dodge ruts, water-filled trenches and heavy equipment. The main road, A1A between Casuarina Road to Del Haven, was often down to one lane to install reclaimed-water lines west of the sidewalks along A1A.

Now, Cohen said, the contractor appears to be making things right. “They had to replace sod and mailboxes. When they replaced the sod, then they came back to water it and make sure it’s growing,” she said. “They are trying.”

City staffers are reminding the contractor of the contract’s liquidated damages clause when negotiating completion benchmarks.

They will consult with the city attorney when the project is complete to determine whether any damages should be assessed, the email said.

Confusion in December boil water episode

Separately, a boil water order in early December created confusion for residents about whether they were in the area affected.

The notice was so poorly worded that some residents living north of Atlantic Avenue called or sent emails about it, Mayor Shelly Petrolia said at the Dec. 11 City Commission meeting.

City Manager Mark Lauzier agreed the notice may have caused confusion and said future notices would more accurately describe the locations affected.

On Dec. 6, Delray Beach issued a boil water notice for businesses and residents east of the Intracoastal Waterway, south of Atlantic Avenue to the city’s southern border with Highland Beach.

According to Goldman, a resident tied a potable irrigation meter with a regular potable water meter for the house. A private contractor had installed a reclaimed irrigation meter to the irrigation piping.

“Once discovered, city staff worked with the Florida Department of Health to implement precautionary actions to protect public health and safety. As part of that, the (affected) home was disinfected, flushed and tested, and a precautionary boil water notice was issued for the extended surrounding area,” he said in an email.

The boil water order was lifted on Dec. 8, 48 hours later.

Because the contractor was hired privately and working on private property, the city will not be able to assess a fine, according to the email.

In late December, the Utilities Department was calculating the cleanup costs for the cross connection.

The city notified residents and businesses in the affected area through its Code Red smartphone app, which sent an automated phone call and text message to those who had signed up for the alert.

City staffers also went door to door to hang a boil water notice that showed a map of the affected area.

“It was only for a few days,” said Kathy Baffer, former Seagate Neighborhood Association president. “We stopped drinking the water as soon as we heard.” 

Manalapan has begun staffing the redesigned guard gate to the Point section of town with a private security firm after moving police dispatch to Town Hall. Jerry Lower/The Coastal Star

By Dan Moffett

Manalapan’s plan for an ambitious expansion of its Police Department got a significant boost on Dec. 11 when town commissioners unanimously approved defined retirement benefits for employees.

The defined pension benefits, under which the town promises specified retirement payments based on an employee’s earnings history, replaces a 401(k) plan and allows Manalapan to keep and recruit more qualified, experienced police officers, Mayor Keith Waters said.

“Congratulations to this commission,” Waters said. “We are now moving in the right direction and getting the right kind of employees with the right kind of benefits.”

After a spate of stolen cars in late 2017, Waters and the commissioners decided to expand the Police Department by 50 percent, from eight uniformed officers to 12. But Chief Carmen Mattox said the marketplace for hiring qualified officers in South Florida has grown more competitive, particularly in the wake of the mass shootings at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School last February. Schools, sheriff’s offices and municipalities have been aggressively hiring since the Parkland tragedy.

Waters said offering defined benefits will make Manalapan competitive with leading law enforcement agencies. All of the town’s full-time employees will be eligible to participate in the plan.

In all, the town plans to spend about $630,000 more in 2018-2019 than in the previous fiscal year on police and security. Besides the new hires, officers’ starting salaries will increase about $5,000 to $51,200 a year, with current officers getting a $4,500 raise. The department has moved its dispatch operations from the gatehouse on Point Manalapan to the second floor of Town Hall. The town has hired Miami-based SPERE Security to station guards at the gate house.

Mattox said he intends to have three patrol cars on the streets at all times.

In other business, Manalapan won’t need an election in March but will get a new town commissioner anyway.

Vice Mayor Peter Isaac, who has served on the commission since 2013, is required to step down because of term limits. Town Clerk Lisa Petersen said Isaac’s replacement will be Stewart Satter, who qualified to run for the at-large seat but is unopposed.

Three commission incumbents — Mayor Waters and Commissioners Jack Doyle and Hank Siemon — also qualified and are unopposed.

Satter, 60, is a partner at City Light Capital, a venture capital firm. He also is director of Carnegie Hill Development Corp., a real estate company that designs and develops waterfront homes in Florida, several of them in Manalapan. 

By Jane Smith

Delray Beach property owners may have to pay a fire assessment fee in the next budget year under a proposal the City Commission approved by a 3-2 vote on Dec. 11.

The assessment amount depends on the type of property.

Single-family home and condo owners would have to pay $80.88 in the first year. Commercial, industrial and warehouse owners would be assessed a fee per square foot, with commercial owners paying the highest fee at $11.77 per 100 square feet. Owners of vacant land would pay $59.81 per parcel.

The commission will decide later this year whether churches, nonprofits and charities will need to pay the assessment.

In October, the city agreed to pay $23,613 to Stantec Consulting Services of St. Augustine to develop the preliminary fire assessment, recommended by city Fire Chief Neal de Jesus.

At the time, the city, along with others statewide, was facing a possible revenue loss to an extra $25,000 homestead exemption that was on the November ballot. The ballot amendment failed.

The Fire Department had also been promised four extra positions by the previous City Commission.

The Dec. 11 vote gave Stantec the go-ahead to finish the assessment report for $21,380. Another approximately $28,000 is needed in July for a first-class mailing about the fire assessment to all Delray Beach property owners.

If approved by the city, the fire assessment would appear as a separate item on the property owner’s county tax bill, payable in November.

The resolution had to be adopted by Jan. 1 in order to get on the county property appraiser’s list of non-ad valorem assessments.

Delray Beach property owners will have two more opportunities to address the commission on the assessment — in July when the tentative tax rate is approved and then in September when the city tax rate has a second reading.

On Dec. 11, five people spoke about the assessment. Four were against it, including Christina Morrison, a commercial real estate broker, who lives in the Tropic Isle section of Delray Beach.

“You reviewed it in 2012 and found it not practical,” Morrison said. “Please put it aside and deny it.”

Ron Gilinsky, who is retired and volunteers for many city events, was for the assessment. “We need new equipment for the Fire Department,” he said.

Delray Beach should start with a modest assessment and gradually increase it until the assessment covers the full cost of fire services, Erick van Malssen of Stantec said.

“The 100 percent cap fully funds the Fire Department and won’t fluctuate with the whims of the economy,” van Malssen said. That would translate to about $25 million for fire services, resulting in a $500 fire assessment for home and condo owners.

The fire assessment can be used only for firefighting purposes that benefit the taxable property, van Malssen said. The medical rescue services that benefit people must not be included, he said.

For $4 million in the first year, the city Fire Department would receive four firefighters who would be paid about $401,044, an increase in existing pension costs of $340,464, additional pension burden of $502,051, vehicle replacement program of $750,000 and station rehab/replacement of $2 million. 

Van Malssen did not explain how Delray Beach could separate its firefighting from emergency medical services costs after the fee was assessed.

Boca Raton and Boynton Beach have fire assessment fees that do not include emergency medical services, van Malssen said. Boca Raton assessses $135 per household; Boynton Beach’s fee is $120.

Commissioner Ryan Boylston was for the assessment in order to fulfill the previous commission’s promise to add four firefighters. He also wants to see the city’s taxes cut by $4 million — the amount the initial assessment would generate.

City Manager Mark Lauzier, however, did not recommend that large of a reduction.

“We don’t have a revenue problem,” said Mayor Shelly Petrolia, who voted against the assessment. “We have a spending problem.”

She said the city brought in $14 million more in property taxes for the current budget year  compared to the previous year and that there is often a mid-year budget adjustment showing millions unspent.

Petrolia was most concerned about the residents who live on fixed incomes and can’t afford to pay an assessment.

Commissioner Bill Bathurst also voted against the assessment. He’s concerned about rising rental rates along Atlantic Avenue in the downtown. Landlords would likely pass along the fire assessment to their tenants, he said. 

By Steve Plunkett

The town may reroute its main water line from alongside State Road A1A to Gulfstream Road or Polo Drive to make sure its treasured Australian pines do not run afoul of state restrictions.

The pipe will be enlarged to 12 inches in diameter from 6 inches to improve water flow to fire hydrants.

Under a plan town commis-sioners discussed Dec. 14, the main would jog west, perhaps at Golfview Drive. Driving the possible relocation is a fear that the Florida Department of Transportation might not let the Australian pines remain in the A1A right of way if Gulf Stream winds up keeping the water main next to the highway.

Mayor Scott Morgan said when the Spence property was developed, it turned out a number of the pines were in the state right of way, and “when we tried to replace them, we were obstructed by the state,” he said.

“It would be disastrous if we find that these Australian pines are in the right of way, they have to be removed for this project and then we’re prohibited from replanting them,” Morgan said.

“It’s the canopy — it’s part of Gulf Stream,” Commissioner Joan Orthwein said.

The town replaced the A1A water main south of Golfview, which also serves Place Au Soleil, in 2006. The pipe north of that is 60 to 70 years old and brittle, Rebecca Travis of Mathews Consulting said.

She said designing the project would take up to eight months, with perhaps 10 more months needed for construction. Design and construction are estimated to cost $1.1 million.

The water main project was originally planned for design in the 2024-25 budget year and for construction the next year. But commissioners said they did not want to pursue road and drainage work in the core area of town first and possibly have to return to do the rerouted A1A project.

In other business:

• Police Chief Edward Allen said he wants “no trucks” signs put on narrow Lakeview Drive and Banyan Road. “We’ve had a lot of traffic issues … with large trucks entering off A1A and trying to get to side streets,” he said. Trucks will be diverted to Sea Road and Golfview.

• Commissioners told Staff Attorney Trey Nazzaro to draw up an ordinance patterned after one in Palm Beach to limit the time builders can take to construct a home. Had the ordinance been in place, the owners of 3140 Polo Drive, which will reach three years of construction in February, would have had to seek an extension to finish. But the ordinance would affect only future projects. 

For one Saturday morning, dogs were allowed to play off leash on the beach at Oceanfront Park. ABOVE: Buddy, 4 months, runs from the incoming tide. BELOW: 3-year-old Duke (front) and Moose, 2, greet each other before running off. Photos by Rachel O’Hara/The Coastal Star

More photos

By Jane Smith

About 100 dogs of all shapes, sizes and colors enjoyed the free Boynton Beach pop-up dog park in mid-December at Oceanfront Park.

“We had dogs on the beach until noon,” said Wally Majors, the city’s recreation and parks director. Other areas of the city saw rain in the mid-morning.

He will report on the event to the Boynton Beach City Commission at its Jan. 15 meeting.

“It went well. We did not have any fights or skirmishes,” Majors said. “It will be up to the commissioners to decide if they want to hold it again.”

The city also dropped its $10 per car entrance fee for the three hours of the pop-up dog park. Residents with beach parking passes also could enter for free.

Eight recreation and parks staff worked the Dec. 15 event. Majors said no overtime was paid. Some employees were already on the schedule for that Saturday and the rest had their shifts adjusted. The day before, the city workers had set up plastic orange construction fences on both ends of the 500-foot section of the beach to contain the dogs.

A parks worker greeted early beachgoers at the north end where the dog-park area was set up. She told visitors about the pop-up event, in case they didn’t want to share the beach with the dogs, and directed those people to the south entrance.

She also checked dogs’ vaccination papers or rabies tags to make sure all were up to date.

The owners came equipped with leashes, toys and poop bags. Dogs had to be leashed until they reached the sand. The city provided water for the dogs in small buckets that were partly buried in the sand.

The owner of Rondo, a large black retriever, was happy she did not have to drive up to the northern part of the county to take him to the beach.

Although Boynton Beach owns the beach, it sits in Ocean Ridge and is subject to that town’s rules.

Ocean Ridge does not allow animals, including dogs on leashes, on the public beach. Owners of private beaches can allow dogs on their beaches.

Ocean Ridge Town Manager Jamie Titcomb said the pop-up dog park didn’t result in any emergency reports or police calls in Ocean Ridge.

“I’ve received only positive feedback on it,” he said. “The event was well-staged and well-fenced.”

Titcomb was out of town that Saturday and did not attend the event. He planned to call Majors to be briefed.

Ocean Ridge Police Chief Hal Hutchins also liked what he saw. Hutchins described the dog-friendly beach areas as “well-organized, well-staffed and well-managed by city of Boynton Beach personnel.” 

ABOVE: Briny Breezes residents watch as contractors lay a perimeter of decorative memorial bricks around the renovated fountain at the main entrance to the community. 

The fountain features a bronze leaping sailfish statue by artist John W. Townsend. Residents also donated time and skills to tile the fountain walls.

BELOW: Pallets of inscribed bricks honoring past, present and future residents wait to be put into place.

More than 650 memorial bricks have already been installed. And orders can still be placed through the Briny Breezes office.

Photos by Jerry Lower/The Coastal Star

Dozens of truckloads of fill are waiting to be leveled for the townhouse project. Jerry Lower/The Coastal Star

By Dan Moffett

Neighbors in Briny Breezes and the County Pocket have watched with growing unease as the pile of fill dirt between them has risen in recent weeks.

Construction is about to begin in earnest on the 2-acre parcel that separates the two communities. It has sat vacant for decades, but by the end of 2019, New Jersey-based developer NL Living hopes to have 14 luxury townhouses ready for use.

The worry for surrounding neighborhoods is that the elevated development site is going to send stormwater streaming onto their streets and yards.

Palm Beach County inspectors have expressed stormwater runoff concerns, too. On Nov. 30, inspectors halted work at the site and ordered the developer to submit an updated drainage review.

The county’s coastal development code requires that “an engineering analysis be prepared by a qualified, registered design professional demonstrating no harmful diversion of floodwaters or wave run-up ... would increase damage to adjacent buildings and structures.”

Briny Breezes Town Manager Dale Sugerman said the project is stalled “for the time being” and won’t move forward until the permitting impasse over the drainage analysis is resolved.

The levels of concern in Briny and the pocket have been rising steadily with the artificially enhanced elevation of the project site. The many truckloads of fill material hauled to the site will allow the six buildings to sit roughly 7 feet above the existing grade. The lot has served as a drain field for runoff from nearby homes, but that figures to change.

Residents want to know where the water will go when the heavy rains and the king tides come, as they always do.

“I think the construction is going to radically change the behavior of the water that falls on us,” said Judy Kraft, who lives on Briny Breezes Boulevard just north of the site, citing years of experience with flooding on her street. “They will not be able to control the torrent of water that comes between the buildings and goes to the lowest denominator — which will be us on Briny Breezes Boulevard.”

During a November meeting with developers in Briny’s clubhouse, NL Living representatives said their project will comply with all Palm Beach County drainage regulations. Michael LaCoursiere, the project engineer, told residents an underground catchment system will collect water and “less water is going to run off the site after construction than before it.”

But the project managers didn’t make promises about where runoff from neighboring properties would go, after the former drain field is filled with buildings and concrete walls.

LaCoursiere and Glenn La Mattina, NR Living vice president, did say they were willing to consider installing additional drainage devices along the property lines if problems arise.

“I don’t think they’re going to do any more than they have to do unless they feel strongly about being good neighbors,” Briny Breezes Town Council President Sue Thaler said during the council meeting on Nov. 29. “It’s a tough situation. They’re building it on county property. They’re not building it in our town and it’s going to impact our town. They don’t have to follow our rules.”

Sugerman said the county’s building code requires the project to contain the first inch of stormwater that falls on the property.

“If that project gets 8 inches of rain during a storm event,” Sugerman said, “then we’re all going to get 8 inches of rain during the event. I’m not sure that project on its own is going to add to drainage problems in Briny Breezes.”

Alderman Chick Behringer said, “If they’re catching 1 inch during that 8-inch storm, we may end up getting their additional 7 inches.”

In other business, Town Clerk Maya Coffield said Thaler and Behringer have qualified for another two-year term on the council. No other candidates came forward, so Briny will have no election in March. 

By Dan Moffett

It took South Palm Beach only three weeks to fill its vacant town manager’s position — at least for the short term.

During a hastily called special meeting on Dec. 19, the Town Council unanimously voted to hire on an interim basis former Sewall’s Point and Hillsboro Beach manager Robert Kellogg to replace Mo Thornton, who abruptly resigned in November after 11 months on the job.

Two glowing endorsements from inside Town Hall helped make Kellogg an easy choice for the council.

Town Attorney Glen Torcivia worked with Kellogg during his seven-year tenure as Sewall’s Point manager, which ended in 2013. And Town Clerk Yude Alvarez worked with him during his two-year stay in Hillsboro Beach, ending in 2016. Both told the council that Kellogg was right for South Palm Beach.

“He was a great manager,” Alvarez said. “He was a good listener. If you had any issues, he would sit down one-on-one and get your side of it. He was excellent. It was a pleasure to work with him.”

Since this was the fourth time in the last four years the town has had to hire a manager, Mayor Bonnie Fischer said she was putting a premium on harmony.

“We have two people who have worked with him and have had a good rapport,” Fischer said. “I think that’s very important. Sometimes when the staff doesn’t get along very well it can create friction.”

The council interviewed two other candidates during the meeting: Barry M. Feldman, the former city manager in West Hartford, Conn., who is retired and sits on the Delray Beach police pension board; and William Thrasher, the manager in Gulf Stream for 21 years before he retired and took a 90-day interim manager job last summer in Highland Beach.

The council focused mostly on Kellogg and Thrasher because of their familiarity with coastal communities and Florida law. “I think Bob has a better take on this town right now,” Fischer said.

In Hillsboro Beach, Kellogg helped oversee a $2.1 million beach restoration project — experience that could be useful in guiding South Palm through its controversial beach stabilization groin plan with Palm Beach County.

Before moving to Florida in 2006, Kellogg was for 20 years the city manager in Rittman, Ohio, a municipality near Akron with a population of about 6,500.

“I’ve worked to improve the quality of life everywhere I’ve been,” Kellogg said. “That’s what I’d want to do here.”

Kellogg, 65, was to officially start on Jan. 2, though he said he’d meet with staff members sooner. Torcivia said he hoped to have a contract negotiated by the council’s Jan. 8 meeting. Kellogg is expected to earn between $1,800 and $2,000 a week. Thornton’s salary was $105,000 a year, or about $2,000 per week.

Neither the council nor the interim manager is ruling out a long-term relationship.

“I’m looking at this like it’s our engagement,” Kellogg told council members. “If things work out, maybe we’ll get married.”

In other business, two council members are facing challenges in the March 12 municipal election, but Fischer is unopposed in the town’s mayoral race and ensured another two-year term.

Councilwoman Elvadianne Culbertson and Councilman Bill LeRoy qualified for the March race for two at-large seats, along with Kevin Hall and Mark Weissman.

Hall, the property manager of Palmsea Condominiums, made an unsuccessful bid for the council last March.

Weissman moved to South Palm Beach two years ago from Parkland. He served 15 years as a city commissioner there, and served as a Democratic representative in the Florida House from 2000 to 2002. 

By Jane Smith

Delray Beach will request proposals in January to redo its marina along the Intracoastal Waterway.

The city marina, just south of Atlantic Avenue and on the west side of the waterway, has 23 slips with eight designated for boats with live-aboard owners.

Although the owners of the live-aboard boats asked for the project’s work be staged in two phases so they could shift locations during the project but not be required to move and change their addresses, all of the work will be done at the same time over the course of a year.

“Staging would take longer,” project manager Isaac Kovner said at the Dec. 3 public meeting about the city marina makeover. Including consultants fees, the marina project is estimated to cost about $4.6 million, Kovner said. The makeover will start in May and take nine to 12 months, he said.

The marina work includes new floating docks, a raised sea wall, drainage and lighting improvements, a new pump station and a landscaped area on the west side of the sea walls that can hold stormwater runoff.

The city Parks and Recreation Department will lose an estimated $99,000 in rental fees from the live-aboards for the one year that the marina will be closed.

The decision was not made overnight, Kovner said.

First, city Public Works staff met with the engineering consultants from the Wantman Group, hired to create the marina drawings that will be put out to bid. Then, city staffers met with their counterparts in the Parks Department to see whether the department could afford to give up that income. Then, they had to make a case to the city manager, who approved rebuilding the docks at once.

“That info was needed before Wantman could do its drawings,” Kovner said.

Drainage improvements to the 200 block of Marine Way are not part of this project. They will be taken up after the marina work is done in 2020, Kovner said.

Much of the floating docks will be assembled off-site and trucked to the marina, said Tim DeLand, structural engineer at Wantman.

The new sea wall will be 3.87 feet over a standard datum point used by surveyors. This height will match that of the new sea wall in Veterans Park. The height can be increased with rising sea levels, Kovner said, by adding onto the walls.

Architect Roger Cope, who is renovating a building in the Marina Historic District, said the project’s proposed pavilion at the north end of the marina was not “reflective of the Marina Historic District.” He offered to design one that was more historic looking. Kovner agreed to take the drawings if they are ready by May.

Meanwhile, work on the 100 block of Marine Way also is on hold.

The city does not own the street, meaning it can’t proceed with drainage or other improvements, said Missie Barletto, assistant Public Works director. City consultants said a state or federal government agency owns the land. The city is trying to determine ownership and request an easement to do the improvements.

In addition, the Public Works Department will present sea-wall survey results at the February City Commission workshop.

The city analyzed the sea walls along the waterway to determine which ones are in good shape and an overall height for the sea walls. The goal of the survey is to create a minimum sea wall height and a sea wall ordinance for property owners along the Intracoastal, said Jeffrey Needle, the city’s stormwater engineer.

Most of the Intracoastal Waterway sea walls are owned privately; the city owns only 1 mile of the 21.4 miles of waterway coastline. 

By Jane Smith

Motorists will continue to face construction delays at the Woolbright and Hypoluxo road Interstate 95 interchanges.

The contractor is now saying it will be the end of January for most of the work to be finished, according to Andi Pacini, community outreach spokeswoman for the Florida Department of Transportation.

Work at the five locations is taking place mostly overnight to ease the impact on traffic.

For Woolbright Road, the traffic restrictions include periodic overnight lane and ramp closings. During closures, southbound traffic will be detoured via Boynton Beach Boulevard. Northbound traffic will detour to Atlantic Avenue via Congress Avenue.

The southbound I-95 exit ramp to and southbound I-95 entrance ramp from Woolbright will not be closed at the same time. 

The north sidewalk on Woolbright Road, between Southwest Eighth and Southwest Second streets, will remain closed through January. 

Pedestrians will have to use the south sidewalk. Signs are posted to direct pedestrians.

At Hypoluxo Road, the traffic restrictions also include periodic overnight lane and ramp closings. During closures, northbound traffic will be detoured via Lantana Road. Southbound traffic will detour to Gateway Boulevard via Congress Avenue.

The Woolbright and Hypoluxo Road interchange projects are part of a $32.5 million, five-interchange bid in Broward and Palm Beach counties. Construction work on the Hypoluxo Road interchange started in June 2015 and work on the Woolbright Road interchange began in January 2016, Pacini said.

The contract end date for all five projects was Nov. 3, 2017. As a result, the contractor is being fined $8,491.01 per day for all five since Nov. 4, 2017, Pacini said.

Atlantic interchange work

Construction work will start Jan. 7 at the Atlantic Avenue interchange in Delray Beach, according to Pacini.

The work for the Florida Department of Transportation will include: widening the northbound entrance ramp from Atlantic Avenue, creating a dedicated lane for I-95 northbound and southbound access from westbound Atlantic Avenue, installing new water mains, improving the drainage and realigning the crosswalks to improve pedestrian safety.

The project will cost $5.2 million. Russell Engineering Inc. has the contract, and work is expected to be completed in spring 2020, Pacini said.

Traffic will not be restricted for the project, Pacini said. 

By Steve Plunkett

Barring any last-minute motions, the often-postponed felony trial of former Ocean Ridge Vice Mayor Richard Lucibella will begin Jan. 28 in Circuit Judge Daliah Weiss’ courtroom.

Lucibella, 65, is charged with battery on a law enforcement officer and resisting arrest with violence. He also faces a misdemeanor count of using a firearm while intoxicated. He has pleaded not guilty.

Weiss has already ruled that jurors can be told Lucibella’s age despite prosecutor Danielle Grundt’s argument that that detail will only inflame jurors’ thinking.

But the judge will wait until the trial begins to rule on Grundt’s request to limit expert testimony that critiques the police investigation and on whether defense attorney Marc Shiner can argue the search of Lucibella’s home was unlawful.

Police went to Lucibella’s beachfront backyard on Oct. 22, 2016, after neighbors called 911 to report hearing gunfire. They confiscated a .40-caliber handgun and found five spent shell casings on the patio.

An ensuing scuffle left Lucibella on the ground in handcuffs with broken ribs and an injured eye. But one of the responding officers says she was the one injured, and she’s suing Lucibella in civil court.

Lucibella, who has a $10 million umbrella liability policy, is chief executive of a multimillion-dollar Medicare shared savings group and publishes a magazine for gun aficionados.

He resigned from his positions as town commissioner and vice mayor on Dec. 7, 2016, when the State Attorney’s Office filed formal charges.

His felony trial was first scheduled for April 2017, postponed to July 2017, then October 2017, then April 2018, then August 2018, and now January 2019. The original judge in the case, Charles Burton, set aside four weeks for the trial. The case was reassigned to Circuit Judge Meenu Sasser, then to Weiss. 

By Mary Thurwachter

This month, Lantana residents can look forward to several roads being repaved, including Southeast Atlantic Drive on Hypoluxo Island.

Town Council members agreed during the Dec. 10 meeting to have M&M Asphalt Maintenance Inc. repave streets at an amount not to exceed $215,871. Money for the work will come from the 1-cent sales tax. The Southeast Atlantic Drive portion of the project will cost $73,600.

“Work on the island is expected to begin the second week of January,” said Jerry Darr, assistant director of the town’s utilities department. “It will go from the 800 block to the 1400 block of Southeast Atlantic and should be finished in two days.”

The work is part of the roadway development plan the town hired Mathews Consulting Inc. to produce in 2008. Engineers rated the streets based on rutting, cracking, patching and raveling.

Island resident Media Beverly asked if the project would include “those ugly yellow stripings.”

Town Manager Deborah Manzo said the yellow lines were required by law but that the pavement would have broken yellow stripes in this case.

Other streets to be resurfaced this year include West Mango Street from the dead end to South 12th Street; West Duval Street from the dead end to South 14th Street; West Branch Street from the dead end to 14th Street; Julia Heights from Skylark to Cardinal Lane; Gator Drive from North Eighth Street to North Fourth Street.

County Pocket resident Danielle McKeon and her 6-year-old son, Reef, have collected vast amounts of rope and other debris during their daily beach walks. Tim Stepien/The Coastal Star

Danielle McKeon has a close connection to the ocean, which is one of the reasons she cares so much about keeping the shoreline clean. She lives one block from the beach in the County Pocket, and is a member of the renowned Heavyside family — Nomad Surf Shop owner Ronnie Heavyside is her significant other and father to her son, Reef.

McKeon, a freelance teleprompter operator, begins most days with a walk along the beach, but in doing so she brings along a bag and makes it her mission to collect all manner of trash that has washed up in the previous 24 hours.

Some of what she collects is recycled, some thrown away, and some is used to make pieces of art.

She admits to “great anguish” when she reflects on how dirty our oceans have become.

“If you just pick up trash on the beach once, it may not affect you,” said McKeon, 39. “But if you go back to the same beach, every day or every week, you realize more and more trash keeps washing up. You can’t stop it. It’s overwhelming and it can make you feel helpless.

“A statistic says that by 2050, there will be more plastic in the ocean than fish,” she says. “There are pictures of fish, birds and sea turtles with plastic in their stomachs, wildlife entangled in netting, and just recently a dead sperm whale had an insane amount of plastic in its stomach.

“It is our fault that animals and the environment are suffering. And it’s not just them. I like to eat seafood and sushi,” she said. “So does my son. We don’t want to eat plastic. It’s important to me that Reef has a clean beach, a healthy ocean to play in and eat from.

“We must start making better, more sustainable choices and enforce protection of the ocean, coral reefs and marine life.

“As consumers we have to stop relying on single-use plastics and be mindful of the waste we are creating and ultimately where it ends up.”

It would be unrealistic to believe she alone could remove every piece of plastic, Styrofoam or other litter from the ocean or beach, she says. But “instead of giving up and thinking this problem is far larger than me, I can’t make an impact, what I can do is continue to post my beach cleanup findings on social media to raise awareness. I love when people tell me they are now picking up trash when they go to the beach after seeing my posts. It makes me feel good.”

McKeon also has reduced the amount of waste her family creates by eliminating single-use items such as plastic straws, using reusable bags instead of plastic bags and recycling as many items as possible.

“I’m not perfect and I don’t get it right 100 percent of the time, but I am working towards the greater good,” she said.

— Brian Biggane

Q: Where did you grow up and go to school? How do you think that has influenced you?

A: I was born and raised in Flint, Mich. I’m proud of where I’m from but I wanted more than what Flint could offer me. I came to Florida in 1997, when I was just 17, so I feel like I have done most of my growing up here. I graduated from the multimedia, film and television program at Palm Beach State College back when it was still Palm Beach Community College.

Flint taught me to dream. It made me resilient, thankful, honest and nonjudgmental. In South Florida variety really is the spice of life. I’ve been introduced to new cultures, music, food and the ocean. I’m able to enjoy the outdoors nearly 365 days a year. That alone has given me a deeper connection to nature and a passion for helping the environment.

Q: What advice do you have for a young person seeking a career today?

A: There’s a quote I learned from my political science professor: “If you find a job you love you will never work a day in your life.” I am not sure where it originated but I can tell you, it’s one of the truest statements I’ve ever heard.

I think job and career are essentially totally different. A job is something you have to do. A career is something you want to do. Sometimes we have to work several jobs to get to our career and that’s OK.

I wore many hats before I became the teleprompter diva that I am today. I was a production coordinator, producer, P.A., script supervisor, camera operator, director’s assistant, grip and the list goes on. I tell young people who are starting out in the film/ television business to try every job because you never know which one you will like the best or which one could one day become your career.

There are so many new career options within technology, green energy, social media and even the cannabis industry. They are all just one click away on the internet, but easier access to contact these companies and instant connection means more competition. Know who you are. Know what you want. Know what your goals are. Know how to market yourself. Believe in yourself and don’t let misfortunes define you.

Q: How did you choose to make your home in the Pocket?

A: Love brought me to the Surf Pocket. But the Heavysides have been here since the ’60s. Ronnie grew up in this neighborhood. Now we are raising our son here. Reef, 6, can be found running around the surf shop sometimes just like his father did when he was little. Reef has said he never wants to leave this neighborhood, so I guess we will be here for a while.

Q: What is your favorite part about living on the island?

A: The beach. It’s the perfect place to relax, get inspired or watch the sunrise. I am so blessed to live just steps from the Atlantic Ocean. Being so close affords me the time and ability to do multiple beach cleanups throughout the week.

Q: What books are you reading now?

A: An Inconvenient Sequel: Truth to Power, by Al Gore, and Simple Acts to Save Our Planet, 500 Ways to Make a Difference, by Michelle Neff.

Q: What music do you listen to when you want inspiration? When you want to relax?

A: My musical interests are all over the place. When I am running through Ocean Ridge I usually need motivation and inspiration so I listen to dancehall. It’s a genre within reggae. When I’m looking for creative inspiration I like to put my Pandora on shuffle, usually to the likes of Joni Mitchell, Beres Hammond, Phish, CCR, Vulfpeck, Marvin Gaye, Herbie Hancock, Janis Joplin and Grateful Dead.  

Relaxing by the pool or on the beach it’s definitely reggae playing from my speaker. When I am really relaxing, doing yoga or meditating, I listen to Native American flute. It helps calm my mind.

Q: Do you have a favorite quote that inspires your decisions?

A: “Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life.” — Steve Jobs. It’s pretty straightforward. I also have to mention the Serenity Prayer because it has given me peace and guidance at different times throughout my life.

Q: Have you had mentors in your life? Individuals who have inspired your life decisions?

A: When I was a kid I looked up to my mom. She was a single mother who worked her way up from selling doughnuts to eventually retiring as the foreman for the city of Flint’s Water Service Center. [She retired long before the ongoing Flint water crisis.] She was the life of the party and had a great group of friends. She was beautiful … she still is and I wanted to be just like her.

My mom gave me the strength to stand on my own two feet. “Never ask a man to do something you can do for yourself,” she would say as she was fixing the toilet or something else around the house. There were times when we were poor, but my mom never let us feel like we were. I knew I was loved and I have always known love is what matters because of her.   

My son inspires most of my life decisions now.

Q: If your life were made into a movie, who would play you?

A: It would have to be someone who is stunningly beautiful, charming, charismatic and funny. Drew Barrymore? Charlize Theron? Just kidding. I think I’m more like Kate McKinnon.

Q: Is there something about you that people don’t know?

A: A few random things about myself: I am scared of birds, I have been since I was a child. I hate beets and cottage cheese.

Boynton Beach’s Community Redevelopment Agency and the City of Delray Beach hosted the 47th annual Holiday Boat Parade along the Intracoastal Waterway through the two cities.

Judges rated the boats on lights, colors, theme and overall best. The prize winners were:

Category 1: 25 feet or less

First place $500, David Wiggins’  ‘Too Much Fun’

  Second place $400, Joe Budd Maniscalco’s ‘It’s All Good’ 

  Third place $300, Dennis Balocik’s ‘Steel Dreaming’

Category 2: 26 to 34 feet

First place $500,  Adam Ruen’s ‘Full Tilt’

   Second place $400, James Patrick’s ‘Jim ‘N Tonic’

   Third place $300, Tom Dipolito’s ‘Blue Skies’

Category 3: 35 feet and up

BOTTOM RIGHT: First place $500, John Klaasen’s ‘Happy Ours’

   Second place $400, Pedro Tirado’s ‘Sol Life’

   Third place $300, Frank Call’s ‘Lady K’

Photos provided by City of Boynton Beach

By Christine Davis

In December, Delray Beach developer Craig Menin’s Rosebud 110 LLC paid $31 million for a retail and office building at 110 E. Atlantic Ave. from a company tied to RMS Properties, a Schaumburg, Ill.-based property management firm. Menin financed the deal with a $26.5 million loan from BankUnited.

The property last sold for $8.5 million in 2014, according to public records. The building, which sits on nearly half an acre about seven blocks west of the Intracoastal Waterway in downtown Delray Beach, comprises two restaurants, including Rocco’s Tacos and Tequila Bar, 40,000 square feet of office space, underground parking and a new lobby.

Boston Red Sox owner John Henry’s 27,832-square-foot home, Tashun (House of Peace), at 6011 Le Lac Road in Boca Raton, was recently listed for sale by Senada Adzem, an agent with Douglas Elliman, for $25 million. The compound on 6.4 acres has a seven-car garage and a tennis court. Henry briefly owned baseball’s Florida Marlins before buying the Red Sox. Henry also owns the Boston Globe and British soccer team Liverpool FC.

In November, ICM Realty Group sold the 92,260-square-foot office building Atrium in the 700-acre Park of Broken Sound in Boca Raton for $22.4 million. It was purchased by a partnership between Alchemy-ABR Investment Partners and Breakers Capital Partners.

The property previously traded for $17.05 million in 2016. Atrium at Broken Sound, built in 1986, was the former headquarters of Rexall Sundown.

The Premier Estate Properties’ D’Angelo Liguori team recently listed La Plage Villa at 4005 S. Ocean Blvd. in Highland Beach for $22 million. Sabal Development, a company owned by Nicolai Pascal, bought the property in July 2016 for $4.425 million. The new four-level modern home will take a year to complete and features 100 feet-plus on the ocean, rooftop sky deck and a five-bay garage.

John and Jennifer Williams’ Intracoastal Waterway home, La Casa Delle Palme at 166 W. Alexander Palm Road in Boca Raton,  sold for $9.996 million in November. The home was listed by the D’Angelo Liguori team. The new owners are Adrian and Mary Zaccaria as trustees for the Adrian and Mary Sandra Zaccaria Trust.

An estate at 1500 S. Ocean Blvd., owned by a trust of the late resident Fred R. Marcon in Manalapan, sold for $19 million in late December. Kathryn Gillespie, an agent with Illustrated Properties, represented the seller. The new buyer is listed as a trust of Robert F. Schemel, which has a Lantana address. The 11,673-square-foot mansion, with 178 feet on the ocean and 178 feet on the Intracoastal Waterway, was designed by Randall Stofft Architects and constructed by Cudmore Builders in 2008.

The property sold for $8,290,800 in March 2005, according to public records.

The first two sales took place in the new six-unit townhome project at 3621 S. Ocean in Highland Beach.  Photo provided

A new luxury townhome project at 3621 S. Ocean Blvd. in Highland Beach recorded its first two sales. The six-unit project was completed by a joint partnership among Sean Posner’s Grafton Street Capital, Capital Development Group International and Halstatt Real Estate Partners.

Steven E. Bernstein, founder and chairman of SBA Communications, paid $6.9 million in November for townhome U-1, property records show. SBA Communications, based in Boca Raton, owns and operates wireless infrastructure in North America and Latin America.

Townhome U-2 sold for $6.6 million to Joel Zychick, who acted as a trustee of the Stuart Siegel irrevocable trust.

The land, which was purchased in 2015 for about $11 million, is a little more than an acre with 201 feet of ocean frontage. The development team broke ground on the project in 2016. The five-bedroom, six-bathroom, four-story townhomes each have a pool, rooftop deck, high ceilings and two-car garages.

Chris Leavitt and Ashley McIntosh of the Leavitt McIntosh team at Douglas Elliman are handling sales.

Construction has hit the homestretch at the seven-story 3550 South Ocean condominium complex in South Palm Beach, which topped out this summer. Palm trees were hoisted by the tower crane and loaded onto the pool deck, and now the tower crane is gone.

Expected occupancy is mid-2019. Pricing starts at $2.31 million, with Douglas Elliman Development Marketing handling sales

A development for DDG, a firm that has developed residential buildings in New York and California, this project represents a new phase of the company’s expansion as well as its first project in Florida.

GarciaStromberg | GS4studios of Palm Beach, Kobi Karp Architecture of Miami, and Champalimaud of New York teamed up to design the contemporary beachfront building.

The Boynton Beach Community Redevelopment Agency has been on an award winning streak this past year, earning 31 honors for economic-development strategies in the marketing and promotion of its partnerships and programs.

The CRA produces several annual events that attract visitors downtown to support local businesses. Those efforts were lauded by three agencies.

The Florida Festivals & Events Association gave 12 SUNsational Awards to the CRA for everything from the Boynton Beach Haunted Pirate Fest & Mermaid Splash to the Boynton Beach & Delray Beach Holiday Boat Parade.

The Florida Redevelopment Association gave two 2018 Roy F. Kenzie Awards to the CRA for social-media outreach and the annual report.

Finally, the International Festivals & Events Association gave 17 awards to the CRA in gold, silver and bronze categories during the IFEA / Haas & Wilkerson Pinnacle Awards competition.

Florida Atlantic University’s A.D. Henderson University School celebrated its National Blue Ribbon distinction at a ceremony in December. The Boca Raton elementary and middle school, which was recognized as high performing based on overall academic performance, was one of 12 schools in Florida to be named a National Blue Ribbon School by the U.S. Department of Education.

Producing eco-friendly paper straws, FarfromBoring Hospitality is trying to reduce the more than 500 million non-biodegradable plastic straws used every day in the United States. These may end up in the ocean as pollution where they are eaten by sea birds, turtles and other marine life.

The B2B business has also partnered with Trees for the Future to plant a tree for every case of straws sold. The company is at 6401 Congress Ave., Suite 215, Boca Raton. For more information, visit www.paperstrawwholesalers.com.

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

Anne and Peter Vegso of Boca Raton and two of their grandsons acknowledge the crowd before the couple were honored at halftime of the Boca Raton Bowl last month at FAU Stadium. Their philanthropic giving was celebrated by Spirit of Giving Network President David Dunston (left), who gave the Vegsos the Show Your Community Spirit Award.’ Jerry Lower/The Coastal Star

By Jane Smith

Delray Beach city commissioners unanimously approved the revised Coastal Management segment of their comprehensive plan on Dec. 11.

The Coastal Management element is one chapter of the city’s plan, which acts as a wish book to guide the city over the next decade. With the help of a branding firm, Delray Beach planners dubbed the plan update “Always Delray.”

On Dec. 11, commissioners learned that the Coastal Management area is now larger by nearly 157 acres, or 25 percent, because it includes more of the western areas along the Intracoastal Waterway that are prone to flooding.

   The addition came from the Development Services staffers who used a consultant and a steering committee of city residents to review the current comprehensive plan and suggest changes.

The coastal segment takes into account the low-lying land along the Intracoastal Waterway that saw tidal flooding only with the highest of tides in the past, but now sees “nuisance flooding more often,” said barrier island resident Andy Katz. He was part of the Always Delray steering committee and worked on the Coastal Management segment of the plan.

The city also recognizes that sea level rise, from melting ice on land masses and warmer waters, is coming more quickly than scientists predicted, Katz said.

While it’s hard to assign an exact year to the sea level rise scenarios that will be submitted with the plan, Katz said that nearly all scientists agree that Delray Beach could see 2 feet of sea level rise in the 2060 decade.

Natural disaster planning was removed from the Coastal Management segment, said Tim Stillings, Development Services director. “It’s a citywide initiative and was moved to the Conservation, Sustainability and Resiliency segment,” Stillings wrote in an email after the meeting.

Another change is the availability of better mapping techniques to show potential flooding and elevation of the various city streets, Stillings wrote.

The City Commission will have a chance to review the entire plan in the spring before it is sent to the state.

The state requires a comprehensive plan update every 10 years. Delray Beach submitted the current update in March 2008.