Aerial photograph of Briny Breezes taken Sept. 11 following Hurricane Irma. Photo courtesy of James M. Arena

By Jane Smith

In Delray Beach, Andy Katz just returned to his barrier island home this morning. He does not have power, but he has food, water and a small generator that powers a limited number of items. His refrigerator is plugged into it to keep the items cold.
His home lost some gutters on the eastern side of his house.
"Sand is everywhere," said Katz, a retired astronomer, "along with water intrusion."

"We are still assessing city facilities for possible storm damage," Glickstein said.

Delray Beach has a dusk-to-dawn curfew.

Briny Breezes residents returned home Sept. 11 to mostly minor damage in Palm Beach County's only oceanfront mobile home park. Jerry Lower/The Coastal Star

Briny Breezes saw some street flooding in low areas. Jerry Lower/The Coastal Star

Surf was up for Matt Adams near Briny Breezes on the morning of Sept. 11. Jerry Lower/The Coastal Star

The beach in Ocean Ridge was swept clean with only minor wave and tide erosion of the protective dune. Jerry Lower/The Coastal Star

The dunes along the beach in Delray Beach held up well to the winds and waves of Hurricane Irma. Photo taken during the afternoon of Sept. 11. Michelle Quigley/The Coastal Star

The amazing colors of the Atlantic after Hurricane Irma. Taken at Delray Beach on Sept. 11. Michelle Quigly/The Coastal Star

Palm Beach County Fire Rescue employees check out the Boynton Inlet Sept. 11 following Hurricane Irma. Jerry Lower/The Coastal Star

The Boynton Inlet resembles a mint milkshake on the incoming tide Sept. 11. Jerry Lower/The Coastal Star

A bulldozer operator scrapes sand that had blown onto to A1A at the Boynton Inlet curve during Hurricane Irma. Jerry Lower/The Coastal Star

Town police and employees  clear vegetative debris from A1A in Gulf Stream. The town kept residents and sightseers out until the road was safe to travel. Jerry Lower/The Coastal Star

A sailboat stored in the dune was pushed onto Old Ocean Blvd. in Ocean Ridge. Jerry Lower/The Coastal Star

A large tree blocks an entrance to the Ocean Ridge Yacht Club following Hurricane Irma. Jerry Lower/The Coastal Star

The cupola was blown off the beachfront gazebo at Colonial Ridge in Ocean Ridge and rests in the southbound lane of Old Ocean Blvd. Jerry Lower/The Coastal Star

A Douglas Drive resident in Ocean Ridge sent a colorful message to Hurricane Irma with plywood on his home. Jerry Lower/The Coastal Star

Residents check the damage along 7th Avenue in Delray Beach during the morning of Sept. 11. Michelle Quigley/The Coastal Star

Trees and power poles lean along A1A at Spanish River Park in Boca Raton. Tim Stepien/The Coastal Star

A large seagrape tree was uprooted at the La Fontana condominium on Boca Raton. Tim Stepien/The Coastal Star

A brick facade was torn from a wall at the Ocean Lodge along A1A in Boca Raton. Tim Stepien/The Coastal Star

Photos from the storm: Sept. 11 |Sept. 12 morning; Sept. 12 afternoon | Sept. 13 & 14 | Briny Breezes aerial | Photos from our readers

By Jane Smith

Linda Cross, who lives in the Marina Villages condo complex in Boynton Beach, said her family lost power the morning of Sept. 11for about 90 minutes.
"We had power the entire time of the storm ," she said. "The water flowed over the sea wall only half of what was expected." Her condo complex sits near the Intracoastal Waterway overlooking the Ocean Avenue Bridge.
She lives on the sixth floor of a 16-story building. As with other high rises, the management company sent the elevators to the top floor at 9 a.m. Saturday and then turned them off at 2 p.m. 
"That's done," Cross said, "to avoid flooding the elevator shafts.
Her family won't drive around today because the traffic lights are not working. 
"It can be crazy when drivers don't treat each intersection (with a non-working traffic light) as a Four-way stop," she said.
Also in Boynton Beach, Harry Woodworth owns a home along the Intracoastal.
He lost power early Sunday morning, "just after he poured a cup of coffee," he said.
His family "hunkered down" Sunday while the storm approached.
Today, Woodworth and his son are doing cleanup.
One tree was split down the middle and one coconut palm broke at its base.
"We had only tropical storm winds, but some of the gusts were killer," Woodworth said.
As a former Motorola executive, he is a gadget-geek with two generators — a small one that runs the refrigerator and entertainment system that powers the big-screen TV. He also has a whole house one that is quite noisy. 
He will run that one during the day only to allow his neighbors to sleep at night.
He also has a camper in his driveway where they can sleep and eat in the comfort of air-conditioning.

Solid Waste Authority of Palm Beach County - HURRICANE IRMA UPDATE 4 Sept. 11, 2017 at 5:15 p.m.

Contact: Willie Puz, Public Affairs and Recycling, 561-640-8914 (o); 561-379-2405 (c)

Garbage collection resumes in PBC; SWA urges residents to separate waste piles

 With the storm now passed, most Solid Waste Authority of Palm Beach County collection facilities will be open and accepting waste. Garbage collection will resume in unincorporated parts of the county as of 6 a.m. Tuesday (Sept 12).

However, recycling collection and vegetation collection WILL NOT resume as normal. The SWA’s Recovered Materials Processing Facility is without power and cannot process any recyclables that come in. The SWA will advise the public and the haulers when we are able to receive recyclables.

So that means Garbage Only collection until further notice.

The SWA’s transfer stations, the landfill and the waste-to-energy facilities will be open regular business hours tomorrow, Sept. 12. Municipalities are advised to seek the advice of their debris management consultants prior to delivering vegetation/storm debris to the SWA’s facilities, as doing so may complicate FEMA reimbursement.

The SWA is in the process of setting up Temporary Debris Management Sites for the receipt and processing of storm debris for municipalities and debris contractors. These sites are not available to the general public. The SWA will provide regular updates on the status of the opening of these sites.

All residents can help clean up our community by placing their waste and debris in three separate piles at the curb:

1.    Put garbage and recyclables out by 6 a.m. on your regularly scheduled day. These will be picked up first.

2.    Put all vegetation only in a second pile.

3.    And, put all other construction storm debris in a third pile.

Be sure to keep these three piles separate and away from:

•         Fences

•         Mailboxes

•         Power line equipment, poles, transformers, downed electrical wiring

•         Water meters

•         Fire hydrants or

•         Storm drains

(Watch the SWA commercial on separating your waste piles - https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__www.youtube.com_watch-3Fv-3DidlwGeVYU64&d=DwIF-g&c=JMJxdiofvjJKeebMXBrIn8vDKQGaIrsQQJbzDQHviG0&r=6b9rMWcU-VZUcMHYJ2y1QcUjyDIgbntmkrh1dpgchCg&m=pvmbZZPWsacJrrS7JaEYY0C7vLfT1Ef983qo0MfiKXM&s=Wwe9z4-Gj3mEpMaPglWfX8NiqdIMaw2Gf3vVouLjZN0&e= )

There is no rush for residents to get all their storm debris to the curb. Debris collection vehicles will begin collecting debris later this week and will make multiple passes until all debris is picked up.

The SWA urges all residents to be patient as collection efforts resume. It may be weeks before the first collection of vegetation and construction storm debris reaches everyone.

Visit SWA.org/Hurricane for more information.

NOTE: There will be no reimbursement provided to any individual resident or homeowner association who hires a private contractor to remove and dispose of their vegetation and construction storm-related debris.

Ocean Ridge police officers block traffic into town at the Ocean Ave. Bridge on Sept. 9 in response to a county-wide curfew implemented in advance of Hurricane Irma. Delray Beach and South Palm Beach have implemented similar roadblocks. All municipalities along the barrier island in Palm Beach County are in a mandatory evacuation zone. Jerry Lower/The Coastal Star

Workers put up shutters in Briny Breezes in advance of Hurricane Irma's arrival. The seaside mobile home park is traditionally one of the first places in the County to face a mandatory evacuation order. Jerry Lower/The Coastal Star

Editor's Note

The Coastal Star does not plan to provide hurricane preparedness information. There are several excellent sources of information available in the community for making plans in advance of the storm. We do plan to begin updating this site once the storm has passed and our employees can safely venture outside to begin gathering information.

Please check back after the storm and most importantly, stay safe out there.

Stay in touch with your local, daily newspaper and favorite television station for complete storm coverage. Your local municipality is also providing important safety information. You can check their websites, download their apps and subscribe to their email lists.

For additional information on Hurricane Irma, and for information on the Palm Beach County Division of Emergency Management and hurricane preparedness, visit: www.pbcgov.com, Twitter @PBCDEM and watch PBC-TV Channel 20.

Ariana Ciancio, the Delray Beach Police Department’s service population advocate, talks with homeless people at Libby Wesley Park. Tim Stepien/The Coastal Star

By Rich Pollack

    Soon after she arrived in Delray Beach as the Police Department’s new community mental health counselor, Ariana Ciancio did something no one else from the city had time to do before.
    She met with a longtime homeless woman well known to police officers throughout the city, sat down on a garbage bag next to her and mainly listened.
Before their 45-minute conversation was over, Ciancio had learned a lot about the woman, her background and even about her family members, some of whom Ciancio has since contacted.
    At the same time, Ciancio was building a relationship based on trust and letting the woman know that the city now had someone there to help, if she wanted or needed it.
    “It was just a very comfortable, candid conversation,” she said.
    For Ciancio, a licensed mental health counselor and certified addiction professional whose focus will be on working with the city’s recovery community and the growing homeless population as well as those with mental health issues, the job is a perfect fit.
    “I have a love for this,” she says. “It’s all I’ve done all my life. I can just naturally connect with people.”
    Ciancio, 46, has seen the deadly effects of drug abuse firsthand from the time she was in high school.  
    “My very best friend died of an overdose last year,” she said.
    Ciancio’s newly created position of service population advocate is what Police Chief Jeff Goldman calls “another tool in the tool box.”
    Delray Beach, an epicenter of the opioid epidemic and a community that has received more than its fair share of publicity because of its sober home crisis, has been on the leading edge of finding successful ways to address the problem, Goldman said. Hiring Ciancio, he believes, is just one more step in the right direction.
    The Police Department was one of the first in the state to equip officers with Narcan — a drug that can revive people who overdose — and Goldman believes it’s the first municipal law enforcement agency in Palm Beach County to have a full-time community advocate addressing social issues.
    The position, which costs the city between $50,000 and $70,000 a year, is an investment that Goldman says will pay dividends.
    “It will help our department be more effective and more efficient,” he says.
    He cited one situation where police officers have responded 13 times in just a few months to help a family struggling with a relative who suffers from mental health problems.
    “There are a lot of social issues that are a drain on our services,” the chief said.

Social, legal situations overlap
    Over time, Goldman said, the line between social problems and law enforcement issues has blurred.
    “The heroin epidemic is a social issue, but eventually everything becomes a law enforcement issue,” he said. “People always ask our officers where they can go for help, and they don’t always know.”
    Now those needing assistance can turn to Ciancio, who in two months on the job has been busy with calls from local people trying to find a place for those in recovery and from parents from out of state worried about their children in recovery.
    Just last month, Ciancio was contacted by operators of two sober homes that were closing down who hoped to find spots for the two dozen individuals who had been staying there.
    “In the past,” Goldman said, “24 people would have been on the street.”
    Another key role for Ciancio will be to try to reduce the number of individuals who overdose, are revived by the drug Narcan, but later overdose again.
    In some cases, she will follow police officers to the hospital and meet with the individual who overdoses right away. In other cases, she will schedule follow-up appointments.
    Her message to them — and to everyone else — is: “I’m the advocate from the Delray Beach Police Department and I’m here to help you.”
    Ciancio is discovering that finding help for everyone in need is a challenge because Palm Beach County has a limited supply of available beds for those in emergency situations or people searching for a detox or recovery program.
    She’s also finding that the demand for help in Delray Beach may be more than one person can handle and as a result, the department is in conversations with leaders of Florida Atlantic University’s social work program to discuss internship opportunities.
    She is working with other agencies to increase opportunities and is developing a pamphlet that will list agencies available to help people in need.
    Helping people — and building bridges — is something Ciancio has been doing for more than two decades. She came  to Delray Beach after spending 17 years with the National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence in New Jersey.
    A New Jersey native, she came to Florida to get an education, first at Florida Atlantic University, where she received a bachelor’s degree in psychology, and later at Nova Southeastern University, where she received a master’s degree in mental health counseling.
    Ciancio, who has been married for 16 years and has an 11-year-old son and a 14-year-old daughter, had always wanted to return to South Florida.
    Ciancio said her work in Delray Beach is similar to what she did in New Jersey, but with new challenges and perhaps greater urgency.
    “I always find myself in places where I feel I’m needed,” she said.

Atlantic High coach T.J. Jackson grew up in Delray Beach amid hardship some of his players face. Tim Stepien/The Coastal Star

By Janis Fontaine

    From Delray to Dallas and back, Tavarius “T.J.” Jackson is a success story.
    Jackson earned his way from the Delray Beach housing projects to a chance with the Dallas Cowboys, one of the best franchises in the NFL.
    Now he’s Coach Jackson and leads the football program at Atlantic High School in Delray Beach, working with kids who live in the same neighborhood in which he grew up.
    The former Olympic Heights High School star’s dream to play for coach Steve Spurrier at the University of Florida collapsed because he couldn’t perform in the classroom the way he could on the football field.
    That could have been the end for him as an athlete, but with the support of his parents, Jackson brought his test scores up and did get a college scholarship — at Virginia Tech, where he earned a bachelor’s degree and played linebacker. After he graduated, the Cowboys picked him up as a free agent in 2003.
    That didn’t work out, but it affirmed to Jackson that his education was just as important as athletic ability. It’s a common lesson. Every year, athletes who squeaked by in high school — some by the misplaced good graces of teachers — quickly flunk out of college.
    “You have to be disciplined in the classroom and on the field. Self-discipline will carry you a long way in life,” Jackson said.
And he lives this philosophy even now: “You can get emotional,” Jackson tells his players, “but you’ve still got to stay in control and be accountable for what you do and what you say.”

A standout coach
    Kevin Logan of Ocean Ridge has been the athletic director at Atlantic High School for 33 years — he’s even a graduate of the school — and he’s seen plenty of coaches come and go.
“He’s been here five years, and each year he does more,” Logan said of Jackson. “To him, football is a year-round commitment. Coach is always doing something: fundraising, holding SAT tutoring, arranging after-school programs. He’s gotten the teachers involved helping with academics and he’s gotten the community involved holding fundraisers.
    “We have 135 kids between the varsity, JV and freshman teams, and most of them are from rough neighborhoods. Very few of them could raise the funds needed to play a sport. The insurance alone is $75.”
Somehow, Jackson finds a way to get the players what they need, even if it means digging into his own pocket.
“He finds the money to pay for equipment players need, plus special game day jerseys players on the team get to wear to classes on game days,” Logan said. “In turn, players must keep up their grades and stay out of trouble. When they are wearing team colors, Coach expects them to behave.”
Jackson has gotten good results on the field. The Eagles, who were 3-8 in his first season in 2013,  went 12-1 in 2015 and 9-4 last season, getting within one game of the state playoff semifinals both seasons.
    
Prep & Sports nonprofit
Jackson sings the praises of the city of Delray Beach and its business community.
 “Delray is a unique city,” said Jackson, 38. “There’s a lot of support here.”
    But you need the right kind of support.
    Josh Rosen, the star quarterback at UCLA, made the news recently when he said playing college football and keeping up academically is like having two full-time jobs.
“It’s not that some players shouldn’t be in school; it’s just that universities should help them more — instead of just finding ways to keep them eligible,” Rosen said.
    But even the first day of college is too late to start helping, Jackson said. It has to start in high school, even middle school.
In 2005, Jackson teamed up with another former football player, Jamael Stewart, and they founded Prep & Sports Inc., a nonprofit organization that turns at-risk youths into scholar-athletes by providing practical academic support, tutoring and skill-building, as well as emotional support through athletic mentorships, training and guidance. Tutors are certified teachers with a passion for kids and mentors include current and former NFL players who keep in touch with the kids through social media.
    Right now, Prep & Sports has 125 young men training in a variety of sports at its facility on Federal Highway.
    “The program has a 100 percent on-time graduation rate,” said Stewart, whose day job is assistant director of community improvement for Delray Beach. “We started with kids who were gifted athletically but weak academically. They were rough around the edges. A lot of these kids would drop out of school after football season.”
    Jackson told them, “They can always take sports away from you, but your education, they can never take that away.”

A cautionary tale
As proof, the coach offers Kevin Lubin.  
Jackson was an assistant coach at West Boca High and Lubin was a gifted athlete who had started at Prep & Sports with a 0.3 GPA and a juvenile record. By senior year, the 5-foot-11, 260-pound lineman had brought his GPA up to 3.2. He was dreaming big, his sights set on the University of Miami. With Jackson as his mentor, Lubin’s future looked golden.
    Then, just before midnight on Thanksgiving Eve 2007, Lubin met his friends Dante and Jermaine on Atlantic Avenue, just blocks from his home. They were walking to Lubin’s car when a silver Chrysler rolled up and a masked man shot Lubin and his friends with an AK-47.
    Lubin’s left leg exploded, and two of the 14 bullets were so close to his heart, surgeons were afraid to remove them. It took nearly a full day to patch Kevin Lubin back together. His football dreams died right there on Southwest Second Street.
    For 23 hours, Jackson never left the waiting room, and he stayed at Lubin’s side through his rehabilitation.
    “That was one of the hardest things I had to deal with,” Jackson said. “It was tough on me, and it took me a while to come out of my shell.”
    “It was a very difficult time,” recalled Stewart. “T.J. was at the hospital every day with that young man. And [Lubin] went through a big slump, but we mentored him through that.”
Lubin now works as a mentor in Delray Beach for parks and recreation, because so many youngsters still need help.
    
A life forever changed
Fortunately, players like Brisly Estime remind Jackson why he’s doing what he does.
Estime didn’t begin playing football until his freshman year of high school, but under Jackson’s wing, the boy who came from Haiti at age 5 became one of the best players in the county.
The 2013 Atlantic graduate known for his speed converted his success on the field into a full scholarship at Syracuse University. The 5-foot-9, 185-pound Estime was a wide receiver and one of the best punt returners in the country. He signed with the NFL’s New York Jets as an undrafted free agent this year but sustained a torn Achilles tendon in offseason workouts. He plans to resume playing when he recovers.
“Coach Jackson is a great person and a great man,” Estime said by phone. “I appreciate everything he does for kids. He’s a great coach and he loves football, but he really loves helping kids.”  
 Estime says Jackson taught him much more than football: “He taught me life skills.”
And when Estime walked across the stage to get the diploma for his degree, Jackson was there. He’s a consistent presence in kids’ lives, and that consistency is something a lot young men don’t have.  

A nourishing start
Each Friday, Jackson provides a game-day meal because he knows some of his young men don’t have enough food to fuel their dreams.
Jackson understands hardship and disappointment. He grew up in the Carver Estates housing project, where he saw drug abuse, violence and poverty every day.
 “But I had family support,” Jackson said.
    “You know what really bothers me? Seeing adults that aren’t there for their kids. Their kids need the help and they don’t step up. That’s very mind-altering.”
 You can hear disgust in his voice. “But I don’t let it distract me. I keep moving forward.”

Atlantic coach T.J. Jackson helps up one of his players. Jackson also is part of a nonprofit that gives academic and athletic support to at-risk youths. Tim Stepien/The Coastal Star

At issue is whether building should continue east of Coastal Construction Line

By Jane Smith and Michelle Quigley
    
If a major hurricane were to hit the barrier island in southern Palm Beach County, $6.4 billion in mansions and condos sitting east of A1A would likely be damaged or destroyed.
    Would the property owners be allowed to rebuild?
    Yes, if the past is an indication.
    The state has OK’d nearly all applications to build seaward of what is called the Coastal Construction Control Line in the past 10 years, according to a local spokeswoman for the Florida Department of Environmental Protection.
    The mansions and condos, including sea walls and swimming pools, lie perilously close to the ocean. Some of the pools and sea walls washed away in October 2012 when Hurricane Sandy brushed the South Florida coast.
    “This is criminal,” said Harold Wanless, professor and department chairman of geological sciences at the University of Miami. “Someone should be brought up on charges because it affects the health, safety and welfare of citizens.”
    Why are these applications approved? In Florida, property rights are highly regarded.
    The only time a person is guaranteed a 12-person jury is when the government wants to take your life — or your property. The state Legislature passed the Bert J. Harris Act in 1995, strengthening a property owner’s rights. The act, toughened in 2015, reads that local governments must prove that not allowing owners to use their property would be in the public’s interest.
    But Wanless and other scientists, concerned about rising sea levels and increased predictions for stronger storms, think the state is being shortsighted.
    “The state should be looking out 50 or more years,” Wanless said. “The sea level will rise by about 2 feet by 2048.
    “Most of Florida’s coasts will be lost to sea level rise,” he continued, pointing to the January report on “Global and Sea Level Rise Scenarios for the United States.”
    The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration produced the report from the work of leading government scientists, including William Sweet, an oceanographer at NOAA’s Center for Operational Oceanographic Products and Services, and Jayantha Obeysekera, the chief modeler at the South Florida Water Management District.
    Wanless said the state should stop approving structures seaward of the line and have the line consider the effects of sea level rise.

State laws lack enforcement
    In 1971, state legislators created the Coastal Construction Setback Line, which banned construction seaward of the line. That was altered in 1978 to become the Coastal Construction Control Line, which does not prohibit such construction but puts the buildings under increased review.  
The CCCL is set on a county-by-county basis. Palm Beach County’s line was last reset in 1997. The line is supposed to preserve and protect beaches from badly designed construction that can harm the beach-dune system, speed up the rate of erosion, endanger adjacent properties or interfere with public beach access.
    The state DEP leaves it up to the cities to determine how their coastlines will be used, said spokeswoman Dee Ann Miller.
    South County municipalities, though, are leaving that decision up to the state — concerned they may be denying property owners their rights to use the land to the fullest.
    Wanless said, “The DEP and the state make the laws and should be responsible for their implementation.”

Lifestyle worth the risk
    Manalapan residents Don Silpe and his wife, Linda, don’t worry about sea level rise. At their stage in life, they know they won’t be around to see its effects.
    Instead, they worry about a strong storm, a Category 3 or higher hurricane, destroying their 1940s house, where they have lived for the past 30 years.  
    “If we lose this house to a strong hurricane, we are choosing to do so,” Linda Silpe said. “We are going into it with our eyes wide open, knowing we could not rebuild as close to the ocean as the home is. It would have to be set back.”
    They don’t have windstorm insurance but they do carry flood insurance.
    Their oceanfront compound is named Ariel, after the spirit in Shakespeare’s play The Tempest.
    The main house has more than 3,600 square feet, facing the ocean. Tennis courts and a swimming pool sit on the west side of the 1.63-acre property.
    “I like the sense of timelessness, that you are just a grain of sand and the ocean goes on forever,” said Linda Silpe on a hot August afternoon when the ocean breeze made it comfortable to sit outside on the deck.
    Her husband pointed out the pluses of living next to the ocean: sea turtle nests every 4 feet, reefs for snorkeling, ocean breeze in the heat of the day and few people walking along the stretch of the beach in front of their home.
    He proudly showed the “400 or 500 pictures of sunrises” on his mobile phone, all taken from his deck.
    “I grew up near the water and have an affinity for it,” Don Silpe said. “Being here is a way of life.”

A building too far        

In southern Ocean Ridge, beach-walkers talk about the new multistory duplex going up on the former site of a single-story hotel at 5001 Old Ocean Blvd.
    “If a building had not already existed on Old Ocean Boulevard with an existing sea wall, the new building would not have been approved,” said Geoff Pugh, mayor of Ocean Ridge. “It extends too far out.”
Sea turtle monitor Joan Lorne says the sea wall is too high and leads to false crawls. Those occur when the turtles crawl up on the beach, hit the sea wall and then retreat into the ocean before laying eggs.
    Her daughter, Jackie Kingston, holds the sea turtle monitoring permit from Florida’s Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. Her group of five, called Sea Turtle Adventurers, counts turtle nests daily in southern Ocean Ridge, Briny Breezes and Gulf Stream.
    At the Old Ocean site, the number of sea turtle nests and false crawls are the same as last year: five for each category, Kingston said in late August.

Property rights prevail
    Local governments can’t just deny property owners the right to build near the ocean if the state allows it, Pugh said.
    “Just to say, ‘sea level rise’ would not be enough,” he said.
    Citizens Property Insurance, the insurer of last resort, had 684 policies in southern Palm Beach County as of June 30, according to its spokesman. The policies insure structures east of A1A. Homeowners with mortgages are required to have windstorm coverage.
    Citizens caps windstorm property damage claims at $700,000 for personal policies and $1 million for commercial policies, spokesman Michael Peltier said.
    Boca Raton had the highest number, with 170 personal policies and 25 commercial policies. Commercial policies cover apartment buildings and condo associations, Peltier said.
    The county’s southernmost city passed its own coastal construction setback in 1981. With that resolution, Boca Raton reviews the oceanfront projects after they receive their state permits.
    One test may come as soon as November. An ultramodern, four-story duplex is planned for 2600 N. Ocean Blvd. The proposed 14,270-square-foot building has a nearly all-glass front facing the ocean.
    The city’s environmental consultant returned its draft report in mid-August, said Boca Raton spokeswoman Chrissy Gibson.
The draft report said the project did not do enough to keep its lights from shining on the beach and disturbing nesting sea turtles, the dune vegetation study lacks sufficient detail to determine whether it addresses all on-site vegetative impacts and the proposed dune walkover structure extends out into the active beach and turtle-nesting zones. All three violate the city’s codes.
    The results will make it onto the city’s Environmental Advisory Board agenda within 30 days. The board’s recommendation makes it to the Boca Raton City Council agenda within 30 days. The City Council has the final say.
Because of sea turtle nesting, the state requires a tinted glass or a film that allows 45 percent or less light to filter through the windows and doors facing the ocean and on the sides of the building.
    “Any development on the beach affects the sea turtles,” said Kirt Rusenko, who leads a group of eight to monitor Boca Raton’s beaches during the nesting season. Rusenko is the marine conservationist at the Gumbo Limbo Nature Center in Boca Raton.

No holding back the tide
    A volunteer group, led by barrier island resident Jessica Gray, is trying to stop coastal construction in Boca Raton.
    She formed Boca Save Our Beaches in December 2015, right after the City Council gave a variance to allow a property owner to build a four-story, 10,270-square-foot mansion at 2500 N. Ocean Blvd. on a lot less than 100 feet wide.
    During that December 2015 meeting, the owner’s attorney hinted at possibly suing Boca Raton if the council denied the variance.
    “If you deprive the property owner of all use,” said attorney Charles Siemon, “you must pay the property owner.”
    Boca Raton is waiting for the owner to provide an updated environmental assessment to send it out for review, Gibson said.
    Gray and others in her group fear the 2500 and 2600 Ocean projects would change the face of the beach, disorient nesting sea turtles and lead to more development along the beach.
    In late July, she opened a GoFundMe.com campaign with the goal of raising $5,000. As of late August, she had collected $4,000.
    “Attorneys are expensive,” Gray said.
    All this turmoil could be avoided, said Keren Bolter, adjunct geosciences professor at Florida Atlantic University.
    Five years ago, she wrote a scholarly paper on the state’s Coastal Construction Control Line. The research behind the line’s establishment was sound, she wrote.  But the practice of allowing most structures to be built seaward of it does not “protect the public and the environment.”
    Her paper ended with this question: “What is the point of drawing a line in the sand if there is no line drawn to restrict people from building beyond it?”

For additional maps of the Coastal Construction Control Line visit https://ca.dep.state.fl.us/mapdirect/?focus=beaches

By Rich Pollack

Should the oceanfront town of Highland Beach become part of the larger Boca Raton?     
At least one of the larger city’s council members thinks it might be a good idea. Highland Beach officials and other residents whom The Coastal Star asked disagreed.
In a Facebook post in late August in which he complained that Highland Beach’s website was down, Boca Raton Deputy Mayor Jeremy Rodgers floated the idea and asked residents of both communities for their thoughts.      
“I’d love to bring world-class Boca Raton services, parks, libraries and staff to Highland Beach and at the same time expand our Boca Raton, Florida coastline by bringing Highland Beach into Boca,” he wrote. “Overall costs would drop for residents of both cities when all services (water, sewer, police, fire) were accounted for.”     
Rodgers, in the post, said he would be interested in hearing from city residents as well as those from the town to get their thoughts.  
“Is this worth exploring?” he asked.      
In Highland Beach the response to the idea has been anything but welcoming.     “We’re very happy here in Highland Beach,” said resident Harry Anwar, who can look out the window of his home in the Boca Highland Beach Club and Marina community and see Boca Raton. “What are they going to give us that we don’t already have?”     
Anwar, vice president of the Boca Highland umbrella association as well as vice president of Braemar Isle, his condominium within the development, pointed out that Highland Beach has a library, a Police Department, a water plant and a beautiful beach.  
“We have a good everything,” he said. “Why do we need Boca?”
During a town commission meeting late last month, Highland Beach commissioners said they would not be supportive of Rodgers’ idea.
That was good news to at least one resident who voiced opposition to the plan.
“I hope this commission says ‘Hell no,’ ” resident Tim Burnich said.
Rodgers thinks Highland Beach residents, who, along with Boca residents, would have to approve a merger before it could happen, might benefit from the quality services his city offers.     
“I’d put our services against those of any city or town in the country,” he said.     
Were the two municipalities to merge, Boca Raton residents would have access to Highland Beach services.      
While Rodgers thinks bringing the two communities together would benefit both, Highland Beach Mayor Carl Feldman says Boca Raton would probably get the better part of the deal.      “There’s a lot of tax money in Highland Beach and it wouldn’t cost Boca Raton anything to take over our services,” he said.      
Rodgers admits Boca Raton would benefit by receiving tax revenue from the narrow, 3-mile-long coastal community, which has about 4,000 residents and taxable property values of more than $2.4 billion, according to the Palm Beach County property appraiser, but he says there’s more to the idea.      
“Certainly the tax base is a reason but it’s not just that,” he said. “It’s the sum of the parts.”  
Highland Beach officials also pointed out that the town’s proposed tax rate for the coming year of $3.25 per $1,000 of assessed property value is lower than Boca Raton’s proposed $3.67.      
Feldman said a merger has been brought up by elected officials in Boca Raton a few times, but the idea never gained traction.      
“The residents of Highland Beach are not interested in joining Boca,” Feldman said. “Those that I spoke to, and there were many, said they didn’t want to be a part of any other city. Our residents don’t want to give up their hometown that they’re so proud of.”  
Feldman said residents he spoke with are happy with Highland Beach’s services and wouldn’t give up living in a small community.       “That’s why people moved to Highland Beach, they want the intimacy of a small town,” he said. “It’s like a family here.”      
Rodgers said he wants to hear from residents of both communities to gauge whether they think bringing the municipalities together would bring benefits.      
“I’d be interested in Highland Beach residents’ weighing in,” he said, adding he can be contacted at jrodgers@myboca.us.     
While it is common for cities to annex unincorporated areas, mergers of two communities are highly unusual.  
“It’s rare, it’s difficult and hasn’t happened in Palm Beach County in my 35 years practicing municipal and government law here,” said Highland Beach Town Attorney Glen Torcivia.      
In fact, the last time two Florida towns became one was in 1969, when the city of Eau Gallie in Brevard County merged with its neighbor Melbourne, according to Lynn Tipton, director of Florida League of Cities University, the educational wing of the Florida League of Cities.
Highland Beach Vice Mayor Bill Weitz says he’s not too concerned about his community disappearing.
 “In my opinion, the possibility of Boca Raton assimilating Highland Beach has equal probability of Highland Beach assimilating Boca Raton,” he said.

The Related Group would demolish Mizner Park Amphitheater and replace it with 400 residential units. Photo provided

By Mary Hladky

    A major developer has approached city officials about creating a public/private partnership to develop city-owned land just as they are in the early stages of deciding how to build a new municipal campus downtown.
    The Related Group, South Florida’s largest luxury condo developer also known for its large mixed-use projects, contacted the city about a year ago, but no formal talks took place. Now Related is back, proposing in a July 11 letter a swap agreement.
    Related is offering to build a 1,500-seat indoor performing arts center and adjacent parking garage within the nearly 30 city-owned acres around City Hall. In return, the city would give Related about 3.6 city-owned acres in the northeast section of Mizner Park, where the developer would tear down the aging outdoor amphitheater and build as many as 400 residential units, retail space and a parking garage the public also could use.
    “Overall, this would be a huge benefit for the city in many respects,” said Glenn Gromann, who recently did not seek reappointment to the city’s Planning and Zoning Board. He said he made that decision to avoid conflicts of interest when he became an independent consultant with Related.
    The proposal would solve several of the city’s problems, he said.
    It would give the city a performing arts center it has long wanted. With Related managing the construction, it would be built more quickly and at less cost, he said.
    The plan would eliminate the outdoor amphitheater Gromann described as old, uncomfortable and open to the elements and mosquitoes.
    It also would give the city badly needed downtown public parking spaces, he said. A consultant recently outlined the need for 108 more public parking spaces now and more in the future, and city officials have been wrestling with where to build a downtown parking garage and how to pay for it.
    Gromann said the city could feel certain that Related would build first-class residential units. The company is headed by Jorge Perez, who launched the Perez Art Museum Miami, and “only builds the highest quality projects,” Gromann said.
    A spokesman for Related said the company had no comment on its offer.
    The Boca Raton City Council on July 25 gave staff permission to speak with Related.
    “Please do so,” said council member Scott Singer.
    “Go for it,” said council member Robert Weinroth.
    After the meeting, Mayor Susan Haynie said it is too early to reach any agreement with Related.
    “Until we get further along in the municipal campus planning process, it is premature to think we are going to move the amphitheater or get rid of the amphitheater in Mizner Park,” she said.
    Related representatives since met with city officials. It was decided that any discussion should wait until after consultant Song & Associates presents to the City Council its findings on what residents want included in the downtown campus, said a city spokeswoman. That was scheduled to take place on Aug. 21, but was delayed.
    The consultant held a meeting on June 21 to get the public’s input.
    Of the 74 city residents who attended, 65 percent wanted a performing arts center in the campus, and 53 percent said the Mizner Park amphitheater should be replaced by an amphitheater in the campus, according to the consultant’s report.
    Ninety-three percent said they would like a parking garage in the campus, while 96 percent said they want a park-and-ride service from the campus to downtown and the beach.
    A large outdoor gathering space and a new community center drew majority support, but most wanted existing baseball fields and a tennis center moved out of the area. A strong majority also wants City Hall and police headquarters to remain part of the downtown campus.
    Perhaps surprisingly, Al Zucaro, the publisher of BocaWatch, supports the idea of the city’s talking with Related. BocaWatch has campaigned aggressively against overdevelopment in the downtown, while Related is proposing more development.
    Zucaro, who said he has no direct relationship with Related, sees no contradiction.
    “My advocacy for at least entertaining the conversation is to find out what they are willing to do and what they are asking for in terms of doing it,” he said. He has not prejudged what the outcome of those talks should be, Zucaro said.
    Zucaro said his knowledge of Related dates to when he served on the West Palm Beach City Commission at the time it was analyzing proposals for what became CityPlace, whose developers include New York-based Related Cos. and Miami-based The Related Group.
    “I have a high degree of respect for Related and Jorge Perez from my experience in West Palm Beach,” he said. “They are a very reputable company with the capacity to do whatever they say they will do. I see no utility in not engaging in that discussion.”
    The Related officials sending the letter included Senior Vice President William Shewalter. Before joining Related, Shewalter was senior executive officer with Elad National Properties, which proposed the Mizner 200 luxury condo project on Southeast Mizner Boulevard that won city approval in August for construction.
    Related’s most recent proposal is more limited than its previous offer to create a master plan for the downtown campus. But Gromann said Related is open to a larger role if city officials want that.

Currently, workers erect a temporary tent at Mizner Park amphitheater to protect the crowd from the elements during most performances. Photo provided

By Mary Hladky

    Three days after the Boca Raton City Council pressed both sides to reach a compromise in the contentious battle over the proposed Mizner 200 luxury condo, the combatants met at architect Derek Vander Ploeg’s office in late July to strike a deal.
    The deadline was tight.
    Developer Elad National Properties wanted the City Council to consider the project again on Aug. 21 and approve it. Elad and project opponents had only a short time to try to find common ground so plans could be revised and submitted to the city.
    Residents of Townsend Place condo, the nearest neighbor to Mizner 200, wanted changes that would lessen the project’s impact on their eastward views and property values. Major landowner Investments Limited, which is redeveloping its nearby Royal Palm Place shopping and dining destination, also wanted its views protected and joined in condemnation of the project’s massive size.
    But the long acrimony quickly gave way to a meeting of minds. Vander Ploeg, whose role in the talks was to “maintain balance and suggest solutions,” said the outline of a deal was struck in about five hours.
    “They came up with what I think is a much better building,” he said.
    “We became pretty friendly, actually,” George Garcia, chief executive of the project architectural firm GarciaStromberg/GS4Studios, told City Council members, sitting as Community Redevelopment Agency commissioners, at their Aug. 21 meeting.
    But the pace of the work was grueling.
    “We have been [working] literally nonstop,” Garcia said.
    After three years of passionate argument, controversy, a few conspiracy theories and laments about downtown overdevelopment, Mizner 200 sailed to unanimous City Council approval.
    As the audience clapped and cheered, Elad chief executive Amnon Safran fist-bumped each of the five commissioners.
    All parties hailed the final product, and ominous drumbeats of potential litigation faded away.
    “We re-engaged and we got a great result,” said Elad attorney Bonnie Miskel.
    “What you see before you is a greatly improved and enhanced project” that is “beautiful, sensitively designed,” said Doug Mummaw, an architect for Investments Limited.
    John Gore, president of BocaBeautiful.org, which has staunchly opposed Mizner 200, praised Elad’s “new cooperative spirit,” on the BocaWatch website before the meeting.
    “We can enthusiastically endorse the process that produced this result,” he wrote, adding that it “should be the new paradigm for development in Boca.”
    Council members praised Elad, GarciaStromberg and project opponents for collaborating.
    “I think the outcome is better for a lot of people and there is reason for celebration,” said council member Scott Singer.
    “I think it is a win, win, win for everybody,” said council member Andrea O’Rourke.
    In the final push to overcome lingering objections, Elad and its architects agreed to sign off on technical conditions they already had agreed to.
    While a city consultant had approved the redesign, it had not been considered by the Community Appearance Board. The board will do so, but it can’t undo the council’s vote.
    Elad’s 384-unit Mizner 200 will replace 246 Mizner on the Green townhouses on nearly 9 acres along Southeast Mizner Boulevard.
    The developer stunned downtown residents in 2014 when it unveiled plans for 500 luxury condos in four towers rising as high as 30 stories designed by prominent “starchitect” Daniel Libeskind.
    The concept was a nonstarter because the towers well exceeded downtown height limits. Since then, the project has been redesigned five times and now meets all the city’s requirements.
    Along the way, GarciaStromberg divided Mizner 200 into three sections to allow views eastward to a golf course and the ocean. The buildings were pushed back from Mizner Boulevard to make room for a landscaped pedestrian promenade. Heights of various sections of the building were varied and accommodations made to limit the building’s impact on the Townsend Place condos.
    In the most recent redo, the architect increased the distance between the project’s three buildings to make it look less massive, and lowered the height of a portion of the buildings lining the entranceway.
    The height of a section of the south end of the project was lowered so Townsend Place views are less obstructed. The setback from Townsend Place was increased and the land between the two projects was landscaped more lushly.
    The entranceway was redesigned to include a public plaza and more water features, and the pedestrian promenade was widened and has lusher landscaping and oak trees to provide shade.
    “Please give the approval today,” Safran implored council members. After a brief recess and last-minute dealmaking, he got his wish.

By Mary Hladky

    The first assisted living facility to be built in eastern Boca Raton has won the City Council’s unanimous approval.
    But before construction can begin, the developer, Boca Raton-based Penn-Florida Cos., must make design changes requested by the city’s Community Appearance Board.
    Projects typically must be approved by the CAB and Planning and Zoning Board before the Boca Raton City Council considers them. The planning board voiced its unanimous support on July 20, but the CAB rejected the plan three times, most recently in June by a 5-2 vote.
    As a result, the council, sitting as the Community Redevelopment Agency board on Aug. 21, set conditions that mirror changes the CAB sought. Council members hope the developer and CAB members can work out their differences so a CAB denial is not appealed to the council.
    The changes include improved exterior architectural design, better landscaping and more trees.
    But those issues aside, City Council members agreed with Penn-Florida that an assisted living facility is badly needed and will be a welcome addition.
    “There is nothing in east Boca for seniors,” said Penn-Florida attorney Charles Siemon. “Downtown is an ideal place for an ALF.”
    The developer proposed a 193-unit luxury ALF on 1 acre at 375 E. Royal Palm Road, one block south of East Palmetto Park Road and east of Southeast Mizner Boulevard. Vero Beach-based Watercrest Senior Living Group would operate it.
    Seniors want to transition to facilities near their homes, family and friends, restaurants and cultural venues, Watercrest CEO Marc Vorkapich told the planning board.
    Richard Bassell, Penn-Florida’s director of planning, told the council his company estimates 82 percent of the ALF’s residents will relocate from homes within a 10-minute drive of the facility.
    As of 2016, 12.6 percent of the population in the area was 75 or older, and that percentage will increase, he said.
    An ALF had been proposed in the downtown before, but it was never built and the site is now home to Trader Joe’s at 855 S. Federal Highway.
    The project is an example of a national trend.
    Such facilities, traditionally located in suburban areas, now are popping up in downtowns because today’s retirees want to be near where the action is. Downtown ALFs are an extension of the urban renaissance that has attracted empty nesters and young professionals.
    Penn-Florida’s ALF will include 63 memory care studios, 130 studios and one- and two-bedroom assisted units.
    Servers rather than care staff will work in dining rooms, and diners can eat any time. A full service bar with private-label wines will be included.
 A luxury vehicle and shuttle service will take residents to shopping, dining and cultural venues, Vorkapich said. The ALF will have activity and fitness rooms and physical therapy services. A pool and recreation deck will be at the southeastern corner of the property and an outdoor terrace will be on the second floor. A three-level parking garage will be included for residents and staff.
    Nurses will be on staff around the clock and a physician will have an office.
    The building will be 100 feet tall, the height limit set by the city. Traffic impact will be minimal since most residents are not expected to have cars.
    The site is vacant, except for a two-story apartment building that will be demolished.
    While city staff members recommended approval of the project, they pointedly noted that ALFs use emergency medical services more frequently than do regular residential buildings, generating about 1.2 calls for service per bed, per year compared with .07.
    That means an ALF can be expected to generate 15 times as many calls for service per bed as a typical multifamily development, and would hasten the city’s need to add rescue vehicles.
    Boca Raton Fire-Rescue estimates the annual cost of each vehicle and personnel is just over $2 million.
    Pressed on that point, Fire Chief Thomas Wood said Penn-Florida’s facility alone would not create a need for a new rescue unit. But 10 new facilities would.
    Council members agreed that the city needs to develop a policy or rules that would make all ALFs bear some of the cost of increased city services.
    But the issue is not clear-cut. While ALFs may cause a need for more rescue services, they won’t generate a need for more schools, and it’s unlikely police will be called to quell disturbances. Persons living in a home may call 911 when they fall, but ALF residents will have staff on hand to help them.
    Former Deputy Mayor Constance Scott supported the ALF at both meetings.
    “I am a huge advocate for this project,” she told the board. “It is very important for us to have an assisted living facility.”
    Penn-Florida is behind many projects in Boca Raton, including University Village, a residential, retail, office and hotel development on nearly 80 acres at Interstate 95 and Spanish River Boulevard. It also is developing Via Mizner at Federal Highway and Camino Real, which will include a Mandarin Oriental hotel, condos, rentals, shops and restaurants.

By Sallie James

    Will residents see another pentagram display, or something equally jarring, in Sanborn Square this year during the winter holiday season?
    Boca Raton City Council members on Aug. 22 scrapped a plan to ban “unattended, expressive installations, displays, exhibits and similar objects” in the park after nearly two dozen residents begged them not to take away their First Amendment rights. The ban also would have prohibited residents from displaying a crèche and menorah.
    City Council member Andrea Levine O’Rourke said the public outcry against the ordinance convinced her it wasn’t the right solution.
    “My position here is to represent the people of our city and I have heard you loud and clear,” O’Rourke said.
    The issue came up for discussion after a resident last year obtained a permit to erect a pentagram with a banner disavowing the existence of heaven and hell. The display was repeatedly vandalized and became the focus of numerous television and newspaper reports. City officials said they were concerned about public safety.
    Residents — many of whom voiced distaste with the pentagram display — were upset about the proposed ban on private displays and implored city officials to reconsider.
    “Our annual holiday tradition in our city for almost 20 years has been greatly enjoyed by our Boca residents and I hate to see that end,” said resident Therese Brady.
    Boca resident Victoria Glys Morin said she was speaking out to protect residents’ First Amendment rights.
    “It’s disturbing to me that we’re going to define ‘exercise’ within a council and usurp the tradition of a nation in terms of the exercise of religion. I’m against this ordinance,” Glys Morin told the council.
    Preston Smith, who teaches at a Boca Raton middle school, erected the pentagram display last year under the protections of the First Amendment, which guarantees freedom of religion and speech. The city has allowed religious groups to set up seasonal displays such as a Nativity scene and a menorah at the park, at 72 N. Federal Highway, since 1990.
    Smith said the city had to be ready for anything if it opened up public forums and invited religious groups.
    “The Jews and Christians do not have a monopoly on wedging their views into our public sphere,” Smith said last year.
    Boca resident Charles Fix suggested installing cameras in Sanborn Square as a safety measure.
    “Forget changing the ordinance. Stay with what you’ve got. It’s the best thing you can have,” Fix noted.
    Another resident suggested putting the issue to a public vote.
    Boca resident Ron Sheldon urged the council to scrap the proposed ordinance.
    “Facilitating or protecting — that is your job — not controlling,” he noted.
    Andrew Sherman, the rector at St. Gregory’s Episcopal Church, wondered if the city was overreacting to the vandalism that had been somewhat embarrassing.
    “I honor the fact that in America we allow people to exercise free speech. But it seems to me we want to give up something that is deeply important and precious in our community. That is the symbol of traditions, Jewish and Christian, living side by side and honoring their traditions in a peaceful way,” Sherman said.
    Deputy Mayor Jeremy Rodgers liked the idea of a public referendum. He noted that a decision to abandon the proposed ordinance might be accompanied by “a certain amount of chaos.”
    “I think I will move tonight to not pass this and maybe put it to the people to vote,” Rodgers said.

By Rich Pollack

    It has taken more than a year, but Highland Beach finally ended its search for a full-time code compliance officer.
    Not everyone on the Town Commission, however, agrees with how the decision to end the search was made.
    In a 3-2 vote last month, the commission approved renewing its contract with SAFEbuilt, a Colorado-based company providing building-inspection services to the town for almost a decade.
    Under the new agreement, SAFEbuilt will add a full-time residential inspection specialist, who will essentially serve as a code compliance officer. In addition, the company will provide a building permit technician and a part-time inspector and give the town access to its planning services.
    In exchange, Highland Beach will pay the company 60 percent of permit fees over five years up to the first $833,333 collected and 50 percent thereafter.
    For the past several months, the town’s Police Department and the building department’s office manager handled code compliance.
    “Financially speaking, this proposal should reduce the overall cost of operating the building department by a substantial amount,” Town Manager Valerie Oakes wrote in a memo to the commission.
    Two commission members, however, questioned the wisdom of continuing to relinquish control of the building department to an outside firm, with one asking why town officials were not following a previous commission request to fill the code compliance officer position in-house.
    “We need our own building department,” said Commissioner Rhoda Zelniker, who has been critical of the services provided by SAFEbuilt. “We don’t need a company from out of town.”
    Commissioner Elyse Riesa agreed.
    “Do we as a community want to give away our building department during a meeting?” she asked. “I say ‘No.’ ”
    Zelniker also questioned the propriety of the town staff not hiring an in-house inspector after the commission approved funding for the position in the current budget.
    In response, Vice Mayor Bill Weitz pointed out Oakes had advertised the position and went as far as offering it, but had to rescind the offer after a failed background check.  
    “There was no intent on the part of the town manager to change the commission’s decision,” he said.
    Weitz said he had been critical of how the building department was functioning under SAFEbuilt in the past, but had seen the company correct the issues he had with performance.
    “A year ago, I was outspoken against outsourcing, but things have changed,” he said.
    In casting his vote in favor of renewing the contract with SAFEbuilt, Mayor Carl Feldman said he thinks the company had been responsive to the town and that outsourcing the building function would not equate to a loss of control.
    “It’s completely obvious we’re trying to do the best for the town,” he said.
    Oakes said the town has developed a strong relationship with SAFEbuilt and executives with the company have been very responsive to the town’s needs and concerns.
    “They have immediately addressed every issue that has come up,” she said. “We’re on the same page and have a shared vision for the building department.”
    In addition to providing personnel and plan review services, SAFEbuilt is working with the town to draft a code compliance policy. The company is also working with the town to make it possible for building department and code enforcement functions to be handled electronically.
Commissioners gave tentative approval last month to a system that will allow builders or homeowners eventually to file for building permits online and pay associated fees. They will also be able to track their plans through the process electronically and do a variety of research functions on specific parcels.
The new system will also make it possible for residents to electronically file a complaint with the code compliance department.

A worker cuts grooves into the surface of one of the Spanish River interchange’s many spans. All 13 of the project’s bridges have been constructed. Photo courtesy of Florida Department of Transportation

By Steve Plunkett

    The Spanish River interchange being built on Interstate 95 fell seven weeks behind schedule in only three months this summer.
    The latest delay means Florida Atlantic University’s Owls will be three-fourths the way through the fall football season when the interchange opens, now scheduled no sooner than early November. One of the benefits promised by the project is easier access to and from FAU Stadium.
    No construction work is done on football weekends with games at home.
    At the start of May the project was expected to take 1,503 days. By Aug. 4 the time was extended to 1,551 days, or 48 days extra.
    “Daily rain and inclement weather … has significantly affected the contract duration as there are many ongoing operations that are heavily weather-dependent,” Florida Department of Transportation spokeswoman Andi Pacini said.
    There are no incentives in the contract for finishing the project early or disincentives if construction takes longer, Pacini said.
    Workers are widening eastbound Yamato Road, forcing  El Rio Trail to undergo round-the-clock detours through Sept. 14. Bicyclists who want to use Yamato Road must do so via Spanish River Boulevard. El Rio Trail access to Yamato Road from the Tri-Rail east exit is closed; pedestrian access to Yamato Road from the trail and the Tri-Rail station is via the west Tri-Rail exit.
    In September crews also plan to continue grinding and grooving bridges, do final paving on I-95 and the ramps, and plant landscaping.
    During the summer, workers opened the new westbound Spanish River Boulevard bridge over I-95, completed bridge work on Yamato Road and finished building earth-retaining walls for the project’s numerous ramps.
    Work on the $69 million interchange was more than 96 percent complete at the start of September. Crews started work in January 2014. The Spanish River interchange will be Boca Raton’s fifth entrance/exit on I-95.
    As construction continues, the interstate between Glades Road and Congress Avenue may have up to three lanes closed from 9 p.m. to 5 a.m. Sundays through Thursdays. The project area is 2.5 miles long.

By Mary Hladky

    Miami developers Key International and Integra Investments have purchased a 3-acre waterfront site on Lake Boca Raton for $17.3 million.
    The seller is an affiliate of the Blackstone Group, a New York-based private equity firm that owns the Boca Raton Resort & Club. The site, 725 S. Ocean Blvd., is across the lake from the resort at the base of the Boca Inlet bridge.
    Key and Integra did not announce plans for the vacant property at the time of the July purchase but indicated they intend to build a low-rise condominium.
    “We are very excited to have completed this transaction, acquiring such a special site in a top tier submarket,” Key International Co-President Inigo Ardid said in a news release. “This was a competitive land purchase being one of the last prime waterfront parcels in South Florida. There is a strong appetite for new luxury product in east Boca Raton, and we look forward to soon sharing our development plans.”
    The project will be Key’s first condo development outside of Miami-Dade and Broward counties, a Key spokeswoman said.
    Key’s portfolio includes 1010 Brickell, a 387-unit condo on Brickell Avenue in Miami; The Harbour, a 425-unit condo in North Miami Beach slated for completion next year; and 400 Sunny Isles, a 230-unit luxury, waterfront development in Sunny Isles Beach.
    Integra built Sereno, a 38-unit luxury, waterfront condo in Bay Harbor, and is now developing ParkSquare in Aventura, a 7-acre mixed-use development with 131 condos, 50,000 square feet of retail space, 145,000 square feet of office space, a hotel and an assisted living facility set to be completed in 2018.
    H. Wayne Huizenga’s Boca Resorts Inc. sold properties, including the Boca Raton Resort & Club and Hyatt Pier 66 and Radisson Bahia Mar in Fort Lauderdale, to Blackstone in 2004 in a $1.25 billion deal.

By Sallie James

    An upscale 70-unit condo complex proposed for the southwest corner of South Ocean Boulevard and East Palmetto Park Road will be even more luxurious than originally planned.
    Developers tweaked a proposal originally approved in March, adding four, 6,000-square-foot penthouse units to the Ocean Palm project and expanding the size of lower units by revising the internal configuration and enclosing roof areas. Boca Raton’s Planning and Zoning Board unanimously approved the revisions Aug. 17.
    The project will now head to the City Council for consideration.
    “I’ve got to commend the development team for reaching out to the community,” said Mark Simmons, a member of the Riviera Civic Association board of directors, which represents homeowners in the surrounding areas. “We support the project and think it will be a great addition to the neighborhood.”
    The project originally was proposed to be 65 feet tall but will now rise to 75 feet, or seven stories. The revised plans also include mechanical screening and decorative elements.
    In addition to the four new penthouse units, the project includes 20 two-story, three-bedroom units of 2,000 square feet; 32 two-bedroom units of 1,855 square feet; and 14 three-bedroom end units of 4,400 square feet. Each unit will have a private enclosed garden or balcony area as well.
    The project also will include 8-foot sidewalks along Ocean Boulevard and East Palmetto Park Road; an increase in the number of parallel parking spots along East Palmetto Park Road from six to nine; bicycle racks and benches; and a linear public park/walkway along Palmetto Park Road and Southeast Wavecrest Way, which Ocean Palm will maintain.
    The project includes underground parking with 158 spaces.
    The property for the project consists of three parcels: one vacant, one with an unoccupied office building and parking garage and one with a 20-unit condo. The condo building and office building and garage would be torn down to make way for Ocean Palm, according to attorney Bonnie Miskel.
    Resident Norman Sloane, president of the Marbella Condo Association, complained his association was not consulted about the project. The 155-unit condominium is just south of South Beach Park and the fire station. He requested the project be placed on hold.
    “We’ve been totally ignored as a major stakeholder,” he said.
    But attorneys for Ocean Palm said they had met with “360 degrees of our neighbors” in an effort to explore any concerns.

By Steve Plunkett
    
Commissioners of the Greater Boca Raton Beach & Park District and the city’s parks director used unanticipated savings on health care costs and some financial sleight of hand to come up with a fiscal 2018 budget proposal with which both sides could live.
    District commissioners balked in July at city Recreational Services Director Mickey Gomez’s $16.9 million request for his staff to operate and maintain district facilities, up from $15.6 million he expects to spend this year.
    Gomez sharpened his budget pencil to propose a more palatable $15.9 million at the district’s Aug. 9 meeting.
    The biggest single savings — $238,400 for the district alone — was a result of “huge reductions” Gomez said city officials negotiated the week before in health care costs.
    Gomez also identified $591,200 in items that would be nice to have but were not critical, then cut the amount by $74,000, saying two Ford F-350 trucks would last another year.
    Commissioners put $44,300 into a reserve account to convert two part-time park rangers into one full-time position, to hire a part-time carpenter for the Gumbo Limbo Nature Center and to buy a $1,100 computer for the center’s sea turtle rehab technicians.
    “It’s not a lot of money. If it makes a huge difference for them, I don’t see why we can’t do it,” Commissioner Erin Wright said.
    And Commission Chairman Robert Rollins said the city should pay $128,500 to rent a restroom trailer for Mizner Bark dog park, not the district. The district only pays for maintenance of the city-owned facility, he said, so district residents can use it.
    “We didn’t say anything about we’ll pick up any additional capital items,” Rollins said. “That’s an item I think the city should put it in there. There’s been enough complaints about it.”
    Commissioners said they would consider the rest of Gomez’s wish list when he decides he needs the items and pay for it out of another reserve fund.
    The district’s tentative property tax rate is 91.47 cents per $1,000 of taxable value. Commissioners scheduled the first public hearing on their $47.5 million budget for 6 p.m. Sept. 7.

By Rich Pollack

Highland Beach’s efforts to enhance safety and aesthetics by replacing a 3-mile long walking path and improving the surrounding areas finally gained traction this year with the formation of an Ad Hoc Citizens Streetscape Committee, but now it seems the town’s long-discussed streetscape project may have hit a temporary road block.
At a Town Council workshop meeting late last month, Mayor Carl Feldman received a lukewarm reception from two commissioners when presenting the committee’s recommendations for improvements and a proposed $2.1 million budget for the project.  
After three months of discussion, the committee, chaired by Feldman, brought forth a series of recommendations that included spending close to $1 million to replace the aging asphalt sidewalk on the west side of State Road A1A with a 5-foot-wide, decorative concrete walking path.
The committee also recommended replacing gateways on the north and south ends of town, adding new signage, lighting and landscaping. In addition, the recommendation includes installing four 12-foot decorative posts for street signs that would include the town’s logo.
In its latest proposed budget, the committee included $342,000 for landscaping along the path as well, although there were no specifics on where the landscaping would go.
During discussion of the project, Commissioner Rhoda Zelniker said she supported the concept of a streetscape — and has for years — but thinks the proposal needs more work.  
“I cannot support this streetscape project at this time,” she said. “We can’t afford to spend $2 million and not do it right.”
While commissioners said they hoped to have the proposal finalized in time to bring it to voters in the March 2018 election, Zelniker suggested taking a step back and delaying the vote until the November 2018 general election so they could do more research.
Feldman proposed paying for the streetscape from town coffers and repaying the money with funds from the town’s portion of a 1-cent countywide sales tax increase rather than borrow money, but the plan still must be approved by voters because a referendum is required for any town spending over $350,000.  
“We need a comprehensive plan,” Zelniker said. “A quick streetscape is not the answer for our town, as beautiful as it is.”  
Both Zelniker and Commissioner Elyse Riesa said they would like to see the Florida Department of Transportation, which has oversight for the state road, more involved in discussions of the project.
“It’s my opinion that FDOT should have a seat at the table,” said Riesa, who, like Zelniker, thinks the scope of the project had never been clearly defined. “We need to coordinate with them.”
Both commissioners expressed concern that a transportation department drainage project along A1A could have an impact on the streetscape project and said they need more information about the drainage project from the state.     
Feldman countered, saying the town had been communicating with DOT on several portions of the project.
The mayor said he was concerned about moving the referendum back to November 2018 and hoped to keep it moving forward.  
“If we wait to do all the things you’re asking for, it will never get done,” he said.
Faced with a potential stalemate that could slow down the streetscape project, Town Manager Valerie Oakes suggested commissioners revisit the issue at a meeting in early September and go through the project’s budget together line-by-line.
“The commission needs to determine the scope of work,” she said.