The Blue Anchor restaurant and pub, a block west of the Intracoastal Waterway on Atlantic Avenue in Delray Beach, will remain open while it’s up for sale. Jerry Lower/The Coastal Star

By Thom Smith

    Extra! Extra! Read all about it! Blue Anchor Pub for sale! Owner going fishing!
    Lee Harrison and Roy Foster opened The Blue Anchor in 1996. As veterans of Fleet Street, the London address of the notorious tabloid press, the pair said the pub provided their version of a home away from home. They had no idea they were in the vanguard of Delray Beach’s “renaissance.”
    Foster left the picture years ago, and now Harrison is selling.
    “After 20 years I’m going fishing,” Harrison said. “A lot of people are saying it’s about time.”
    Harrison and Foster had washed down an oceanful of fish and chips with lots of beer and ale while writing for newspapers on Fleet Street. But after taking big-bucks jobs at the National Enquirer in the ’70s, they couldn’t find a pub that reminded them of home.
    The solution seemed simple: “Let’s buy one!”
Their quest took them first to a Boca Raton strip center on North Federal Highway where they took over Lion and Eagle. Tall pints, bangers and mash, football (real football, not the American version) on the tube. It was nice but lacked a certain “fleeting” atmosphere. Plus, it was a long drive from Lantana, where the Enquirer was located, so they turned their attention to Delray Beach and soon found a location right on Atlantic Avenue just a block west of the Intracoastal Waterway.
    For the architectural and permit work, they hired Digby Bridges, who designed Delray’s city hall, police station and tennis center, and coincidentally, had studied architecture in London, raising a few glasses at the same London pub Harrison and Foster had haunted ... the original Blue Anchor.
That century-old pub, they soon learned, had been razed. But (another coincidence) Burt Handelsman, owner of the Delray Beach property, had already bought the Tudor facade and the rich wood interiors. For a decade he had stored the goods in a New York warehouse.
The revived Blue Anchor opened in 1996, and with it a sideshow. As the story goes, Bertha Starkey, an unfaithful wife, had been stabbed to death decades before at the London version of the pub by her jealous seafaring husband, and her ghost still lurks. Also at least two victims of Jack the Ripper supposedly spent their last evenings alive in the original pub, though they may have frequented a different Blue Anchor on Royal Mint Street.
    Harrison is eager to settle into his new home on the Withlacoochee River in the Central Florida town of Lake Panasoffkee, population 3,551. But he remains proud of his contribution to Delray's revival.
    “We were the first of the new breed,” he said, “six weeks ahead of 32 East. They came in here to do their planning.
    “It’s really been a fun 20 years. I met a multitude of characters, most of whom are now regulars. This is one of the few towns in Florida that has a heart to it.”
                                    ***
When Marjorie Merriweather Post envisioned Mar-a-Lago as a “winter White House,” she didn't have Donald Trump in mind. Trump, after all, wasn’t even 30 and was far less experienced in the ways of the world. But here we are, four decades later, and her dream is taking shape, albeit against expectations.
     Air Force One will land at PBIA and with limited delays of public traffic, and the presidential motorcade will roll easily along Southern Boulevard to the Island. Palm Beachers are a picky lot, but members of the Mar-a-Lago Club already are adjusting to the new security measures. Guests at charity events will learn to adjust as well.  
    When Trump is present, club members and/or gala guests will not drive into the grounds directly through the main gate on South Ocean. With Secret Service overseeing arrangements, Mar-a-Lago Club managers worked out a plan with their counterparts across the street at the Bath & Tennis Club: Security screenings will be conducted in its parking lot and visitors to Mar-a-Lago will then enter Mar-a-Lago directly across the street through the Southern Boulevard gate.
    Once inside, guests are free to move around, except near the Trumps’ personal quarters.
    “If they would leave the main house, say, to go to the tennis court, when they came back they would go through the scanner again,” Mar-a-Lago club manager Bernd Lembcke said. “Any time they leave the protective area. It has all been very professional and that’s what our members liked.
    “The Secret Service was glad to answer any questions our members had. They were very, very friendly.”
    Unlike his frequent visits to Mar-a-Lago as a civilian, Trump’s trips as president will cost taxpayers. The Sheriff's Office pegged its overtime for the five-day Thanksgiving weekend at $248,000. Add in Palm Beach police, airport and fire security and local costs will be in the millions.
    Once the inauguration takes place, security for all public and personal presidential activities is controlled exclusively by the Secret Service. Trump’s ever-present personal bodyguards will no longer be on the case, a Secret Service spokesperson in Washington said emphatically, adding, “Presidents can select their staff at will, but protection of the president ... Secret Service.”
    The president may hire whomever he chooses as “staff,” the spokesperson said, but, by law, they may not serve in a protective capacity.
    Lembcke concurred: “It’s all Secret Service from now on. Our security that he usually has, they are now taking care of the members, the house and everything else. He is completely in the hands of the Secret Service.”
    Nevertheless, such Trump stalwarts as Keith Schiller and Matt Calamari will be close at hand as “staff.”
    Schiller is a former New York cop. He recently decked a protester in front of Trump Tower and during a primary rally forcibly ejected newsman Jorge Ramos  when he tried to question Trump. Calamari entered the picture 35 years ago when Trump saw him tackle several hecklers at a U.S. Open tennis match.
    Writer Ronald Kessler, who has made a specialty of covering the Secret Service, reported recently that Secret Service Director Joseph Clancy “specifically approved including (Schiller) in the security detail, which is unprecedented.”
    Federal law, however, is specific about who can do what, even to restricting who can carry firearms in the White House. Schiller is expected to take up permanent residence with his boss, as the man who decides who gets to the president.   
              ***                     
    If President Trump decides to hold Cabinet meetings at Mar-a-Lago, some members, as well as some Republican town-criers, are only a few minutes away.
Commerce Secretary-designate Wilbur Ross, 79, lives barely a mile north. He does know commerce: At one point he reportedly controlled one-fifth of the nation’s steel production and also has coal connections. His wife, Hilary Geary Ross, 66, is well known in New York and Palm Beach social circles and could become the social arbiter in D.C.
    Education Secretary-to-be Betsy DeVos lives in Holland, Mich. But she and husband Richard, who used some of his Amway money to buy the Orlando Magic basketball team, owned a Manalapan estate that they sold in 2014 to Lois Pope for $16.2 million.
    Robert Mnuchin, father of Treasury Secretary-designate Steven Mnuchin, owns a condo at Sloan’s Curve.
    The Small Business Administration pick, Linda McMahon, is listed as the owner of the penthouse floor and the floor just below it at the Excelsior condo on Boca Raton’s beach. It’s worth $5.4 million and covers more than 8,000 square feet. The McMahons’ previous home nearby was once seriously damaged by Vince McMahon’s WWF wrestlers, who took partying to a new level.
    Fox commentator Lou Dobbs and wife Debi Segura, a former CNN sports anchor, own a $1.7 million home in Ibis in Palm Beach Gardens about two fairways away from the home of Ben Carson, who will head Housing and Urban Development. According to the Zillow website that includes lots of photos, Carson is asking $1.2 million and it’s move-in ready. No hint of habitation.
    Dobbs’ daughter, coincidentally named Hillary, is a champion show jumper who regularly competes in the winter events in Wellington and coaches the University of South Carolina’s equestrian team, which won a national championship in 2015.
    Though he’s made little news since his firing in August, former campaign manager Paul Manafort lives in BallenIsles in Palm Beach Gardens.
      Ann Coulter (location “confidential”), Rush Limbaugh and Rudy Giuliani (two condos — one in Palm Beach Towers, site of JFK press briefings) have homes in Palm Beach. Another conservative commentator, Laura Ingraham, lives in Connecticut but has been a frequent house guest of Republican wheeler-dealer Gay Gaines. And, of course, Bill O’Reilly is a regular visitor and claims lots of friends in Palm Beach.  
                                    ***
    Can FAU ever get over Howard Schnellenberger? The legendary coach played major roles in the success of the Miami Dolphins and the University of Miami and built the FAU football program from zero in 2000 to Sun Belt Conference co-champ and a bowl win in 2007. But since he retired from FAU in 2011, the football program has been hurting.
    Former Nebraska defensive coordinator Carl Pellini went 5-15 at FAU before resigning in the face of drug use charges. Charlie Partridge came highly regarded from Arkansas, but after three three-win seasons, FAU brass said enough. President John Kelly (Clemson) and Athletic Director Pat Chun (Ohio State) are accustomed to winners.
    Lane Kiffin fits that mold ... sort of. As offensive coordinator at No. 1 Alabama, he’s been called a genius, but he comes with baggage. Kiffin, 41, was only 26 when he became an assistant at Southern Cal. His offenses ranked among the nation’s best and he became known for his recruiting skills.
 When Kiffin was 31, Oakland Raiders owner Al Davis made him the youngest head coach in NFL history, then fired him early in his second season. In 2009 he became head coach at Tennessee, where comments about then-Florida coach Urban Meyer and Pahokee caused problems, then he returned to Southern Cal in 2010 for up-and-down years as head coach before being fired in 2013. He’s since been running Alabama’s offense instead of his mouth.
    Now, after starting at the top, Kiffin will begin working his way back up with the kind of program he should have run in the first place. His bosses are confident.
     “Lane will change the face of college football here,” Kelly said. “Our players will respond to him, our recruitment drives will respond to him, and our fans will respond to him.”
    “Nobody wanted to be the head coach of Florida Atlantic more than Lane Kiffin,” Chun said. “He emerged as our top candidate because of his conviction and belief in FAU.”
    One final concern: the money.
    Kiffin made a reported $1.4 million a year at Alabama. FAU’s deal, reportedly for five years, will pay him just under $1 million annually.
    “Now we have to find the money to pay him,” a member of the school’s finance committee said at the news conference announcing the hire.
    Many outside observers see Kelly’s logic. In front of a backdrop with the slogan “Unbridled Ambition,” he began his remarks at the news conference by recounting recent academic and management hires:
    Topping the list is Phillip M. Boiselle, No. 2 at Harvard Medical School, who will take over FAU’s fledgling medical school this month.
     Randy Dean Blakely, former director of Vanderbilt’s Center for Neuroscience Research, leads FAU’s new brain institute.
     Danita Nias, who managed the portfolios of major donors to the universities of Florida and Maryland, took over the FAU Foundation, the school’s fundraising arm, in October.
    On the job since last May, former New York University neuroscientist James E. Galvin is running FAU’s Memory and Wellness Center, an on-campus clinic, dementia daycare center and research hub. He recently developed the Quick Dementia Rating System, a 10-item questionnaire to determine potential dementia that can be administered in three to five minutes. Previous tests required four to five hours to administer and score.
    Those appointments attracted media attention but nothing like the nationwide reaction afforded Kiffin. FAU was the most mentioned university on Twitter in the 24 hours before the announcement as fans wondered why Kiffin picked FAU, noted Kelly, who then answered: “Because they’re on the move.”
                                    ***
    Fans who like offense were rewarded Dec. 20 as Western Kentucky beat Memphis, 51-31, in the third annual Boca Raton Bowl at FAU Stadium. The weather was great — above-average 77 degrees compared to below-normal teens for Memphis and Bowling Green — for fans. Unfortunately, in a stadium that holds 30,000, only an announced 24,726 showed up and many left before the fourth quarter.
Not good for concessions, hotels, restaurants or car rentals. And worse, the count has diminished each year, from 29,419 to 25,908 to 24,726. But to the operator, ESPN Events, attendance is not as crucial as viewers.
    Bowl Executive Director Doug Mosley remains optimistic as the area enjoys an economic impact of more than $10 million, 7,500 room nights and $400,000 in tax revenue. Plus ESPN takes in an estimated $13 million in advertising.
    The game probably didn't outdraw Bob Dylan’s crooning “Once Upon a Time” on NBC’s 90th-birthday salute to Tony Bennett. But as Mosley, realistic about the competition, noted, “We’re doin’ all right.”
                                    ***
    Speaking of musical legends, Rena Blades, president of the Cultural Council of Palm Beach County, is brushing up on her lyrics. She’ll interview Bernie Taupin Jan. 10 at a “Spotlight Luncheon” at the Kravis Center's Cohen Pavilion.
Best known as composer of Elton John hits (Tiny Dancer, Levon, Your Song, Rocket Man, among many others), Taupin is also an author, writer, poet, painter, sculptor and performer. His work will be on exhibit at Palm Beach Modern + Contemporary, a new art show running Jan. 12-15 in the tent adjacent to CityPlace.
    Blades hooked up with Taupin through the owner of ArtMiami, and “the timing just worked out,” she said. “We can’t wait to have him in town. He’s been very generous with his time.” For tickets, $150 and up, call 472-3342.  

Tony Arruza: 15 Surfboards by 15 Shapers
Cultural Council of Palm Beach County, Lake Worth – Dec. 1

The exhibit debut of 15x15 drew the Cultural Council’s largest-ever turnout. ABOVE: (l-r) Chris Birch, Juan Rodriguez, Ron Heavyside, Ricky Carroll and Tony Arruza. BELOW: Nathan and Julie Slack. Photos provided by Jacek Gancarz

     The Cultural Council is on a roll. It enjoyed the largest turnout ever for an exhibit debut at its Lake Worth headquarters in December — for a surfboard show. A members-only packed house Dec. 1 greeted the unveiling of 15x15, a display of specially made surfboards embossed with photographs taken by West Palm Beach photographer Tony Arruza. The open house the following night was even more impressive.
    “We had to make people wait in line outside,” Blades said.        

      Blades was hesitant to stage the show, which runs through Jan. 21 (with free admission), because the council usually promotes artists in groups. Artists Services Manager Nichole Hickey changed her mind. “Where a museum may not take a chance, we can,” Blades added. “And I’m delighted we did.”
                                    ***
Where there’s Smoke, there’s still fire, but Bryan Tyrell isn’t stoking it. Two years after he was introduced as a Kansas City barbecue legend who would be executive chef at Smoke BBQ in Delray Beach, Tyrell has moved on. He’s overseeing the pit at the amusingly named Pig-Sty on Boynton Beach Boulevard. It’s just west of I-95 across from Wendy’s and Checkers. Ain’t nearly as big as Smoke, but Tyrell is offering a variety of barbecue styles from Texas to Kansas City to Carolina under the slogan “Come, Eat, Leave.” Curiously, the Contact Us page on the website was blank, but you'll find the address and phone number in the menu.
    Pig-Sty even serves breakfast from 7 a.m. Basic sandwiches are $6.99 ($5 on Mondays and any day for cops, firefighters and military).  
    Smoke’s still smokin’ in Delray, at least through this season. Its owners have another Smoke in Fort Lauderdale and have plans for another spot in Broward County.
                                    ***
    Believing the date will bring him luck, Delray Beach developer Frank McKinney is offering the initial public view of his first “Micro Mansion” on Friday, Jan. 13. Only 4,000 square feet, it is packed with luxury — sea-glass kitchen, living reef aquarium wall, two pools with floating sundeck, 650-square-foot master bedroom suite with second- floor outdoor glass shower surrounded by trees. All for $3.9 million, up from a bid of $3.5 million last fall. Visitors are asked to make a donation to McKinney’s Caring House Project Foundation, which has built 24 self-sufficient villages in Haiti. RSVP 655-8178.
                                    ***
    The fourth annual Delray Beach Fashion Week kicks off five wildly fashionable days Jan. 25 with an art invitational at the Downtown Artists/Gallery Showcase and a runway fashion show on Atlantic Avenue in front of The Colony Hotel. The highlight is the Stiletto Race on Atlantic on Friday night, accompanied by raffles, giveaways, silent auctions, all for the benefit of Achievement Centers for Children and Families. (243-1077)

Reach Thom Smith at thomsmith@ymail.com.

I am a watcher of the sunrise. Most mornings I observe the dawn, coffee in hand, cat at my side, from the cloistered comfort of my screen porch. No great awakening, just light changing from cool to warm as my coffee goes from hot to cold. It’s a time I use to let my brain molecules align and get organized for the day ahead.
    I can’t recall when I first became devout about following the first light of day, but suspect it came about during a period of my early adulthood when sleep wasn’t a consideration until the sun had cleared the horizon. Although my job then didn’t begin until after 9 p.m., I never felt comfortable in that late-night lifestyle. I wanted to see the sun rise after the depth of sleep, not the dark of nightclubs.
    But I learned from those gloomy years and from subsequent years singed with heartbreak and personal loss. I grew to understand that light does follow dark, just as dark follows light.
    This past month has been one of darkness for many of our friends, co-workers and neighbors at The Coastal Star. In our office, the words hospital and hospice, illness and obituary have been used far too often over the holiday season.
    Now with 2017 on the horizon, it’s a difficult time for many we know to look ahead.
    If words can offer any small amount of solace, I’ll share what I’ve come to know: As long as Earth’s orbit around our sun stays constant, I can pull myself out of bed, pour a cup of coffee and watch the sun rise.
    It’s a small thing, but it’s how I’ve learned during tough times to put one foot in front of the other and push through to another day — and now, yet again, on to another year.
    Best wishes for 2017.

— Mary Kate Leming, Editor

Lucibella.pdf

Vice Mayor Lucibella resignation letter

By Steve Plunkett and Dan Moffett

Ocean Ridge Vice Mayor Richard Lucibella faces formal charges of battery on a law enforcement officer and resisting an officer with violence, both felonies, and misdemeanor use of a firearm while under the influence of alcohol at an Oct. 22 backyard gathering at his home.

Assistant State Attorney Danielle Grundt added the felony battery charge Dec. 7 but decided not to take action on a misdemeanor count of discharging a firearm in public. Her filing automatically cancelled a hearing set for Dec. 8.

The same day Grundt filed charges, Lucibella sent a letter resigning from his posts as vice mayor and commissioner. "Due to impending litigation between the Town of Ocean Ridge and myself, it would be impossible for me to effectively discharge the duties of my office," he wrote.

Lucibella’s attorney, Marc Shiner, did not immediately respond to a phone call or email seeking comment.

Police arrived at Lucibella’s oceanfront home that Saturday night after neighbors complained of hearing gunshots. Officers said they found the vice mayor and one of their supervisors, Lt. Steven Wohlfiel, “obviously intoxicated” on the patio. Officers say they took a .40-caliber Glock handgun from Lucibella and found five spent shell casings on the patio. Police also confiscated a semiautomatic pistol they said Lucibella had in his back pocket.

According to police reports, when officers Richard Ermeri and Nubia Plesnik tried to block Lucibella from entering the house, he resisted. The officers wrestled him to the ground and handcuffed him. Lucibella needed treatment for facial injuries, and Ermeri and Plesnik also required medical attention.

Lucibella, 63, was absent from the two Town Commission meetings since the incident, on Nov. 7 and Dec. 5. His three-year term would have expired in March.

Through Shiner, Lucibella has claimed that he is the victim of police overreaction. He maintains they should not have entered his backyard in the first place, and then that they used excessive force. Shiner has called for Ermeri’s firing and an investigation by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement. The use of excessive force is a defense against a charge of battery on a law enforcement officer.

Police Chief Hal Hutchins reassigned Wohlfiel until completion of the investigation of his role in the incident. Both Lucibella and the lieutenant told police they knew nothing about shots being fired.

Hutchins said Dec. 8 there is no change in status on the internal investigation, which he called “involved.”

“We are looking at everything and everybody. We want to make sure we have all the information,” Hutchins said.

Tony Arruza (top. Photo by Thom Smith/The Coastal Star) took this photo of mullet leaping as a shark approaches. Ron Heavyside (below) shaped the surfboard. Photos by Tony Arruza

15 legendary surf masters create boards
with photographer’s images from the sea

By Thom Smith

What a life!
Tony Arruza loves to surf, lives to surf. And once in a while, he works … as a photographer … as long as the work doesn’t pull him too far from the water. For five years he’s been engaged in a project that melds his passion and his profession into a unique expression.
A five-year labor of love, “15x15” is 15 surfboards, shaped by 15 legendary board makers, each adorned with one of Arruza’s photographs. They are functional art that could hang over a mantel or crank into a fast-breaking left at Reef Road.
The collection is on display through Jan. 21 at the Cultural Council of Palm Beach County gallery in Lake Worth.
In addition to the boards, Arruza, 63, has mounted four dozen photos of the board makers at work, the original photographic prints, two of the laminate images that give each board its personality and a hardcover book ($30, autographed) that details the production of all 15 boards.
As a child, Arruza was always around the water, fishing and diving with his father, an engineer, in their native Cuba. In the wake of the revolution, the family headed for Miami, then the Glades sugar industry and finally West Palm Beach.
In the mid-’60s, as the surfing craze was hitting the East Coast, he rode his first wave at Lake Worth Beach. For his 13th birthday, his dad gave him a board — a 9-foot, 6-inch Surfboard House, custom made in Miami.
By today’s standards, it was a barge; for Arruza it was enlightenment.
“I was reading surfing magazines like they were the Bible,” Arruza recalled of articles that documented not just surfing, but the writers’ travels. “I thought: I want to do this one day.”
He did travel, to local breaks and “up the coast” to spots like Shark Pit and Canaveral Pier, as much as a kid could while still in high school. Settling in at Palm Beach Junior College (now Palm Beach State), he developed — surprise, surprise — an interest in marine biology.
Where to go? University of Miami? Too expensive. Scripps in San Diego? Too far. Woods Hole in Massachusetts? Too cold.
“Puerto Rico was close enough that I could talk my parents into it,” Arruza admitted. “I really didn’t care about the school, I just wanted to surf, but I convinced them to let me start school there. I got to meet people, got to know all the surf spots.”
As luck would have it, his father had another gift for Tony — a Nikonos amphibious camera. Today cameras like this one sit as memorabilia in curio cases or unsold in thrift stores, but his was revolutionary.
“I’d shot some small stuff in high school,” he said. “But because the camera was meant to be in the water and I surfed, I started shooting surfing with it. I came back from Puerto Rico with some great photos, did some slide shows and people urged me to shoot more and submit pictures to the surfing magazines.”
One surfing photo even won first prize in a Kodak-sponsored photo contest.
Because few photographers had discovered Puerto Rico, Arruza’s photos began to show up in surfing magazines. After earning his degree at Florida Atlantic University, he returned to Puerto Rico and began shooting in earnest.
“I was getting published, getting known, making money, and it became easy to get travel assignments, too,” he said, recalling an inspirational trip in 1978 to shoot a surfing contest in Peru.
“That was an eye-opener. It showed me a culture and a way of living that I had never experienced or knew about — the Peruvian-Inca culture.
“Machu Picchu wasn’t like it is now. Then it was rough going, a long climb. Today I think there’s even a hotel there. That whole new world really opened my eyes and made me want to travel even more.
“My dreams as a kid were coming true,” he said. “I was living the life. I wasn’t living luxuriously, staying in fancy hotels, but I didn’t care.
“The surfing world was so small that if you met somebody and told them you were going somewhere, they would put you in touch with a friend there who would pick you up at the airport, let you sleep on their couch, take you surfing, show you the ropes. Everywhere you went there was always someone who knew somebody somewhere else. It always worked out. It was pretty simple, pretty easy.”
Some of Arruza’s most influential shots, however, were shot at home. His 1989 Surfing magazine pictorial of a screaming swell put Palm Beach’s Reef Road on the surfing map.
Thanks to the Internet, however, the lifestyle has changed dramatically. Diehard surfers check surf reports on the Web, book cross-country flights to Palm Beach, catch the break and fly home the same day — hit and run.
Arruza still prefers immersion and hopes it rubs off on his son Aidan, 21, who also surfs, enjoys underwater photography and, surprise, is studying marine biology.
But while Tony doesn’t like the change, he adapted. Any surfer can mount a GoPro waterproof camera to his or her board and email the product to a magazine; Arruza long ago expanded his client base to the likes of Boeing, Coca-Cola, Exxon, National Geographic, Procter & Gamble and Royal Caribbean.
For one recent assignment he shot a 95-year-old Canadian Indian who crocheted 120 blankets and sweaters for patients at the veterans hospital for the Knights of Columbus.
No matter the assignment, it always comes down to people, which is what inspired Arruza to attempt “15x15.”
In 2010, for a local art show, Arruza commissioned his first art board. Pipeline, decked with an Arruza photograph of Hawaii’s Banzai Pipeline, was shaped by Steve Firogenis, who’s made Firo boards in West Palm Beach for more than 30 years.
The gallery patrons loved it, as did Ron Heavyside at Nomad Surf Shop in the County Pocket near Briny Breezes.
Canadian by birth, Heavyside arrived in Delray Beach in 1962 after a spell in California. He quickly discovered surfing and soon after realized he could make some money fixing boards. A surf shop in Delray Beach hired him at half minimum wage, “about 75 cents an hour and that was fine with me,” he said.
Heavyside’s father ran a TV repair shop on A1A. After considerable cajoling, he let Ron stake out a 12-by-6 space to sell baggies, T-shirts, wax and the boards he shaped. Today Nomad is a labyrinth of nooks and crannies covering more than 5,000 square feet.
After shaping thousands of boards during half a century, Ron now leaves that task to others, but when Arruza made his pitch he plugged in the old planer.
“We were one of the first in the project,” Heavyside said. “Tony was still trying to see how well it would work. It didn’t take long to shape it, maybe a couple of hours. I think it turned out pretty good.”
Heavyside’s 6-foot “fish” shape, appropriately named Mullet Chase, features an above- and below-the-surface shot of schooling, jumping mullet.
“A shark is right underneath me when I’m taking this,” Arruza says with a laugh. “I have a picture of the shark, too!”
Arruza realized he had something more than surfboards with photos on them, but only after he saw the third board by Rick Carroll in Cocoa — “the workmanship that went into it and the aesthetics that came out” — did he realize he had something really special.
“At that point, the number 15 popped into mind,” he said. “I don’t know why but it sounded right — 15 boards by 15 different shapers. The whole thing took off on its own. The shapers I used, the places I went, none of it was written down. It progressed organically. I wanted to make each board differently. I made sure each shaper had a different style. Each board had a different look.”
Still winging it, Arruza departed from the water themes for board No. 4 with a red hibiscus, and changed the guts on the fifth by using balsa instead of foam. Then he broadened the scope with shapers from Puerto Rico and Cape Hatteras, New England, California, Hawaii and for No. 15, the finale, Australian legend Bob McTavish.
“Word was getting out,” Arruza said. “People were coming to me, and it wasn’t just shapers. Photographers from around the world were asking how are you doing this, what material are you printing on, how did you shoot this?
“I had to turn down several people. I just couldn’t do any more. Fifteen was enough.”
What happens next? Arruza still prefers to let nature and art take their respective courses. Perhaps art galleries or organizations similar to the Cultural Council will propose exhibitions.
Surfing trade shows could beckon. The exhibit could travel to some of the dozen surfing museums around the globe.   
If a collector — art, surf-fan or both — offered to buy all 15, he’d consider selling.
But if not … well, the project is complete, Arruza has more photos to shoot and more waves to ride.

If You Go
What: 15 x 15: 15 Surfboards by 15 Shapers, by Tony Arruza, through Jan. 21 at the Cultural Council of Palm Beach County, 601 Lake Ave., Lake Worth.
Phone: 471-2901
Admission: Free
Email: info@palmbeachculture.com
Books available for purchase at $30 each plus tax.

Dec. 19: Chabad of East Boca’s Harry & Celia Litwak Center welcomes guests to a gala reception and concert where three outstanding residents will be presented with the Lamplighter Award. Time is 5:30 p.m. Cost is $180. Call 394-9770 or visit bocabeachchabad.org/sharethelight. ABOVE: (l-r) Lamplighter Award recipients Marc Goldman and Eric Reid, Rabbi Ruvi and Ahuva New, recipient Arlene Herson and event Chairman Mitch Kirschner. Photo provided by Eduardo Schneider

Casey (left) and Timolin Cole. The twins back music education in schools. Photo provided

By Cheryl Blackerby

    Timolin and Casey Cole, the twin daughters of legendary singer Nat King Cole and sisters of the late singer Natalie Cole, are passionate advocates for music education in South Florida’s schools.
    They started their nonprofit organization, Nat King Cole Generation Hope, in 2008 when many schools were dropping music programs.
    “When we were growing up, music was as fundamental as reading and math and the fact that these kids who couldn’t even afford lunch and were not given that opportunity to express themselves in an art form was very frustrating to us. We just realized we had to do what we could to help change that,” Timolin Cole said.
    Eau Palm Beach Resort & Spa is lending a hand by hosting the holiday Wonderland Ball, a benefit for Nat King Cole Generation Hope, from 5 to 7 p.m. Dec. 10. Fire dancers, balloon artists and magicians will entertain guests under tents in Eau Spa’s Serenity Garden.
    Money from tickets for the event and donations will go to music programs at area schools.
    “It was a challenging time to start a nonprofit in 2008 with the start of a bad economy,” said Casey Cole. “But it was very crucial because Timolin and I were realizing that the art programs in the schools, especially the Title 1 schools, were basically being cut off. We wanted to make a difference in our community in South Florida.”
    The sisters, who live near each other in Boca Raton, have helped more than 40 schools and music programs, by supporting mentoring and teaching, collecting and refurbishing used instruments, and supplying new instruments.
    Music instruction is far more important than just preparing for a concert, Timolin Cole said. Music classes increase graduation rates; improve early cognitive development, math and reading skills; develop critical thinking and leadership skills, and foster self-esteem and the ability to work cooperatively in teams.
    “When we went into these schools and gave instruments to the band programs, math and science teachers would approach us and say their best students were the ones who studied music. So we got it firsthand from the teachers,” Timolin Cole said.
    The sisters also want children to have fun with music.
     “Our message is not so much about musical excellence but creating happiness and joy for these children,” says Timolin Cole. “We want them to experience the joy of music and with that comes confidence and higher self-esteem.”
    Nat King Cole Generation Hope’s projects include a summer music camp at Lynn University and the camp’s Summer Strings Concert, and Guitars Over Guns’ after-school programs.
    Having grown up with music in the home and school, the sisters were sympathetic to students who don’t have those opportunities.
    “I remember seeing interviews of kids who were not able to play an instrument and creatively express themselves without having to pay extra money for it,” said Timolin Cole. “We want to provide that opportunity.”
For more information or to help Nat King Cole Generation Hope: natkingcolegenhope.org; 213-8209.

If You Go
What: Eau Spa’s Wonderland Ball
When: 5-7 p.m. Dec. 10
Where: Eau Palm Beach Resort & Spa, 100 S. Ocean Blvd., Manalapan
Details: Fire dancers, balloon artists and magicians will entertain guests under tents in the spa’s Serenity Garden. Children will watch Alice in Wonderland while parents enjoy the evening’s reception with cocktails and hors d’oeuvres. A silent auction will include a $500 Eau Spa gift certificate.
Tickets: $60 per person. “Kids Night Out” at AquaNuts is $80 per child and will be held from 5 to 8 p.m.
Info or to buy tickets: 540-4960 or www.eauspa.com

Coordinating the Impact 100 event are (l-r ) Nick Gold, PR director for Eau Palm Beach Resort & Spa; Cindy Racco, general manager of Eau; Karen Rogers, event co-chairwoman; Helen Ballerano, co-president of Impact 100 Palm Beach County; Catherine Warren, spa director; Hilary Sullivan, event co-chairwoman; Karen Sweetapple, co-president of Impact 100; Portia Smith, Boca Raton Magazine; and Mark Klein, director of special events and catering. Photo provided by Tida Sroivattana

By Amy Woods
    
Impact 100 Palm Beach County, a nonprofit that awards $100,000 grants to local charities in order to effect maximum change, wants to boost its membership. As a way to attract area women to join the cause, the organization is offering a free night of pampering and partying in the poshest of places.
    Eau Spa in Manalapan, part of the oceanfront luxury resort, will be the scene of “Bubbles & Bites,” a festive and fun reception for current and future philanthropists.
    “We try and have a few events a year to have the members be able to meet and greet each other and get to know each other better,” Co-Chairwoman Karen Rogers said. “But it’s also a bring-a-friend-out event.”
    Set for Jan. 10, the evening will feature flowing champagne, abundant hors d’oeuvres and swag bags filled with spa samplers — products used at Eau Spa — that every attendee will get to take home. Boutique vendors will be on hand selling specialty items, and spa “fairies” will circulate through the crowd to ensure everyone is having a good time.
    “It’s an evening of women getting together and having cocktails and relaxing and also sharing their thoughts,” Rogers said.
    Grant recipients will give updates on how their Impact 100 Palm Beach County dollars have helped the community, and representatives of the group will explain how its guiding principle,     “One Woman, One Meeting, One Vote,” affects the lives of the less fortunate. Members agree to donate $1,000 apiece and participate in a forum at which they decide where their proceeds will go.
    In 2015-16, 532 members donated a collective $532,000 that was distributed to five primary beneficiaries and a handful of others.
    “I really had not understood before the depth of the need in this community,” Co-Chairwoman Hilary Sullivan said. “I went to one of their presentations and decided it definitely was something I wanted to get involved with. I saw the difference that they were making, and I was really blown away.”

If You Go

What: Bubbles & Bites
When: 6 to 8 p.m. Jan. 10
Where: Eau Spa, 100 S. Ocean Blvd., Manalapan
Cost: Free
Information: Call 336-4623 or visit impact100pbc.org

The popular getaway tucked amid a tropical oasis welcomed nearly 60 local public-relations and marketing professionals to the 10th annual networking event. Representatives from several South Florida firms joined representatives from area nonprofits at the ‘fun-raiser’ put on by the Gold Coast PR Council and PRSA Palm Beach. The evening netted approximately $1,100, which will be split evenly among the two organizations. ABOVE: Marianne Radwan and A. Spencer Schwartz. Photo provided

The fundraiser for Bethesda Hospital Foundation and Delray Beach Public Library was among the best to date, selling out with 280 women in attendance. They enjoyed an afternoon of bubbly, lunch by the bite and shopping for the latest fashions.
ABOVE: Kari Shipley and Susan Mullins

Patti Carpenter and Robin Smoller

Nancy Dockerty and event Chairwoman Dr. Jacqueline Moroco Maloney
Photos provided

The 2016-17 Palm Beach Philanthropy Tank is underway, challenging local seventh- through 12th-graders to develop community-betterment projects.
Applications from students will be accepted until Dec. 11 for the chance to win one year of personal mentoring and up to $15,000 in funding. Finalists will be announced Jan. 25. They will present their ideas to a panel of four philanthropist-investors on March 8.
“Philanthropy Tank is an opportunity for local philanthropists to work directly with motivated young people from our community,” Co-Chairman Evan Deoul said. “The Philanthropy Tank is proving a uniquely rewarding and fundamentally inspiring way to make meaningful change in our community.”
Developed by the nonprofit Advisors for Philanthropic Impact, the Philanthropy Tank aims to shape the leadership paths of youths and, through their creative solutions, address social issues and effect change.
“Our best advocates are adults who hope to inspire today’s youth to care for their community,” Deoul said. “This is precisely our mission.”
For information, visit philanthropytank.org.

Empty Bowls fundraiser
    The annual Empty Bowls fundraiser will be 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Dec. 4 at Old School Square, 51 N. Swinton Ave., Delray Beach. This national grassroots event raises money for local hunger relief, and our event supports the Palm Beach County Food Bank.
    Amateur and professional potters make bowls for local chefs to serve their “signature soups” to symbolically fill the “empty bowls” of hungry people in the community. Each $25 admission includes a simple meal of soup, bread and water, and you get a handcrafted bowl you can take home.
    One hundred percent of proceeds from the event benefits the Palm Beach County Food Bank. For more information or to make a donation, visit www.pbcfoodbank.org.

Record donation made to summer-literacy program
Jarden Consumer Solutions’ employee-funded charitable entity has presented the Delray Beach Public Library with a record $25,000 grant in support of summer literacy.
The library will use the money for programming and to purchase books, prizes and snacks for the at-risk students participating, helping prevent the “summer slide.” The term refers to a tendency for students — especially those from low-income families — to lose some of their achievement gains made during the school year.
“It is the goal of the JCS …to direct funding to areas that best address the needs in the community, and the summer-literacy program in Delray Beach exemplifies that goal,” said Rocki Rockingham, JCS vice president of community relations and communications.
“It is inspiring to see that individuals like the employees of JCS are willing to donate their time and money to give children a greater chance to succeed in their educational endeavors,” outgoing library Director Alan Kornblau added.
The annual program has distributed more than 26,000 books to local children.

All hands on deck for Junior League’s outreach
The Junior League of Boca Raton united with the Junior League of New Orleans to support families in need after historic rainfalls resulted in mass flooding in southeastern Louisiana, impacting at least 100,000 homes and leaving thousands displaced.
Diapers were among the most urgently needed items, so the local league sent 8,652 of them, as well as more than $1,500 in supplies such as baby formula, feminine-hygiene products, food and phone chargers.
“The Junior League of Boca Raton is here to make a difference in the lives of people in our community,” President Kirsten Stanley said. “The tragic flooding in Louisiana reminded us that our community reaches beyond Palm Beach County.”
The league’s goal is to promote volunteerism, develop the potential of women and improve the community through effective action and leadership.

Adopt-A-Family receives 4-star Navigator rating
Charity Navigator awarded Adopt-A-Family of the Palm Beaches a 10th consecutive 4-star rating for its strong financial health and commitment to accountability and transparency. In the last 10 years, 1 percent of the charities it evaluates receives this rating, and Adopt-A-Family is one of four nonprofits in Florida to achieve it. Charity Navigator assesses more than 8,000 charities.
Last year, Adopt-A-Family served more than 2,000 families in need. To make a donation, visit www.adoptafamilypbc.org/donate.

To submit your event or listing, contact Amy Woods at flamywoods@bellsouth.net.

The Delray Beach Chamber of Commerce redefined its annual gala with an updated experience for all the city’s business community to enjoy. In simple terms, it was a party. Live entertainment kept guests dancing all night while an artist painted in the lobby and had works on display. And the chamber rolled out its new Luminary campaign. ABOVE: (l-r) Kelli Freeman, Karen Granger and Patty Reed. Photo provided

The highly anticipated 2016 Impact 100 Palm Beach County season starter successfully stole the show, welcoming 22 new members. The special event had a turnout of more than 150, who enjoyed light bites and beverages. Also in attendance were past recipients of $100,000 grants. LEFT: (l-r) Lisa Morgan, Janet Little and Susan Duane. Photo provided

The Faulk Center for Counseling had its annual celebration honoring the community’s mental-health advocates. The ceremony recognized business, educational and individual partners who support the center’s mission of providing free and low-cost counseling services to all ages. ‘One in four people in the world will be affected by mental or neurological disorders at some point in their lives,’ CEO Vicki Katz said. ‘Together, we can work to advance the welfare of people suffering from emotional problems and mental illness in our community.’
ABOVE: (l-r) board member Clem Winke and sponsors Sharon DaBrusco, Chris Woythaler and Tom Kuhlman.  Photo provided

Nearly 70 guests attended an event to support breast-cancer awareness organized by the South Palm Beach County chapter of the Florida Association for Women Lawyers. The group donated $1,000 to the Susan G. Komen South Florida affiliate in commemoration of the month. Photo: (l-r) Kara Brotman, Susan Brotman and Rochelle Kerner. Photo provided

A Coast Guard gunboat patrols the Intracoastal Waterway west of Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach.
Jerry Lower/The Coastal Star

By Thom Smith

The Donald Trump presidency is expected to create the greatest security nightmare in history, let alone the history of the republic. Never before has any office holder anywhere had so many places to hang out: Trump Tower in New York, a 15-bedroom mansion on 230 acres in Bedford, N.Y., Trump Vineyard Estates in Charlottesville, Va., all the hotels (including Trump International — just down Pennsylvania Avenue from the White House), not to mention  those golf courses. And of course, Mar-a-Lago.
     Built by Marjorie Merriweather Post in the ’20s, it is grand by any standards. When Post died in 1973, she deeded the estate to the nation, ostensibly to serve as a “winter White House.” A few years later, however, Uncle Sam gave it back to the Post foundation — too expensive to preserve and to protect.
     Enter Trump. He claimed he offered $28 million only to have it rejected. So in typical Trumpian style, he bought surrounding properties and squeezed the foundation, which in 1985 acquiesced. For the thrift-store price of $5 million for the estate plus $3 million for the furnishings, Post’s 58-bedroom, 33-bath dream became Trump’s reality.
    At the time he had only three kids, so what was he going to do with all those rooms?  He may not be the richest resident on Forbes’ list — at $4.5 billion, he’s in a 14-way tie for 324th — but a fundamental motivation for The Donald has always been money, the more flauntable and ostentatious the better.
    So he split it up: residence on one side, the Mar-a-Lago Club on the other.
      Reports list membership at more than 400, with a waiting list of people who will pay a reported $100,000 initiation fee  and $16,000 a year. Thousands more attend charity events in the ballroom every year.
But what changes ­outside and inside Mar-a-Lago’s walls will be implemented when “Mogul” (Trump’s Secret Service code name) is on site, as occurred Thanksgiving weekend.
     The Secret Service will not post “snipers” in the tower, as one local TV station reported. Sharpshooters is the more appropriate word, although their presence was presumed, not confirmed.  
    However, a mobile observation tower was positioned on the grounds, courtesy of the sheriff’s office. In Lake Worth, 25-foot Coast Guard Defender patrol boats armed with .50-caliber machine guns kept curious boaters at a distance.
     Palm Beach police and sheriff’s deputies established a perimeter. All traffic along Southern Boulevard was halted for Trump motorcades between Mar-a-Lago and the airport.
    Media crews set up reporting sites on the north shore of Bingham Island just east of the Southern bridge, and pedestrian traffic was restricted. Traffic along A1A, the only road passing by Mar-a-Lago and the only southern access to and from the island, moved at a snail’s pace.
    On the water, the Coast Guard and Secret Service established three security areas. The Atlantic Ocean zone extends 1,000 yards offshore from approximately Worth Avenue south to Ocean View Road. Boaters can pass through the zone at a steady speed. No stopping or even slowing. Don’t even think about fishing or diving.
    The same north-south boundaries and speed requirements apply in Lake Worth — the body of water, not the town — but traffic is permitted only on the western side, the Intracoastal Waterway east to Fisherman Island.
    The waters on the east side of the lake from Everglades Island to 1,000 yards south of the Southern Boulevard bridge are off limits to vessels and people.  No boats, no paddleboards, no swimmers.
     Palm Beach residents with waterfront homes, such as Wilbur Ross, Trump’s reputed choice to serve as secretary of commerce, may come and go as long as they contact the Coast Guard in advance.
    Mar-a-Lago is a no-fly zone when “Mogul” is present.  Commercial flights will be diverted north or south.
      Apparently, the inconveniences in Palm Beach are nothing compared to those in New York, where the streets around Trump Tower are closed off when Trump is in the building. Shop owners are complaining their business is suffering. Tiffany  — the jeweler, not the daughter — canceled its annual window display.
    But Palm Beach is upbeat.
“It’s nothing new for us,” Palm Beach Public Safety Director Kirk Blouin said. “We’ve been providing security for presidents and other dignitaries for a long time. I’ve been here more than 20 years and things have always run smoothly.”
      Several presidents have visited Palm Beach. However, the island is best known for its Kennedy connection. While some business was handled at Joe Kennedy’s “beach house” at the north end, press briefings were held at Palm Beach Towers in midtown and security was far less pervasive than it is today.
Perhaps Trump will conduct press briefings in Mar-a-Lago’s ballroom.
     Town and county law enforcement have been working with the Secret Service since Trump became a viable candidate, but Blouin said it would be “premature” to reveal any restrictions on public access and mobility.
    “It’s exciting for us and the people in town,” he said, “and we’ll get the job done.”
    Needless to say, circumstances now will be somewhat different.
                                ***
    With the voting over, the postmortems can begin.
    First on the dais Nov. 21 was FAU political science professor Jeffrey Morton, with his take on the election’s implications for foreign policy. A winner of the Foreign Policy Association Medal in 2012, Morton will return to the University Theatre after the inauguration on Jan. 30 with the topic “A New President Confronts the World.”
Presidential historian and NBC commentator Michael Beschloss will address “Critical Moments of the American Presidency: Past, Present, and Future,” Feb. 22 at the Alan B. and Charna Larkin Symposium on the American Presidency, in the FAU Student Union. (Tickets for both: 297-6124, www.fauevents.com.)
Another presidential historian and Pulitzer Prize winner, Jon Meacham, headlines the 2017 Festival of the Arts Boca at Mizner Park. His topic: “The Art of Leadership — Lessons from the American Presidency,” March 6.
Meacham is just one of several stars — musical and literary — at the Festival of the Arts, which runs March 2-12 at Mizner Park. Choice tickets go quickly. Jazzman Branford Marsalis joins with Symphonia, Boca Raton, Constantine Kitsopoulos, conducting, on March 3.
Last year 12-year-old Indonesian pianist Joey Alexander wowed the audience with his jazz improv. This year he has a partner, Mexican Daniela Liebman, 14, and backed by Symphonia on March 5 will work some magic on Strauss, Mendelssohn and a dash of Joey’s jazz.
    Two important dates stand out next spring for another hot young classical pianist — and computer whiz — Daniel Hsu, 18. On March 10 he’ll perform the Tchaikovsky Concerto No. 1 with Symphonia and a surprise violinist. Six weeks later he’ll go it alone at Carnegie Hall.
    March 12: Half a century after hitting the top 10 with The Look of Love and Mas Que Nada with Brasil ’66, Sergio Mendes is still going strong, albeit with Brasil 2017 — three Grammys in 2012 and an Oscar nomination for his score of Real in Rio.
    For opera fans,  La Boheme will be semi-staged March 4. Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist Jennifer Egan is up March 2, New Yorker cartoonist Bob Mankoff on March 4, and physicist Brian Greene speaks March 7.
    For tickets, call 866-571-2787.
                                 ***

Clarification
    A column in the December edition of The Coastal Star stated the Boca Raton City Council in 2009 approved the $7.5 million Wildflower property purchase “intent on turning it into a revenue producer.” However, because of conflicting comments at the time in meetings about the purchase, it’s unclear whether the council purchased the property specifically as a revenue producer.
    According to minutes from the City Council meeting held on Dec. 8, 2009, where the council approved the purchase, Deputy City Manager George Brown stated the city had wanted to purchase the property for years, and once it was bought, the city would decide what to do with it.

    The people of Boca Raton have spoken: No commercial development on the Wildflower site.
    Last July, the City Council voted a commercial designation to 2.27 acres on the north side of the Palmetto Park Road bridge over the Intracoastal. In the ’80s it was Wildflower, a popular nightclub. But when the economy soured, it closed and was eventually razed.
In 2009 the city bought the land for $7.5 million, intent on turning it into a revenue producer. That money would come from Hillstone Restaurant Group, which operates the Houston’s chain. Lease projections targeted $33 million for the city over 45 years.
    Residents rallied. Despite a 4-1 council majority in support of the lease, they succeeded in drafting a referendum that asked voters if they favored preserving all city-owned land along the Intracoastal for public recreation, boating access, streets and storm water uses — in other words, nothing commercial.
    Two-thirds said yes. For the victors, the logical choice is to join the former Wildflower with Silver Palm Park on the south side of Palmetto Park Road with a link under the bridge.
    In the ’70s, the mantra in Boca was “controlled growth,” a conscious effort to curtail urban sprawl and still prosper. For years, the tallest building in downtown, First Bank and Trust on Palmetto Park Road, just east of Federal, rose all of eight stories. The new Hyatt Place, which is accepting reservations for Dec. 20, offers 200 rooms on 13 floors. Other developers have proposed monsters twice that size but public resistance has sent them back to the designers.   
                                    ***
    Big season at the Kravis Center for its 25th anniversary. Lots of stars. Arts and science. Lots of special events. The party started Oct. 1 with an all-day, no-charge community salute and continues Dec. 6-11 with the road show of Christopher Wheeldon’s 2015 Tony-winning musical An American in Paris, based on the music written in 1928 by George and Ira Gershwin that inspired the 1951 Oscar-winning film.  The musical won four Tonys, not bad considering it was up against Hamilton.
    Brian Wilson and Al Jardine, two surviving members of the Beach Boys, performed Pet Sounds a couple of months ago at Seminole Hard Rock in Hollywood. On Dec. 16, the remaining two, Mike Love and Bruce Johnson, bring Little Saint Nick to the Kravis. Wouldn’t it be nice if they could get together and do it again?
    Two days later … Itzhak Perlman. Nothing else to say.
    Tap out the old year with 42nd Street on New Year’s Eve. Salute Vienna with  Strauss music on New Year’s Day and try some Dirty Dancing — The Classic Story on Stage, Jan. 3-8.
If sex has appeal, stop by the Cohen Pavilion on Jan. 5 for a little lunch with Dr. Ruth Westheimer. She’ll be interviewed by Steven Caras, who won’t dance around the dicey questions.
    On Jan. 12, the Palm Beach Wine Auction (with dinner) returns for the 10th year to raise money for Kravis Center education programs. A ticket costs $1,000, but it affords the opportunity to score some great wine … and to see how the president-elect lives. The auction is held at the Mar-a-Lago Club.
    Jay Leno should have a few choice things to say Jan. 15, Kenny Rogers drops by on his “Final World Tour” Jan. 18, and Billy Crystal promises to stand up, sit down, tell some stories, show film clips and “talk about my life and career and the world as I see it” on Jan. 22.
                        ***             
    Speaking of country singers, the first performance at the Kravis Center was held not in 1992 but two years earlier. The orchestra pit, some three stories deep, had been poured, but the auditorium and lobby existed only on blueprints. That didn’t stop the center’s first executive director, Arnold Bremen, from putting on a show.
    To salute the construction crew and drum up local interest, Bremen trucked in a 150-foot sub sandwich and then brought out bluegrass wizard Ricky Skaggs and his band. “I just hope they don’t deaden it too much,” he said, referring to acoustical engineering.
          ***                     
Old School Square will present six shows in December. On Dec. 7 at 2 and 8 p.m., Crest Theatre will present the American Big Band’s new Christmas production, “Home for the Holidays,” featuring an 11-piece band along with six singers and dancers. Tickets are $42 and $32.
    On Dec. 8 at 9 p.m., the Fieldhouse at Old School Square will present an on-the-road version of Jim Caruso’s Cast Party. Tickets are $50.
    At Crest Theatre at  7 p.m. Dec. 11, Will and Anthony Nunziata will offer fresh interpretations of Broadway classics and pop standards. Tickets are $52 and $42.
    Dec. 16 through 18, Crest Theatre will present Avenue Q, winner of the Tony “triple crown” for Best Musical, Best Score and Best Book. Performances will be at 8 p.m. with an additional 2 p.m. matinee on Sunday. Tickets are $52 and $42.
    At 8 p.m.  Dec. 22 and 23, Crest Theatre will present Steve Solomon’s My Mother’s Italian, My Father’s Jewish, I’m Home for the Holidays: The Therapy Continues … Tickets are $46 and $36.
     At 7:30 p.m. Dec. 26, the Pavilion at Old School Square will present the State Ballet Theatre of Russia. Tickets are $30 ($20 for students). To purchase tickets, visit www.OldSchoolSquare.org or call the box office at 243-7922, Ext. 1.
                                ***
    Yes, Pulitzer Prizes are awarded for poetry, and Charles Simic won it in 1990. He also served as U.S. poet laureate in 2007-2008, and he’ll be a special guest poet at the 13th annual Palm Beach Poetry Festival. The festival, set for Jan. 16-21 at Old School Square in Delray Beach, will attract poets from a wide range of genres, including Laure-Anne Bosselaar, winner of the prestigious Isabella Gardner Prize for Poetry. (www.palmbeachpoetryfestival.org)
                                ***
    Food fights … Delray Beach loyalists now know what will replace Tryst, the popular Atlantic Avenue gastropub. Owners promise a February opening for Rok:Brgr, the first location for the chain outside of Dade and Broward counties. It will have seating for 100, another 25 at the bar, local craft beers and local suppliers.
    It’s getting high marks down south, but burger competition is hot and heavy.
    In Lake Worth, new owners have different plans for the building that was home for a decade to Mother Earth Sanctuary Cafe. So Mother Earth owner/chef Patti Lucia closed it down Nov. 30. She’ll continue to serve at Lake Worth’s Farmers Market and look for a site that would double as a commercial kitchen and cafe somewhere between West Palm Beach and Delray Beach.
    On her Facebook page a dejected Lucia wrote: “I learned a long time ago to go where you are wanted and stay where you are welcome. … After the news of Mother Earth closing, not one politician in this town reached out … to say , ‘hey we are sorry you are closing. You were a valuable business in this town …’ Not one. Silence speaks loudly, too.”
    Another Lake Worth favorite is gone — Havana Hideout. Costs exceeded revenue.
    Down in Boca, Bogart’s, the upstairs restaurant at the Cinemark theaters, is gone.
 Cinemark will introduce its own  concept — Cinemark Movie Bistro —with typical movie fare plus some regional specialties. For example, the Fort Collins, Colo., site offers sandwiches, wraps, sliders, pizza, nachos, wings, salads, even fried pickles, while the Lake Charles, La., menu includes shrimp po’boys and crawfish pie.  


Reach Thom Smith at thomsmith@ymail.com.

The plate: Soft taco plate
The place: Uncle Julio’s, Mizner Park, 449 Plaza Real, Boca Raton; 300-3530 or www.unclejulios.com.
The price: $13.97
The skinny: The sun was shining and the breeze was blowing. It was a great day for sitting back and relaxing with a plate of tacos and a margarita.
Uncle Julio’s is known for its fajitas, my server said. But I didn’t feel like chowing down on a huge order of fajitas, so I decided to go for a mix — the soft tacos filled with the chicken ordinarily cooked up for fajitas.
The mesquite-grilled bits of tender chicken on the tacos had a wonderful smoky quality tempered by the fresh tomatoes and crisp iceberg lettuce.
Also tasty: Those frijoles a la charra, or pinto beans cooked with peppers, bacon or pork and tomatoes.
— Scott Simmons

DECEMBER 3
Saturday - 12/3 - Southern Handcraft Society Southern Christmas 2016 at Patch Reef Park Community Center, 7000 Yamato Rd, Boca Raton. Juried arts/crafts. 9 am-1 pm. Free. shsboca.com
12/3 - Cookie Cruise with Santa at 801 E Atlantic Ave, Delray Beach. Visit with Santa, cookies and milk or hot chocolate, coffee/tea, craft activity. Held again 12/10 & 17 10 am-noon. $20. Reservations: 243-0686; delaybeachcruises.com
12/3 - Boynton Beach 46th Annual Holiday Parade rolls north on Seacrest Blvd from SE 12th Ave to Ocean Ave. High school marching bands, costumed characters, floats, drill teams, dance groups, special appearance by Santa. 11 am. Free. 742-6243; boynton-beach.org
12/3 - Sounds of the Season Holiday Concert at Steinway Piano Gallery, 7940 N Federal Highway, Boca Raton. 4 pm. $15. 982-8887; steinwaybocaraton.co
12/3 - Carols by Candlelight Outdoor Concert at Old School Square Pavilion, 51 N Swinton Ave, Delray Beach. Little River Band, Stephen Bishop & Kim Carnes. Bring lawn chairs, blankets. No outside food, beverages, pets. 7 pm. $15/adult; $5/student; $100/VIP includes reserved seating area, complimentary beer, wine, light bites, exclusive cash bar, meet & greet with artists. 243-7922 x1; oldschoolsquare.or
12/3-4 - 3rd Annual Holiday Celebration & Christkindlmarket 2016 at American German Club, 5111 Lantana Rd, Lake Worth. Noon-9 pm. $8/gate; free/12 & under. 967-6464; americangermanclub.org
12/3-10 - Community Days:  Festival of Trees at Ann Norton Sculpture Gardens, 2051 S Flagler Dr, West Palm Beach. 6-8:30 pm. $20-$25/person; $15/member & senior (age 62 & up); $8/child. 832-5328; ansg.org
12/3-31 - Christmas at Cason Cottage at 5 NE 1st St, Delray Beach. Presented by Delray Beach Historical Society. Th-Sat 11 am-3 pm & 5:30-8:30 pm. $5/adult. 274-9578; delraybeachhistory.org

DECEMBER 4-10
Sunday - 12/4 - Christmas Tree Lighting at Flagler Museum, One Whitehall Way, Palm Beach. Seasonal refreshments, Santa Claus, organ and piano performances, caroling, tree lighting. All ages. 3-5 pm. Free w/paid admission. 655-2833; flaglermuseum.us
12/4 - It’s All About the Holidays at St. Paul Lutheran Church, 701 W Palmetto Park Rd, Boca Raton. Presented by Nova Southeastern University. Christmas & Hanukkah choral selections. 4 pm. $15/advance; $20/door. 954-683-8866; nova.edu/novasingers
12/4 - Piano Concert for the Holidays with Dr. Sofiya Martin at Unity of Delray Beach, 101 NW 22nd St. 5 pm. Free/love offering. 276-5796; unityofdelraybeach.org
12/4 - Christmas Concert at First United Methodist Church of Boca Raton, 625 NE Mizner Blvd. Free childcare with reservations. 7-9 pm. Free. 395-1244; fumcbocaraton.org
Monday - 12/5 - Holiday Pottery, Painting & Cookies at Art-Sea Living, 112 S Federal Highway #7, Boynton Beach. 3-6 pm. $22/supplies included. 737-2600; artsealiving.com
Tuesday - 12/6 - Sing-a-long Holiday Caroling with Gift Exchange at Boynton Beach Senior Center, 1021 S Federal Hwy. 11 am. Free. 742-6570; boynton-beach.org
Wednesday - 12/7 - American Big Band: Home for the Holidays at Crest Theatre at Old School Square, 51 N Swinton Ave, Delray Beach. 2 & 8 pm. $32-$42. 243-7922 x1; oldschoolsquare.org
12/7 - 46nd Annual Boca Raton Holiday Street Parade: A Star-Spangled Holiday on Federal Highway from SE 7th St north to Mizner Park Boulevard. Grandstand viewing at Sanborn Square. 7:30-9:30 pm. Free. 393-7806; myboca.us
Thursday - 12/8 - Holiday Boutique at Society of The Four Arts Philip Hulitar Sculpture Garden, 2 Four Arts Plaza, Palm Beach. 9:30 am-4 pm. Free. 837-6635; fourarts.org
Friday - 12/9 - Karaoke Holiday Caroling at Boynton Beach Senior Center, 1021 S Federal Hwy. 12:30-2 pm. Free. 742-6570; boynton-beach.org
12/9 - Boynton Beach & Delray Beach 45th Annual Holiday Boat Parade from Lantana Bridge to George Bush Bridge. Viewing at Boynton Beach Intracoastal Park, Jaycee Park, Delray Beach Veterans Park. 6 pm live music at Boynton Harbour Marina; 7 pm parade starts. Free. 600-9097; catchboynton.com
12/9 - Divas Holiday Party at Lake Worth Playhouse, 713 Lake Ave. Your favorite divas celebrate the holidays as only divas can. Songs, skits, a comically good time. 8 pm. $15. 586-6169; lakeworthplayhouse.org
12/9 - Sarge: Chanukah Chutzpah Tour at Crest Theatre at Old School Square, 51 N Swinton Ave, Delray Beach. 8-10 pm. $44. 243-7922; oldschoolsquare.org
Saturday - 12/10 - Weekend Family Fun: Lightwire Theater’s A Very Electric Christmas at Palm Beach State College Duncan Theatre, 4200 Congress Ave, Lake Worth. 11 am. $15. 868-3309; duncantheatre.org
12/10 - Lantana Annual Winterfest & Parade at Lantana Recreation Center, 418 S Dixie Hwy. Pictures w/Santa, Holiday Music, bike giveaway, food vendors, more. 5-9 pm. Free. 540-5000; lantana.org
12/10 – Holiday Stroll on West Palm Beach Antique Row on Dixie Highway between Belvedere Road & Southern Boulevard. Complimentary holiday treats, music, more. Benefits Toys for Tots. 5-8:30 pm. Free w/donation of new unwrapped toy. Westpalmbeachantiques.com
12/10 - Delray Beach Holiday Parade: A Rock and Roll Holiday starts on Atlantic Avenue at the Intracoastal Bridge, then west to SW 5th Avenue. 6 pm. Free. 243-7277; mydelraybeach.com
12/10 - The Heavy Pets Holiday Ball at Crest Theatre at Old School Square, 51 N Swinton Ave, Delray Beach. Benefits Toys for Tots and Caring Kitchen. All ages. 8 pm-12:30 am. $20-$25. 243-7922 x1; oldschoolsquare.org
12/10-11 - A Christmas Carol: The Radio Play at Lake Worth Playhouse, 713 Lake Ave, Adapted from the original Orson Welles radio drama. Sat 7 pm; Sun 2 pm. $25/adult; $15/child 12 & under. 586-6410; lakeworthplayhouse.org

DECEMBER 11-17
Sunday - 12/11 - Florida Intergenerational Orchestra: Celebrate The Holidays With Love at Our Lady of Lourdes Church O’Shea Hall, 22094 Lyons Rd, Boca Raton. 2:15 pm pre-concert talk/meet & greet performers; 3 pm concert. $10/adult; free/child. 482-8206; flioa.org
12/11 – 14th Annual Gingerbread Holiday Concert presented by Lynn University Friends of the Conservatory of Music at Boca Raton Resort & Club, 501 E Camino Real. Family fare. 3 pm. $35. 237-9000; lynn.edu
12/11 - FAU Tuba Christmas Concert at Mizner Park Amphitheater, 590 Plaza Real, Boca Raton. Bring chairs/blankets. Free. 5 pm. 393-7700; tubachristmas.com.
12/11 - Handel’s Messiah at Florida Atlantic University Theatre, 777 Glades Rd, Boca Raton. In collaboration with Delray Beach Chorale. 7 pm. $20. 800-564-9539; fauevents.com
12/11 – Symphony of the Americas: Holiday Magic at Broward Center for the Arts Amaturo Theater, 201 SW 5th Ave, Ft. Lauderdale. Frank Loconto & Cathy Von. Held again 12/13 7:45 pm. 2 pm. $20-485.  954-335-7002; symphonyoftheamericas.org
Monday - 12/12  - The Hot Sardines Holiday Stomp at Kravis Center Dreyfoos Concert Hall, 701 Okeechobee Blvd, West Palm Beach. 8 pm. Tickets start at $25. 832-7469; kravis.org
12/12-13 - Santa’s Calling directly from the North Pole to surprise your child. Helped by Mrs. Claus and the elves. Ages 3-9. Free. Registration w/questionnaire required: 243-7277; beardsleyd@mydelraybeach.com
Tuesday - 12/13 - The Tenors: Christmas Together at Kravis Center Dreyfoos Concert Hall, 701 Okeechobee Blvd, West Palm Beach. 8 pm. Tickets start at $15. 832-7469; kravis.org
Wednesday - 12/14 - A Seraphic Fire Christmas: On Winter’s Night at Kravis Center Rinker Playhouse, 701 Okeechobee Blvd, West Palm Beach. 7:30 pm. $45. 832-7469; kravis.org
12/14 - Concert: Danu, A Christmas Gathering - Feile Na Nollag at Society of The Four Arts Gubelmann Auditorium, 2 Four Arts Plaza, Palm Beach. 8 pm. $40-$45. 805-8562; fourarts.org
Thursday - 12/15 - Blue Suede Christmas at The Fieldhouse at Old School Square, 51 N Swinton Ave, Delray Beach. 8 pm. $38. 243-7922 x1; oldschoolsquare.org
Friday - 12/16 - Holiday Party at Boynton Beach Senior Center, 1021 S Federal Hwy. 1-3 pm. $3/advance; $5/door. 742-6570; boynton-beach.org
12/16 - Beach Boys Christmas at Kravis Center Dreyfoos Concert Hall, 701 Okeechobee Blvd, West Palm Beach. 8 pm. Tickets start at $30. 832-7469; kravis.org
Saturday - 12/17 - Breakfast with Santa at Intracoastal Park Clubhouse, 2240 N Federal Hwy, Boynton Beach. Kids visit with Santa, leave with a holiday craft. All Ages. 9-11 am. $8. Reservations: 742-6240; boynton-beach.org
12/17 – Visit Santa at Big Apple Shopping Shopping Bazaar, 5283 W Atlantic Ave, Delray Beach. Pictures w/Santa, holiday treats, face painting. Noon-3 pm. Free. 499-9935; thebigappleshoppingbazaar.com
12/17 - 51st Annual Grinchmas Holiday Parade, Santa’s Workshop & Light Up the Night at Cultural Plaza, 414 Lake Ave, Lake Worth. Bring lawn chair for the parade. All ages. Noon workshop begins; 6 pm parade. Free. 398-8340; lakeworth.org
12/17 - Boca Raton Annual Holiday Boat Parade begins at C-15 Canal (Boca Raton/Delray Beach border). Bleacher viewing at Silver Palm & Red Reef Parks. 6:30-8 pm. Free. 393-7995; myboca.us
12/17-18 - Breakfast with Santa at Palm Beach Zoo, 1301 Summit Blvd, West Palm Beach. Hot breakfast buffet, meet ‘n greet with Santa and Mrs. Claus, up-close animal encounters and photo ops, holiday music, more. Held again 12/24. 8:30-10 am. $26.95-$36.95/adult; $18.95-$28.95/child ages 3-12; $7.95/toddler up to age 2. Includes full-day admission to the Zoo. Reservations: 547-9453; palmbeachzoo.org

DECEMBER 18-26
Sunday - 12/18 - Downtown Dance: A Nightmare Before Christmas at Lake Worth Playhouse, 713 Lake Ave, Noon & 2 pm. $15/advance; $20/door. 586-6410; lakewothplayhouse.org
12/18 - Concert: Lessons and Carols - Noel! Noel! A French Christmas part of Music At St. Paul’s series at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, 188 S Swinton Ave, Delray Beach. 3 pm. Free. 276-4541; music.stpaulsdelray.org
12/18 - A Seraphic Fire Christmas: On Winter’s Night at St Gregory’s Episcopal Church, 100 NE Mizner Blvd, Boca Raton. 4 pm. $58 + fee. 395-8285; stgregorysepiscopal.org
12/18 - Messiah at Royal Poinciana Chapel, 60 Cocoanut Row, Palm Beach. Masterworks Chorus of the Palm Beaches, guest soloists, orchestra. 7-8:30 pm. $25. 845-9696; masterworkspb.org
12/18 - My Italian Christmas Holiday Concert at Kravis Center Rinker Playhouse, 701 Okeechobee Blvd, West Palm Beach. 7:30 pm. $50. 832-7469; kravis.org
12/18-19 - Holiday Evening Tours at Flagler Museum, One Whitehall Way, Palm Beach. See Whitehall by the glow of original 1902 fixtures, receive a traditional Christmas cracker, carols, holiday refreshments. All ages. Held again 12/20-23. Tours begin at 7:05, 7:15, 7:25 pm. $25/adult; $15/child age 17 & under. Advance purchase required: 655-2833; flaglermuseum.us
Friday - 12/23 - Jazz Takes a Holiday at Arts Garage, 94 NE 2nd Ave, Delray Beach. Dick Lowenthal Orchestra, vocalist Steve Leeds. Bring food/beverage. 8 pm. $30-$45. 450-6357; artsgarage.org
Saturday - 12/24 - Menorah Lighting at Old School Square Front Lawn, 51 N Swinton Ave, Delray Beach. Sundown. 243-7000; mydelraybeach.com
Sunday - 12/25 - Chanukah Fest at Chabad of South Palm Beach, Plaza del Mar, 224 S Ocean Blvd, Manalapan. Music, latkes, donuts, falafel. 4:30 pm. Free. 351-1633; chabadspb.org
12/26 - The State Ballet Theatre of Russia: The Tchaikovsky Christmas Spectacular at The Pavilion at Old School Square, 51 N Swinton Ave, Delray Beach. 7:30 pm. $30/adult; $20/student. 243-7922 x1; oldschoolsquare.org

Photographer Taylor Jones with Janice Snearer, book coordinator of The Cottages of Lake Worth. Tim Stepien/The Coastal Star

By Ron Hayes
    
They began arriving in the 1920s, humble and unpretentious, and by the end of World War II about 1,000 called Lake Worth home.
    Cottages. Small, wood-frame, single-family dwellings. From the Middle English cot, and the Old Norse kut, as in “hut.”
    Then came the gentrification, the renovation and the corporation.
    In 2013, the cottages of Lake Worth begat The Cottages of Lake Worth Inc., a nonprofit community organization that sponsors bike and walking tours to celebrate its colorful namesakes.
    And now, the book.
    Living Large in Small Spaces: The Cottages of Lake Worth is a beautifully photographed, lovingly researched history, a coffee table tome highlighting 60 of the city’s 200 renovated cottages.
    Naturally, the book was born in a cottage.
    “We were having a committee meeting and somebody said, ‘Who would like to do a coffee table book?’” Janice Snearer recalls. “And I looked and my hand was up.”
    Snearer, an artist and former gallery owner, became the coordinator, hosting meetings in her 1931 home on Lakeside Drive.
    Now the eight-member book committee had to select the 60 homes to be included in the book.
    “Joan Appel drove the getaway car,” Snearer recalls with a laugh. “I’d go to the door and have to talk very fast to explain what we were doing. One woman had that what-are-you-selling pose, arms crossed, but slowly she relaxed.”
    In the end, only one man politely declined to have his cottage included.
    In November 2014, Taylor Jones, an award-winning Palm Beach County photographer, joined the project.
    “I shot for one year and then spent another year editing pictures,” she explained. “Every cottage was different, and the creativity of the individual owners was amazing.”
    In March, the project was darkened by tragedy when Dean Sherwin, who wrote the book’s extensive text, succumbed to pancreatic cancer as the book was being prepared for the printer.
    “He worked all throughout his treatments to finish the writing and was able to see a mock-up of the finished book,” Snearer said.
    A GoFundMe campaign and donations from local businesses raised the $19,000 needed to produce the books, and on Nov. 3 they arrived, a print run of 1,000 copies, of which about 250 were already presold.
    The book is as beautiful as the cottages it honors — 240 pages, 200 color photographs, with Sherwin’s detailed histories and descriptive odes to the front porches and vaulted ceilings, the Chicago brick patios and tropical gardens that have made large dreams come true on small lots.
    “If it makes money, fine,” Snearer says, “but our purpose was to tell people what a great seaside town this is. Hurricanes didn’t take these cottages away. Construction didn’t take them. Decay didn’t take them.
    “Every cottage was an adventure, and the people who live in them are an asset to this town.”

    Living Large in Small Spaces: The Cottages of Lake Worth is available for $32.95 at the Lake Worth Farmers Market, Saturdays 9 a.m.-1 p.m. A book signing will be held from 3 p.m. Dec. 17 at the Cultural Council of Palm Beach County, 601 Lake Ave., in Lake Worth.

By Steve Plunkett

Voters’ hunger for change brought two newcomers to the board of the Greater Boca Raton Beach & Park District and scuttled a years-long plan to put a restaurant on the city-owned Wildflower site.

Voters also approved adding a penny to the 6-cent local sales tax in Palm Beach County.

Unofficial results posted on the Palm Beach County Supervisor of Elections website showed challenger Craig Ehrnst defeated incumbent Beach & Park District Commissioner Dennis Frisch 56 percent to 44 percent for Seat 1. Challenger Erin Wright beat incumbent Earl Starkoff 52 percent to 48 percent for Seat 3.

A citizen initiative to permit only public uses of city-owned property on the Intracoastal Waterway was the biggest winner, taking 67 percent of 43,565 votes cast.

“We won!!! Your vote and voice have been heard and I look forward to serving you,” Wright posted on Facebook.

Frisch, who went online to thank those who supported him, said he had been “targeted by special interests and their deep bank accounts.”

Ehrnst reported Nov. 4 to receiving three $1,000 campaign contributions from developer Jamie Danburg through his Danburg Management Co., 6600 Congress Ltd. and Boca Industrial Park Ltd. Danburg-affiliated businesses also gave Ehrnst $3,000 during the primary campaign.

All four Beach & Park District candidates supported making the 2.3-acre Wildflower site a park. The city bought the parcel, at the northwest base of the Palmetto Park Road bridge, for $7.5 million in 2009 and has been negotiating for years to put a restaurant there. But nearby residents mounted a petition drive and succeeded this summer in putting the question on the ballot.