By Steve Plunkett

Town commissioners and staff fretted that substantial work on Phase 2 of Gulf Stream’s big water main, drainage and road project would not begin early — or even by the originally scheduled mid-March start.

Town Manager Greg Dunham gave commissioners an updated checklist of progress Feb. 14 with not much progress to report. For sprinklers and landscaping: “Work is ongoing, but very randomly,” it said. All mailboxes restored? “Only a few locations have been addressed.”

What’s more, engineers were waiting for a video of a large but defective underground pipe so they could figure out how to remedy it.

“When they initially televised it and noticed that it was to the point they probably wouldn’t be able to complete the televise, it was roughly three weeks ago. And our firm asked them, ‘Hey, we need that footage. We need to make a declaration of a plan that we need to do.’ We’ve communicated with them in the field multiple times and meetings, in our scheduled meetings. And it’s now to this point, like you said, roughly three to four weeks later,” said Anthony Monroe, an inspector for Baxter & Woodman Consulting Engineers.

At the January commission meeting, contractor Roadway Construction LLC wanted to get an early start on Phase 2, mostly the roads in the Core District east of Polo Drive, to avoid working near the Gulf Stream School when students are there.

But that incentive appears to have vanished after Police Chief Richard Jones said his officers can easily divert parents dropping off and picking up their children onto State Road A1A when work crews had to be close to the campus.

“We’re no longer going to be requiring that schedule,” Mayor Scott Morgan said.

Dunham asked about cracks already appearing in the concrete valley gutters along the sides of the asphalt in Phase 1.

“All the light cracks and whatever that will be seen will be assessed on a walk-through and put on the list,” Monroe said.

Dunham noted that the scheduled March 14 commission meeting will come before Roadway’s March 18 deadline to finish Phase 1.

“So we’ll certainly be able to give you an update then,” he said.

“And hopefully pick up the pace,” Morgan said.

The Gulf Stream Civic Association held a 100th anniversary celebration and dinner at the Little Club to commemorate the community’s founding in 1925. Tim Stepien/The Coastal Star

By Steve Plunkett

After five meetings as an alternate member of the Architectural Review and Planning Board, Katherine Orthwein now sits as a full voting member of the panel, following in the public service footsteps of her mother, longtime Town Commissioner Joan Orthwein.

The younger Orthwein, who goes by Katie, was barely a toddler on April 1, 1987, when Joan Orthwein joined the ARPB’s predecessor, the Planning and Zoning Board. 

Coincidentally, one of the mother’s first votes was approving an addition to the home at 3150 Gulfstream Road, where her daughter now lives.

Joan Orthwein called her daughter a “talented” and “accomplished” young woman. Katie Orthwein, whose first full ARPB meeting was Jan. 23, demurred from giving details of her life for a newspaper article.

“My passion lies in helping Gulf Stream continue to thrive, and I believe the most meaningful impact comes from dedicated efforts rather than public recognition,” she said. “At this juncture, my focus remains on the work itself, and I find that true contribution is often best made without the glare of the spotlight.”

But Assistant Town Attorney Trey Nazzaro sang her praises as the Town Commission considered promoting her from being an alternate member Jan. 10.

“Honestly, when she’s not in attendance I wish that she was, because she is extremely thorough with all the reviews,” Nazzaro said. “She caught a minor accessory structure that was 2 feet into the setback. You know, when we’re looking at plans we’re looking at so many things on the plan and that was something that she caught that we had not caught at the time.

“So we were able to navigate, and she’s just very thoughtful,” Nazzaro concluded. “It’s clear that she puts a lot of time and thought into her review.”

“And she’s an MIT grad,” Mayor Scott Morgan noted, referring to her MBA from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

How long Katie Orthwein will be on the dais — and whether her children will follow her and their grandmother’s public service path — is impossible to predict. 

Joan Orthwein moved on from being chairwoman of the renamed Architectural Review and Planning Board and first sat as a town commissioner on May 4, 1995. In 2020, the Florida League of Cities officially praised her for 25 years of “unselfish leadership” on the Town Commission, though it didn’t mention her previous, unelected time on the ARPB.

The league presented her with a plaque and a 25-year lapel pin.

“I don’t know what to say, but thank you,” she said at the time. “It’s an honor to be on the commission. … It’s an honor to be here.”

This year she will qualify for the league’s 30-year lapel pin.

By Henry Fitzgerald

Writers for The Coastal Star won awards announced in January in the 2023-24 Florida Press Club Excellence in Journalism Competition.

Jane Musgrave received a first-place award in environmental reporting for her story, Sargassum, turtle-nesting and storm seasons collide. Judges said it was “an interesting examination of a phenomenon that threatens the balance of nature and commerce.”

Musgrave also won second place in general news reporting. Her story, Neighborhood’s beach-access spat morphs into slurs and legal one-upmanship, was about a feud between Ocean Ridge’s Tropical Drive and Turtle Beach condo residents.

“This interesting yarn on a spat between neighbors over beach access sheds light on how personal — and petty — land disputes can become,” judges said.

Janis Fontaine won a second-place award for religion writing for her story about local church renovations, Renewing Holy Spaces. “Janis Fontaine takes an in-depth look at matters of faith and local congregations. Her stories are very informative,” judges said.

Anne Geggis placed third in the minority news category for her story, Clearing the books of a racist past. It was about local efforts to remove Jim Crow laws still lingering in municipal ordinances. The judges said her article was “a really interesting look at a segregationist past and current efforts to grapple with that history.”

Mary Thurwachter won third place in government news for her story about Hypoluxo Island residents fighting plans for Bonefish Cove. Boaters win fight to keep Intracoastal access “was very well-written and had in-depth reporting on a local issue. It was a pleasure to read,” judges said.

Artist Serge Strosberg (left) and J. Turner Moore’s grandson Cameron Charles pose with the new portrait of Moore at the Manalapan library. Photo provided by Michelle Donahue

By Hannah Spence

It’s like a piece of Manalapan’s library has gone from Kansas to Oz, with Palm Beach artist Serge Strosberg the wizard behind the transformation with his new portrait of the library’s namesake.

Strosberg was asked to reimagine the black-and-white portrait of J. Turner Moore that hung for decades on a library wall but was in a state of disrepair.

He had little else to work from.

“There was a portrait of Moore that was in the closet, that was in very poor condition. It had tears, it was monochromatic, and it was all blurry. It had to be redone completely. 

And the challenge was there are no photographs of that man. He was mayor of Manalapan and commissioner for many years. … It’s strange,” Strosberg said.

Strosberg used a technique called oil and egg tempera painting, which creates more light contrasts and depth, which gives portraits more life and emotion. Because there wasn’t any color in the old portrait, Strosberg had to reinvent skin tones and made choices about the color of eyes and clothing by consulting Cameron Charles, Moore’s last surviving grandchild, who commissioned the artwork. 

That addition of color to the portrait — much like the transformation Dorothy experienced as a twister took her from a monochrome Midwest farm to the Technicolor land of Oz — had a profound effect. “I think the younger generations need something more colorful. Something that is more appealing to them. It’s also a portrait that will be at the library for a long time, so it’s important that it looks good when the future generations visit the library,” Strosberg said.

Strosberg was also asked to examine the library’s portrait of Moore’s wife, Mary Louise Moore. He said that portrait had color missing in some areas and required touching up, but didn’t have to be entirely repainted like her husband’s.

The library unveiled the new portrait and the touched-up one during a Feb. 6 library lecture — attended by Strosberg and Charles — featuring local historian Michelle Donahue, who expounded on the library’s significance.

“It was important to me to thank the people who work at the library from the city, to the volunteer level, and to thank the members — people who contribute to the library and keep it going,” Charles said. 

The J. Turner Moore Memorial Library has been a beloved staple of Manalapan for over five decades, acting as a social hangout spot while simultaneously being a venue that provides access to knowledge — both nonfiction and works of the imagination.

In 1977, the library was formally dedicated in Moore’s honor after his death the previous year. Moore served as mayor of Manalapan and sought to create a library after discovering that doing so would keep the town from having to be part of the Palm Beach County library taxing district. The current library structure, built in 1981, also wraps around and hides the town’s 400,000-gallon water storage tank.

Moore, an entrepreneur, at one time was CEO of Rebat Battery in Reading, Pennsylvania, and ran other businesses, such as the Keebler Co.

Donahue said she and a former town clerk, Lisa Petersen, suggested commissioning a new painting.

“A lot of people come here, and they don’t understand or know the history of the area,” said Donahue, who started researching the history of the library in 2016 and has since spread her knowledge in publications such as the Brown Wrapper historical newsletter. 

“It’s taken us a while to get here, but through this process, we’ve been able to meet new people like J. Moore’s grandson and his wife; and from that, we’ve been able to put this together eight years later,” she said.

Price could reach up to $3.5 million for two projects

Highland Beach Officer James Thornton (at wheel) and Officer Stephen Salach patrol the Intracoastal Waterway. Residents say the number of speeding boats has diminished since the patrol launched in 2022. Photos by Tim Stepien/The Coastal Star

By Rich Pollack

For decades Highland Beach residents had been complaining about boats speeding as they navigated the town’s 3.5 miles of the Intracoastal Waterway. 

State officials who oversee navigation on the waterway listened, but little was done to assuage residents’ concerns. 

Then in early 2022 — following three serious boating accidents, including two with fatalities — town commissioners took matters into their own hands, launching a 28-foot police boat that residents say has slowed speeding boaters down simply by being visible. 

“Three serious accidents occurred within just a few months,” Police Chief Craig Hartmann said. “Since the launch of the police boat and our increased presence, there have been no boating accidents on the Intracoastal in Highland Beach.”

Highland Beach marine patrol Officer James Thornton, with Officer Stephen Salach, uses a radar detector to gauge a boat’s speed.

Now the Police Department is hoping to take that presence to the next level with a dock on the Intracoastal — behind the town’s library — that will also make it easier for Highland Beach’s marine officers and fire rescue personnel to respond to emergencies on the water. 

This month, residents will be asked to give town leaders permission to spend up to $3.5 million on the dock and on renovations to the town’s old fire station, should the money be needed. The single ballot item covers both projects. Already the town has received a $50,000 grant from the Florida Inland Navigation District for design and engineering work, and a request for additional funding is pending.

Town officials say they only want the authority to make the expenditure if the money is needed. 

The price of the dock project is estimated to be between $1.5 million and $2 million, and town leaders hope that FIND will cover half the cost. Should that not happen, the town’s expense could be over $900,000, the current spending limit before voter approval is required. By putting the issue on the March 11 ballot, the town is in essence hedging its bets so it can move forward without delays regardless of the outcome of the grant request. 

“We hope we don’t have to spend over $900,000,” Town Manager Marshall Labadie said. 

The town is considering this area behind the Highland Beach Library as the location of a proposed dock.

Hartmann says that the police boat will be on a lift at the dock when it is not in use, improving the marine unit’s presence even when the boat is not in the water. Since its launch in March 2022, the boat has been docked on private property at the Boca Highland Beach Club Marina at a location that is set back from the Intracoastal and not readily visible to boaters. 

Since the launch of the marine unit, Hartmann and state Rep. Peggy Gossett-Seidman said, there have been visible improvements in compliance with speeds on the waterway and with other boating safety measures. 

“We have written hundreds of warnings and citations and have had thousands of boater contacts with the focus on educating the boating public about safe speeds and safe boating practices,” Hartmann said. “Boaters have told our marine officers they have seen a difference now that the boating community knows there is a constant law enforcement presence on the Intracoastal Waterway when there wasn’t one in the past.” 

Gossett-Seidman, R-Highland Beach, whose home is on the east side of the waterway, said the marine unit keeps the blue light on the boat lighted when in the water, thus increasing visibility. 

“It’s like a police car parked at an intersection,” she said. “You tend to be more cautious when you know it’s out there.”

Gossett-Seidman said she sees the police boat out almost every day and thinks that slower speeds will benefit people using kayaks and jet skis. Jet skis, according to Hartmann, account for about 50% of the citations and warnings written by the marine unit. 

Labadie said that the new dock will also be a benefit to the town’s Fire Rescue Department, which will be able to reach injured boaters more rapidly.

“It’s a little more mission-critical now that we have our own fire department,” he said, adding that the dock could be in place sometime next year. 

Labadie said the town is also hoping to demolish a part of the old fire station, just north of Town Hall, and upgrade the bay area where the town now keeps a backup rescue unit and a backup fire truck.

Last year Highland Beach built a new fire station to replace the longtime station that Labadie said was too old, too small and below the flood plain. 

While there were discussions about possibly keeping the entire building, Labadie said that the living quarters section would need too much work. Instead, the town is getting cost estimates for work to fix the bay area and electrical storage areas and replace the roof. 

“We’re using the building for storage of $2 million worth of equipment,” he said. 

In a move to modernize its amenities, the Eau Palm Beach Resort & Spa has announced plans to remove its existing pool and beach cabanas in favor of sleek, cantilever umbrellas.

Oracle Software billionaire Larry Ellison bought the Eau last summer through MPB Property LLC. The company asked the Manalapan Town Commission at its Feb. 11 meeting for approval to remove four pool cabanas, seven oceanside cabanas, 32 wood trellises, a towel stand and a spa cabana.

In their place will be rows of high-end cantilever umbrellas, which can be easily adjusted to provide customized coverage, said attorney James C. Gavigan, who represented the Eau.

The commission rescinded the condition that the Eau be required to get feedback from La Coquille Club, whose members use the Eau, to make changes to its planned unit development zoning designation.

“The Eau will always be a good neighbor and will work with all residents, including the La Coquille Club,” Gavigan said. “But we want to be clear that there shouldn’t be any implicit or explicit additional requirement.”

— John Pacenti

Correction: An earlier version of this story incorrectly identified who the Eau resort was previously required to get feedback from prior to any zoning designation change. It was from members of the La Coquille Club.

By John Pacenti

The Manalapan Town Commission voted to proceed with the foreclosure of an office building at State Road A1A and East Ocean Avenue. The office at 131 S. Ocean Blvd. sits at the northeast corner of the Plaza del Mar property.

A lien of $163,000 had been placed on the building because of unpaid code enforcement fines for unapproved renovations, said Town Attorney Keith Davis, who added he thought the building at one time housed a bank.

The town went in front of the special magistrate for code violations on Jan. 30 to obtain foreclosure authorization. Davis said the owners of the office building appear ready to push back against the town. 

“Foreclosure authorization hearing really is a ministerial act. It ended up being a two-hour hearing, so I fully expect a fight, but that’s fine,” Davis said.

According to Palm Beach County property records, the office building is owned by Babylon, New York-based Salute Realty, which purchased the building for $1.2 million in 2019.

Attorney Michael Weiner, representing Salute, argued during the January magistrate hearing that Manalapan failed to send notices of the fines by certified mail as directed by law — a contention the town denies. He said the allegations of the violation are “factually incorrect” and that “there was confusion.”

Ultimately, the commission voted to authorize the next step in the foreclosure process, which includes sending a letter to the property owner to see if it will pay the lien.

By Mary Thurwachter

Lantana Mayor Karen Lythgoe carved out a half hour of the Feb. 10 Town Council meeting to tout the town’s achievements during the past year.

Typically, the end-of-year report is made available to news media and published on the town’s website, but Lythgoe said she was so proud of accomplishments in 2024, she took the opportunity to address the community herself.

She also wanted to combat what she said was misinformation being circulated via Facebook.

“Regardless of some of the things you may or may not have read on social media, we are actually accomplishing things,” Lythgoe said. “We are doing what we say we’re doing and we’re not on the take. There’s a lot of people who’ve got nothing better to do with their time than to be miserable and to make other people miserable too by telling them how badly they’re getting screwed by their government.”

She encouraged people with questions about what they read online to contact Town Manager Brian Raducci.

Both Vice Mayor Mark Zeitler and Lythgoe have lived in Lantana since they were kids and have seen a lot of changes, “a lot for the better,” she said.

“I know people say it’s not like it was,” Lythgoe said. “Well, it wasn’t really all that great all the time. We’re trying to spruce it up and enhance the quality of life for our residents.”

Among the accomplishments in 2024, Lythgoe highlighted what the town did to maintain its infrastructure. That included working with FPL to repair non-functional streetlights, resurfacing the basketball courts at the sports park, restoring the centennial sculpture at Bicentennial Park, and working with the county’s traffic division to enhance traffic light synchronization on Lantana Road.

Additionally, the town replaced water mains and completed the Sea Pines stormwater pump station construction project.

The report outlines improvements to the Hypoluxo Island drainage project and mentions that Lantana adopted a stormwater assessment program.

Beautification efforts achieved last year included removing invasive plants and trees at the Lantana Nature Preserve and replacing a large, deteriorated timber pedestrian bridge there. Other steps taken to make the town more attractive included displaying colorful seasonal banners on major roadways, installing new fencing and concrete monuments at

Evergreen cemetery, adding an obstacle course at Maddock Dog Park and amping up the holiday lighting displays around Town Hall.

Under the heading of “responsible development,” the report mentions permits and special exceptions for Water Tower Commons and plans in progress to build apartments, shops and a community park on 18 acres at the former Kmart site.

Lythgoe said the town has been successful in its quest for grants, pulling in $2.3 million for capital improvement projects and $1.2 million in state appropriation money.

Last year the town even added $2.6 million to its reserves, bringing that total to $15.9 million.

For a look at the complete year-end report, visit lantana.org/ArchiveCenter/ViewFile/Item/91

Open space is key to choice of designer for City Hall area

By Mary Hladky

In selecting a joint venture of Terra and Frisbie Group to redevelop the city’s downtown government campus, Boca Raton City Council members on Feb. 11 threw their support to developers who proposed the lowest density project with the greatest amount of green space.

And in rejecting Related Ross, they made clear their dissatisfaction with a project emphasizing 975,000 square feet of office space in three buildings.

While four companies submitted proposals to reimagine 30 city-owned acres around City Hall and the adjacent Brightline train station, council members’ quick rejection of two made this a contest between two highly regarded teams with divergent views of what best suited the city.

Four council members favored Terra/Frisbie. Only Council member Andy Thomson supported Related Ross, but said it was a “very close call” between “two exceptional companies.”

The council then voted unanimously to give Terra/Frisbie the top ranking and Related Ross second place.

The Related Ross proposal “would require a great deal of adjustment,” said Council member Marc Wigder. “There are other locations in the city that are better suited to office. This is not the right place for this office intensity.”

Wigder encouraged Related Ross to consider building office space elsewhere in the city, and Mayor Scott Singer echoed that.

“We look forward to working with both of you,” Singer said to the two development teams.

Council member Fran Nachlas said Terra/Frisbie’s proposal was “most closely aligned with what the city needs.”

“Terra/Frisbie won because it is the best choice for the community,” said Deputy Mayor Yvette Drucker, adding that the Related Ross proposal was too large for the downtown.

“Our team is committed to transforming this space into a vibrant, eco-friendly district that blends civic, residential and commercial uses,” Terra CEO David Martin said in a statement after the vote.

“We look forward to collaborating closely with city officials and the community to bring our shared vision to life, creating a sustainable and connected neighborhood that will serve as a model for future urban development.”

The city held an open house on Feb. 19 at The Studio at Mizner Park to give residents another opportunity to see what Terra/Frisbie proposed and to speak directly with company officials. 

A steady stream of residents studied a model of what the site could look like and conceptual drawings.

“We have received a lot of excitement, a lot of enthusiasm,” said Rob Frisbie, Frisbie Group managing partner. “But also there are a lot of people who are concerned about growth and traffic and congestion and a potentially diminished public realm.

“I think from our perspective, there is no project unless it works for everyone. There is no project unless it puts the community first.”

Terra/Frisbie, he said, would work to incorporate residents’ critiques as it refines its proposals.

At the city’s behest, all four teams proposed public-private partnerships, or P3s, in which the developer assumes the cost of constructing public buildings and the city leases the land for redevelopment.

What it means

The project stands to be an economic boon to the city. A revised analysis by city consultant CBRE states that a 99-year lease of the city land will yield the city a total of $3.6 billion.

That number includes a $2.2 billion increase in tax revenue the property will generate over 99 years once redeveloped.

The council’s decision is a key step in launching the project, but it will be some time before the public knows exactly what will be built.

Coconut Grove-based Terra and Frisbie of Palm Beach, joining forces under the name Boca Raton City Center, submitted a conceptual plan based on general direction from city officials that they wanted to replace the old and crumbling City Hall and Community Center, and add to the site mixed-income housing, office, hotel, retail and recreational facilities.

They now will make changes based on feedback from city leaders and residents.

“Today, it is picking a partner, not picking a plan,” Thomson said before the vote.

None of the proposals was perfect, he said, and all needed changes. “What the ultimate development will look like is not determined.”

The city expects to finalize an interim agreement with Terra/Frisbie by March 18. After that, a comprehensive agreement will be negotiated to cover matters such as financing, final designs and construction schedule.

The project will take nine years to complete, according to Terra/Frisbie’s initial proposal.

Topping three others

Of the four developer proposals, which also came from Namdar Group of Great Neck, New York, and RocaPoint Partners of Atlanta, the most detailed came from Terra/Frisbie.

The city has specified that the new City Hall should be 85,000 square feet and the Community Center 35,000 square feet. 

Beyond that, the joint venture proposed 1,129 residential units, 84,790 square feet of retail, 71,800 square feet of food and beverage space, 265,758 square feet of garage and surface parking, a 150-room hotel, a 250,000-square-foot office building, a 10,000-square-foot police substation and 6 acres of green space that could include sports facilities.

Terra/Frisbie has committed to contributing $10 million to the city, which could be used to build a pedestrian bridge so that people will be able to walk over Dixie and Federal highways to get to or from Mizner Park.

The venture also has a contract to buy an area encompassing property owned by Boca Color Graphics south of the Brightline station, at 139 NW Third St., which would be turned in part into a park that people could walk through to get from the station to the downtown campus.

Terra, acting without Frisbie, has another project in Boca Raton. It is part of a team that is developing plans to transform the Boca Raton Innovation Campus, the 124-acre former IBM headquarters, into a mixed-use community including residential, commercial, retail and office space.

The runner-up

In contrast to the Terra/Frisbie plan, Related Ross of West Palm Beach, headed by Miami Dolphins owner and Palm Beach resident Stephen Ross, proposed a project aimed at attracting corporations to locate in Boca Raton that would provide high-quality jobs. Its officials said there is a huge demand for office space in the city.

In addition to a new City Hall, Community Center and police substation, the company would have built the three office buildings, 650 residential units, 235,000 square feet of retail, dining and entertainment, a 400-room hotel, parking and 5.8 acres of green space.

When some council members questioned the large amount of office space, company officials offered to substitute residential for one of the office buildings.

“We have a very different and bold vision for this community,” Stephen Ross told the council the day before its vote. “The world is changing and we believe Boca Raton can be the center of that change.”

“We really feel we are the hometown guys,” he said later, because his company does work only in Palm Beach County. Related Ross clearly demonstrated it was in the contest to win. Ross played a highly visible role, stepping to the microphone at two meetings to extol his company’s expertise and the quality of its proposal.

At a Jan. 27 presentation of its plans to the council, about 20 Related Ross executives dramatically strode into the chambers and claimed the first two rows of seats.

Related Ross proposed 2.4 million square feet of development, compared to Terra/Frisbie’s nearly 1.6 million square feet, according to the CBRE analysis.

Fitting the pieces together

As now envisioned, a new City Hall and the Community Center will remain within the downtown campus. The Downtown Library will stay where it is. The police station will be moved to city-owned land east of the Spanish River Library, freeing up land for redevelopment, but a police substation will be on the campus. The large Banyan trees will be preserved.

Some residents who have spoken at council meetings are especially concerned that ball fields and other recreation areas will be moved off the site.

Terra/Frisbie has proposed including an indoor and outdoor racket sports center that would have four tennis courts, two pickleball courts and two padel courts, as well as an indoor gymnasium with a basketball court.

But existing facilities will be impacted.

City Manager George Brown has said that the city is working with the Greater Boca Raton Beach and Park District to find new locations for some of them. That includes the skatepark, which might go to North Park, and softball fields, which possibly could go to Sugar Sand Park. Tennis courts may remain downtown or could be moved.

“Everything will be replaced or enhanced,” he said. 

Town Council candidates’ forum March 3 — Incumbent Lantana Town Council Member Lynn “Doc” Moorhouse and newcomer Jesse Rivero will participate in a candidates’ forum sponsored by the Lantana Chamber of Commerce at 5 p.m. March 3 at the Palm Beach Maritime Academy, 600 S. East Coast Ave.

Moorhouse, 81, a retired dentist, has held the Group 1 council seat for 21 years. Rivero, a 50-year-old firefighter, has served 20 years with Palm Beach County Fire Rescue. The election is March 11.

Kem Mason, who holds the Group 2 spot, was elected automatically when no one else filed to run for the position during the election qualifying period in November. Mason, 66, is a retired firefighter and is completing his first term.

Council terms are for three years.

Beach sand project delayed — Lantana Town Manager Brian Raducci told the Town Council he’s heard nothing new regarding a beach sand project spearheaded by the town of Palm Beach and including the town of South Palm Beach.

“The last conversation I had with the town of Palm Beach was they did not have enough sand, and they didn’t even know if they had enough time to get the project done,” Raducci said on Feb. 10.

Any work would need to be finished before sea turtle nesting season in March. “I know there have been some changes to that project, but the way I left it with them was that if anything were to change that would change our circumstances, please contact me.”

In the past, Lantana was part of an interlocal agreement with Palm Beach and South Palm Beach to add sand to the beaches. Since South Palm Beach has no public beach, it had, in the past, agreed to pay for the sand for Lantana in exchange for truck access at Lantana’s beach. But this year, Lantana wasn’t needed for truck access (plans called for the sand to be trucked over Lake Worth Beach or at a private Palm Beach condo), so Lantana would have to pay for sand, an idea at which Council member Lynn “Doc” Moorhouse bristled during a meeting last year.

“I don’t want it to reflect in any bad light that we’re not willing to pay,” he said in September. “It was supposed to be free. We were going to work with Palm Beach. We were going to let them use the beach, let them do all their stuff and we were going to get free sand.”

At the January meeting, Mayor Karen Lythgoe said Lantana doesn’t currently have an interlocal agreement.

“It was also decided that we don’t have enough sand on our beach to stage all the sand on, which before, they were not going to stage the sand there,” Lythgoe said. She also said that the people who had been working on the project in Palm Beach had changed and “nobody knows what.”

“Just so the residents know,” Moorhouse said in February.

Vice Mayor Mark Zeitler pointed out that the beach currently has a lot of sand because it had blown in from the north.

Fuel tax agreement OK’d — The town approved an interlocal agreement with Palm Beach County to re-adopt and ratify the existing distribution formula for 6-cent local option fuel tax. The tax will bring about $205,000 to Lantana this year.

Lantana has been part of the agreement since 1995. Developed with the PBC League of Cities, this agreement mirrors the 1995 agreement, adding provisions for new/dissolved municipalities.

Money received from the tax is primarily used for roadway maintenance, such as paving, but may also be utilized to cover other expenses like railroad-required maintenance.

— Mary Thurwachter

The destroyed Delray Beach fire truck after being hit by a Brightline commuter train Dec. 28. The fire truck's driver, who was cited for failing to use due care, is being investigated by the city in the incident and for another matter a year earlier when he was working for the fire department while having a suspended driver's license. Jerry Lower/The Coastal Star

Two chiefs, suspended after collision, cleared in related investigation

Related: City approves $1.4 million fire truck replacement using lease purchase

By John Pacenti

Delray Beach firefighter David Wyatt — at the wheel when a Brightline train struck his city fire truck on Dec. 28 — remained on regular duty a year earlier when his driver’s license was suspended following an off-duty crash, according to an independent report.

Wyatt in February was cited in the Brightline crash for failing to use due care for not observing the oncoming train.

A December video from the Brightline train shows the 104-foot aerial ladder truck driven by Wyatt maneuvering around lowered railroad crossing gates on Southeast First Street, a block south of Atlantic Avenue downtown. The train mangled the enormous vehicle into three pieces and sent the three-person crew — as well as several train passengers — to the hospital.

Soon after the crash, the question of how the city tracks valid driver’s licenses within the department became the subject of an investigation conducted by a private firm, Johnson Jackson PLLC. While Wyatt’s license was valid at the time of the crash, its earlier suspension had come to light.

The report found that the department’s review process for driver’s licenses was flawed and that an assistant fire chief and division chief who were suspended with pay on the issue were not at fault for how they handled 10 employees who have had suspended driver’s licenses in the recent past. 

“Roster reports” received by The Coastal Star for the period Oct. 10, 2023, to Dec. 8, 2023, when Wyatt’s license was suspended after he failed to take a required driving class to resolve his careless driving ticket, show he clocked in as a “driver/engineer” 20 times during that time for a 24-hour shift. 

The Johnson Jackson report — released Feb. 25 — confirmed Wyatt drove for the city while his license was suspended, violating city policy.

“He should have taken leave to address the suspension rather than ignoring it and continuing to work,” stated the report written by Erin Jackson, a founding shareholder of the labor law firm.

Furthermore, Wyatt told the investigator that he was unaware of the suspension until January, after the Brightline crash.

However, documentation, timing, and Wyatt’s actions indicate that he was aware of the suspension in December 2023, the report stated.

Wyatt’s response “raises question(s) as to his credibility on this issue,” the report stated. Wyatt did tell the investigator he failed to take the required driver’s education class, saying he was “just being lazy and forgetting.”

New developments
Other February developments stemming from the Brightline collision include: 

• The city agreed to purchase a new fire truck for $1.4 million with a shorter, 75-foot ladder than the vehicle struck by the train.
• Delray Beach is petitioning Florida East Coast Railway to install full quad gates at three railroad crossings in the city that don’t have them, which would prevent the possibility of someone trying to go around lowered crossing gates.
• Commissioner Rob Long said at the Feb. 18 commission meeting he plans to inspect every railway crossing in the city with a team of experts “to establish if there are certain safety measures that we can do.”
• The Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office released its report looking into the crash. It showed that Wyatt had no recollection of the crash when questioned.
Dispatch audio recordings from Dec. 28 show Wyatt’s Battalion 111 responding to a call where smoke was reported on the second story of a condo building at 365 SE Sixth Ave.

The PBSO report said a review of the recordings showed that the unit had been cleared from a call reporting a high-rise fire, but only after the crash occurred.

Another crew on the scene reports that the smoke was caused by burnt food. One minute later, the dispatcher reports the crash.

Two of the three firefighters on the fire truck at the time of the crash — Wyatt and Capt. Brian Fiorey — were placed on paid administrative leave shortly after the crash “pending results of an administrative investigation.” 

Two others — Assistant Fire Chief Kevin Green and Division Chief Todd Lynch — were not on the truck but were also placed on paid administrative leave. Green and Lynch, according to the report, were suspended over the issue of failing to properly track suspended driver’s licenses in the department. The report concluded that the duty was not part of Green’s job and that Lynch had not received proper training.

Lynch took to Facebook on Feb. 24 to post on the firefighters union page, lambasting the city for publicizing his suspension, calling it “humiliating and embarrassing.” “This impugned my character,” he wrote.

Lynch returned to division chief duty Feb. 25, but will soon move to being a battalion chief because of an earlier request. Green retired on Feb. 25.  

Wyatt and Fiorey remain suspended.

2023 incident
Wyatt’s June 9, 2023, ticket was issued after he took a corner at Swinton and Atlantic avenues too fast, jumped a median in his Jeep, and struck a tree. Police investigated Wyatt for a possible DUI but said in a report that obtaining a breathalyzer or a blood test was unfeasible because the firefighter had been transported to a hospital.

At the Feb. 4 City Commission meeting, resident Sean Thomas Wright demanded that Police Chief Russ Mager be fired for his department’s failure to do a thorough DUI investigation at the time.

“It looks like the Police Department went out of their way to not do a drug test, to not do a field sobriety test. How do you explain that?” Wright said during the time for the public to address the commission.

City Attorney Lynn Gelin told commissioners that in a review subsequent to the Brightline crash, the city found 10 current fire rescue employees also had driving licenses that were suspended for a period of time.

The Johnson Jackson investigation found that firefighter Lt. Calvin Smith operated a “department apparatus without a valid license for an extended period” — from June 3, 2022, to March 30, 2023 — but he took corrective action upon discovering the issue. The suspension was due to a lapse in insurance that he was unaware of, Smith told investigators.

Other employees with suspended driver’s licenses also demonstrated intent to comply with the policy once they became aware of the status, the Johnson Jackson report stated.
Delray Beach Mayor Tom Carney praised Ronald Martin, the new fire chief, for his handling of the crisis, including engaging an outside firm to conduct the administrative investigations. 

“We need to allow the investigative process to run its course,” Carney said. 

“This process will take time, but I have and will stay focused on transparency, accountability, and doing what’s best for Delray Beach.”

Delray Beach is replacing its fire truck with one similar to this one. Other cities in South Florida use these trucks, such as the city of Tamarac in Broward County. Photo provided

Related: Firefighter on leave after Brightline crash previously drove for city while license was suspended, report finds

Delray Beach city commissioners approved the purchase of a new $1.4 million fire truck to replace a truck that was struck by a Brightline train on Dec. 28. The new Pierce Enforcer 75-foot ladder truck was to be delivered within a few weeks of the purchase.

“This truck is ready to go,” Public Works Director Missie Barletto said. “It is actually sitting in Pompano Beach waiting to be delivered to us.”

Barletto said it often takes two or three years for a municipality to go from ordering to receiving a new fire truck, but another customer decided it didn’t want the Enforcer, making it available now.

The city is funding the purchase through a combination of sources, including $136,278 from insurance proceeds for the destroyed truck, a $244,000 transfer from the city’s capital improvement fund, and $1,025,586 from a capital lease program.

The truck struck by the train was a 2009 aerial bucket truck with a 104-foot ladder. It had more than 100,000 miles on it and was scheduled for replacement in the next fiscal year.

— John Pacenti

Tour participants take in the grandeur of the Cloister Inn, part of The Boca Raton resort. The 100-room inn, which opened Feb. 5, 1926, was designed and owned by renowned architect Addison Mizner. Photos by Tim Stepien/The Coastal Star

By Mary Hladky

The Cloister Inn likely tops the must-see lists of history and architecture enthusiasts visiting Boca Raton.

Opened on Feb. 5, 1926, at the height of Florida’s land boom, the 100-room hotel was designed and owned by renowned architect Addison Mizner, whose vision informs the city’s architecture to this day.

Over the years, a succession of owners transformed the property into The Boca Raton resort. Today, it is open only to resort members and guests.

But all is not lost for those eager to see the Cloister Inn and other historic parts of the resort.

The Boca Raton Historical Society offers a limited number of guided walking tours from January through mid-May each year.

“Walking through The Boca Raton is like stepping back in time,” said Mary Csar, the society’s executive director. “This historic site holds the stories of a vibrant past that has shaped our community. We are thrilled to share these stories with visitors and locals alike, connecting them to the rich heritage of Boca Raton.”

On a recent tour, historical society volunteer docent Julie Stagner explained how the Cloister Inn came to be.

Mizner had injured his leg and was urged to come to Florida to recuperate. 

“He came to Palm Beach and fell in love,” Stagner said.

So, he bought 3 miles of beachfront in Boca Raton, and invoked the Spanish Revival and Mediterranean architecture he had seen during a childhood visit to South America to design the Cloister Inn.

Mizner didn’t have a particular interest in operating a hotel, but he did want to design and build homes, Stagner said. He hoped a stay at the Cloister Inn would persuade guests to buy a Mizner home.

“Addison Mizner loved the finer things in life,” she said. “When he built his properties, he wanted to give that to his clients. Even if you were just renting a room, thinking about having a home built by him, he wanted you to feel that luxury, that lushness.

“Mizner loved grand, sweeping spaces. He designed houses to fit into the Florida environment so owners could feel the breeze off the ocean.”

Those homes exist today in Boca Raton’s Old Floresta neighborhood.

Mizner embraced his Boca Raton project.

“It is my soul, my heart, my pride to which I shall give my all,” he told The Miami News at the time. “If it is not made the most beautiful place in all the world, it will not be for want of trying.”

Taking a tour

The tour began at the original entrance to the Cloister Inn. Its chandeliers and ceilings of pecky cypress are original. Mizner collected furnishings and placed many of them in the inn.

The hotel crest sits atop the original entry.

The tour continued to the Mizner dining room; the cathedral dining room whose columns originally were overlaid with gold leaf; the Palm Court, where the arches are Romanesque on one side and gothic on the other; outside to views of Lake Boca; into The Tower hotel built in 1969; to the west walkway, protected by wood that was damaged but not destroyed by repeated hurricanes; and finally to the Valencia theater.

The cathedral dining room has an ornate ceiling and columns that were originally overlaid with gold leaf.

Mizner’s reign over the Cloister Inn was brief. He declared bankruptcy in 1927, and Clarence Geist, one of the original members of his Mizner Development Corp., bought the assets for a fraction of their worth.

Geist made improvements and additions that are seen on the tour, “but he really tried to remain true to the vision Mizner had,” Stagner said.

Geist is responsible for the Boca Raton Airport, which he built so friends could easily come to visit, she said. The airport was among the reasons the U.S. Army decided in 1942 to build the Boca Raton Army Air Field, which, in part, protected the area from German U-Boats.

The Army took over the resort and used its pools for military training exercises and its theater to show training films, but made every effort to “preserve the integrity of the property,” Stagner said.

Two women who attended the society’s Jan. 28 tour enjoyed the experience.

“I thought it was lovely,” said Teresa Kowall, of Pompano Beach, who works in Boca Raton. “It is always nice to get a sense of the different kinds of Florida history. South Florida has such a rich history.

“There are so many stories, so many people who made it what it is. It is really good to get another story of someone who helped build South Florida into what it is today.”

People on the tour beneath a photo of the resort’s original pool.

Sandy Leonard and her husband were members of the resort for more than 20 years when they lived in Boca Raton, but that lapsed when they moved to Juno Beach five years ago.

She wanted to see the resort again but learned that was not possible unless she was a resort member or guest. 

“When I found out about the tour I thought ‘what a nice way to be able to go back and see the place again,’” she said. 

Leonard noted a number of changes to the resort since she was a member, but her conclusion was, “It is beautiful.”

For more information, the historical society is offering through May 30 an exhibition on Mizner’s legacy. 

Sponsored by The Boca Raton, it highlights the Cloister Inn’s evolution from a small hotel to a 300-acre resort, and features artifacts and furnishings, photographs, drawings and maps. Included are materials produced by Mizner Industries, such as floor and roof tiles, sculptural cast stone, fireplace mantels and column capitals. 

If You Go

Tour details: The historical society’s remaining tours this year are on March 11 and 25, April 8 and 22, and May 13. The tour time is 2 p.m. Space is limited.

Tickets: Non-refundable tickets are $29 per person and must be purchased at least a day before the tour at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/history-tour-of-the-boca-raton-tickets-1119833063839 

Parking: The Boca Raton offers a reduced valet fee of $11 per vehicle for those taking the tour.

The new BocaConnect area (in green) provides people on the barrier island access to downtown (red) and from there to within the existing service area (blue). Rendering provided

By Mary Hladky

BocaConnect, the electric vehicle shuttle service operated by Circuit Transit, has expanded to the barrier island.

Boca Raton City Council members approved the enlarged service area on Feb. 11, and service started on Feb. 24, after barrier island residents pressed them to make the shuttle available to them.

When launched on June 17, the service area ran from Glades Road to the south city limits, and from Interstate 95 to Fifth Avenue/Royal Palm Way. Now, the area will encompass the barrier island from South Inlet Park to just north of the Gumbo Limbo Nature Center.

The city is currently paying Circuit Transit, which operates in many South Florida cities, $491,724 a year. The expansion will cost an additional $190,692.

The on-demand service is intended to make it easier for people to get around the downtown and adjacent areas without driving their cars, thereby reducing congestion.

Rides must start or end within the downtown. Rides between downtown locations are free. The downtown includes the Federal Highway corridor, Downtown Library, Brightline station and Wildflower and Silver Palm parks.

Rides that start or end within the service areas but outside the downtown cost $2. Each additional rider costs $1, with a fare cap of $5.

People cannot use the service to travel only within the barrier island, or between the barrier island and another service area outside the downtown area.

The city’s contract with Circuit Transit specifies that wait times can be no longer than 10 minutes. But that rule has been loosened for the barrier island service because Circuit Transit has no control over the opening and closing of the Palmetto Park Road bridge over the Intracoastal Waterway.

Ridership has gradually increased since the service was launched. During July, the first full month of service, 1,409 passengers used BocaConnect. That number rose to 2,456 in January.

Hours of service are Monday-Thursday, 7 a.m. to 11 p.m.; Friday, 7 a.m. to 2 a.m.; Saturday, 9 a.m. to 2 a.m.; and Sunday, 9 a.m. to 11 p.m.

To book rides, download the Circuit app, available on both iOS and Android platforms,  and type in the pickup address and destination. Riders are updated on when the shuttle will arrive. 

By Mary Hladky

Now that The Center for Arts and Innovation will not be built on city-owned Mizner Park land, Boca Raton City Council members can no longer push aside the fact that the city’s amphitheater there needs an overhaul.

TCAI planned to incorporate the amphitheater’s functions into its proposed performing arts complex’s main venue. With that in the works, city officials could forgo major renovations.

But now, the aging amphitheater’s condition looms as a problem that needs to be addressed.

Before the deal with TCAI tanked, city officials had decided the roof needed to be replaced. That work is scheduled to start soon.

But in a Jan. 27 meeting, Council member Fran Nachlas asked City Manager George Brown what more needed to be done.

Citing the age of the building completed in 2002, Brown said the city should take a serious look at capital improvements. He proposed hiring a consultant that has experience with amphitheaters to outline options.

The main question is: “Should we invest some of the dollars we have in capital money to improve the amphitheater now that we know it will be ours for the time to come,” he said.

Among the matters that should be explored are whether the building should have a retractable roof to protect the public from the elements and whether the backstage facilities are adequate and attractive to entertainment groups, he said.

Council members endorsed Brown’s idea, with Mayor Scott Singer asking that the analysis be done soon so the cost can be included in next fiscal year’s budget.

Singer asked whether the cost would be “in the seven figures.” Brown agreed that an amount of under $10 million probably is what is needed.

While the TCAI planning was proceeding, “We have been putting a lot of Band-Aids on stuff and deferring a lot of serious maintenance and serious thinking …,” said Council member Marc Wigder.

But at this point, forgoing investment in the amphitheater is not an option, council members said. 

“The programming keeps getting better and better. The attendance has been getting better and better,” said Deputy Mayor Yvette Drucker. “That means the community has an appetite for that area of town. Our goal is to bring more people into Boca.”

So when it comes to improving the amphitheater, “I am all for it,” she said. 

Effort to influence city’s planning hits wall, so far

Conceptual ideas for a redesigned East Palmetto Park Road call for a reduction to two travel lanes that could become three to allow for emergency vehicles and evacuations, wide sidewalks and crosswalks, and many shade trees. Rendering provided

By Mary Hladky

Although they have been rebuffed so far in their effort to be part of planning to transform East Palmetto Park Road into an iconic Main Street, members of Workshop 344+ are not giving up.

Prominent architect Juan Caycedo has created a video that shows the group’s vision of what the road could be that invokes original city architect Addison Mizner’s ambitions for Boca Raton.

It pans from Palmetto Park Road as it exists today to what the group believes it could become with wide sidewalks, shade trees, flowers, trellises and generous pavered crosswalks. The current roadway does not fare well in the comparison.

The video notes that six people died on the road from 2018 to 2024, and 466 were injured.

Amy Lang, a former member of the Citizens’ Pedestrian and Bikeway Advisory Board, appears on the video to say that the road needs to prioritize pedestrians.

“We want to make it a place you want to meander through,” she says. “Getting from Point A to Point B isn’t really the point. It is enjoying the journey between Point A and Point B.”

Workshop 344+, which reflects the 344 acres in the core downtown area, was formed three years ago by then-Deputy Mayor Andrea O’Rourke and 14 other influential residents, including Caycedo and land use attorney Ele Zachariades, to champion improving a five-block section of East Palmetto Park Road between Federal Highway and Northeast Fifth Avenue.

That’s still their focus, although they would like to see improvements expanded farther east and west.

Beyond Palmetto Park Road, the group emphasizes walkability, connectivity and placemaking throughout the downtown.

At O’Rourke’s urging when she served on the council, the city hired a consultant, Alta Planning + Design, to reimagine the road. 

But when Alta presented three options on Nov. 18, City Council members sidestepped a decision on which they preferred and instead said the matter needed more study.

Unimpressed with Alta’s ideas, 344+ members are on the move. They have presented the video to the Federation of Boca Raton Homeowner Associations and the City Council, and plan to do the same to the Chamber of Commerce and other civic groups.

They also have a website and will be using social media in hopes of creating a groundswell of support for their ideas.

And they have reached out to Alta, which shared with them data the firm had gathered that they have incorporated into their ideas.

But they are not content to cede the ground to Alta.

“We just don’t think Alta has a creative plan,” O’Rourke said.

She is heartened, however, by one recent development. The city has hired as a consultant noted urban planner Jeff Speck, author of the book Walkable City and widely considered the guru for creating such places.

Whether 344+ will be able to influence the city’s planning is an open question. But its members have their work cut out for them.

Council members said nothing after O’Rourke presented in November.

On Feb. 10, she asked council members to invite 344+ to participate in future planning after she showed them the video.

“We have tremendous added value and years of experience and nothing personal to gain,” she said after outlining the credentials of 344+ group members. “We are not sure why you wouldn’t champion community participation and involvement.”

She was greeted with silence.

Vincent Denchy, who has lived with his wife on Hypoluxo Island since 1974, holds a patch from his 24-year tenure with the crash rescue team that served Palm Beach International Airport. Tim Stepien/The Coastal Star

Vincent Denchy doesn’t have any racy stories to tell, but after more than 50 years on Lantana’s Hypoluxo Island, he is a part of its lore.

Denchy, 91, and his wife, Arleen, moved to the island in 1974, built and lived in a house on Oyster Lane for three years, then built a house on Lands End Road where they still reside. “When we moved here, there were only three houses on our street,” Denchy said. “Lots were $25,000, and the ones across the street on the (Intracoastal Waterway) were $45,000. Imagine that today.” Single-family homes on the same street are priced in the millions today.

When the Denchys moved in, a physical barrier blocked access from Hypoluxo Island to Point Manalapan, which didn’t open for development until later.

“When we went to the store to get building materials we’d tell the people we were on the wrong side of the gate, and we still feel that way,” he said.

Born in Pennsylvania and raised in New Jersey, Denchy met Arleen at Walt’s hot dog stand in Linden, New Jersey. The two wed in 1959 and have been married 65 years.

If Denchy has had a brush with fame it was when he was stationed in Bermuda in the Air Force. His girlfriend was the daughter of author Irving Stone, whose books included The Agony and the Ecstasy, and her best friend was actress Marlo Thomas.

His retirement was fairly active until recently. Always good with his hands, he earned his journeyman’s license to become an electrician while also making wooden bowls that he would sell at Mounts Botanical Garden in West Palm Beach.

For many years he was an active cyclist who would join the packs riding up and down State Road A1A, but now Denchy has traded in his bike for a pair of reading glasses while sharing life with Arleen.

During his life, he says, he would help people whom he didn’t know.

“I would give my neighbors a hand if they needed it. When we first moved here there was a town dump that has since been transformed into the park next to The Carlisle. A bunch of us got together and I would put up fences. I would build owl houses and bat houses for the nature preserve. They’re asking for help over there now and I would, but I can’t do that anymore,” Denchy said.

He and his wife always had dogs — poodles, collies, Westies — but don’t feel they can take care of them anymore. The neighbors will tell you that the Denchys’ fondness for animals is still evident and that they keep doggie treats on hand for people who come by with four-legged friends in tow.

— Brian Biggane

Q: Where did you grow up and go to school? How do you think that has influenced you?
A: I was born in Pennsylvania but when I was 3 my family moved to Roselle, New Jersey. I went to Abraham Clark High School, and later we moved over to Scotch Plains, which was nearby and was a farming community. My family in Pennsylvania was working in the coal mines, including my father, who later became a maintenance man. He was very good with his hands, and I would go with him on jobs and learned how to work with my hands as well.
I went to Upsala College and accumulated 43 credits before I decided it wasn’t for me and later went to trade school for air conditioning. I also spent four years in the Air Force. I joined up to see the world, put in for the Far East and Europe, and never got farther than Bermuda. I was mostly in the States, which I found frustrating, but you go where you’re sent.

Q: What professions have you worked in? What professional accomplishments are you most proud of?
A: I was a lineman for Public Service Electric and Gas in New Jersey for 18 years. That was before the time they had bucket trucks, so we would climb the poles with hooks on our boots. I remember when they got the first bucket truck and we were like, “Oh my God, look at that.” That was like driving a Cadillac. I left for Florida two weeks before I got my pension and never did get it.
When we came down to Florida in the early ’70s I got a job for another 24 years on the crash rescue squad at the West Palm Beach airport. We were the firefighters on the scene if and when an airliner crashed. Nothing big ever happened at PBI, but there were a couple of fatal crashes with small planes at Lantana Airport and I was first on the scene.

Q: What advice do you have for a young person seeking a career today?
A: Go to college. And if not, go to a trade school. And give your cellphone to your mother and have her lock it away.

Q: How did you choose to make your home on Hypoluxo Island?
A: We bought a fourplex on Broadway in Lantana when we moved to Florida in the early ’70s and my cousin was living over here. We lived in one unit and rented out the other three for three years and used the money to build a house on Oyster Lane. So, we lived there for three years while we were building this house.
My cousin told us to be prepared to be disliked by people over on the mainland because they perceived us as being more affluent. Some of that still exists. When we came here it was quaint; the island was known as Mosquito Island years ago and I understand the Army would bring troops down here to prepare them for fighting in the jungle.

Q: What is your favorite part about living on Hypoluxo Island?
A: It’s a nice place, and it used to be nicer. I have problems with the traffic — the people who come through here think this is an airport runway — but it’s quiet and the people who live around us are very nice.

Q: What book are you reading now?
A: Walk In My Combat Boots, by James Patterson and Matt Eversmann. It’s several stories about soldiers who served in combat from Vietnam to Afghanistan. I really enjoy reading the war stories.

Q: What music do you listen to when you want to relax? When you want to be inspired?
A: I don’t listen to music anymore. I have otosclerosis in my ear. I started losing my hearing way back when I was in my late 20s from working on airplane engines. I used to like country-western music when I was in the service. But the rock ’n’ roll stuff is all garbage.

Q: Have you had mentors in your life? Individuals who have inspired your life decisions?
A: My father and Arleen’s father. It was actually my stepfather; my mother got divorced when I was about 3. But I remember my father stopping in the pouring rain to help some nuns whose car was on the side of the road and helped them get going again. That’s the kind of man he was, and he passed that down to me.

Q: If your life story were to be made into a movie, who would play you?
A: Robert Redford made a lot of good movies, so I would say him.

Q: Who/what makes you laugh?
A: Tom and Jerry. We used to go to the drive-in movies and the first hour would be cartoons and I got a big kick out of Tom and Jerry. We both liked Jerry Lewis, too.

With Boca Raton’s centennial celebrations already in full swing, the Boca Raton Historical Society is joining the party.

It has created a glossy coffee-table book titled Dream City: A Pictorial History of Boca Raton that chronicles the city’s evolution over the past 100 years since its incorporation, starting with architect Addison Mizner’s vision for the city.

“We wanted to create more than just a history book — we wanted to tell the story of Boca Raton through the voices, images and moments that have shaped our community,” said Mary Csar, the society’s executive director. “Dream City is a reflection of our city’s evolution and the people who have made it what it is today.”

The book, priced at $100, can be purchased at the society’s Schmidt Boca Raton History Museum gift shop at 71 N. Federal Highway, at www.bocahistory.org and at www.boca100.com.

A book signing was held on Feb. 20 at the history museum where guests could meet author and museum curator Susan Gillis.

In addition, the history museum will present 1925!, a new exhibit about the city’s founding, from July 2 to Dec. 20.

More information is available at www.bocahistory.org

— Mary Hladky

By Charles Elmore

Delray Beach is requiring new signs on private parking lots within six months to combat what a staff report calls “numerous, ongoing reports of non-transparent and sometimes predatory practices employed by certain operators.”

The action approved 5-0 in a Feb. 18 City Commission vote represents a tangible response to what stunned drivers say have been parking bills reaching $96 or more for some movie, shopping or restaurant trips, as documented by The Coastal Star last year.

Still, the ordinance bumps into limits on what municipalities can do.

Cities can write sign ordinances, and in this case try to alert residents and visitors that these are not city-owned lots, for example. Under state law, though, city officials cannot cap the rates.

“This is all great and I’m going to support it, but I wish these efforts trickled down more to the end users and the people that are being victimized by these lots, unfortunately,” Commissioner Rob Long said.

“But I think this is still great and we shouldn’t let perfect be the enemy of the good,” Long said.

Making prices clear
One issue that could complicate the sign ordinance is the practice of “dynamic” pricing, comparable to the way ride-share companies maintain fluid rates based on local conditions and market demand. A ride could cost more on, say, a busy Saturday night than a slow Tuesday, the concept goes.

If that kind of pricing is in play, it could prove tricky to sum up coherent parking rate information on a metal sign that is presumed to last for a while and not be replaced daily.

“One of the biggest pushbacks we have from the operators is the fee isn’t always the same every day or every time of the day,” said Anthea Gianniotes, the city’s development services director.

Her stance is “if you’re going to have it at that rate, and it’s $20 an hour, put it on the sign, somehow or another,” Gianniotes told commissioners.

A sign design in the ordinance package shows how city officials could picture it working, using fictitious rates for display purposes.

The sign says “Paid Public Parking,” with “Hourly Rate: $10” and “Event Rate: $35” as an example. The sign then says, “Overstay or Non-Payment Penalty: $150.”

The sign also shows a way to include telephone and email contacts for a fictional private lot operator. A red horizontal bar at the bottom of the sign, with white lettering, notes it is “not a city-owned lot.”

No more surprises
A big point in all this is “identifying the rates so people are not getting surprised when they come visit the city or they come downtown,” Gianniotes explained during a first reading of the ordinance on Jan. 21.

“As you know, we’ve had a lot of complaints from our residents that they’re a little bit surprised by getting parking tickets in private lots, and kind of mistaking them for city lots,” Gianniotes said.

A state law effective July 1 of last year sketched out some guidelines on what private lot signs must say, set down rules for appeals and late fees, and granted a 15-minute grace period before fees kick in.

Private lots held to account
Earlier, the Florida Attorney General’s Office signed an “assurance of voluntary compliance” with at least one private parking company operating in Delray Beach, among other places, requiring a payment of $30,000 from the company to make restitution to eligible consumers, records show.

That company was Professional Parking Management Corp., which has offices in Fort Lauderdale. It did not admit wrongdoing in an agreement signed Sept. 1, 2023, that calls on it not to engage in unfair and deceptive trade practices.

A company official reacted a day after the Delray Beach commission passed its ordinance.

“Professional Parking Management is always seeking to clearly communicate with our customers and the general public regarding private parking facilities we work with and enforce, their usage rules and rates, and other helpful information,” company spokesman Robert Leonard said. “A Florida state law adopted last year — which PPM and many in the private parking industry supported — requires many of the same signage and notice requirements as this new local ordinance, most of which were things PPM was already doing at our facilities.”

Complaints filed
Many private lots promote the convenience of paying by a phone app, without traditional gates or attendants. Then they sometimes employ technology that takes pictures of license plates to mail letters to drivers, claiming they failed to pay or overstayed.

In complaint records, Sharron Feldman of Boynton Beach said she was charged $96.30 for parking in a lot in Delray Beach, even though she just drove through and never actually parked.

“It is outrageous that this company can demand money for a service that we never used, threaten us with a collection agency, and force us to waste a good deal of time and energy on this matter,” Feldman said.

Among other complaints from the last two years, Chase Krusbe of Jupiter said he parked in a garage in Delray Beach and thought he paid in full. Then he got mail saying he owed $96.75.

“They claim the charge is for ‘overstaying,’” he said. “I don’t know what that means. I parked. I paid. I left.”

The ordinance language says the sign must include “parking rate, including peak hour and special event parking.”

It also says, “It shall be unlawful to charge a rate or fee higher than the rate published on the posted signage or displayed on pay kiosks.”

Will it help? That might remain a dynamic issue for some time to come.