By Sallie James

Boca Raton Regional Hospital has finally officially merged with Baptist Health
South Florida.
The official merger was announced on July 1, more than a year after Boca Regional began
discussions with Baptist in hopes of elevating the hospital’s position as an academic referral
center in South Florida.
It was the final step in growing up for a beloved community hospital born out of tragedy in 1967.
The poisoning deaths of two young children became the impetus for its funding. The town had
about 10,000 residents at that time and a devoted group of volunteers with a mission.
The new partnership ensures both not-for-profit organizations will continue to meet their mutual
missions and commitments to elevate health care within the communities they serve in an area
that reaches across four South Florida counties.
“Our organizations share the same calling to improve the health and well-being of individuals
and deliver compassionate healthcare to our patients at the highest standards of excellence and
safety. We foresee an exciting future at Boca Regional Hospital that will cement its title as the
preeminent healthcare provider in the community,” said Brian E. Keeley, president and CEO at
Baptist Health.

By Jane Smith

Delray Beach commissioners agreed to add four firefighter/paramedics when approving a $1.95 million mid-year budget amendment on June 18.
The four firefighter/paramedics will cost $160,000, said Laura Thezine, acting finance director. The amount covers the entire cost of the firefighters for the rest of the budget year that ends Sept. 30, according to Kevin Saxton, Fire Rescue spokesman.
Adding the positions fulfills the previous commission’s promise to add 12 firefighter/paramedic jobs that had been cut from the budget during the recession.
During budget hearings last year, Commissioner Ryan Boylston insisted that the commission make good on the promise and fill the final four positions.
“Back in 2016 and 2017, the fire department was running constantly from one overdose to another,” Mayor Shelly Petrolia said after the June 18 commission meeting. In mid-2017, Delray Beach turned the corner and began responding to fewer fatal overdoses. The drop was attributed to local and county efforts.
The city’s new law regulating sober homes went into effect in July 2017. That’s when the city began requiring sober homes and other group homes to apply annually for a reasonable accommodation and limited the distance between two new group homes. The city also required the sober homes to become certified.
In addition, the Delray Beach Police Department hired a special populations advocate who works with drug abusers to help them find treatment locally or send them home.
At the same time, the Palm Beach County State Attorney’s Sober Homes Task Force began arresting rogue treatment center operators and moving to strengthen state laws.
That’s why at the start of the city’s financial year last October, Petrolia wanted to hold off on hiring the firefighter/paramedics and spend the money elsewhere. She suggested waiting until the mid-year budget amendment when the city often has a surplus.
The bulk of the money for the $1.95 million budget amendment would come from three sources: $795,000 in increased property tax revenues, $539,000 reimbursed from the county school district and $400,000 in investment interest income. No money would need to come from the city’s reserve funds.
The money reimbursed by the school district was for providing city police officers in the local schools. The reimbursable amount was budgeted to make sure expenses matched revenues, Thezine said.
In addition, about $900,000 was budgeted to fulfill the city’s obligation under its tennis tournament contract. The amount had not been previously budgeted, even though commissioners had asked the previous city manager to do it.
The budget amendment also covers $87,500 to help cover the cost for instructors who provide paid lessons to tennis center members, $72,421 in unanticipated retirement pay for firefighters, $111,612 for additional repairs and maintenance by Public Works, and $74,975 for new computers and equipment at the Emergency Operations Center.
Commissioners passed the budget amendment 4-0. Boylston was on vacation and could not be reached electronically to attend the meeting.
Delray Beach will set a tentative tax rate at its July 9 City Commission meeting. At the Aug. 13 workshop, commissioners will discuss the city’s budget.

In other news, Delray Beach reached an agreement on June 14 with India Adams, a former assistant city manager who was fired March 6. She will receive a gross sum of $9,459.52 to cover 50 percent of her unused sick leave and 100 percent of her unused vacation days.
In exchange, Adams agreed to not make disparaging comments about the city, its staff or elected leaders. She will not release any confidential information she has about the city and will alert the city if she receives a subpoena about her Delray Beach position.
In turn, the city will not contest any unemployment compensation claims that Adams may make. Ú

By Dan Moffett 

 After running its own police department for more than a half-century, the town of South Palm Beach has decided to join forces with the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office.
 The Town Council voted 4-1 on June 18 to approve a draft contract for services with the sheriff that would begin on Oct. 1 and run for 10 years. Councilwoman Stella Gaddy Jordan voted against the merger agreement, saying she wanted to see the final version of the contract before considering approval.
 “I just hope everybody is happy with us moving forward in this town,” said Mayor Bonnie Fischer. “It was a big step but I think it’s going to be good.”
 Interim Town Manager Robert Kellogg told the council the deal could save the town as much as $1 million over the first five years of the contract. The terms call for the town paying the Sheriff’s Office $1.05 million for the first year, with 2 percent increases the following two years. The agreement sets a 5 percent limit on increases for the last seven years.
 Council members credited Kellogg and Town Attorney Glen Torcivia, who oversaw Lake Worth Beach’s switch to the Sheriff’s Office a decade ago, with negotiating the 10-year commitment, an unusually long term for interlocal law enforcement agreements.
 For Sheriff Ric Bradshaw, taking over South Palm Beach is a significant inroad into the county’s barrier islands. The sheriff has service contracts with 10 other municipalities, and one in the works with the newly formed Westlake community, but currently has only a limited presence along the coast.
 The preliminary deal, which requires final approval from the council likely at the July 23 town meeting, would cut South Palm Beach’s department from eight uniformed officers to seven deputies. Police Chief Mark Garrison would stay on as a sheriff’s sergeant with administrative duties, and six of the town’s officers would be considered for the remaining positions in the restructured force.
 “You’ll see the same people here,” sheriff’s Col. Tony Araujo said during a 90-minute presentation to the council. “They’ll just be wearing green uniforms instead of blue. The town doesn’t lose its identity.”

Capt. David Moss of the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office introduces representatives of the agency at a June 18 workshop meeting in South Palm Beach. Mary Kate Leming/The Coastal Star

 The draft contract does not specify which officers would be retained in the town and which might be reassigned, however. Officers would have to satisfy PBSO standards to make the transition and remain in uniform.
 Compensation for the town’s officers became an issue earlier this year with the release of an analysis of starting police salaries that showed South Palm ranked last among 23 agencies surveyed in the county. Starting pay with the sheriff is about $54,200 a year, compared with the town’s current $43,500. Officers also cited the opportunity for advancement in an agency with some 4,300 full-time employees as well as better benefits as reasons for switching.
  “Every officer here is in favor of this,” said Councilman Mark Weissman. “It would be fiscally irresponsible for the town not to do this.”
The difference in pay scales makes it easy to understand why South Palm Beach officers wanted to become deputies. Kellogg said the preliminary agreement calls for the sheriff to accept a year-for-year transfer of officers’ experience. An officer with 15 years’ experience in the town, for example, could be credited with 15 years’ experience with the sheriff.
For 18-year veteran Garrison, the move from chief to sheriff’s sergeant could mean a pay increase of some $30,000 to perhaps $115,000 per year. Experienced deputies earn $90,000 or more, meaning several of the town’s officers could receive raises of $20,000 or more.
 Weissman, who joined the council in March, championed the sheriff’s deal. Two decades ago when he was a city commissioner in Parkland, he persuaded the community to merge its department with the Broward County sheriff’s.
 Councilman Bill LeRoy also was an outspoken supporter of the move.
 “You don’t take care of your people, you’re going to lose them,” LeRoy said, “They came to us and this is what they want.”
 Weissman and LeRoy also made the case that merging with the sheriff would limit the town’s liability issues. The size of the agency and its budget safeguard South Palm from possible legal issues if something goes wrong.
 “This is a no-brainer,” LeRoy said. “It’s definitely the way to go.”

Who says it doesn’t snow in June? At South Palm Beach’s June 18 workshop meeting, I watched a town get snowed under so deep that resident “snowbirds” will see Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office cars and uniforms patrolling their 5/8ths of a mile stretch of A1A when they return next winter — and for the next 10 years.
The “this isn’t a sales pitch” sales pitch from PBSO created a paralyzing white-out for both residents and the Town Council. How could anyone shovel against the desires of their beloved police officers, the dazzling benefits of PBSO and potential budget savings? The drifts were so high that no one asked hard questions, and by the end of the evening even anti-big-government residents were embracing big government.
It’s possible council members asked difficult questions while touring PBSO’s state-of-the-art communications center earlier in the month. But, at the June workshop no one questioned the impassioned pleas of South Palm Beach officers for the better pay and benefits package it seems only PBSO can offer. No one asked the officers why they hadn’t already interviewed and been hired by PBSO if these were their dream jobs.
With so many officers added for school district security since the Parkland murders, there’s no shortage of law enforcement jobs in the area — but these are competitive.
The promise of “the same officers just in different uniforms” may fall apart once all officers are required to meet PBSO hiring standards for road patrol positions. Time will tell.
At the workshop, the blizzard conditions increased with the razzle-dazzle of all the amazing resources the PBSO has to offer.
Has no one paid attention to their county tax bill? Forty-seven percent of the county’s general fund budget goes to the sheriff’s office. It’s a number that seems to increase each year as the PBSO absorbs more police departments.
Taxpayers in South Palm Beach are already paying for homicide investigators, marine patrols and helicopters. The PBSO has always responded when needed in South Palm Beach. The investigation into the fatal car accident on A1A in January is in the hands of PBSO’s traffic homicide division. If you haven’t seen a marine patrol boat lately it’s likely because PBSO moved its marine patrol headquarters out of the Boynton Inlet several years ago. But if a boat filled with drugs or refugees washes up, trust me, marine patrol will arrive and there will be helicopters.
PBSO deputies are some of the very best and I have no doubt that every officer working in South Palm Beach will continue to protect and serve. But when the majority of a town’s personnel are assigned to an outside agency, it’s hard to imagine there won’t be an erosion of home rule. If a town’s law enforcement team no longer needs to ask management and elected officials for resources each budget season and no longer needs to stay in their good graces to remain employed, you’ve simply traded home rule for a big contract with an outside agency — one with its own rules, procedures and hiring and firing protocols. The days of council members having their favorite sources within the Police Department will end when it’s the sheriff who is providing their salaries, equipment and benefits.
Each of our coastal municipalities is facing budget concerns about liability insurance costs, pension plan expenditures and ongoing maintenance of equipment. But with home sales back at pre-bust highs, and new construction and tax revenues on the rise, let’s hope these other cities and towns are able to push back against any unexpected snowstorms for a very long time.

— Mary Kate Leming, Editor

By Dan Moffett

The full cost of Manalapan’s plan to dramatically expand its Police Department is reflected in a proposed total budget for 2019-20 that has grown about 37 percent over the last two years.
During a workshop on June 26, Town Manager Linda Stumpf told commissioners the proposed budget of $5.5 million is up $319,797 over last year, with most of the increase ($214,243) because of an upgrade to the police pension plan.
After a series of car thefts late in 2017, the Town Commission approved an ambitious plan to create four new police positions, add private security guards, certify a marine unit and improve the department’s technology.
Today Manalapan has 15 sworn officers, two of them part-time, and deploys three patrol cars on the streets at all times. The town has a new license plate recognition camera system, new dispatch center and private security guards assigned to the Point Manalapan gatehouse.
The town’s budget for police salaries has grown 80 percent over the last five years — from about $521,000 in 2015 to a proposed $941,000 — driven in part by increasingly competitive officer recruitment in South Florida.
The total proposed cost of policing the town is $2.58 million, up from $1.4 million five years ago.
Stumpf told the commission that maintaining last year’s tax rate would create a $263,350 budget shortfall, even with an expected 2 percent rise in assessed property values. But with the town having $2.5 million in uncommitted reserves, one of the highest per capita tax bases in Florida and one of the county’s lowest tax rates, covering that deficit isn’t a problem.
“I’d like for us not to raise the millage rate,” said Mayor Keith Waters.
Commissioners agreed, and gave tentative approval to last year’s millage rate of $3.03 per $1,000 of taxable property value, slightly above the rollback rate of $3.02 that would hold year-over-year revenues flat.
Stumpf is recommending a 4 percent raise for police officers and town employees. Manalapan will pay Miami-based SPERE Security $213,000 to station guards at the Point’s gatehouse in the next year.
Another increase in the proposed budget comes from Palm Beach County Fire Rescue. The cost of service for the town is up about $66,000 to $1.25 million.
In other business:
• During the regular monthly meeting on June 25, commissioners gave final approval to a zoning ordinance that changes the building rules for seven lots at the town’s southernmost entrance.
The ordinance essentially flips the current housing pattern and allows primary residences to be built on the ocean side of State Road A1A. Palm Beach developer Jeff Greene owns three of the lots and wants to build houses on the east side of the road.
• The commission is also moving forward with zoning changes for the Plaza del Mar commercial district. The commission’s consensus is to prohibit convenience stores, vape shops, tobacco shops and drive-thrus. The town would place restrictions on medical marijuana dispensaries but, because of state law, cannot prohibit them.
Waters said he hopes to have the changes in place by the end of the summer. “I don’t want to drag this out more than it needs to be,” he said.

As Palm Beach County public schools break for the summer, it’s important to remember that not every student looks forward to days away from school. In fact, one in four children doesn’t know where they will get their next meal.
Palm Beach County is the 10th-largest school district in the country, and more than 60 percent of our students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch.  For many, breakfast and lunch at school may be the only meals they eat. 
In 2018, Palm Beach County Food Bank served more than 3,600 children with our Food4OurKids program. Year-round, we fill nutritional gaps that children face during school vacations and weekends. As many of us schedule activities during the summer, please remember that hunger is a year-round problem. Your continued support of Palm Beach County Food Bank is greatly needed and always appreciated.
For more information, please visit www.pbcfoodbank.org.

Marti LaTour, Board Chair,
Palm Beach County Food Bank

In April, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis announced $26 million in additional federal funding for Florida’s State Opioid Response Project. The project aims to reduce opioid deaths, prevent opioid abuse among youth, and increase recovery services and access to treatment.
That last part needs to be a top priority of the project. Recovery services and access to quality care — specifically, equitable access to care — needs to become a hallmark of every comprehensive opioid response program, so that those who have overdosed don’t experience a revolving door from ambulance to emergency room and back to the street. America has the best substance abuse treatment in the world, but it is strongly correlated to socioeconomic status. Doctors, judges, lawyers, pilots, nurses and numerous other professionals all have access to resources that allow for treatment plus continuing follow-up care to prevent relapse. But when it comes to those with less money or fewer professional resources, our system defaults to bury people in prison, or directly in the ground.
If we want to see systemic change, we need our hospitals’ leadership to empower our medical professionals with “warm handoff” programs. We achieved this before in mental health, and we can do it again with substance use disorders. If a patient shows up with self-inflicted cuts, he or she will go from the ER to a follow-up system that includes 72 hours of safe, supportive services, a lethality assessment with medical professionals, and referral to appropriate care.
The American Medical Association has classified substance use disorder as a disease for over half a century. And yet somehow, even with tens of thousands of cases over the last decade of overdose victims being expeditiously discharged from emergency rooms, only to often turn up dead a short while later, we still don’t classify medically dying and being resurrected with lifesaving medication, like naloxone, as “self-harm.” Until we classify killing oneself via overdose — even with reversal — as self-harm, we’re going to see our death toll, already at more than 70,000 Americans per year, continue to rise.
Probably the single most important step toward saving lives on the front lines is seeding hospital systems’ boards of directors and trustees with individuals who have a comprehensive knowledge of substance use disorders and mental health concerns. Boards with this knowledge can advocate for systemic protocols that allow for effective warm handoff to treatment.
The EMS first responders know the current system is broken. So do the doctors, nurses and the families who end up burying those same patients. Hospital systems are a critical stakeholder in addressing the leading cause of death for Americans under age 55. It’s unconscionable that we haven’t addressed this glaring systemic deficiency in a meaningful way by 2019.
Andrew Burki,
Chief Public Policy Officer,
Hanley Foundation

A prefabricated four-story wall is lifted into place at the site of the old community center, across from the restored high school (far left) and Schoolhouse Children’s Museum. Tim Stepien/The Coastal Star

By Jane Smith

After 20 years of talking and planning, another three hours of delays seemed appropriate as residents waited to watch the first City Center wall go up in the Town Square project that officials hope will create a downtown for Boynton Beach.
“It’s like waiting for Christmas,” said Allan Hendricks, a landscape architect who lives in Boynton Beach. He was waiting for the 330-ton crane to slog across the muddy field on a rainy mid-June morning.
Thuy Shutt, assistant director of the Boynton Beach Community Redevelopment Agency, amazed a small group with her knowledge of concrete and how prefabricated walls can make the building process go quickly. She’s an architect by training.
“Everyone in my office asked where I was going,” Shutt said as she rushed out the door for the wall-raising. She was dressed for the rainy weather in black rubber boots.
Boynton Beach’s elected leaders and city officials have talked about needing a city center, an official downtown, for about 20 years. Without a downtown plan and incentives, developers went to the Congress Avenue corridor for housing and retail opportunities.
The “Tilt Wall” event was promoted on social media and drew a small crowd of adults and children.
City and CRA staff attended, including the city manager, library director, public art manager, recreation and parks director and development director. The mayor and two city commissioners were there, along with a past mayor and his wife.
“What you’ll see today,” said Colin Groff, assistant city manager in charge of the Town Square project, “are four-story interior walls being raised. Then, the two-story exterior walls will be raised.”
They are put together like Tinkertoys, he said.
The crane was able to raise an 82-ton, four-story wall by using four long cables that were attached at eight lift points.
The City Center will house the Boynton Beach government offices and the city library in a four-story building with 110,000 square feet.
The building is part of the $250 million Town Square project, a public-private partnership between Boynton Beach and E2L Real Estate Solutions. The city’s estimated share is $118 million. The 16-acre area is bordered by Boynton Beach Boulevard on the north and Southeast Second Avenue on the south.
The City Center will be finished in May 2020, Groff said.
The renovation of the historic high school will be done in October. Its deadline was pushed back so that it won’t open before it can be used for arts and cultural classes and banquets. Right now, the area has limited parking until a six-story garage can be built just south of the City Center.

ABOVE: A chick pleads with an adult for food. BELOW: A few minutes later, its wish was granted. Photos by Jerry Lower/The Coastal Star

By Rich Pollack

The least tern, a migratory bird threatened with a loss of natural beach habitat, appears to be making a comeback in Boca Raton.
This year, for the first time in many seasons, wildlife biologists have spotted at least six tern chicks on Boca Raton’s beach and are optimistic about the future of the local least tern beach colony, one of only two in South Florida.
"This is a big deal because the least tern is a state threatened species," said Natasha Warraich, assistant regional biologist with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, who has been monitoring the colony. "It’s exciting that their eggs are actually hatching."
Two years ago, wildlife biologists spotted a nesting pair of least terns with eggs, but those eggs did not hatch. Warraich said that this year the colony has grown to about 20 pairs and that could mean additional chicks.
Survival of the chicks — which still face the threat of predation — could eventually lead to a strengthening of the colony, which appears to migrate to the same beach area in Boca Raton from its winter grounds in Central America.

By Dan Moffett

Years of neglected infrastructure maintenance have left Ocean Ridge with a hole in its budget that town commissioners will have to reach deep to fill.
“I’m the bearer of bad news,” acting Town Manager Tracey Stevens told the commission during a May budget workshop. “Your capital expenditures are going way up this year due to the infrastructure needs.”
The good news for Ocean Ridge is that it has a healthy reserve fund and a growing tax base to soften the blow. Property values in the town rose about 6 percent in the last year to an estimated $1 billion, according to the Palm Beach County Property Appraiser’s Office, driving up tax revenues.
Commissioners are hoping to hold the current tax rate of $5.35 per $1,000 of taxable property value despite the rising costs and major capital projects in the $8.1 million 2019-2020 budget.
Expenditures overall are up 14.66 percent and the town is facing a deficit of about $510,000, most of it going to cover the needed infrastructure repairs and upgrades for fire hydrants, water lines and storm drains.
“We have two choices,” says Mayor Steve Coz, “raise taxes or tap into reserves. Or we could do a combination of both.”
Ocean Ridge has about $4.8 million in unassigned reserves on hand, or roughly 67 percent of the annual general fund expenditures. Town auditors have told commissioners 45 percent is considered satisfactory, and even after tapping into the reserves, about 48 percent of annual expenditures will remain. So the reservoir of ready cash should be large enough to handle emergencies.
Recapturing the police contract with Briny Breezes could bring in an additional $180,000 in revenues. Ocean Ridge held the contract until losing it to Boynton Beach three years ago. Police Chief Hal Hutchins said he hopes to have a decision from Briny by Aug. 1.
The commission denied Hutchins’ request to spend $20,000 on body cameras. Three commissioners — Coz, Vice Mayor Don MaGruder and Phil Besler — said they were opposed to the idea philosophically, and the tough budget year was no time to reconsider.
The commission also persuaded Hutchins to wait a year before buying a new $48,000 vehicle for the department.
Results of a salary survey found that some of the town’s top employees were underpaid compared with those in surrounding municipalities.
Commissioners approved a total of about $13,000 to boost the salaries and benefits of two police lieutenants. Hutchins also got a roughly $16,000 boost to $120,000 per year.
The commission agreed in principal to make permanent the promotions of Stevens, the former town clerk, to manager and Karla Armstrong to the clerk position. Both have received high praise from commissioners. Stevens will get a $27,000 raise to about $102,000 and Armstrong will go up $15,000 to $60,000.
Still, the town will save about $40,000 between the two positions compared with salaries in the survey.
“All I’m trying to do is save money,” Coz said, saying the pay was appropriate for two relatively inexperienced employees. “I think it’s fair for people who have days on the job, not years.”
MaGruder and Commissioners Kristine de Haseth and Susan Hurlburt supported spending $23,000 to participate in a regional study of the long-term effects of sea rise on the town.
Residents also should expect their solid waste and recycling fees to go up by a modest amount in the next fiscal year.
The commission plans to formally set a maximum proposed tax rate at its next budget workshop on July 15 beginning at 5 p.m.

By Dan Moffett

Ocean Ridge has taken the first small steps in what figures to be a very long journey to replace the town’s septic tanks with a municipal sewer system.
During their regular meeting on July 1, town commissioners unanimously approved hiring Raftelis Financial Consultants from the Orlando area to assess the costs and financing options for the conversion.
Raftelis, the only bidder for the assignment, has municipal clients across the country but recent work in Monroe County is particularly relevant. Company Vice President Tony Hairston told the commission his firm had helped in the conversion of tens of thousands of septic tanks in the Florida Keys, including those in Islamorada, Key Largo and Marathon.
Hairston estimated roughly $45,000 in initial costs to help Ocean Ridge develop a business plan for the multimillion-dollar, multiyear project. Raftelis consultants will charge the town $192 per hour.
Also, the commission has completed appointments to the newly created citizens advisory committee on septic to sewer conversion. The members are Roy Schijns, Ron Kirn, John Lipscomb, Arthur Ziev and Neil Hennigan. The committee and the consultants will hold their first meeting on July 15 beginning at 10 a.m. in Town Hall. Representatives of Boynton Beach Utilities are also expected to attend and make a presentation.
Mayor Steve Coz and commissioners say they believe it’s inevitable that state officials eventually will make septic conversion mandatory.
In other business:
• Acting Town Manager Tracey Stevens told the commission that the Florida Department of Transportation has rejected the town’s request for a crosswalk on State Road A1A near the Crown Colony Club and Fayette Drive. Stevens said state officials believe results of a recent traffic study showed that the crosswalk wasn’t warranted.
• Commissioners unanimously approved spending $91,253 to repair a drainage outflow pipe on Spanish River Drive.
Town engineers believe the 12-inch pipe has collapsed and is contributing to continuing street flooding problems in the Inlet Cay neighborhood. Stevens told the commission that homeowners’ overgrown vegetation in the easements is impeding the progress of repairs on the island. She said the town has repeatedly requested cooperation from the residents.
“We will continue to explore our options,” Stevens said, “though they are limited without the necessary easements.”
• It doesn’t look like Ocean Ridge will be getting its own ZIP code anytime soon.
Coz had floated the idea earlier this year, and the commission asked former Commissioner Robert Sloat to investigate how the town might pursue it.
“It’s a long, arduous process to get our own ZIP code,” Sloat told the commission during its June 3 meeting.
He said the federal government would require the town to survey residents to find out if they want it, and help from the South Florida congressional delegation might be needed for the effort to move forward. The town also likely would be responsible for coming up with its own post office, delivery truck and postmaster.
Sloat said, based on his research, the impact on insurance rates would be negligible, however.
The greatest barrier to getting a distinct postal code probably would be size. The U.S. Postal Service typically gives ZIP codes to cities and towns with populations between 10,000 and 25,000. The population of Ocean Ridge is about 1,900.
“It sounds like it’s running into a stone wall,” Coz said.

By Steve Plunkett

Town commissioners rejected an appeal by resident Martin O’Boyle to let him build a “promenade” 30 to 36 inches higher than his sea wall and extending 12 feet into the canal behind his yard, unanimously agreeing that the structure should comply with the building code for docks.
At the outset of a June 14 hearing by commissioners sitting as Gulf Stream’s Board of Adjustment, O’Boyle attorney Scott Weires challenged Town Manager Greg Dunham over the definitions of “dock” and “promenade.”
“You believe that that [promenade] is still similar to a dock for some reason. You’re indicating that it looks like a dock and that’s why you believe the promenade section should also be defined as a dock?” Weires asked.
“That’s correct. It is possible that a boat could dock there,” Dunham said.
O’Boyle began applying “informally and formally” for a permit to build over the water in April 2017, Dunham told commissioners. Previous applications referred to the proposed structure as a “dock,” but the most recent one, dated March 11, 2019, elevated it over the sea wall and called it a “promenade” with “no boat docking.” A small section at the eastern end was 5 feet wide and labeled “boat dock.”
“We really wanted to expand the backyard,” O’Boyle’s architect, Robert Currie of Delray Beach, told commissioners.
Weires argued during the almost three-hour hearing that the town code does not define “promenade” or prohibit building one.
“We have constitutional protections to do what we want with our property subject to reasonable zoning regulations,” Weires said. “So I can build it unless you specifically tell me that what I want to build is caught within the definition that prohibits what it is that I want to build.”
Part of O’Boyle’s reasoning that he could build the structure was based on a 2013 dispute he had with the Board of Adjustment over a front entry feature he planned for his house, at 23 Hidden Harbour Drive. After he was denied a building permit, he filed approximately 400 requests for public records and 16 lawsuits against the town in a six-month period. He also painted signs and cartoons on his house criticizing town officials.
In July 2013 the town and O’Boyle settled their differences over the entryway and records requests up until that time, with Gulf Stream agreeing to pay its litigious resident $180,000 for his legal costs and O’Boyle withdrawing his lawsuits. Both sides also promised to reach a development agreement granting permission for the home’s 25-foot-tall front entry.
O’Boyle contended he could construct a promenade because the settlement agreement references the town code as it was in 1981, the year he built his home and before Gulf Stream made rules for docks.
But the town said the agreement applied only to a “building envelope” defined as the area “between the Intracoastal Waterway, the private roads, and the common property line to the west.”
The settlement “does not apply to structures in the water,” Town Clerk Rita Taylor wrote O’Boyle in March, denying his application because the proposed dock was wider than 5 feet and lacked setbacks from neighboring properties.
In other business:
• Dunham said about two dozen homeowners still have stakes to keep traffic off their yards after Mayor Scott Morgan sent a letter asking residents to remove them. Dunham said he would send a follow-up letter seeking compliance.
• Commissioners awarded an $8,450 contract to low bidder C Knowles Construction to make repairs inside the Place Au Soleil gatehouse following mold remediation.
• The next Town Commission meeting will be July 9, a Tuesday, instead of the usual second Friday of the month. Commissioners will discuss the town’s proposed budget for 2019-20.

By Dan Moffett

Two very familiar suitors have come forward and offered to provide police services to the town of Briny Breezes for the next three years.
One is Boynton Beach, the holder of Briny’s current police contract, which expires on Sept. 30. The other is Ocean Ridge, which policed the town for some 30 years before raising its price and losing the contract to Boynton Beach in 2016.
The proposal Briny’s next-door neighbor submitted to the Town Council suggests it is firmly committed to winning back the lost contract. Ocean Ridge proposes charging Briny $180,000 for the first year of a three-year deal, with subsequent annual 3 percent increases.
That number is significantly below the roughly $219,000 the town is paying Boynton Beach this year, and lower than the $215,690 Boynton says it wants to renew the existing agreement. Briny council members will get the chance to hear the details of both proposals during a special workshop scheduled for Aug. 1. Boynton Beach will make a one-hour presentation on its plan beginning at 3 p.m. in Town Hall, immediately followed by a one-hour presentation from Ocean Ridge.
Besides cost, enforcement issues are likely to come up during the workshop. Alderwoman Christina Adams has complained about how police have handled recent trespassing violations and parking offenses.

In other business:
• Council members assigned Town Manager Dale Sugerman and Town Attorney Keith Davis the task of working out details of a new building permit process with Briny’s corporation.
In May, Alderwoman Kathy Gross proposed allowing the corporation to deal directly with building contractors and the town’s building official when residents apply for permits. The idea is to streamline the process and reduce the workload of town staff.
Corporate officials have been open to the plan but want more details. Sugerman and Davis said they would draft a proposed agreement outlining the process and bring it for consideration at the next meeting on July 25.
The vote to advance the proposal was 3-1, with council President Sue Thaler dissenting and Alderman Chick Behringer absent.
• Ownership of Briny Breezes Boulevard continues to be a nagging issue. Sugerman said Palm Beach County officials have told him the 30-foot-wide right of way belongs to the town and the county claims no ownership. However, developers of the Gulf Stream Views townhouse project in the County Pocket maintain their northern property line runs 4 feet into the current paved road.
Sugerman and Davis said they would research property records to try to confirm ownership and the precise location of the right of way. The manager said it may be necessary for the town to hire a surveyor to resolve the issue.
• During a budget workshop before the June 27 meeting, Sugerman told the council he recommends holding the tax rate at the statutory maximum of $10 per $1,000 of taxable value for the next fiscal year. Briny has maintained that maximum rate since 2009.
The Palm Beach County Property Appraiser’s Office brought good news: Briny’s property values have risen 8.8 percent over the last year, to about $53.8 million. The office said it was the seventh-highest increase among the county’s 39 municipalities.
Property tax revenues figure to rise with the valuation to about $510,300, up from $470,200.
Higher interest returns on reserves, lower legal fees and potential savings on a new police contract are other positives for the next budget year. Sugerman proposes spending $10,000 to replace aging chairs and desks in Town Hall.
The council will hold its next budget workshop at 3 p.m. July 25, immediately before the regular town meeting.

ABOVE: Project engineer Michael LaCoursiere uses renderings and photos as he explains Gulf Stream Views to Briny Breezes and Pocket residents. BELOW: Pocket resident Marie Chapman expresses frustration with flooding in her neighborhood. She said it wasn’t a problem until construction started. LaCoursiere said the area needs a new drainage system. Photos by Jerry Lower/The Coastal Star

Related Story: Zoning board unanimously OKs swimming pools for townhouse project

By Dan Moffett

Developers of the Gulf Stream Views townhouse project say they are running out of ideas for allaying the flooding concerns expressed by neighboring residents in Briny Breezes and the County Pocket.
“I don’t know what else we can do,” Michael LaCoursiere, the project engineer, told a group of several dozen homeowners during an often contentious meeting June 17 at the Delray Beach Marriott.
LaCoursiere said the old neighborhoods in Briny and the Pocket need a drainage infrastructure overhaul that is beyond the scope of what New Jersey-based NR Living can offer.
“A major community-wide project is what your community needs,” he said. “They’re doing what they can as developers.”
LaCoursiere said the project is being built to retain on-site the rainwater of a 100-year storm, beyond the permitting standard of a 25-year storm. The developers say they have complied with every requirement Palm Beach County, FEMA and state officials have made.
Marie Chapman, who lives on Winthrop Lane in the Pocket, said she believes the project already has caused drainage problems. Recent heavy rains backed up sewers, she said, and left “shin-deep water” in her yard. Her neighbors echoed similar complaints.
“My house is 80 years old and it never flooded before you guys started construction,” Chapman told the developers. “And we’re just into hurricane season. I’m not sure you’re aware of why we’re so angry.”
Residents say that for decades the dormant 2-acre project site served as a drain field for runoff from Briny Breezes and the Pocket. That ended when construction began.
Chapman said the standing rain water and subsequent sewer problems are raising health issues. “You guys have had a huge impact on our day-to-day lives,” she said.
Kristine de Haseth, executive director of the Florida Coalition for Preservation, said homeowners have had to hire a lawyer and engineer in an effort to protect their property rights.
“These folks are flooding,” de Haseth said. “They’re digging into their pockets to solve a problem they didn’t create.”
Glenn La Mattina, NR Living senior vice president, said developers are willing to consider possible solutions from residents. “We are open to suggestions,” La Mattina said.
LaCoursiere said the developers have cleaned out existing catchment drains outside the site and are considering installing trench drains on the Seaview Avenue swales.
“That’s not a real significant thing,” LaCoursiere said, “but I imagine that in your eyes any drop of water that we save from going down that hill is a benefit to everybody out there.”
La Mattina said developers would back off plans to remove invasive plant species from the sea grapes along the oceanfront after hearing residents complain about potential damage to the dunes.
NR Living organized the meeting to inform residents that the developers would seek a variance from the county to allow construction of 14 7-by-14-foot plunge pools, one behind each unit along the southern and northern property lines. The county’s Planning & Zoning Commission scheduled a hearing on the request for July 3.
Bradley Miller of Boynton Beach, the project’s planner, said developers are asking county building officials to loosen swimming pool setback requirements. If the county rejects the request, Miller said developers will install patios instead.
Developers say the pools were added to the plan as an amenity that would enhance marketing to high-end buyers. Pre-construction prices for the three-bedroom units range from $1.8 million to $2.7 million. The project is scheduled for completion early next year.

Briny Breezes park manager Donna Coates jokes with World War II veterans Ed Manley (left) and Peter Bialowas during a Flag Day event on June 14. When asked whether they would serve again if duty called, Bialowas was quick to answer that he would. Always the joker, Manley said that ‘considering the shot I took to the tush, I would have rather spent my younger days dancing.’ Dozens of residents gathered at the Memorial Fountain for ceremonies that included the unveiling of pavers in the veterans’ honor. Jerry Lower/The Coastal Star

Construction of the Ray, a 141-room hotel in Delray Beach, is expected to begin later this summer. Rendering provided

By Christine Davis

Delray Beach-based Menin Development landed a $72 million loan to finance construction of the Ray, a 141-room hotel planned in the Pineapple Grove Arts District at 201 NE Second Ave., according to a June 6 Commercial Observer report. Madison Realty Capital provided the 24-month construction loan with extension options.
The Ray will have a rooftop pool and bar, event space and two restaurants. Menin Development purchased the site for $26.6 million in 2016. Ground was broken on June 12. Construction will begin later this summer and is expected to be completed May 2021.

Ground will be broken for Delray Beach Market, 33 SE Third Ave., another Menin Development project, later this summer.  Touted as “Florida’s largest food hall,” with 60,000 square feet housing 35 curated vendors, the market is set for a grand opening in fall 2020.

Boca Raton’s Mizner Park, which was built by Tom Crocker and opened in 1991, is undergoing a renaissance with an influx of new restaurants, bars and entertainment venues. Among the new tenants signed or in the works are the Lost Weekend bar, Calaveras Cantina Mexican restaurant and bar, Bluefish sushi and Japanese restaurant, and Strike 10 bowling alley.
“The ownership of Mizner Park changed hands,” explained Andrea O’Rourke, City Council member and Community Redevelopment Agency chair. “It was owned by GGP Inc. and bought out by Brookfield (almost a year ago). There was a bit of a standstill because of the sale of the property.”
In addition to new venues, changes are underway at others. Atlas Restaurant Group’s Ouzo Bay restaurant closed the week of June 24 and will move to Miami, while the company’s Loch Bar will remain open at Mizner Park. And Max’s Grille, which opened almost 30 years ago, will stay open while undergoing upgrades to be completed in September.
“There had been two partners and Burt Rapoport bought out Dennis Max,” O’Rourke said.
That transaction happened about a year ago.
What will happen to Lord + Taylor is still a question. Last year, the company said it was considering strategic alternatives and planned to close up to 10 stores in 2019, and in May 2019, Hudson’s Bay announced it was considering selling the Lord + Taylor brand. So far, three stores have been closed, and, announced in June, another two will close this fall.

The nationally historic Gulfstream Hotel is on market for an undisclosed price.
CBRE Group in Miami began marketing the 106-room hotel and nearby vacant parcels in mid-June, said Natalie Castillo, CBRE first vice president.
“We will be bringing highly qualified developers/hoteliers to evaluate this exceptional property at the heart of Lake Worth Beach,” Castillo said.
The six-story hotel sits on .54 of an acre, and 1.12 acres to the west are included.
The properties last sold in May 2014 for $7.23 million to a partnership of Hudson Holdings of Delray Beach and CDS Holdings of Boca Raton. After lawsuits were filed between the partners in early 2018, CDS retained ownership of the hotel. Real estate investor Carl DeSantis is a principal of CDS Holdings.

Rochelle LeCavalier is the new head for sales of the Residences at Mandarin Oriental, Boca Raton, for Penn-Florida Companies. LeCavalier joined Douglas Elliman in 2018 when the brokerage acquired her company, Pink Palm Properties. The 92-unit Mandarin, at 105 East Camino Real, is expected to open in 2021, a year after the hotel is completed.

Regent Holding LLC, managed by Leo Ghitis, sold a pair of office buildings at 902 Clint Moore Road, Boca Raton, to Congress Corporate Plaza II LLC, managed by Sergio Fernandez and Paul Berkowitz. The $21.2 million deal, recorded on May 29, included the assumption of a $10.48 million mortgage from Fidelity & Guaranty Life Insurance Co. The property was formerly acquired in September 1992 for $3.45 million. 

Toby & Leon Cooperman Sinai Residences, a Boca Raton retirement community at 21036 95th Ave. S., plans a $160-million expansion and redevelopment, to break ground next year and expected to be completed by fall 2022. The plan includes the addition of 111 independent-living apartments, as well as updates to existing amenities.

Kim and Stephen Bruno bought 1160 Royal Palm Way in Boca Raton from G. Robert Sheetz for $12.603 million, according to public records dated June 12. Sheetz bought the property, .36 of an acre with 109 feet of water frontage, in 2017 for $4.625 million, and built a new 12,539-square-foot home. The builder was Wietsma & Lippolis Construction.
David W. Roberts of Royal Palm Properties was the listing agent, and Kenneth Beckett of Beckett Realty Advisors, LLC represented the buyers. Sheetz is a co-owner of the Sheetz convenience store chain with more than 500 locations in Maryland, Pennsylvania, Virginia, West Virginia, Ohio and North Carolina.

David J. Stern sold the 5,275-square-foot home at 925 Hillsboro Mile in Hillsboro Beach for $7.5 million to Thomas O. Katz of Boca Raton, according to public records. Stern had paid $8 million for the home in 2008, according to records. Todd Kirkpatrick of Whitaker Real Estate represented the buyer. Michelle Howland of Compass represented the seller. Stern was disbarred by the Florida Supreme Court in 2014 for his Plantation-based firm’s alleged misconduct.

Douglas Elliman Real Estate reported on the growth of the Oceanfront International Group and its expansion into the Caribbean market. Led by broker Steve Davis, the Oceanfront International Group includes Jessica Robertson, Brent Robertson, Adam Greenfader and Victoria Brewer. In the past two years Oceanfront has grown a portfolio of global listings totaling nearly $400 million throughout Florida, Costa Rica, Dominica, Puerto Rico, the Bahamas, St. Barthélemy, St. Maarten and Turks & Caicos.

At Douglas Elliman in Boca Raton, Annette “Babe” DeLuca joined Tinka Ellington’s team. DeLuca is a teaching golf pro who spent 16 years playing on the LPGA tour. She was an all-state softball player and three-time state champion at Cardinal Newman High.
Shelley Nesbitt has also joined Douglas Elliman in the Boca Raton office. Nesbitt has more than 25 years’ experience in finance and real estate, having served as a vice president for the Royal Bank of Canada and as a senior vice president at HSBC Securities.

Lawrence Dahman, who previously owned Dahman Realty, joined One Sotheby’s International Realty in Boca Raton. Dahman spent 12 years as a Florida Association of Realtors state director and was recently awarded Realtor Emeritus status by the National Association of Realtors for his more than 40 years of participation and leadership. 

Mark R. Osherow, of Osherow PLLC Lawyers and Advisors in Boca Raton, was named for the 13th consecutive year to the Florida Super Lawyers in the area of business litigation. Super Lawyers is a rating service that uses independent research and peer evaluations in its selections.
Osherow is certified as a specialist in business litigation by the Florida Bar and can practice before all Florida, Connecticut, New York and New Jersey state courts. He is also admitted to practice before the U.S. District Courts for the Southern, Middle and Northern districts of Florida, as well as before several other federal trial courts. At the appellate level, Osherow is admitted to practice before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit and the U.S. Supreme Court.

Doreen Yaffa, managing partner of Yaffa & Associates, a Boca Raton marital and family law firm, was appointed to the board of the Faulk Center for Counseling. She mentors young attorneys and hosts her Yaffa Power Women series for businesswomen; she is co-chair of the local Alzheimer’s Association; and is involved with Impact 100 and the Jewish Community Center of Boca.

Anthony Bajak, chief operating officer of Good Samaritan Medical Center, joined the YMCA of the Palm Beaches board in May. He will work to create awareness and raise resources to advance the Y’s mission to promote youth development, healthy living, and social responsibility. 

George Gann, executive director and chief conservation strategist for the Institute for Regional Conservation in Delray Beach, was an instructor at two workshops at the Hudson River National Estuarine Research Reserve in Staatsburg, N.Y.  The one-day workshops introduced ecological restoration professionals to an approach based on the Society for Ecological Restoration’s International Standards for the Practice of Ecological Restoration, of which Gann is second author. 

Professional Bank has a new full-service branch at 980 N. Federal Highway in Boca Raton. Photo provided

Professional Bank has a new full-service branch in Boca Raton. The bank previously operated a loan production center in the city before opening the downtown branch. The new 2,500-square-foot branch is at 980 N. Federal Highway, Suite 100.

Crane’s Beach House in Delray Beach has received Trip Advisor’s Certificate of Excellence for five years in a row, meaning it has entered Trip Advisor’s Hall of Fame. To receive the certificate, a property must receive great reviews and its manager must demonstrate a responsive, customer-focused approach.

Five Star Senior Living Inc.’s Five Star Premier Residences of Boca Raton achieved the newly launched J.D. Power Senior Living Community Certification. To earn the designation, the community underwent an evaluation that included resident satisfaction surveys and on-site evaluations of operational best practices.

RailUSA, LLC, a Boca Raton-based independent freight railroad and rail services holding company, acquired a 430-mile rail line and related real estate from CSX Corporation in May. The line, now named Florida Gulf & Atlantic Railroad, operates from Baldwin to Pensacola, passing through Tallahassee, with a connection to Attapulgus, Ga. RailUSA is owned by Equity Group Investments, the private investment firm of Sam Zell; Boca Raton-based International Rail Partners, a group of veteran rail operators; and other Equity Group co-investors.

Two funders have helped start the South Florida Science Center and Aquarium program Pint Size Science: Growing up with STEAM. The goal is to implement science, technology, engineering, art and math learning into regular curriculums for kids ages 3-5.
Science Center educators will train staff from child-care centers throughout the year. The program will also give family members the chance to be involved through Family Fun Packs with a lunch kit, watercolor paint set, a magnifying glass, a collection box and play dough.
The Max M. and Marjorie S. Fisher Foundation gave $55,000 to fund the program in Palm Beach County. A.D. Henderson Foundation gave $50,000 to fund the program in Broward County. The funding will serve about 75 teachers and staff at 10 child-care centers in Palm Beach County. The Broward grant will reach 400 students and 100 teachers in that county. Palm Beach State College is a partner in this project. The South Florida Science Center and Aquarium is at 4801 Dreher Trail North, West Palm Beach.

The Young Entrepreneurs Academy, teaching students in grades 6-12 how to start and run their own businesses, is accepting applications for its 2019-20 program.
For information on the Greater Boca Raton Chamber’s YEA! class, contact Sherese James-Grow at 395-4433, ext. 232 or sjamesgrow@bocachamber.com.

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

Freebee, Delray Beach’s selected point-to-point transportation provider, plans to have vehicles that carry
advertising. Service is set to begin Sept. 3. Photo provided

By Jane Smith

Delray Beach is still waiting on the new vehicles it contracted for to replace the downtown trolley, and officials aren’t happy with some details of contract negotiations.
First Transit, the city’s fixed-route operator, has not yet ordered the new propane-powered vehicles, Community Redevelopment Agency board members learned at a June 11 workshop. The company is waiting until it has a signed contract with the city before ordering the vehicles, and that could be months away.
“It will take 14 days from when we sign the contract to get the new vehicles,” said Shannon Borst of First Transit, based in Cincinnati with local offices in Boynton Beach. The new mini-van vehicles will take between 120 to 160 days to have their engines changed from diesel power, Borst said.
First Transit will work with Freebee, the selected point-to-point operator, to use its smartphone app to allow riders to know where the minivan is and to find the nearest stop.
The CRA board members had talked about wanting wooden bench seats in the new vehicles like the old trolleys had to give visitors an old-time experience. But the white minivans already on the streets have individual bus seats and have replaced the trolleys, Borst said.
“We were underwhelmed,” Shelly Petrolia, CRA chairwoman and Delray Beach mayor, said after the workshop. “Why would we pay [more] for them if they are going to be exactly like what we have?”
The board members agreed to extend First Transit’s contract to operate two diesel minivans for another six months while the exact type of vehicles, the style of vinyl wrapping and other details are negotiated.
The minivans can be wrapped to look like a Woody — a 1960s era station wagon that had wood panels on doors or roof, Renée Jadusingh, CRA assistant director, said at the workshop.
Meanwhile, Freebee has ordered its vehicles for the point-to-point system, said Jason Spiegel, managing partner of Freebee. The service will begin on Sept. 3.
“We’re excited to be in Delray Beach,” Spiegel said at the workshop. The five electric-powered vehicles will be wrapped and carry advertising, in addition to the city and CRA logos.
The CRA board members didn’t like the idea that the point-to-point vehicles would be promoting businesses as they drove through the downtown.
Without the advertising, Freebee would need to charge the CRA an additional $180,000, Spiegel said.
“It’s a little disappointing,” Petrolia said after the workshop. “I feel snake-bitten by these transit contracts.”
Separately, Patrick Halliday is operating a pedicab service from 8 p.m. to midnight on Fridays and Saturdays, weather permitting. His drivers service the area between Swinton Avenue to the ocean and north to Fourth Street and south to Third Street.
Halliday, a bicycling advocate, has wanted to start the pedicab service for years. He received Florida Department of Transportation approval, which said pedicabs should be treated as bicycles and are allowed on the street.
The pedicab ride is free and operates on a “generous gratuity” to the driver. Four pedicabs will run each evening, Halliday said.
Riders who want to summon a pedicab should call 288-4511 and press 1.

By Jane Smith

Bakery owner Billy Himmelrich’s lawsuit against Delray Beach has moved to an appeal court since a circuit judge denied his motion on June 24 to reopen the case.
Himmelrich and business partner David Hosokawa had asked the judge to reconsider their claim under the Bert Harris Act, which protects property rights.
The partners say when the city created a three-story height cap for downtown properties in early 2015, Delray Beach limited what they could build on their four parcels, according to their May 6 rehearing motion. They own two parking lots and two buildings, just east of the Old School Square grounds.
They were not notified in writing, as the Bert Harris Act requires. Himmelrich, though, did attend the zoning hearings.
They are seeking $6.9 million in damages.
Judge Jaimie Goodman agreed with the city that Himmelrich and his partner first needed to file a formal plan with Delray Beach. Goodman made his ruling without prejudice, allowing the partners to make a claim when they file a plan.
The partners had sued Delray Beach in May 2018 to be able to build four stories on their parcels.
While the partners were waiting for Goodman’s decision on the rehearing, they appealed their loss to the Fourth District Court of Appeal.

By Rich Pollack

Getting into Delray Beach City Hall to pay your water bill, stop by the clerk’s office or take care of other business is now a little more challenging than it has been for years, and it may soon get even tougher.
For decades, visitors could just walk right in without having to stop and explain where they were going.
That changed about a month ago, when the city instituted a policy requiring visitors to sign in at the front desk, leaving their names, whom they planned to see and what time they arrived.
While there have long been discussions about improving security at City Hall and other government buildings, the recent shooting at a Virginia Beach municipal building that left 12 people dead increased the sense of urgency to get something done locally.
“This is just the beginning of a multitude of safety and security issues we’re addressing,” interim City Manager Neal de Jesus told city commissioners during a meeting last month. “We’re going to do whatever is necessary to protect our employees and visitors.”
He said the city is looking at security issues at all its buildings, not just City Hall, to ensure that employees and visitors alike are not in harm’s way.
“In today’s world there’s a need to secure facilities,” he said. “Safety and security in municipal buildings has been an ongoing topic for years.”
The interim city manager said the city staff has begun researching security options for City Hall and is considering a system similar to those used by hospitals.
“We intend to go digital,” de Jesus told commissioners.
He said the city is researching the practicality and cost of a system where residents present a driver’s license to be scanned. They then get their photo taken and receive a paper badge with their name and photo on it, as well as the name of the department they’re visiting.
While the city has not had any major security problems at City Hall, there have been issues that raise concerns.
Last month two visitors in the lobby of the city’s building service department got into an altercation, de Jesus said, and there have been threats made against some employees.
“Utility billing gets a multitude of threats of bodily harm on a regular basis,” he told commissioners.
Another problem, de Jesus said, is that staffers frequently find people wandering through City Hall without knowing where they’re going.
A new system, he said, would also provide an additional level of customer service, making it easier for staff to direct visitors who may have trouble getting to where they need to be.
Mayor Shelly Petrolia said that most other cities she visits have some form of city hall security and that Delray has been behind. “I know we’ve come a long way and still have a long way to go,” she said.
Delray is not alone in reviewing its security at municipal buildings. In Boca Raton, which after 9/11 had a metal detector and guard at its City Hall entrance but no longer does, a review of security reinforcements and protocols is in progress.  
The previous security procedures were removed as part of a reconfiguration of the City Hall entrance during the recession, according to city officials.
While the recently implemented sign-in process at Delray City Hall has gone smoothly, according to de Jesus, there was at least one resident who was caught off guard.
Vice Mayor Shirley Johnson said she received a call from a resident who was irate over having to sign in.
“The public is not accustomed to what we’ve done and it was a shock,” she said.
De Jesus said he had heard of only that one upset resident. “There have been several hundred people sign in and only one complaint,” he said.

By Jane Smith

Lawyer Renée Jadusingh became the executive director of the Delray Beach Community Redevelopment Agency as of June 29, a promotion from the assistant director’s post she held since 2018.
Jadusingh replaces her former boss, Jeff Costello, who submitted his resignation on May 28. He offered to stay until Aug. 23 “to facilitate a smooth transition.”
But CRA board members decided that Costello would stay only 30 days, as his contract required. Costello, who made slightly more than $146,000 a year, was to have a performance review last month.
The board members voted 6-1 in June to promote Jadusingh, 38, to be executive director with a $145,000 annual salary and a $3,000 annual car allowance.
CRA Treasurer Bill Bathurst voted no because he wanted to conduct a search for the best candidate.
‘I’m very impressed with Renée,” CRA Vice Chairwoman Shirley Johnson said at a June 4 meeting. When Jadusingh worked for the Overtown CRA in Miami, “she visited 450 homeowners and convinced them to move out of their homes temporarily and move back at CRA expense. ... I thank Jeff Costello for hiring her.”
Jadusingh, happy to be promoted, said, “I will benefit from the redevelopment plan that Jeff created from the board’s input. Now, I’ll have to implement the projects.”
She will oversee 13 employees, including the Greenmarket manager and Arts Warehouse director. The CRA area covers one-fifth of the city, mostly along Atlantic Avenue east of Interstate 95 to the ocean.
The agency is embarking on an ambitious plan to clean and complete the alleys in the Northwest and Southwest neighborhoods. It also is negotiating with a developer, BH3, to redo 9 acres in the 600 to 800 blocks of West Atlantic.
Jadusingh became the assistant director in February 2018. She was making $110,000 in that position.
Previously, Jadusingh spent 3 1/2 years as the staff attorney for the Southeast Overtown/Park West Community Redevelopment Agency in Miami. She negotiated and drafted general business contracts, housing restrictive covenants, construction contracts and other legal documents.
In 2012, she graduated from St. Thomas University School of Law in Miami Gardens. She sits on the board of the Florida Redevelopment Association.
Costello, 55, said it was “a good time” for him to leave. “I’m glad they promoted from within the CRA.”
After 30 years with the city, including 12 at the CRA and more than four as executive director, he will take some time off to spend with his two teenage sons. Between his previous city planning job and the CRA assistant director’s position, he spent two years at New Urban Planning in Delray Beach.
He will stay in Delray Beach, but he declined to say what his next job will be.
At his last board meeting on June 11, the board members and staff treated him to an Oreo cake from Publix and a card.
“God bless,” Costello said, “and thanks.”