By Steve Plunkett

    The public has a new spot downtown to watch boat traffic on the Intracoastal Waterway.
    City officials opened the Wildflower site, at the northwest corner of the Palmetto Park Road bridge over the waterway, to pedestrians and vehicles on Nov. 27.
    The 2.3-acre parcel is mostly parking lot, and Boca Raton is letting motorists park there free. Foot traffic can enter through a gate at the base of the bridge; vehicles get in via Northeast Fifth Avenue.
    Workers for the city installed six park benches, repaired a troublesome crack in the site’s sea wall, opened gates to neighboring Silver Palm Park and freshened up the site with mulch. The park, which so far lacks a name, is open from 8 a.m. to dusk daily. “Possible hazards may exist,” a sign warns. “Entry and use at own risk.”
    The Wildflower site will also be open during the evening Dec. 16 as a viewing site for the Holiday Boat Parade.
    More changes are coming. The City Council hired engineers Applied Technology and Management Inc. on Nov. 28 to design a new sea wall for the parcel. On Dec. 11 the council will get an update from consultant EDSA Inc. on a master plan for Boca Raton’s waterfront parks.
    Boca Raton bought the land, at 551 E. Palmetto Park Road, eight years ago for $7.5 million. In July 2016, council members changed part of the vacant parcel’s land designations from residential to commercial to accommodate a long-planned restaurant.  But voters decided the following November that all city-owned land on the Intracoastal should be for “public recreation, public boating access, public streets, and city storm water uses only.”
    The council changed the land designations to “recreation and open space” in June.

By Rich Pollack

    Highland Beach’s annual Light Up the Holidays celebration is on the move.
    Traditionally held in the Town Hall parking lot, Light Up the Holidays 2017 will be held in the parish hall at St. Lucy Catholic Church beginning at 6 p.m. Dec. 4.
    As in years past, the event will feature the lighting of a Christmas tree and a menorah, refreshments and a performance by the Dimensional Harmony Choir from Boynton Beach High School.
    Also performing will be Nicholas Abrahams, a violinist, town resident and a senior at the Dreyfoos School of the Arts in West Palm Beach.
    The celebration will include blessings from Father Brian Horgan of St. Lucy’s and Rabbi Aviva Bass of Temple Sinai in Delray Beach and have a flag ceremony by Boca Raton High School’s Navy JROTC.
    St. Lucy’s is at 3510 S. Ocean Blvd. For more information, visit www.highlandbeach.us or call 278-4548.

By Sallie James

    The Boca Raton Children’s Museum will receive a $100,000 city grant for repairs to a building known as the “cottage” at the popular museum, at 498 Crawford Blvd. City Council members approved the grant during the Nov. 14 council meeting.
     Florence Fuller Child Development Centers, a Boca Raton-based nonprofit organization, took over the struggling entity in September 2014.
     An estimated 20,000 people annually visit the museum, according to Ellyn Okrent, chief executive of the Florence Fuller centers.
     In January 2016, City Council members approved $50,000 for building repairs and $30,000 for exhibit enhancements.

By Mary Hladky

    The proposed Midtown development faces significant new obstacles as a result of conditions imposed by both city staff and a city board that would delay the start of construction, reduce the size of the project and possibly torpedo it.
     Developer Crocker Partners drafted proposed ordinances that set a framework for how Midtown can be built. But that prompted complaints that the developer had assumed control of a city process, and the City Council ordered staff six months ago take back the reins.
     Midtown, to be built between Interstate 95 and the Town Center at Boca Raton, is envisioned as a “live, work, play” transit-oriented development where people will live and walk or take shuttles to their jobs in the area, shopping and restaurants.
     As many as 2,500 mostly rental units would be built on nearly 300 acres where no residential exists. A new Tri-Rail station at or near Northwest 19th Street along the CSX railroad tracks would bring people to and from the area.
     The proposed ordinances would allow restaurants, bars under certain conditions, hotels, convenience stores and schools. Drive-in restaurants, gas stations, veterinary clinics and outdoor seating or entertainment would require City Council approval.
     The city’s redo of the proposed ordinances still allows 2,500 units. But they could not be built until the Tri-Rail station is constructed and operating and Military Trail is redesigned to make it easier to cross and more pedestrian friendly. The tallest buildings in the area now are 145 feet, but the height limit would be reduced to no more than 105 feet.
     “We were shocked when we saw that,” Crocker Partners managing partner Angelo Bianco said of the Tri-Rail station requirement.
     The city’s Planning and Zoning Board went even further at its Nov. 9 meeting. The board unanimously approved the proposed ordinances, but added conditions that it recommends the City Council adopt.
     Board members called for reducing the number of residential units to 600. They want no construction until streets in the area are redesigned, landscaping and other infrastructure work completed, and a shuttle system is operating. Crocker Partners proposed some residential units as small as 500 square feet, but the board recommended a minimum of 700 square feet.
     Several board members said the city may need to create a special taxing district for the Midtown area that would pay for roads, landscaping and other improvements.
     After Brandon Schaad, director of the city’s department of development services, outlined to planning board members changes city staff made to the proposed ordinances, attorneys representing Crocker Partners said some of the key changes are unconstitutional and violate Florida law.
     The Tri-Rail station requirement is “arbitrary and unreasonable and creates an indefinite moratorium [on Midtown construction],” said Deana Falce, a litigator with the Shubin & Bass law firm.
     “Private property owners have no control over whether the Tri-Rail station is ever built,” she said.
     The requirement for completion of improvements to Military Trail, the main artery through Midtown, leaves the project at the mercy of the city and county, which would jointly plan the work, she said.
     The building height requirement is “arbitrary” and will discourage development, Falce said.
     An angry Planning and Zoning chair William Fairman chastised the attorneys for not submitting a packet outlining their objections before the meeting. Board member Larry Snowden called the unconstitutionality claim “insulting.”
     “We never want to commence legal action unless it is absolutely necessary,” Bianco said after he meeting. “But we need to protect our property rights.”
     He expressed hope that Crocker Partners and the city can work together to “find common ground.” But the city restrictions, Bianco said, will “create unreasonable barriers to development.”
     Downsizing the project to 600 units is unrealistic for a 300-acre site, he said. “It is such a small number of units, it would not allow us to achieve the minimum necessary to create the integrated, pedestrian-walkable neighborhood we want to develop,” he said.
     Midtown should not be dependent on construction of a Tri-Rail station, he said. While he supports mass transit and the station, it “is not necessary for us to achieve … what we want to achieve,” he said.
     The South Florida Regional Transportation Authority, which operates Tri-Rail, has been considering building a second station in Boca Raton since 2007 and recently launched a new study to evaluate the idea. If SFRTA decides to build one, construction would not begin until 2022.
     When Schaad briefed City Council members on the planning board’s decision at their Nov. 13 workshop meeting, Mayor Susan Haynie and council member Scott Singer weren’t certain how to proceed. Council members Robert Weinroth and Andrea O’Rourke said a master plan should be created for the Midtown area, which also would delay construction.
     The City Council will consider the ordinances and the planning board’s recommendations again after Schaad completes an analysis.
     Two public hearings will be held before final decisions are made.

Boca Raton’s Irena Elmstrom, left, placed first in the Scott Firefighter Combat Challenge U.S. Nationals with teammates Jacqueline Palmer, of Las Vegas, right, and Cheri Ardoin, of Lake Charles, La. in the Female Relay event. Photo provided by Boca Raton Fire Rescue Services Department

By Sallie James

    Imagine running a race where the venue is a five-story tower. Now imagine doing the climb in 45 pounds of broiling bunker gear.
    Up and down, as fast as you can go. Add hoisting, chopping, dragging a gigantic fire hose and rescuing a life-sized, 175-pound “victim,” and you have all the elements of a fearsome firefighter competition.
    Boca Raton firefighter/paramedic Irena Elmstrom took top honors in the Scott Firefighter Combat Challenge U.S. Nationals in Texas in October. She also won a silver medal in the Firefighter Combat Challenge World Championships, which took place Oct. 23-28 in Louisville, Ky.
    Elmstrom has been a firefighter for 15 years and has been competing for 14 years.
    “I love it,” she said.
    It’s a given that it’s sweltering business. Bunker gear is heavy and hot, and training in Florida isn’t easy.
    Luckily, the gear used in competitions is lighter than standard firefighting gear because it doesn’t have as many pockets and extras as the gear used on normal duty. But it’s still really hot.
    “It’s basically like a firefighting obstacle course,” Elmstrom said.
    Elmstrom earned the following titles at the Oct. 5-7 event: U.S. National Co-Ed Tandem Champions (1:30:15), Female Tandem Champions (1:58:36) and Female Relay Champions (1:48).
    Firefighters who competed with Elmstrom were David Bowman, of Charlotte, N.C. (Co-Ed Tandem); Jacqueline Palmer, of Las Vegas (Female Tandem and Female Relay); and Cheri Ardoin, of Lake Charles, La. (Female Relay).

By Sallie James

    Noisy renters beware: Boca Raton is considering a new code enforcement tactic that would allow violators to be fined on the spot.
    “Direct ticketing” is an alternative city officials say would produce instant results. The current system relies on a time-consuming process that sends a suspect to a special magistrate who must then determine if a violation occurred.
    The subject came up at a Nov. 13 workshop during a discussion about how to curb code violations at rented single-family homes and duplexes. The city scrapped an initial proposal to register rentals because it seemed too involved.
    “I think instant ticketing will be a little more responsive to the neighbors who are suffering,” said Mayor Susan Haynie.
    Deputy City Manager George Brown said direct ticketing would be effective in nuisance cases such as excessive noise.
    “If that person believes they were not violating the code, they can go before a magistrate,” Brown said. “I think direct ticketing is probably a more effective tool because it addresses the violation as it occurs.”
    No sum for such potential fines has been established at this time.
    The issue of nuisance violations and rental properties has largely focused on areas where owners have rented single-family homes to college students. Problems with noise, vehicles parking on unpaved areas, outside storage of personal items and property maintenance have cropped up in neighborhoods near Florida Atlantic University and Lynn University.
    The city reported 1,986 code violations last year that included overgrown vegetation outside homes, too many cars parked in certain areas and trash all over properties. But the total number of violations in 2016 was down 400 from the year before.
    Brown said the city has seen a “significant” reduction in those issues because of recent additions to code enforcement staff with added shifts on nights and weekends.
    Deputy Mayor Jeremy Rodgers said a registration program would have been burdensome and created “a huge amount of infrastructure” compared to issuing direct fines.
    Council member Robert Weinroth agreed.
    “I like the direct ticketing. That is the answer,” Weinroth said. “I think it gets to the root of the problem.”
    The City Council is expected to revisit the issue soon.

LEFT: Delray Beach resident Michelle Cerami, a licensed midwife, gave birth to her daughter, Natalie, 5, at home.
RIGHT: Zeresh Altork of Boynton Beach studied to be a doula after the in-home birth of her son, Eiden, 9. She and her husband, JP Piqué, also have a daughter, Leila, 5, and dog, Dolsa. Photos by Tim Stepien/The Coastal Star

By Lona O'Connor

    A home birth is a rare occasion in the United States — only 1.36 percent of births, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
     But for those who choose to employ midwives and doulas, they are as close as a Google search. Or word of mouth.
    “It’s not a service I’m out there selling to people,” says Michelle Cerami, 33, a Delray Beach midwife who has been in private practice for three years.
    Her clients seek her out, and they come from all walks of life.
    “It surprised me that women come to me from penthouses on the water and little apartments, single moms and married women with big families, which is cool,” she said.
    A midwife is a health care professional, and a doula acts as a counselor and support system for mothers during pregnancy, labor and breastfeeding.
    “It’s a lot of hard work and it’s extremely satisfying,” says Cerami, who has attended more than 250 births, 116 as primary midwife. “But for me, it’s more about the moms and the families I serve, giving them that experience, giving these babies a gentle transition into this world.”
    Cerami trained at the Florida School of Traditional Midwifery in Gainesville. She is licensed as a medical practitioner by the state of Florida and has earned national certification.
    “I didn’t think of midwifery as a career option until I had my son,” she says. “My aunt is a nurse midwife, and she gave me the idea. I had my son with midwives.”
    Originally from New York’s Long Island, Cerami has been in Florida for eight years with her children, Noah, 11, and Natalie, 5.
    Her clients come from all over Palm Beach County.
    The right candidate for a home birth is someone who has no serious health problems.
    If the mother develops gestational diabetes or has high blood pressure or is anemic, has low blood iron levels, if the baby has genetic abnormalities or if labor starts before 37 weeks, home birth is not a good option.
    “A premature baby definitely needs the support of the hospital and all the equipment,” says Cerami.
    
A woman’s choice
    Otherwise, midwifery is a matter of preference.
    “Some people just don’t want to go to a hospital,” Cerami says. “At home, you’re relaxed, your family can be there and you can surrender to the birth. Some women just want to feel what it is to be in labor.”
    Cerami’s son slept through his sister’s birth, but “when he woke up, he got to meet her right away. Home birth demystifies the process. I can just speak for myself, but I think it’s a gift I’ve given to my kids.”
    Cerami’s fee is $5,000. Her clients pay her either out-of-pocket or through Medicaid and a few participating insurance companies. As a licensed midwife, she is eligible to work with insurance companies.
    By comparison, the average cost of a hospital birth is $8,800, more for premature birth, caesarean section or other complications, according to a study done for the March of Dimes.
    About half of Cerami’s clients choose underwater births, either in a bathtub or a purpose-made inflatable tub.
    “It’s comforting and relaxing and it takes all the weight,” says Cerami. “And the babies are much calmer. Sometimes they don’t even cry. My son was a water birth. He just made a little noise and started breathing.”
    Cerami meets with the mother once a month until 28 weeks, then every two weeks, then weekly until the birth, where she is accompanied by a trained birth assistant. Both the midwife and the assistant are certified to provide CPR and neonatal resuscitation.
    “It’s pretty rare that complications happen at home, but there are things that are unpredictable,” says Cerami.
“I once had a baby transferred to a hospital because his breathing rate was too high,” she says. “And we had a mom in early labor whose blood pressure was really high, so we had her transported by ambulance.”
    Among developed countries, the United States is alone in having so few home births. In Europe, more than 75 percent of births are attended by midwives, according to the World Health Organization.
    A study of 79,000 home births in 2012 and 2013 in Oregon and Vermont, the states where the most home births occur, showed a higher mortality rate for home births: In planned out-of-hospital births, 3.9 out of 1,000 cases resulted in a baby’s death during the birth process or within four weeks afterward, compared with 1.8 deaths out of 1,000 in planned hospital births.

Emotional support
    Some home births may have both a midwife and a doula.
    Zeresh Altork, a doula, acts as a counselor to mothers and families during and after pregnancy.
    “The midwives give the medical support and doulas are there for emotional, physical and informational support,” says Altork. “Our sole responsibility is the emotional well-being of the woman.”
    Altork, 42, lives in Boynton Beach with her husband, JP Piqué, son, Eiden, 9, and daughter, Leila, 5. She has been in practice for nine years and has supported about 275 births.
She provides doula services to women who give birth at home and in hospitals.
    “Doulas take care of the mother so she can take care of the baby,” says Altork. “A doula is a kind of mother figure.”
    Altork was a school counselor and family therapist for 10 years. “When I became pregnant with my son, I started investigating my options for the best possible birth,” she says. “It doesn’t have to be routine, it is not to be feared, it can be a very empowering moment.”
    She was so enthusiastic on the subject after Eiden was born at home with the help of a midwife that a friend suggested she train to be a doula.
    “I just wouldn’t shut up about it, she told me. So a month or two later, I was training. I loved it. I found my passion.”
    Her biggest influence was Barbara Harper, a nurse, midwife and internationally known advocate of warm-water home births.
    Altork met Harper seven years ago at a home-birth workshop in Spain, where Altork was living. Fluent in Spanish, Altork acted as Harper’s translator.
    “She told us that women have everything they need to give birth. They just need information,” Altork says.
    Some couples hire Altork even before the woman becomes pregnant, but it’s more common for her to start her work during the second trimester of a pregnancy.
Altork charges a basic rate of $1,050, but her fee can be higher if the mother needs more attention before or after the birth.
    “I get to know the mom and the dad and see how they work together,” says Altork. “I need to understand their needs and help them make their birth plan.”
    
    For more information on midwifery and home birth, contact Michelle Cerami at michelle@eastcoastmidwifery.com. Her website is www.eastcoastmidwifery.com.
    For more information on doula services, contact zeresh@alovingbirth.com.Website:  www.alovingbirth.com.

    Lona O’Connor has a lifelong interest in health and healthy living. Send column ideas to Lona13@bellsouth.net.

By Christine Davis

    Delray Medical Center has been recognized as a five-star recipient for a wide range of treatments and surgeries. It received neuroscience, cranial neurosurgery and stroke care excellence awards and was named among the top 5 percent in the nation for neurosciences, cranial neurosurgery and the treatment of stroke.
    These achievements are part of findings released by Healthgrades, an independent health care ratings company, and are featured in its 2018 “Report to the Nation.”
    For its analysis, Healthgrades evaluated approximately 45 million Medicare inpatient records for nearly 4,500 short-term acute care hospitals nationwide to assess hospital performance in 32 common conditions and procedures, using all-payer data provided by 17 states.
                                
    Officials at Delray Medical Center announced that Teresa C. Urquhart is their new chief operating officer. They also announced that they offer a new procedure, the Edwards SAPIEN 3 transcatheter heart valve for mitral valve replacement inside a failed surgical valve. This is the only valve approved for valve-in-valve procedures due to failure of a surgical mitral valve.
    Also, Delray Medical is the first hospital in South Florida to implant a new device used to seal off the left atrial appendage  — a small appendage connected to the left atrium
    The device, called Amplatzer Amulet Occluder, works by blocking the left atrial appendage at its opening, which minimizes the opportunity for blood clots to form and move into the bloodstream.
                                
    David C. Brodner, M.D., was appointed associate medical director for sleep medicine with eviCore Health-care.
    Brodner is board-certified in otolaryngology (ear, nose and throat), head and neck surgery and sleep medicine. His office is at 8794 Boynton Beach Blvd., Boynton Beach.    

    In October, Baptist Health South Florida acquired a majority interest in South Palm Ambulatory Surgery Center, which has changed its name to Baptist Health Surgery Center. This center, at 1905 Clint Moore Road in Boca Raton, is Baptist Health’s second outpatient surgery center in Palm Beach County.
                                
    In honor of Veterans Day, Boca Raton Regional Hospital recognized its physicians, employees, volunteers and board members who are veterans of the U.S. armed services.
    Included in the program were Boca Raton Mayor Susan Haynie and retired Air Force Lt. Col. Melvin Pollack, director of Vets Helping Heroes.
    The Boca Raton Community High School NJROTC, Boca Raton Fire Rescue Services, Boca Raton Police Department, the Spanish River High School Super Splash Show Choir and other community and veterans group leaders attended.
                                
    Call 4 Health has hired three new team members: Alex Karanau is its new chief information officer; Lissette Ferro-Lloret is now the director of operations, and Victoria Rodriguez is the new marketing specialist.
    Call 4 Health is a medical call center and nurse triage service headquartered in Delray Beach.
                                
    Send health news to Christine Davis at cdavis9797@gmail.com.

ABOVE: Eric Brandon of Nautical Ventures folds down the transom bench seat on the Blackfin 272 center console he displayed at the Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show in November. The bench is a comfortable place to sit that would be an obstruction to anglers if it didn’t fold flat against the transom. BELOW RIGHT: For passengers who enjoy lounging when they cruise, the optional 170-quart “coffin box” cooler with pad and removable backrest dress up the Crevalle 26 Open bay boat. Photos by Willie Howard/The Coastal Star

By Willie Howard

    Powerboat designers are adding creature comforts to center console boats, hoping they will appeal to buyers who want oceangoing fishing machines that double as platforms for family outings.
    Several of those fishing/family boats were on display during the 58th annual Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show in early November — as were replicas of vintage boats and luxury boats powered by multiple outboards.
    
Some examples
    The Blackfin 272 center console — a fast, oceangoing fishing machine that comes with fishy features such as outriggers mounted to a hard T-top, a 30-gallon live bait well, below-deck fish boxes, tackle drawers, a bait-rigging station and under-gunwale rod holders.  Creature comforts that don’t detract from the boat’s fishability include a foldaway transom bench seat, removable, forward-facing backrests for the bow seats, a removable table for lunch breaks and a soft shade top for the bow, which can be easily removed for storage. The boat show price: $179,000.
    The Crevalle 26 Open, a bay-style fishing boat that can be purchased with a full upper station, meaning you can run the boat from a perch on top of the T-top, where the visibility is much better than it is from the deck. That’s great for finding fish. But the Crevalle’s optional 170-quart “coffin box” style cooler with removable backrest and stylish pad also make the bay boat appealing for family cruising. A freshwater shower, optional extended swim platform, an in-console portable toilet and optional pylon for towing water skiers make the Crevalle suitable for a variety of water activities. Boat show price: $103,900.
    The Cobia 301 center console features an inward-opening side door (with removable boarding ladder) for easy entry and exit when swimming, snorkeling or diving. The side door also can be opened for dockside boarding and for hauling big fish aboard. Like the Blackfin, the Cobia features a foldaway transom seat and plush forward seating with a removable table for picnics in the bow. The Cobia’s roomy head (toilet) area inside the center console includes a freshwater sink, vanity mirror and towel bar. The boat show price: $179,900.
    With a base price tag over $1 million, the Formula 430 All Sport Crossover is not your typical outboard powerboat. Pushed by a team of four 400-horsepower Mercury outboards, the Formula on display at the boat show could reach a top speed of more than 60 mph. Comfort features include a sleeping berth and forward lounge, two refrigerators, a huge stern platform for easy access to the water and a galley with a stove. Slide-in racks convert the 52-gallon live bait well into a scuba tank compartment. Options include a satellite television system, stand-up paddleboard racks and a Seakeeper stabilizer. The boat show price: $1,058,300.

Metan Marine’s mahogany-trimmed, 13-foot Tender Series boats at the Fort Lauderdale show are based on the classic Boston Whalers.

    For nostalgic boaters who long for classic crafts that were popular in the 1960s and ’70s, Massachusetts-based Metan Marine offered replicas of early Boston Whalers at the boat show.
    Billed as a classic tender for a larger boat, the 13-foot Metan on display at the show featured mahogany seats and PlasDeck teak decking. The Mercury outboard engine was modern, but it could be disguised with a vintage cowling for that out-of-date look.
    Company President Mike Borrelli said he started out restoring old boats, a venture that became so popular he started building them from scratch. Metan plans to build replicas of two Bertram classics, 26 and 32 feet, early next year. Boat show price for the 13-foot Metan, 40 horsepower Mercury outboard and trailer: $25,000.

The Fort Lauderdale show continues to grow in size and scope. Photo provided by Forest Johnson, Show Management

Irma caused $500 million in boat damage
    When Hurricane Irma swept across Florida in September, it damaged or destroyed about 50,000 recreational boats, causing an estimated $500 million in damage.
    Boat damage could have been much worse, according to the Boat Owners Association of the United States, also known as BoatUS.
    “While locations in the right front quadrant of the storm such as Big Pine Key and Marathon were hit hard with a Category 4 storm, Irma lost strength as it approached the mainland,” said Rick Wilson, vice president of claims for BoatUS marine insurance.
    Recreational boat losses from Hurricane Harvey in Texas were significantly lower, at 13,500 boats with an estimated value of $155 million.

Coming events
    Dec. 2: Basic boating safety class offered by Coast Guard Auxiliary, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. in the headquarters building at Spanish River Park, 3939 N. Ocean Blvd., Boca Raton. Fee $35 for adults or $20 ages 12 to 19. Register at the door. Bring lunch. Call 391-3600 or email fso-pe@cgauxboca.org.
    Dec. 8: The Boynton Beach & Delray Beach Holiday Boat Parade. Decorated boats will line up at 6 p.m. at the Ocean Avenue Bridge near the Old Key Lime House restaurant in Lantana and proceed south to the C-15 Canal at the border of Delray Beach and Boca Raton. Music begins at 6 p.m. at Boynton Harbor Marina. The parade is scheduled to start at 6:30 p.m. Donations of new, unwrapped toys are being collected for children. For viewing locations and a parking map, call the Boynton Beach CRA at 600-9097 or visit www.catchboynton.com. In Delray Beach, call 243-7250.
    Dec. 22: Early-entry deadline for the 81st annual Silver Sailfish Derby, a sailfish release tournament organized by the West Palm Beach Fishing Club. Captain’s meeting Jan. 10 followed by fishing Jan. 11-12 and an awards dinner Jan. 13. Entry fee $1,000 per boat for club members by Dec. 22 and $1,500 for non-members. Call 832-6780 or go to www.westpalmbeachfishingclub.org.

Tip of the month
    Divers who enjoy spearing tasty hogfish should remember that the recreational hogfish season is closed in state waters along the east coast as well as in the Florida Keys and on the west coast south of Cape Sable.
    The hogfish harvest season will reopen May 1.
    Recreational harvest of hogfish is still allowed in state and federal waters north of Cape Sable in the Gulf of Mexico.
    For details, go to www.myfwc.com. Click on saltwater fishing, recreational regulations and hogfish.

    Willie Howard is a freelance writer and licensed boat captain. Reach him at tiowillie@bellsouth.net.

    There is water in the streets. It’s there when it rains hard, when tropical weather blows through, when the highest tides of the year align with phases of the moon and when Lake Okeechobee water is diverted into canals and drained into the ocean.
    Sometimes, all of these things happen at the same time and public safety is at risk.
    Yet, as I attend the public meetings of our coastal municipalities, inevitably some member of the public — or an elected representative of the people — suggests that rising and standing water are nothing new and we shouldn’t be concerned. They say most of the land along the Intracoastal Waterway was created by fill and is sinking. They proclaim that water in the streets has nothing to do with sea level rise. Some even question why we should spend taxpayer money on the sinking land of individual homeowners.
    This is a heartless and narrow-minded approach to a problem that affects all of us who live along the ICW and cannot be wished away.
    Palm Beach County’s property appraiser estimates the value of properties east of A1A to be worth $64 billion. It’s easy to imagine the property between A1A and the ICW is worth as much or more, since the bulk of real estate on the barrier island falls into this area.
    That’s a lot of value (and its corresponding tax base) to watch it sink under the depths of denial and neglect.
    Thankfully, there are community leaders and concerned residents who see a bigger picture and want to find answers. They realize the impact rising water levels have on our local economy and are seeking ways to hold back the flood waters of crisis before they begin to erode the waterfront real estate market.
    Solutions won’t be cheap, but in our coastal market, infrastructure hardening and repair will only increase long-term value. And well-timed maintenance, along with implementation of flooding-sensitive building codes, can provide immediate results.
    But we should not avoid hard conversations about land banking and eminent domain and property abandonment. Wastewater management and septic systems will also need to be discussed.
    These don’t have to be partisan discussions, and just because we talk about these things now doesn’t mean they will happen tomorrow. It’s time to start talking about possible solutions and stop denying that there is water in the streets.

— Mary Kate Leming, Editor

Anne and Peter Vegso own Health Communications Inc., a book publisher in Deerfield Beach. Tim Stepien/The Coastal Star

By Rich Pollack

If Anne and Peter Vegso’s last name sounds vaguely familiar, it may be because it can be found on a sprinkling of buildings throughout the area.  
    There’s the Vegso Community Resource Center in Boca Raton; Casa Vegso, a shelter and transitional housing center for victims of domestic abuse; and the Vegso Family Arena at the Equine-Assisted Therapies of South Florida facilities in Coconut Creek.
    While their name might ring a bell, Anne and Peter Vegso tend to fly under the radar when it comes to the big names in South Florida philanthropy — and that’s just fine with them.
    “We don’t need to see our name on a building,” Anne Vegso says. “We don’t need people to know who we give to. We just want to know that we improved someone’s life, and if it’s a woman or a child it’s so much better.”
    This month, the Vegsos will help raise money for one of their favorite causes —  women and children — by having their successful book-publishing company, Health Communications Inc., serve as presenting sponsor of the 18th annual Women of Grace Luncheon on Nov. 9 at the Boca Raton Resort and Club.
    The event, expected to include 650 guests this year, raises money for the Center for Women and Children at Bethesda Health, addressing a different specific need each year.
    This year, money raised will be used to purchase a state-of-the-art, realistic mother-and-baby birthing simulator for training both staff and parents.
    For the Vegsos, who will bring in as speakers the authors of Oola for Women, Find Balance in an Unbalanced World (and who will provide each guest with a copy of the book), the Women of Grace Luncheon is a perfect match for their philanthropic philosophy.
    They became familiar with the event after Anne was recognized as a Woman of Grace in 2014 for her work with Delray Beach-based AVDA, Aid to Victims of Domestic Abuse.
    “We like the idea of supporting local nonprofit organizations that need a specific amount of money for a specific purpose,” Anne Vegso says.
    Adds Peter Vegso: “When you give to local organizations, you have a better understanding of where the money is going.”
    While they support a variety of causes, the focus of the Vegsos’ giving through their family foundation is on organizations that help women and children.
    “It’s just something that my heart is close to,” Anne says.
In addition to supporting the luncheon, which each year recognizes five women doing outstanding work in the community, the Vegsos have supported the renovation of the maternity, labor and delivery areas at Boca Raton Regional Hospital.
    They also support Equine-Assisted Therapies of South Florida, a therapeutic riding program for children and adults with special needs. Their business warehouse is used as the storage and distribution area for the Junior League of Boca Raton’s diaper bank, and their foundation supports Boca Ballet’s First Step program, which introduces ballet to at-risk children.
    “Anne and Peter have always been doing great work in the community, but they do it in a very low-key way,” says Kimberley Trombly-Burmeister, this year’s chairwoman of the Women of Grace Luncheon. “They are fabulous philanthropic leaders in our community.”
    Peter Vegso, 73, grew up outside Montreal while Anne, 69, was born in England and moved to Canada with her family when she was 18. They met at a party in Toronto that Anne went to only because her sister didn’t want to go alone. It was there that she caught Peter’s eye.
    “I saw her and said, ‘That’s it,’ ” Peter Vegso said.
    The Vegsos were together while Peter and partners built a small business that started out printing a weekly newspaper and information pamphlets about addiction. It evolved into a multimillion-dollar book business that has published thousands of titles — mostly in the health, self-help and inspirational areas — and now Health Communications has about 65 employees.
    The couple, who live in Boca Raton, have been married for 46 years and have two daughters and five grandsons, some of whom are already learning about the importance of philanthropy.
    Before making a donation to an organization in the names of her two oldest grandsons, Anne Vegso asked them what causes they would like to support. One chose Save the Turtles and the other The Caring Kitchen.
    “It’s important for them to recognize that they are extremely blessed,” she said.

If You Go
What: 18th annual Women of Grace Luncheon benefiting Center for Women and Children at Bethesda Health
When: Nov. 9, reception at 10:30 a.m., luncheon 11:30 to 1 p.m.
Where: Boca Raton Resort and Club
Honorees: Yvonne Boice, Tammy Culmer, Linda Heneks, Jacqueline Moroco Maloney, Kirsten Stanley
Chairwoman: Kimberley Trombly-Burmeister
Speakers: Troy Amdahl and Dave Braun, authors of Oola for Women, Find Balance in an Unbalanced World. They will sign books at 7 o’clock that night at Murder on the Beach bookstore in Delray Beach.
Cost: $150
Information: Email PHenderson@BHinc.org or call 737-7733, Ext. 84429.

By Dan Moffett

    Briny Breezes moved closer to finding a way to resolve nagging disputes over code violations when the Town Council voted Oct. 26 to use either a special magistrate or a citizens enforcement board to hear residents’ cases.
    The decision, which came on a 3-2 vote, authorizes Town Attorney John Skrandel to write a proposed ordinance that allows the council to choose either method to enforce building rules. Voting for the measure were council President Sue Thaler and Aldermen Bobby Jurovaty and Chick Behringer. Christina Adams and Jim McCormick voted no.
    Adams said she was concerned the proposed ordinance was “a little misleading” because it didn’t commit the town to using one option or the other, but most likely would be used to hire a magistrate.
    “Let’s call it what it is,” she said. “Let’s be open with everybody.”
    Adams, who has been reluctant to support a magistrate system, said, “Briny is different than anyplace else” and argued its corporation could play a role in resolving code disputes.
     Jurovaty disagreed. “In the state’s eyes, we are no different than any other town,” he said, arguing that Briny has no alternative but to satisfy state requirements to enforce codes.
    Skrandel said with the ordinance, the council would need only to approve a resolution to choose either the magistrate or citizens board.
    “You can try one for a while and if it doesn’t work out switch to the other,” said Skrandel, who is expected to have a draft of the proposed ordinance for the council’s consideration at the Nov. 30 town meeting.
    The council heard from Cosmo Tornese, a senior engineer with CAP Government of Coral Gables, the company that handles Briny’s building permitting and inspection work. Tornese said the magistrate approach is much more effective than using a citizens board because it is objective and eliminates personal relationships and biases that create conflicts.
    “The magistrate is what you want,” Tornese said. “I don’t know of any town that uses a board.”
    Every other municipality in Palm Beach County uses magistrates to settle code cases. A magistrate is a lawyer with special training in building codes and law. Skrandel said typically a magistrate charges between $200 and $350 per hour.
    In other business:
    • During a special meeting on Oct. 12, the council decided to postpone reviewing applications for the town attorney position until a new manager is hired. The council gave final approval to the job description for the manager position on Oct. 26.
    Thaler said council members thought the new manager should have a voice in the lawyer’s hiring and agree with the council’s choice. She said the town has heard from a number of promising, experienced candidates who appear capable of handling Briny’s legal work.
    • Citing personal reasons, Jack Lee resigned as the town’s mayor on Oct. 1, but said he would remain active in the town’s affairs.
    “I’m resigning as mayor,” Lee said. “I’m not resigning as a resident of Briny.”
    A 60-year resident of the town, Lee, 68, took over the mayor’s seat in April. He also served as Briny’s mayor from 2001 to 2007. Thaler said the council is hoping to find someone soon to serve out the remainder of Lee’s term, which expires in March.
    • The council unanimously approved changes to the town’s building code recommended by the Planning and Zoning Board. Chairman Jerry Lower said the changes are intended to simplify the town’s code and bring it in line with the corporation’s.

Editor’s note: Jerry Lower is publisher of The Coastal Star.

By Jane Smith

    Delray Beach’s City Commission picked the candidate with Florida experience as the next city manager.
    Mark Lauzier will start Nov. 6 with an annual salary of $235,000 under a contract approved Oct. 17 by the City Commission.
    “It’s a rich contract,” Commissioner Shelly Petrolia said. “Our expectations are high.”
    Lauzier also will receive a $650 monthly car allowance, $2,500 monthly housing allowance for six months, up to $25,000 for moving expenses, a bank of 120 vacation/personal days and 40 sick days, and retirement benefits paid for by the city.
    “I’ve been preparing my entire career for this job,” Lauzier told the commission at an Oct. 10 special meeting.
    Lauzier comes from a job as assistant city manager in Tacoma, the third-largest city in Washington state, with nearly triple the population of Delray Beach. He oversaw five departments there.
 He started as a police officer in Connecticut, then became a budget officer.
    He received a master’s in public administration with a city management concentration from the University of New Haven, Connecticut.
    His Florida experience includes serving as an assistant city manager in Pompano Beach and city manager in Parkland, both in Broward County.  
    At the special meeting, Mayor Cary Glickstein, who usually gives his opinions last on issues, spoke first before commissioners picked the new city manager.
    “I spoke to the mayor of Pompano Beach, whom I have known since high school, the mayor of Parkland and the Dallas city manager who recruited Lauzier to Tacoma,” he said. They all gave glowing support of Lauzier, the mayor said.
    Lauzier knows how Florida government works and will bring that knowledge here, Glickstein added. “The citizens of this town need a legitimate city manager,” he said.
    Petrolia said she appreciated that information from Lauzier’s former employers. But she favored the other candidate, Ed Collins of Utah.
    “He actually opened our budget and talked to me about the things in it,” she said. She called him a likable man who is steady, even-keeled and a quick learner.
    Even so, she joined the majority in selecting Lauzier. After the selection, Lauzier withdrew his name as a finalist for the Jupiter town manager position.
    Lauzier, who intends to live in Delray Beach, said he will first talk to staffers about their roles and then with the commissioners about their priorities. “I will assess the environment, and then I will make suggestions,” he said.
    Glickstein has high hopes for Lauzier.
    “I get the distinct impression [Lauzier] has a plan and is eager to jump in,” Glickstein said via email. “But like any such leadership role, he needs staff buy-in to achieve his vision, which will take some time.
    “The good news is that our police and fire departments are in great shape because of the leadership in those departments, which represent more than 50 percent of our budget and personnel. Mark can focus initially and almost exclusively on City Hall and other external departments.”
    Fire-Rescue Chief Neal deJesus took over after the previous city manager left in December. He expected to serve as the interim city manager for a few months and stated he did not want the job permanently. He received a salary increase to $187,013. When he returns to his fire chief position, he will be paid $159,515.
    At that time, acting Fire Rescue Chief Keith Tomey will revert to assistant fire chief at an annual salary of $135,000. He had received a 10 percent boost, to $148,500 a year, as acting chief.

By Henry Fitzgerald

    Municipal elections will take place March 13. Here are the cities and towns in The Coastal Star’s coverage area with seats up for grabs and their respective qualifying periods.  

Boca Raton
    The city’s qualifying period, when candidates can officially be put on the ballot after they meet certain requirements, will take place Jan. 2-10.
    City voters will get the chance to fill two City Council seats. Council member Robert Weinroth is running for re-election to Seat D, while Deputy Mayor Jeremy Rodgers plans to seek re-election to Seat C.
    Meanwhile, Mayor Susan Haynie announced last month that she would run for County Commissioner Steven Abrams’ District 4 seat. The primary election for that post will take place Aug. 28, while the general election will be held Nov. 6, 2018.
    Haynie, whose mayoral term would expire in 2020, will have to submit a resignation letter 10 days prior to the qualifying period for the county seat, which runs June 18-22. Her resignation from the mayor’s seat must be effective on or before Nov. 20, 2018, whether or not she wins the County Commission seat, according to the city’s website.
“I have heard from many community leaders and residents encouraging me to run for County Commission District 4,” Haynie said in a news release. “As mayor, I have been an effective leader with a proven record of accomplishments. I understand our community, have a firm grasp of the issues and the experience needed to help move Palm Beach County forward.”
    Following Haynie’s departure, the deputy mayor will serve as mayor temporarily until a special election is held in March 2019 to fill the rest of Haynie’s term. Council members will choose their next deputy mayor in March 2018 during their annual reorganization.
    Council member Scott Singer, who also chairs the Community Redevelopment Agency, announced Oct. 23 that he would run in 2019 for the remaining year of Haynie’s mayoral term.

Briny Breezes
    Qualifying for the March municipal election will run Dec. 5-19. Three aldermen — Christina Adams, Jim McCormick and Bobby Jurovaty — are up for election.
Briny Mayor Jack Lee resigned in October. The council plans to fill his non-voting seat by appointment before the end of the year.

Delray Beach
    The qualifying period will take place Dec. 1-20. Three commission seats are open in March. They are: Seat 1, now held by Shelly Petrolia, who plans to run for mayor/Seat 5; Seat 3, now held by Mitch Katz, who is running for re-election; and Seat 2, now held by Vice Mayor Jim Chard, who also plans to run for mayor/Seat 5.
    Seat 5, now held by Mayor Cary Glickstein, will be open because Glickstein announced he would not run for re-election.
    Glickstein could have run again because the city charter changed the length of the terms during his first term in office. He’s held the position for five years — a two-year term and a three-year term.
    At the Oct. 17 commission meeting, Glickstein listed his accomplishments as stronger neighborhoods and historic districts, more control over sober homes, elimination of the SWA no-bid contract, transparency over how the CRA spends tax dollars and development focused on West Atlantic Avenue.
    “I have been struggling with the decision for a few months now and needed to make a decision to allow other candidates a fair shot,” he wrote in an email. “While I would have liked to have had another year with the new city manager, I was uncomfortable asking voters for a third term that I could have sought due to a city charter change effective after my first election that now limits mayors to two terms. You know the old adage — ‘Just because you can do something, doesn’t mean you should.’”

Highland Beach
    The qualifying period runs Nov. 28-Dec. 12. Open seats for the 2018 election are Vice Mayor Bill Weitz and Commissioner George Kelvin.

Lantana
    The qualifying period runs Jan. 2-16. The only open seat is Group 5, occupied by Mayor Dave Stewart, who will seek re-election.

Manalapan
    Qualifying in Manalapan for the municipal election will run from Dec. 5-19, Town Clerk Lisa Petersen said. Up for election are Mayor Pro Tem Simone Bonutti, Commissioner Clark Appleby and Commissioner Monica Oberting. Commissioners serve two-year terms.

Ocean Ridge
    The qualifying period is Dec. 5-18. Mayor Geoff Pugh and Commissioner Gail Aaskov are up for re-election, while Vice Mayor James Bonfiglio plans to give up his seat for a run at state House District 89, now held by Bill Hager, who is term-limited.
    However, Bonfiglio won’t have to leave his seat until well into next year. He must submit a resignation letter 10 days prior to the qualifying period for the state seat, which runs June 18-22, and his resignation from the vice mayor’s seat must be effective on or before Nov. 20, 2018, whether or not he wins the state House seat.
    “I decided to run for Florida House of Representatives, District 89, because I want to continue my service to the community,” Bonfiglio wrote in an email. “I think I have fresh ideas and a bold vision to solve some of the town’s problems, which also present themselves in [the rest of] District 89. For example, Ocean Ridge shares flooding and beach problems with most of the district’s residents. I love the town of Ocean Ridge and want to serve more people, including the Ocean Ridge residents as the next Florida representative for District 89.”

South Palm Beach
    The qualifying period is Dec. 4-8. Council seats up for election are held by Stella Gaddy Jordan and Vice Mayor Robert Gottlieb.

    Sallie James, Dan Moffett, Steve Plunkett, Rich Pollack, Jane Smith and Mary Thurwachter contributed to this report.

The Gulfstream Hotel in Lake Worth has been closed for more than 10 years. Photo provided

By Jane Smith
    
    Two partners are vying for control of the historic Gulfstream Hotel in Lake Worth as an April expiration nears on the city’s approvals of a proposed $70 million renovation.
    Steven Michael, a principal of Delray Beach-based Hudson Holdings, said his firm on Oct. 20 offered to buy out Carl DeSantis from his stake in the Gulfstream Hotel. The offer is good for 60 days, Michael said. He declined to offer details.
    “We have no comment on any proposed transaction involving the Gulfstream Hotel,” Jeff Perlman replied via email on Oct. 24. He is executive vice president of DeSantis’ CDS International Holdings in Boca Raton. “CDS Gulfstream remains the managing member of the property.”
    Over the summer, CDS moved to gain control of the six-story, Mediterranean-style Gulfstream, long considered a crown jewel in Lake Worth. Added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1983, the Gulfstream Hotel has been closed for more than 10 years.
    “Recently, we have become managers of the project,” Perlman said via email in early October. “We immediately started to work with the city to clean up the property and work through code enforcement issues.”
    William Waters, community sustainability director for Lake Worth, confirmed that the city placed a notice on the hotel this summer about code violations including high grass and broken windows. The code issues have since been addressed, he said.
To date, the only portion of the project completed has been the razing of two historic houses on the 1.8-acre site near the foot of the Lake Worth Bridge.        Perlman declined to answer specific questions about when CDS Holdings took control of the hotel from Hudson Holdings and why the change occurred.
    On June 16, state corporate records were changed to have William Milmoe, CDS Holdings president, listed as the property’s registered agent.
    He replaced Hudson Holdings principal Andrew Greenbaum as the registered agent.
    Hudson Holdings is also the developer of the proposed Midtown Delray Beach project along Swinton Avenue in the Old School Square Historic District, which includes the historic Sundy House. The project of retail, condo, office and hotel rooms was rejected by the city’s Historic Preservation Board in June, but a revised version is under review by city planners.
    In February, Terry Woods, a Delray Beach real estate investor, sued Hudson Holdings Gulfstream, the division involved with the hotel, for nonpayment of a $1 million balloon loan that carried a 9 percent annual interest rate. HH Gulfstream missed the interest payment due in November 2016 and the months following, according to the lawsuit.
    Woods filed a voluntary notice of dismissal in July, indicating that he was paid.
    DeSantis, a billionaire who founded Rexall Sundown vitamins, personally guaranteed a $5 million Hudson Holdings loan from Florida Community Bank in Winter Park that made up the bulk of the $7.2 million Gulfstream purchase in 2014. Greenbaum signed the mortgage for Hudson Holdings, according to property records. The mortgage remains on the hotel.
    Michael met DeSantis around 2006, when DeSantis owned the two-square-block property on Atlantic Avenue and the Intracoastal Waterway in Delray Beach now known as Atlantic Crossing. Perlman was the city’s mayor at the time. Michael tried to take the mixed-use project through the Delray Beach approval process but was unsuccessful.
     “The city turned him down because we thought it was just too much development for that property,” Perlman said.
    Michael’s team did take the Gulfstream through Lake Worth’s historic review process, receiving approval in March 2016. The current development order is good through April 2018 due to hurricane-related development extensions.
    The renovation is planned in phases with the hotel finished first, according to Lake Worth Historic Resources Preservation Board approvals.
    Amenities will include a champagne room and a rooftop bar. Restoring the hotel to its 1925 grandeur will result in 18 fewer rooms, for a total of 87.
    The approvals also included demolition of the two historic houses to make way for a 6,500-square-foot, one-story building on the southeast side to provide kitchen facilities for the Gulfstream Hotel.
 A 65-foot-tall, five-story hotel annex and a two-story parking garage with rooftop parking on the hotel’s west side are also in the plans.

By Jane Smith

    The Riverwalk Plaza owner now wants to reverse the order of how the 9.8-acre complex will be developed at Woolbright Road and Federal Highway.
    In late August, Isram Realty representatives met with Boynton Beach planning staff to outline how the complex would be developed: First, renovate the building containing the Walgreen’s drugstore and Jo-Ann Fabric and Craft store; next, build a 4,500-square-foot building along Federal Highway and then construct the 10-story, U-shaped apartment building.
    When first proposed two years ago, the phasing of Riverwalk was reversed.
    Isram representatives could not be reached for comment.
    Boynton Beach building staff has received two permit applications from Riverwalk. The façade improvement permit, submitted in late August, is on hold until Isram answers questions posed by city staff. The permit was not approved as of late October.
    The new retail building permit was submitted in mid-October. City staff has requested more information from Isram, which hasn’t responded. The permit was not approved as of late October.
    The land swap between the Prime Catch restaurant owner and Isram should be finished by the end of the year, said Luke Therien, whose family owns Prime Catch.
    “I just received a revised agreement from my attorney,” he said.
    Prime Catch owns a 0.25-acre strip of land along the Intracoastal Waterway that Isram would like to have to create a walkway along the waterfront. Isram is expected to give the restaurant parking spaces in return.
    Two Riverwalk Plaza restaurants, Sushi Simon and Bond and Smolders, have signed new leases to go into the renovated building.
    Lucy Chen, Sushi Simon’s owner, said she expects to be in the new location next spring. She declined to discuss the terms of her lease.
    Bond and Smolders also anticipates a spring opening, said Philip Van Egmond, co-owner of the coffee shop and bakery.
    “At the new location, we will be open for dinner,” he said. Bond and Smolders also will offer wines and craft beers during the dinner menu.
    The new space will be slightly smaller and will be L-shaped, providing a cozier feel for diners, Van Egmond said. Now, the eatery space is a long, open rectangle.
    The open kitchen plan will remain, he said, and the bakery will have coolers under the counters to keep cream pastries fresh.
    Primo Hoagies closed in October with a door notice, saying its new location was on Boynton Beach Boulevard, west of the interstate.
    Josie’s Ristorante and Pizzeria plans to stay in Riverwalk. The restaurant has 12 years remaining on its lease, said Steve Setticasi, Josie’s owner.
    “We like our location,” he said. “We are not moving. The owner will have to build around us.”

By Dan Moffett

    Nobody will confuse Manalapan with Hollywood when it comes to movie and video production.
    The town’s last brush with show biz came in 2014 when the reluctantly remembered rapper Vanilla Ice, aka Robert Van Winkle, announced plans to shoot a home renovation project for the DIY Network at a South Ocean Boulevard mansion.
    The plans fell through, and most Manalapanians didn’t lament the loss.
    Mayor Keith Waters is concerned that the town may not be as lucky the next time. He thinks Manalapan needs a new ordinance that puts some restrictions on how film and video companies can operate in the town.
    Naturally, Palm Beach is the model for how to handle this. Years ago, Manalapan’s neighbor implemented a law that requires commercial filmmakers and production companies to obtain a permit, pay a nominal fee and adhere to rules for operation — much like construction companies, landscapers and other businesses do.
    “The intent is just to have knowledge of what’s going on so we don’t get blindsided,” Waters said during the Oct. 24 town meeting.
    For constitutional reasons, the ordinance cannot control content. But it can place restrictions on noise, traffic issues and hours of activity — what Town Attorney Keith Davis calls “the physical impact” that the production work has on the town.
    Davis said the ordinance would not deal with the live coverage of news events. The attorney told Waters and commissioners he would draft a proposed ordinance based on the Palm Beach model and present it for consideration at their Nov. 28 meeting.
    In other business:
    • Town Manager Linda Stumpf said Palm Beach County environmental officials have postponed a briefing on a proposed beach stabilization project in South Palm Beach until Manalapan’s November meeting.
    The question-and-answer session with commissioners was scheduled for October. The county wants to install a system of seven concrete groins along the coastline north of Manalapan to deter erosion in South Palm Beach.
    Waters and the commissioners say they will vigorously oppose the project because of the possible damage to their town’s beaches.
The county hopes to change minds in Manalapan during the meeting with the commission and begin the groin construction a year from now.
    • Commissioners unanimously decided to move the starting time for their meetings to 10 a.m., beginning in November. Waters said the time change makes commission meetings consistent with other board and committee meetings in the town.

By Steve Plunkett

    Gulf Stream is holding weekly meetings with Florida Power & Light and the phone and cable companies to regain momentum on its project to bury the utility lines.
    Contractor Wilco Electric, which has been placing conduit underground for the utilities in phase 2 of the project, was pulled off the job after Hurricane Irma struck to help FPL restore power across the state.
    All of the underground conduit is now in place, and Town Manager Greg Dunham said Wilco is “on the verge” of finishing the electrical portion of the project.
    “It’s going to take a couple of months,” he said. “But you’ll still have AT&T and Comcast overhead.”
    Phase 2, which extends from Golfview Drive north, has approximately 200 customers subdivided into seven electrical “loops,” Dunham said. He expected FPL to issue “switching orders” allowing Wilco to switch customers from overhead to underground for at least two and possibly four loops by the end of October.
    Each residence takes two to four hours to convert.
    During Irma, the entire town lost power because of problems with substations or feeder lines outside of Gulf Stream, Dunham said. The storm blew a couple of power poles over on Polo Drive, where residents were the last to regain electricity almost a week later.
    In the not-too-distant future, “that kind of incident won’t be happening,” he said.
    After the electrical connections are made, Comcast or AT&T will transfer its overhead lines underground. Usually, one utility waits for the other to finish its segment, but Dunham was hopeful they would work simultaneously in different sections of phase 2. Then FPL will return.
    “That’s when all the old infrastructure — the wires and poles — will come down,” Dunham said.
    Town residents approved the plan to bury utility lines in 2011 and agreed to bear the $5.5 million cost through special assessments. Gulf Stream officials approved spending an additional $510,000 from the general budget last year.

The Ocean Ridge Police Department hosted a ‘Beach Sweep’ to help clean the town’s beaches of debris left behind following Hurricane Irma. Volunteers enjoyed hamburgers, hot dogs and refreshments following the cleanup. ABOVE: (l-r) Officer Bob Massimino, John Adamovich, Mark and Lynn Yaglowski, Officer Bob McAllister, Lynn and Korian Allison, Stella Kolb, Harvey Sovelove, Matthew Jones, Officer Phil Salm and Sgt. Rick Stang. BELOW: The police ATV loaded with debris. Photo provided

Lantana Town Manager Debbie Manzo gets a group hug Oct. 19 after reading the book Quackers by Liz Wong to kindergartners at Lantana Elementary School during the annual Read for the Record competition coordinated by The Literacy Coalition of Palm Beach County. Manzo read to 188 children that day. Lantana was the 2016 winner in the smaller towns category. Photo provided