David Del Rio in court with Gregory Salnick, one of his attorneys. Tim Stepien/The Coastal Star

By Rich Pollack

Palm Beach County prosecutors Monday filed 44 additional grand theft and exploitation of the elderly charges against David Del Rio, a financial adviser charged with siphoning nearly $3 million from Elizabeth “Betty” Cabral, an 85-year-old Highland Beach widow found murdered in April.

During a bail hearing for Del Rio, who has not been charged in connection with the homicide, prosecutors revealed that someone cut Cabral’s throat while she slept.

Palm Beach County Circuit Judge Glenn Kelley set bail at $463,000 for all 72 counts against Del Rio, who will remain in custody until defense attorneys can prove that any money he might use to post bail wasn’t obtained through unauthorized withdrawals from Cabral’s accounts.

During the hearing, prosecutors argued that Del Rio, 35, befriended Cabral and her husband William and took advantage of their trust to pilfer money from their bank accounts.

“What he was doing was using his relationship with that couple to steal their life savings,” Assistant State Attorney Brian Fernandes told Kelley. “He spent hours and hours a day so he could exploit them.”

Del Rio has been in custody since his arrest in mid-September when he was charged with 27 counts of grand theft, exploitation of the elderly, money laundering and fraudulent use of personal identification information. The additional charges filed Monday stem from new information investigators found in looking at financial records going back to 2013.

Investigator have said in court documents they think Del Rio fraudulently changed the will of Betty and William Cabral, making himself the sole beneficiary of the estate. William Cabral died in April of 2017 at 88.

Fernandes and prosecutor Aleathea McRoberts focused their arguments during Monday’s bail hearing on convincing Kelley that Del Rio was a danger to the community and should have bail set at $1 million. Del Rio’s attorneys asked the judge to set bail between $75,000 and $125,000, claiming Del Rio was neither a flight risk nor someone about whom the community should be concerned.

Defense attorney Michael Salnick presented several witnesses who said Del Rio was a good man and someone Betty Cabral thought of as a son.

“As a friend it’s hard for me to believe all this,” said Nick Simpson, who knows Del Rio through their church. “The charges that are being thrown at him are so far outside what I know David to be.”

Salnick argued that Del Rio has known since May that he was under investigation but did not try to flee, instead staying at home in Lehigh Acres is Lee County on Florida’s West Coast with his wife and four children.

Prosecutors, however, argued that Del Rio would have good reason to flee because of the volume of charges against him.

“He’s facing the potential of life in prison for the crimes he committed,” Fernandes said.

In setting the requirements associated with bail that included house arrest for Del Rio and a prohibition against him contacting any members of the Cabral family, Kelley acknowledged that Del Rio would remain in jail while attorneys sort out from where Del Rio would get the money for bail.

Several friends and family members said they would lend money to Del Rio to help him make bail, but that amounted to less than $15,000.

Relatives of Betty and William Cabral were also called on to testify, with one great niece saying Betty Cabral was concerned that her money was disappearing.

During her testimony, Maureen Forte said her aunt called her crying early this year because Del Rio told her she no longer had enough money to pay for home health care.

Forte said she reached out to Del Rio asking for a financial accounting of expenses but never heard back, which she said was unusual.

Also testifying on behalf of the prosecution was Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Det. Robert Drake, who said investigators think Del Rio used money taken from the Cabrals to buy expensive cars and to make home improvements.

He said Del Rio purchased two Audi vehicles, a Porsche, a recreational vehicle, two motorcycles, a smart car and a Chevy Silverado for a friend all in one year.

In looking at financial records, detectives could not find evidence that Del Rio used any money from Cabral’s accounts to pay her bills.

“I never found one penny that was paid from Del Rio’s account to care for the Cabrals,” Drake said.

The pool at Wellington Arms, a gathering point for residents, looks out over the lagoon and mangroves to the west. The lagoon is home to manatees, manta rays and a variety of birds. Jerry Lower/ The Coastal Star

By Dan Moffett

Judy Hollnagel had a long and successful business career in Milwaukee, but she never made a better deal than the one she struck in Ocean Ridge during a Florida vacation back in 1968.
Hollnagel heard about a condo project under construction across from Oceanfront Park and decided its prime location between the ocean and Intracoastal Waterway was worth an investment.
“I put down $100,” she said. “That’s what things were going for back then. We’ve had a place here ever since.”
The three concrete buildings with 49 units would become known as the Wellington Arms Condominiums. Judy and Harold Hollnagel would become known as the first family of the close-knit condo community.
From their third-floor bedroom window, the couple can look out and see the glistening Atlantic waters and the Oceanfront Park beach. From their back door, they can see a mangrove-rich lagoon sanctuary for a thriving array of wildlife.
“Every morning I wake up to see the sunrise over the ocean,” Judy said. “What could be better than that? Then I walk back there to the lagoon. It’s a magical place.”

Judy and Harold Hollnagel secured their condo 50 years ago with a $100 deposit and call the area a paradise. Jerry Lower/ The Coastal Star

The waters are a little darker, more brackish now than upon her first arrival a half-century ago, but Hollnagel still finds plenty of magic in the lagoon: manatees mating, manta rays patrolling the docks, mullet thrashing across the surface and an Audubon guidebook’s worth of wetland birds taking it all in from above.
The human species is on display by the lagoon, too — neighbors grilling fish for neighbors, and grandparents teaching their grandchildren how to catch dinner or how to keep a kayak from going sideways.
“It’s a piece of paradise,” Hollnagel said. “I can’t say enough.”
Last spring, Wellington Arms residents marked the community’s 50th anniversary with a lively get-together by the swimming pool overlooking the lagoon. Stories about their long shared history gave way to worries about an uncertain future.
Four years ago, William Swaim, of Waterfront ICW Properties in Delray Beach, came forward with a plan to fill in submerged land he owns adjacent to their properties and under the Wellington Arms boat docks. In a suit filed against homeowners along the lagoon, he’s demanded they remove their docks or agree to a deal to pay him for their use. Part of the deal would include ending their opposition to his development plans and retracting public objections they’ve made to state officials — especially environmental objections. Swaim also has taken the town of Ocean Ridge to court, asserting the right to an easement for a road next to the Town Hall to gain access to his land. In September, Swaim applied for a permit with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, seeking permission to truck in fill material to the 3.34-acre site and begin building three single-family houses.
A decision on the permit request likely is months away. Ocean Ridge officials and residents along the lagoon have been vocal in their opposition to the permit application and development plan.
“Without a doubt, we will be pointing out all of the issues with Mr. Swaim trying to do something back there,” Town Attorney Brian Shutt said during an October commission meeting. “There are things we can point out to the Army Corps.”
Said Mayor James Bonfiglio: “We will do everything that’s required to voice the objections. … We’ll do everything we can to help residents end the problem.”
Residents pleaded with officials to do more.
“We need your help,” Wellington Arms resident Phil Lambrechts told the Town Commission. “We need to get this ended.”
Lambrechts said residents along the lagoon have spent some $700,000 in legal fees fighting the plan, and most of that came from the condominium owners.
“Our community spent almost three-quarters of a million dollars now on lawsuits in the last three years,” Wellington Arms resident Jay Magee told commissioners. “And we’re just a small community. It’s a hardship for a lot of the owners.”

The legal fight centers on whether the lagoon is a naturally occurring waterway that deserves preservation or rather a manmade creation that does not. Swaim’s attorneys have argued the latter, saying bulldozers and dredges carved the lagoon out decades ago to create a mosquito control area.
Environmental groups have joined the town’s homeowners in rejecting that assertion, arguing the lagoon is an irreplaceable natural treasure.
The courts have appeared to be leaning both ways so far. In 2015, an administrative law judge in Tallahassee sided with South Florida Water Management District attorneys and cited environmental concerns and potential impediments to boaters as reasons for denying Swaim’s requests. In 2017, a mediation judge issued a judgment opinion that appeared to support Swaim, concluding parts of the lagoon were created by human activity and potentially not protected as sovereign state land.
“We lost and it’s devastating to the town,” condo resident Pat Ganley told commissioners after last year’s court hearing. “We need you to help. So fight it.”
Ocean Ridge is not alone when it comes to disputes with Swaim over submerged land. Two years ago, he sued the State of Florida and five fiber optic companies claiming they are trespassing on 2.5 acres he bought in the Intracoastal north of Lake Wyman in Boca Raton. Swaim accuses the state of wrongly allowing the companies easements. He wants the firms to pull out their cables and pay him damages.
Swaim also irked town of Palm Beach officials two years ago when he petitioned the Corps for permission to fill in some three acres of Intracoastal land he was considering buying about three-quarters of a mile south of the Lake Worth Bridge. The Corps has not issued a decision.

ABOVE: Residents have floating docks that give them boat, kayak and paddleboard access to the lagoon and Intracoastal. Jerry Lower/The Coastal Star BELOW: An old aerial photo shows the vacant land that became Wellington Arms. BOTTOM: A scene from the condo’s 50th birthday celebration last March. Photos provided

Residents stick together
In their condominium’s 50th year, residents say they are committed to protecting their community and are as close to each other as ever.
“It’s like a dorm,” said a smiling Judy Hollnagel.
Her friend Nadine Magee, Jay’s wife, put it this way: “It’s like … cooking someone else’s Thanksgiving turkey in your oven because it’s bigger and better. That’s literally the way people are here.”
Without the iconic lagoon, Wellington Arms wouldn’t be what it has been for five decades and Florida would lose forever another little piece of itself.
“It’d be a shame to see anything else out there but the manatees, the birds and the fish,” said Connie Sophie, an avid kayaker. “It means a lot to me.”
“It’s just a wonderful natural sanctuary,” Hollnagel said.

With the outer structure complete on the 3550 condo in South Palm Beach, the Town Council’s only recourse may be to fine the developer if the town determines that the building violates rules on height. Jerry Lower/The Coastal Star

By Dan Moffett

South Palm Beach council members want to double-check measurements of the 3550 South Ocean condominium project to make sure it complies with the town’s building code.
At issue are the structure’s height and the area set aside for green space on the site.
Councilwoman Stella Gaddy Jordan says she is concerned that the building’s six stories above a garage exceed the town’s height limit and that the structure’s footprint does not preserve enough open space.
“They’re both terribly incorrect,” Jordan said of the two code issues.
A spokesperson for the developer says Jordan is mistaken.
“3550 South Ocean has obtained all necessary approvals from the Town of South Palm Beach and is fully compliant with all regulations,” the spokesperson said.
The councilwoman blames the town’s building official for not bringing changes in the project to the council for approval. She said she believes the developer, Manhattan-based DDG real estate investment group, and contractor KAST Construction did not adhere to the original plans.
Jordan claims the building has grown to a height of about 106 feet from ground level, roughly 20 feet above what she says the council was expecting. Part of the increase is due to a foundation with a starting point above those of surrounding buildings — 7.6 feet higher — that is mandated by flood plain requirements. A 21-foot garage space and a roof with elevator shafts and stair towers account for more of the total additional height, officials say.
In response to Jordan’s complaints, Town Manager Mo Thornton inspected the building in mid-October with Hector Garcia, the project’s architect, and Mike Crisafulle, the town’s building official. Thornton said they measured the six floors of living quarters and together the height of those six stories was slightly less than 60 feet. She said they were unable to measure the equipment on the rooftop, however. Some of the roof structures are roughly 15 feet tall.
Jordan has complained that the structures on the roof were not part of the developer’s original plans.
Thornton said, based at least on the floor-to-ceiling measurements, the building complies with the town’s code.
“It’s built according to the approved plans,” she said.
Mayor Bonnie Fischer said the council will discuss Thornton’s measurements at the Nov. 13 town meeting and decide whether more double-checking is needed. Jordan wants to have the entire building surveyed from the ground up, but other council members have balked at spending several thousand dollars to measure a building that’s essentially already built.
Council members Elvadianne Culbertson and Bill LeRoy have questioned what remedy the town has to address the issues at this late date — now that the outer structure is built and developers are aiming toward a grand opening next summer.
“I’m still trying to understand,” Culbertson said. “What do we do about it?”
“We’re pretty much stuck with the building,” Jordan said, “unless we want them to tear off the top floor.”
She told the council it’s important, however, that the project’s changes go on the record, and if violations of town rules occur, then fining the developer is an option.
“I don’t think it’s wise to allow people to get away with so much without proper notification from the town,” Jordan said during the council meeting on Oct. 9. “This needs to be documented.”
With 30 luxury units priced between $3 million and $7 million, the 3550 project offers opulence unlike anything South Palm Beach has seen, appealing to affluent buyers from an international market and promising a huge boost to the town’s tax base.
Among the amenities are concierge service, a dog park and VIP access to the Eau Palm Beach Resort and Spa.
In October, DDG announced it was also offering buyers private jet service on demand. The developer has contracted with Star Jets International to provide 24-hour jet travel, with planes capable of leaving the runway within hours of request.

Retired Lt. Col. Mel Pollack at home in Boca Raton with a replica of the F-4 Phantom he flew in Vietnam. Tim Stepien/The Coastal Star

By Mary Hladky

Although retired Air Force Lt. Col. Mel Pollack’s military service ended decades ago, his commitment to service and veterans has endured.
Pollack was on his 78th combat mission flying an F-4 Phantom when he was shot down and captured by the North Vietnamese in 1967. He was imprisoned in the infamous “Hanoi Hilton” with John McCain, then a Navy pilot, later a U.S. senator whose funeral services riveted the nation in late August and early September.
Freed after 2,068 days as a prisoner of war, Pollack remained with the Air Force, retiring after 20 years of service. He then held various corporate positions and eventually moved from Delray Beach to Boca Raton four years ago. He now is vice chairman of the Boca Raton Airport Authority board.
This year Pollack became president of the Boca Raton-based nonprofit Vets Helping Heroes, which provides trained service dogs at no cost to active duty military members and veterans who are physically or psychologically injured.
Pollack, 76, has been active with the group since it was founded in 2007. He took on the role of president after the January death of his predecessor, Irwin Stovroff, a World War II veteran who spent 13 months in a Nazi POW camp after his plane was shot down.
“When you see what these service dogs do to improve the quality of life for the veteran, it can bring tears to your eyes,” Pollack said.
The organization is badly needed because “there is no federal program that will provide service dogs,” he said.
Their training is expensive. It totals $15,000 for a post-traumatic stress disorder dog, and $60,000 for a guide dog for the visually impaired, Pollack said.
Vets Helping Heroes has raised more than $7 million and placed more than 300 trained dogs. Donations have come from all over the country, he said, and 92 percent of the money is spent on dog training.
As president, Pollack wants the all-volunteer board of directors to take a more active role in the organization, and he is working to increase grant requests and expand public relations outreach nationwide to boost the amount of money Vets Helping Heroes raises.
“Our goal is to keep growing,” he said. “We haven’t put a percentage on it. We want to provide dogs to as many disabled veterans as we can.”

Mel Pollack, John McCain in 2016.

Imprisoned with McCain
Pollack graduated from New York University and joined the Air Force with the intent of learning to fly so he could eventually become an airline pilot.
He was 25 when his plane was hit by antiaircraft fire north of Hanoi on July 6, 1967. Pollack ejected from the plane and suffered back injuries when he slammed into a mountaintop. He was immediately captured.
Conditions at Hua Lo Prison, sarcastically dubbed the Hanoi Hilton by service members, were “awful” and his captors’ treatment of the POWs was “brutal,” he said.
“Our captors thought we had all the secrets of the American military,” he said. “They didn’t realize once we hit the ground, our war was over.”
He and the other POWs had no knowledge of future intended targets or new policy and tactics, he said.
Food was minimal. Medical attention was almost nonexistent. Pollack lost 35 pounds.
“They kept us alive because we were their ransom for the future,” he said. “We were worth something.”

A framed photo of Pollack shaking another officer’s hand in 1973 after Pollack’s release from the Hua Lo Prison. Photo provided

Their isolation was near total. They rarely left their cells, which usually housed four men, and the only outside “news” they heard came from two radio propaganda broadcasts each day.
To stave off madness, Pollack said, he thought about his life over and over again and talked to the other men.
They created clandestine communication systems to talk with prisoners in other cells. When these were discovered, punishment was swift and harsh. “We all have the mental and physical scars to show for it,” he said.
One system was to wrap a metal drinking cup in a towel to muffle sound and put the cup against the brick wall. A prisoner in an adjoining cell would do the same, allowing the two to hear each other. That was how he first communicated with McCain.
“We talked about everything, your life, personal aspirations,” he said.
More recent POWs would tell about the status of the war, news from outside and what was happening in the United States.
Word eventually spread that McCain’s father was a four-star Navy admiral.
Even so, “he was just John. He was just another guy trying to survive.” Pollack said.
The two came to know each other “pretty intimately.”
He and the other men knew McCain, then a 31-year-old lieutenant commander captured on Oct. 26, 1967, and badly injured, had refused an offer of early release. Many of the other POWs got the same offer, including Pollack, and also refused, he said.
“The only reason they offered the release was for propaganda value,” he said. McCain “would not play their game. As battered and wounded as he was, that was a very strong thing to do.”
In exchange for early release, interrogators wanted the POW to sign a letter admitting to committing war crimes and asking the people of North Vietnam for forgiveness.
“I told my interrogator, I am sorry I cannot do that,” Pollack said. “We had to uphold the code of conduct.”
Pollack finally met McCain face-to-face just prior to his release on March 4, 1973, after they were told the war was over and their captors let them out into a courtyard. McCain was released 10 days later.
“He once made a comment to me that my humor helped save his life,” he said. “That was very touching.”
The two men stayed in touch through reunions of members of the NAM-POWs veterans organization, and when Pollack would visit Washington, D.C. The last time they saw each other was in 2016, when McCain was in Boca Raton for a fundraising event for his U.S. Senate re-election campaign and they spent an evening together.
McCain’s funeral services amazed Pollack. He described them as “a week that outdid any president or head of state or royalty.”
“He deserved it,” Pollack said. “And it shows how much this country is looking for leadership today.”

To learn more about Vets Helping Heroes, visit www.vetshelpingheroes.org.

By Mary Thurwachter

The Florida Commission on Ethics has found probable cause that Lantana Mayor David Stewart misused his position to attempt to obtain a sexual benefit for himself. Probable cause also was found to believe he solicited sex from a constituent based on an understanding his vote, official action, or judgment would be influenced.
A probable cause finding is not a determination that Stewart violated ethics laws, but that there is enough evidence of a violation to allow the investigation to proceed to a full evidentiary hearing, if Stewart chooses, said Kerrie J. Stillman, a spokesperson for the Commission on Ethics.
If that happens, the matter would go before the Division of Administrative Hearings.
Another option for Stewart would be agreeing to a settlement, the terms of which would be decided by the commission’s advocate and Stewart and his legal representative.
The ethics complaint was filed in January by Lantana resident Catherine Padilla. She claims she and Stewart, 65, had become friends when both attended meetings of the Hypoluxo-Lantana Kiwanis Club.
Their relationship took an objectionable turn in 2015, according to Padilla, when, after a morning Kiwanis meeting, the two had lunch after which he drove her to a motel and propositioned her for sex. Padilla, 54, said she “wasn’t interested” and that Stewart drove her back to her car.
She said Stewart called her a week or two later and said he would guarantee her street would get speed tables, a safety measure for which she had lobbied, if she would have sex with him at the motel.
Stewart, who has been mayor for 19 years, has said the accusations were totally false and that he has never asked for, or accepted, anything in exchange for a vote. After the probable cause finding was announced on Oct. 24, Stewart said it would not be appropriate for him to comment, as he had not heard officially from the Commission on Ethics about the ruling.
However, in documents filed as a response to the advocate’s recommendation, Stewart denied Padilla’s accusations.
Among those interviewed by the advocate this summer were friends of Padilla — David Brinkley, Kem Mason and Pastor Michael DeBehnke — who said Padilla had confided in them about her accusations. Also interviewed by the advocate was Town Manager Deborah Manzo, who said Padilla had spoken to her on Dec. 5, 2017. Manzo, according to the documents, said that Stewart “never asked nor interfered in the process of granting and/or installing the cushions [speed humps]” in Padilla’s neighborhood.
In August 2015, the Town Council voted in favor of the traffic-calming speed humps for Padilla’s street. Another unanimous vote to approve the speed humps came this year on Sept. 24.
Padilla filed an amendment to her first complaint on Jan. 11, when the mayor came to her house to talk to her about the complaint and she called police.
Stewart, according to the police report, told officers he had learned of the ethics complaint filed with the state and had gone to Padilla’s house to talk with her about it.
Padilla, according to the police report, said that when she opened the door and saw Stewart, she shut it, locked it and took a photo of Stewart in his car before he left. The two never spoke during the incident, both told police.
Another complaint was filed by Padilla on March 27, accusing the mayor of using sexual innuendo during a Kiwanis Club dinner at the Whistle Stop Lounge on Oct. 24, 2017. Manzo was also in attendance. Padilla claimed she heard Manzo say she wasn’t happy with her choice of entrees and that Stewart remarked, “You haven’t tried my meat yet.”
The Ethics Commission dismissed that complaint in July “due to a lack of legal sufficiency,” according to a news release from the commission.
The Coastal Star attempted to reach council members regarding the probable cause ruling, but most calls were not returned. However, council member Phil Aridas said he didn’t know enough about the matter to comment.

For health and safety and money for the Town of Ocean Ridge, the county and the state, and as an owner at Ocean Park Manor, adjacent to the proposed Swain project, I would like to lodge my strongest objection to this permit.
Among the factors that the Army Corps of Engineers must consider when reviewing the permit application are safety, economics, aesthetics, recreation, the needs and welfare of the people and general environmental concerns. It would be right for the Corps to deny this permit because allowing any development of the area under consideration poses a serious health and safety risk.
It is not new that the proposed development cannot guarantee that the abundance of birds, fish and plant life now in that space will survive the construction. The proposed development will put not only wildlife at risk, but also the safety of the many people who use the lagoon for recreation.
In truth, it is only the vital natural resources of the lagoon that balance out the ever-increasing pollution that plagues our area.
To save our lagoon, we must rely on the powerful enforcement authority of the Corps. People young and old come daily into the lagoon on paddleboards, kayaks, fishing boats and even Jet Skis. Their discovery of all manner of wading birds, jumping fish and groups of manatees (including pups) provides fun and joy.
The investment in preserving this tiny eco-tourist spot has the proven advantage of bringing money to the local economy.
Hopefully, representatives of the Corps have had an opportunity to visit the lagoon and to take comfort in the fact that denying this permit will guarantee that the needs and welfare of the people who live in and visit this area will be protected.
Thank you for all the work the Corps does every day to protect and preserve our natural resources.

Beth L. Sindaco
Ocean Ridge

A story in the October issue incorrectly reported the number of people attending meetings at Delray Beach’s Crossroads Club. An estimated 750 people attend a meeting every day.

More than 35 firefighters with 14 trucks from Delray Beach and elsewhere in the county responded to a fire at the Gulf Stream estate of Anthony Pugliese on Oct. 29. They contained the fire to the multi-car garage and guest quarters, preserving the main home that was once the Phipps Estate. The Phippses were the founders of Gulf Stream Polo. Jerry Lower/The Coastal Star

By Steve Plunkett

A fire at the oceanfront Pugliese estate in Gulf Stream closed down State Road A1A for six hours while Delray Beach firefighters worked to control the blaze and extinguish intermittent hot spots.
No one was hurt in the Oct. 29 fire, which apparently started in a three-car garage between the guest house and the historic mansion. Firefighters did rescue two dogs, Delray Beach Fire Rescue spokesman Kevin Saxton said.
Homeowner Laura Pugliese, who with her husband, Anthony, were driving back from Jupiter, said when the fire alarm company called, she first thought it was a false alarm.
“I think it’s an actual fire, because there’s a lot of 911 calls,” she said the dispatcher told her.
Delray Fire Rescue was alerted at 5:50 p.m.
“When the first units arrived there was significant fire showing,” Saxton said.
Town Manager Greg Dunham said he got to the scene about 7 o’clock. “I couldn’t see flames, but there was smoke fully billowing out,” he said.
Fourteen vehicles responded to the blaze, including Highland Beach’s ladder truck, which Delray Beach operates. The fire was under control in about an hour, Saxton said, but firefighters stayed at the estate until about midnight.
“There were a lot of hot spots,” Saxton said.
Pugliese said an SUV in the garage had a full tank of gas, which probably caused the explosion some people heard.
Ocean Ridge police diverted southbound A1A traffic onto Woolbright Road. Delray Beach police directed northbound motorists to turn around in the parking lot of the Gulf Stream Golf Club.
“We were lucky, very lucky,” Laura Pugliese said. “No one was home, no one was hurt.”
But she and her husband had to cope with having no power or lights. “We slept with all the doors and windows open last night,” she said.
The Puglieses restored the Roaring ’20s mansion rather than tear it down. It was built by a member of Gulf Stream’s founding Phipps family.
An inspector for the state fire marshal’s office was at their home the next day. The fire marshal would take a few days to report on the cause and other details, Saxton said.

The next morning Gulf Stream police were at the scene, awaiting a fire inspector’s investigation. Jerry Lower/The Coastal Star

By Steve Plunkett

Gulf Stream’s new CodeRED emergency alert system is up and running.
“It is fully activated and ready to go,” Town Manager Greg Dunham told town commissioners at their Oct. 12 meeting.
The system allows town officials to send residents warnings via phone calls, email and cellphone text messages. CodeRED also has a smartphone app. But residents have to sign up to participate. “It’s not an automatic thing,” Dunham said.
The town is paying provider OnSolve LLC $1,500 a year for the service, which otherwise is free to residents.
CodeRED is designed to send critical and time-sensitive communications such as alerts about missing children, emergency preparedness, wildfires, emergency evacuation notices, a public health crisis and criminal activity.
Gulf Stream joins Delray Beach, Highland Beach and Boca Raton in offering CodeRED. The program is easily tailored to reach large and small audiences.
“We could do the whole town, or we could do one block of a street. Actually it could be as little as one or two houses,” Dunham said in July when he first pitched the idea to commissioners.
Some residents complained following Hurricane Irma last year that people in other cities got emergency notices on their cellphones, Dunham said then.
Vice Mayor Thomas Stanley, who was already signed up for Delray Beach’s CodeRED alerts, said he received six or seven text messages a day during Irma.
Town Finance Director Rebecca Tew said she hopes to convert everyone who sent Town Hall an email address for official notices into CodeRED participants. She has 300 to 500 email addresses of residents, house managers “and also a lot of personal assistants.”
Gulf Stream sent residents a letter urging them to go to the town’s website and click on CodeRED to sign up.
Residents can choose a user name and password or register with a Google, Facebook or Twitter account.
In other business, Dunham said Comcast has hired a subcontractor, Cypress Communications, to put its cable television and internet lines underground, much like Florida Power & Light hired subcontractor Wilco to bury its electric lines. Cypress, which expects to spend 90 days on the job, will start from Golfview and work north.
“We’re trying to get AT&T to start from the north side and move south,” Dunham said.

By Steve Plunkett

Palm Beach County Commissioner Steven Abrams, who leaves office Nov. 20, will spend only a few weeks unemployed before tackling his next job — as executive director of the South Florida Regional Transportation Authority.
His former colleagues on the SFRTA governing board hired him on a 9-1 vote to lead the agency that runs Tri-Rail, choosing his political savvy over the deep operational skills of rival job candidates.
“Oh, I’m thrilled,” Abrams exclaimed as well-wishers congratulated him following the Oct. 26 vote. “I’m excited about the opportunity.”
Abrams, who resigned as chairman of the governing board in May to apply for the director’s position, dismissed concerns about his lack of operational expertise.
“I have the background to jump right in,” he said.
The other finalists were Joe Giulietti, retired president of Metro-North Commuter Railroad in New York City and before that executive director of SFRTA for 13 years; Mikel Oglesby, SFRTA’s deputy executive director; Benjamin Limmer, assistant general manager of the Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority; and Tim Tenne, chief operating officer of the Maryland Transit Administration, who withdrew from consideration after his job interview.
Two other finalists — Joseph Black, a practice leader/director at Washington, D.C.-based Network Rail Consulting, and Raymond Suarez, chief operating officer of the Denton County Transportation Authority in Texas — withdrew before the interviews.
Jack Stephens, SFRTA’s current executive director, is retiring at the end of the year.
Abrams’ appointment seemed in jeopardy at first as board members discussed his nomination.
“I feel like the agency … needs some strong management right now,” said former state Sen. Jim Scott, a Fort Lauderdale lawyer, who preferred Giulietti.
Broward County Commissioner Tim Ryan was dismayed that so many applicants dropped out, including Tenne, “who hit it out of the park” in his interview.
“It just gave me a sense that there’s something else going on that I haven’t figured out in this whole interview process,” said Ryan, whose second choice was Limmer.
But Miami-Dade County Commissioner Esteban Bovo, who succeeded Abrams as chair and supported his candidacy, said all the applicants had good points and flaws.
“We need a person, in my opinion, that can navigate the politics of the three counties, and that’s not an easy thing to do,” Bovo said. “We need somebody that’s going to be able to go to Tallahassee, to the federal government. We need somebody that’s going to be able to exploit relationships and needs to do it immediately, the moment they hit the ground running.
“There’s no learning curve here, and that, by definition, perhaps may disqualify a few.”
The Nov. 6 general election will decide who succeeds term-limited Abrams on the Palm Beach County Commission. Running are Democrat Robert Weinroth, a former deputy mayor of Boca Raton, and Republican William “Billy” Vale, a pharmaceutical representative and political newcomer. The district covers coastal communities in the southeast portion of the county.
“The timing works pretty well,” said Abrams, who still has to negotiate his salary with SFRTA. Stephens is paid $260,000 a year.
Abrams, 60, is finishing his ninth year as a county commissioner and sat on the Boca Raton City Council as a member and mayor for 17 years.

Residents along the coast had to deal with the effects of red tide for more than a week. ABOVE: Dead reef fish lie south of the Boynton Inlet in early October. RIGHT: Lifeguard Lange Jacobs put up traffic cones and double red flags to warn of respiratory problems at South Inlet Park, a county beach in Boca Raton. Photos by Jerry Lower/The Coastal Star

By Henry Fitzgerald

Just as suddenly as red tide hit south Palm Beach County beaches a month ago, it went away. But officials say you can never be sure when these outbreaks — rare for our beaches compared to those on the Gulf Coast — will return.
“The latest results show the bacteria to be considered not present or at very low levels,” said Michael Stahl, deputy director of Palm Beach County Environmental Resources Management. “It’s certainly in decline from where we were at the end of September.”
Officials are continuing to test at the county’s beaches once a week, but that’s down from twice a week at the height of the outbreak, Stahl said.
The latest round of tests by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission at South County beaches took place Oct. 24 east of Ocean Inlet Park (very low), east of Gulfstream Park (not present), Delray Public Beach (not present), east of Spanish River Park (not present), Gumbo Limbo Nature Center (not present), east of Red Reef Park (not present), east of South Beach Park (very low), 2.9 miles east of the Boca Raton Inlet (not present) and South Inlet Park (very low).
“Countywide, we’re looking pretty good,” Stahl said.
At the end of September and beginning of October, beachgoers were complaining of runny noses, scratchy throats and burning eyes, as health officials confirmed the red tide.
Water samples from sites at south Palm Beach County beaches identified the presence of the Karenia brevis harmful algae bloom — the first appearance on Florida’s southeast coast since 2006-07.
At one point officials discovered dead fish ashore just south of the Boynton Inlet.
Officials in Lantana closed the beach there, but officials farther south monitored the situation and flew warning flags to let beachgoers know the risk.
“It was here for about two weeks,” said Kevin Saxton, public information officer for Delray Beach Fire Rescue. “We took down our warning flags on Oct. 12. I know it reduced the number of people on our beach at the time, but patrons are back. We’re glad it’s gone.”
Boca Raton took a similar approach at city beaches, deciding to keep them open, but flying a red hazard flag and the purple sea pest flag, said Chrissy Gibson, city spokeswoman.
“We monitored the situation closely, and we are still monitoring,” she said in an email. “We get daily reports from the lifeguards, are still taking samples at our beaches and are reviewing the results posted to the FWC map twice a week.”
Officials cautioned that even though red tide outbreaks are rare for this part of the state, you can never say never.
“It could return,” Stahl said. “It depends on the right environmental factors that allow for it to get into the Gulf Stream from the Gulf of Mexico and affect our beaches.”

Like its predecessor, the year-old 100-foot tree dominates the Delray Beach skyline. Tim Stepien/The Coastal Star

By Jane Smith

The 100-foot Christmas tree went up before Halloween this year, but it’s the same time as last year, said Stephanie Immelman of Grapevine Communications, LLC, the firm in charge of the tree.
Last year, Delray Beach purchased the new tree to replace the rusted structure that annually needed repair and moved the tree location to the east side of the Old School Square grounds.
“We wanted to make sure we had enough time to put it up,” Immelman said.
The tree-construction contractor, Christmas Designers Inc., finished its work in mid-October and will return in early November to build the ice skating rink and fill in the branches, she said.
The city needs volunteers to help assemble the holiday gift shop inside the tree and the interiors of the other gift shops nearby. Volunteers can sign up for shifts during the weeks of Nov. 5 and Nov. 12.
“We will start at 9 a.m. and go to 2 p.m. from Monday through Friday,” Immelman said.
Volunteers can sign up by emailing Tiffany Mazer, the tree’s “volunteer whisperer” and operations manager, at tmazer@delraybeach.com. Lunch will be provided each day.
This year marks the 25th anniversary of the 100-foot tree in Delray Beach.
“We are asking people to tell their tree stories,” Immelman said.
Anyone with tree tales can contact Mazer via email and type “tree memories” in the subject line. Photos are welcome. The deadline is Nov. 15.
Entries will be posted on a special website created for the tree, www.100ftchristmastree.com, and on the tree’s Facebook page.
The 100-foot tree lighting will be Nov. 29, the Thursday after Thanksgiving. Festivities begin at 5 p.m. Santa will light the tree at 7:15 p.m. and will stay around for photos after the tree lighting.
The event is free; nearby activities such as ice skating and the carousel rides have a nominal charge.

By Dan Moffett

Confronted with threats posed by rising seas and overly aggressive builders, Ocean Ridge commissioners are grappling with tough decisions about how much to tighten the town’s building rules.
At their Nov. 5 meeting, the commissioners will have to decide between two competing ordinance proposals that would set minimum drainage standards for lots under development.
One proposal requires developers to set aside 35 percent of their lots for pervious, or drainable, materials such as landscaping. The other proposal would also impose the 35 percent standard, up from the current 25 percent, but would carve out an exemption for smaller lots, those less than 12,000 square feet.
The commission appears divided on which rule to approve.
Mayor James Bonfiglio and Commissioners Steve Coz and Philip Besler say they are concerned about the possible hardship on homeowners with smaller lots and are considering supporting the exemption. Vice Mayor Don MaGruder and Commissioner Kristine de Haseth favor the blanket 35 percent approach, arguing Ocean Ridge needs to fall in line with neighboring communities that have stronger requirements.
The town’s Planning and Zoning Commission, on a 4-1 vote, recommended the 35 percent ordinance without exemptions, as did the town’s engineer, Lisa Tropepe, and outside planning consultant, Marty Minor of Urban Design Kilday Studios in West Palm Beach.
Mark Marsh, an architect who serves on the P&Z board, told the commission during a special meeting Oct. 15 that the stricter limit wasn’t innovative or unreasonable.
“It’s nothing out of the norm,” Marsh said. “We’re trying to catch up with other communities.”
Marsh said Manalapan already has the 35 percent standard, and Gulf Stream and Palm Beach are at 40 percent. He told commissioners that Ocean Ridge was under siege by builders who want to maximize profits.
“The whole goal is to preserve the ambience of this town,” Marsh said.
Tropepe told the commission that exceptions to the tougher standard would diminish the town’s ability to handle storm water and rising seas. She said the town needs more swales and green space — not more concrete, asphalt and brick.
“Any increase in impervious area compromises our stormwater drainage,” Tropepe said.
Bonfiglio said he thought residents should have one more chance to weigh in on the issue at the November meeting when both versions of the ordinance come up for a second reading and final approval. Only one can become law.
In May, the commission passed a moratorium on new construction projects in response to concerns about loopholes in the town’s building code. Commissioners could lift that moratorium on Nov. 5 by approving the proposed rule changes.
In other business, at the October special meeting, the commission unanimously approved the first readings of two proposed amendments to the town charter. With final approval in November, the amendments will be put on the ballot for residents to consider in the March 12 municipal election.
One amendment gives the town manager the authority to hire and fire all town employees without the commission’s approval — except for terminating the police chief, a matter that must come before the commissioners.
The other amendment provides for a limit of three consecutive three-year terms for commissioners. After serving the three terms, a commissioner must wait a year before running for office again.
At the commission’s regularly scheduled meeting on Oct. 1, commissioners advanced after first reading three other charter amendment proposals for the March ballot. One clarifies candidate qualifying periods and the beginning of commission terms. Another requires 24 hours’ notice, instead of 12 hours’, for special commission meetings and sets a three-vote minimum for approving any action. At present only a simple majority vote is required.
The third and most controversial proposed change calls for requiring a four-vote supermajority for the commission to approve increases to the allowable density or height of new developments.

By Mary Thurwachter

A zoning request that would allow the offices of the Old Key Lime House on Ocean Avenue to be moved next door to a historic home at 110 S. Lake Drive failed to win over the Lantana Town Council.
The home’s owner, Wayne Cordero, also owns the popular waterside restaurant.
Cordero, who appeared at the Oct. 22 council meeting, said business was so good at the restaurant that more space is needed for offices and parking.
“I live in the house now, but I’m planning to move to an apartment across the street,” Cordero said. “We could tear it down and use it for parking, but it’s a historic house (built in the late 1800s) and I don’t want to do that.”
Instead, he wants to use the home for business offices, which are crammed in the restaurant. During daytime hours, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., up to 10 cars could park at the house, he said. For this to happen, the property would require a zoning change from residential to commercial.
A half dozen people spoke in support of Cordero’s plan, including Dave Arm, president of the Chamber of Commerce.
“This is a no-brainer for me,” Arm said. “You’ve got a property that is adjacent to and contiguous with existing business. They’re not going to change the aspect of the property. It’s a beautiful house. They’ll use it for bookkeepers, so it’s not like it will be a restaurant or a bar. It will add parking, which will definitely help our parking situation on Ocean Avenue.
“For the future as long as we can see, this would be used for the purpose of bookkeepers. There wouldn’t be anybody there after business hours in the evenings. It’ll be quieter even than if it was a residence.”
But next-door neighbor Alfred Brode, whose home was built in 1935, said he had a big objection to a zoning change. Brode said the dock behind Cordero’s house intersects with his property. “If the property becomes commercial, I may have to go to an attorney,” he said.
Brode said that property values would decline if the house was zoned commercial. “The historic home next to it was already torn down for a parking lot and I always thought the area should be a historic district.” If Cordero’s home becomes commercial, Brode said it could be sold and used for any commercial business.
“I don’t think you should be encroaching on South Lake Drive with the commercial district,” Brode said.
Michelle Donahue, of Hypoluxo Island, said she was a huge fan of the Old Key Lime House and a regular customer, but disagreed with the proposed zoning change.
“I have no question in my mind that Wayne Cordero and his family are going to do the right thing with that property,” she said. “I would like to see them keep the house there, maintain it properly and beautify it. However, there’ll be a day when the family will have to sell it and as they sell it, what does that do? What’s the comprehensive plan? I’m afraid that by zoning that commercial you’re opening yourself to a whole different ballgame that could change the dynamic of the center of our town.”
Council members said they understood the need for more parking and office space but were concerned about what would happen to the property in the future. They were also sympathetic to the neighbor’s concern about encroachment.
“We have to make a decision where to start and stop the commercial zoning, and we’re at that point,” council member Phil Aridas said.
Mayor Dave Stewart didn’t doubt Cordero’s sincerity but said “as you know, Wayne, we’re not always going to be around. So we’ve kind of got to be statesmen and look to the future. We can’t condition a piece of commercial property. Once we change it to commercial, you can have a petting zoo in there.”
The council voted 5-0 to deny the request.

Marine Way resident Jerry Spivey tiptoes through rising water Oct. 9 to reach his vehicle during the annual king tides. Many residents along the coast were relieved that the effects of the seasonal high tides were not as bad as in some previous years. Municipalities along the beach continue to look for ways to mitigate the flooding. Jerry Lower/The Coastal Star

By Mary Thurwachter

A year after Hurricane Irma left the trail at the Nature Preserve in shambles, the Lantana Town Council is still grappling with the best way to restore it. Only the front portion of the path is accessible.
In May, the council talked about constructing a concrete path, a $66,000 project that would be built over two years. But council members said they weren’t thrilled with the idea of a concrete walkway in a nature preserve, and some thought the cost was too high. They asked Town Manger Deborah Manzo to look into other options, including one with composite wood and hand railings.
On Oct. 8, Manzo presented an estimate of $709,470 from Marlin Marine Construction for a composite wood path with handrails and pilings. Council members said that project was out of its price range.
Manzo said another option for the 6½-acre preserve at 440 E. Ocean Ave. would be to use treated wood, where the planks for the same square footage as the composite trail would be $8,279 (installation costs were not available). Council member Phil Aridas said he thought a pressure-treated wood boardwalk was the way to go, but others had different ideas.
Vice Mayor Ed Shropshire suggested pavers and said Water Tower Commons was going to have them.
Council member Malcolm Balfour said a macadam path like those at many golf courses would be far less expensive.
“Concrete, which I’m not crazy about, is far better than pavers and certainly better than $709,470,” said council member Lynn Moorhouse. “Pavers move.”
To cover all bases, Manzo was directed to get estimates on a path made of pressure treated wood, from pavers and on macadam.
Mayor Dave Stewart said the town, because of an agreement made when the Nature Preserve was built in the late 1990s, cannot spend any more on the property than the $50,000 annual payment it receives from the Carlisle senior living facility next door. The town’s annual cost to maintain the park is about $20,000, leaving $30,000 to spend each year on needed improvements.
Manzo said some funds for the project could be carried over from this year “because we had planned on doing the smaller portion of the path in fiscal year 2018 and since we have not, we will carry those funds over and use the other funds for fiscal year 2019.”
The smaller loop of the trail would be tackled the first year and the larger loop the following year, Manzo said.
Between $1,000 and $2,000 for the pathway project would come from FEMA, which supports repairs such as this as an improvement or mitigation project.

Incentive program planned to retain building heights

By Jane Smith

Some rule changes are coming to downtown Delray Beach after city commissioners finished a required review of the central business district’s land development regulations.
The rules regarding height, architectural styles and open spaces, passed in February 2015, mandated a three-year review to make sure the regulations worked to “shape the desired downtown environment.”
In addition, at the Oct. 9 city workshop meeting, commissioners directed staff to create an incentive program to keep property owners satisfied with the current one- and two-story building heights and to eliminate the pay-for-offsite-parking program that exists in the downtown, generally along East Atlantic Avenue between Swinton Avenue and the Intracoastal Waterway.
The incentive program, known as a transfer of development rights, might encourage East Atlantic Avenue property owners to hold onto their one- and two-story buildings instead of selling to a developer who might desire to build to the allowed three-story height.
City Planner Anthea Gianniotes said it’s best to allow the private market to determine the value of each story. Then, a developer who wants extra stories or more density in another area would make a deal with an Atlantic Avenue property owner, paying for the extra story.
As a result, the Atlantic Avenue property would remain at its current height and the developer would be able to build a taller building in another area.
The problem, commissioners and staff agree, is finding where that area exists east of the Interstate. Congress Avenue already has development incentives.
“You can offer incentives using the carrot or the stick approach,” Gianniotes said.
For parking in the central core, commissioners want to eliminate the pay-for-extra-spaces program, called in-lieu parking. Restaurants have the highest parking requirement per square feet of all uses in the city. Retail is second highest, followed by residential.
“Parking is a policy choice, not a technical issue,” said Tim Stillings, development services director, when talking about the pay-for-spaces program.
For newly constructed buildings, developers can buy up to 30 percent of the required spaces, he said. For those who reuse existing buildings, developers can buy all of the parking spaces needed, Stillings said.
The cost varies by the subdistrict, with central core building owners paying the highest rate at $23,600 per space.
As of early October, the city has collected $1.9 million in these fees since 1993, when the in-lieu program started, Stillings said. That amount is well below the cost of building a new garage where spaces would cost between $25,000 to $35,000 each, he said.
The fee might be too low, if it’s paid only once, Mayor Shelly Petrolia said. “Maybe it should be an annual fee?” she said.
Petrolia also suggested the library surface lot as a possible parking garage site, because it already has the footings needed to support the building.
Also under the revised rules, which won’t require another review, owners of office buildings and hotels can now have enclosed and air-conditioned amenities on their roofs for guests, renters and walk-in users to enjoy.
Menin Co., which is developing the Ray hotel in Pineapple Grove, sought to define the percentage of the rooftop that can be enclosed and air-conditioned. Vice President Marc Yavinsky suggested 25 percent at the Sept. 25 commission meeting, saying the Ray’s rooftop kitchen needs to be enclosed to avoid outdoor cooking fires.
Planning staff agreed and the 25 percent figure made it into the revision.
But, at the Oct. 16 meeting, commissioners expressed concerns about light and noise pollution from rooftop uses affecting nearby condo residents. They decided to ban live bands and DJs on the roofs. Commissioners also limited the rooftop lounge hours to 10 p.m. from Sundays through Thursdays and 11 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays.
In addition, they agreed to allow outdoor dining and other outside uses in the railroad corridors, increased the required amount of green space in proportion to the building size to break up the long buildings and limited the number of financial institutions that can occupy the first floor along Atlantic Avenue and Pineapple Grove Way (Northeast Second Avenue).

How rules define central business district

Revised rules cover four subdistricts:
• The central core, consisting of East Atlantic Avenue between Swinton Avenue and Intracoastal Waterway, Pineapple Grove neighborhood to Northeast Fourth Street and Federal Highway between George Bush Boulevard on the north and Southeast Fourth Street on the south.
• The beach, made up of East Atlantic between the Intracoastal and A1A.
• The West Atlantic neighborhoods, between West 12th and West Third avenues.
• The railroad corridors, along the FEC tracks from Northeast Second to Northeast Fourth streets and Southeast Second to nearly Southeast Seventh streets.

By Steve Plunkett

Municipal leaders are taking a cautious approach to the possibility that constitutional Amendment 1 will be approved on Election Day.
“If it passes then local governments, which are the ones that tax by property taxes, will see a decrease in revenue. We’re already estimating that if it passes it will be $1.8 million,” Boca Raton Mayor Scott Singer said.
“And yes, a tax cut sounds like a wonderful thing. As the League of Cities has been pointing out, this is not a tax cut, this is a tax shift,” Singer continued at the Oct. 10 City Council meeting. “So please give special consideration to that.”
The proposed amendment would give up to an additional $25,000 exemption to homesteads valued at $100,000 to $125,000. There already is a $25,000 exemption on the first $25,000 of assessed value and a second $25,000 exemption on the value between $50,000 and $75,000. The second and potential third exemptions do not apply to school district taxes.
In Ocean Ridge, Town Commissioner Kristine de Haseth also urged voters to educate themselves. The town would see tax revenues drop by about $75,000, while Palm Beach County government would lose $27.3 million.
De Haseth said 66 homesteads in Ocean Ridge are assessed at less than $100,000 and would not qualify for the additional exemption; 541 would be eligible for at least part of it.
“I encourage you to educate yourself on all the pieces, make sure that you know what it means to you personally and also what it means to your town,” she said Oct. 1.
Florida TaxWatch urged voters to say no.
“The proposed homestead benefits relatively few Florida families (29 percent) and property owners (24 percent). It also benefits only 57 percent of homestead owners,” the nonprofit watchdog group said. “It will likely lead to increases on everybody else, with higher taxes on lower-income homeowners and small businesses, and increased rents for renters.”
Also opposing the Florida Legislature-approved proposal were the Florida League of Cities, the Florida Association of Counties and the Florida City and County Management Association.
Delray Beach passed a League of Cities-sponsored resolution as part of its Oct. 16 consent agenda urging residents “to carefully consider the potential adverse consequences of Amendment 1 before voting.”
The consequences include municipalities being forced to raise property tax rates, benefits going to only a handful of homeowners, and businesses being exposed to a “much higher” tax burden, the league said.
Palm Beach County Property Appraiser Dorothy Jacks said the maximum benefit for Boca Raton homesteads assessed at $125,000 and up is $282. Depending on the municipal tax rate, the benefit would range from $200 to $300, she said.
Robert Rollins, chairman of the Greater Boca Raton Beach & Park District, said on its face, the proposal is appealing.
“As a homeowner I’d be leaning toward this,” he said.
But the district, which is funded almost 100 percent by property taxes, would have to either cut services or raise its tax rate if the amendment is approved, he said.
Gulf Stream Mayor Scott Morgan was not too worried about the prospect of the third exemption.
“We’re a small town. I don’t think it’d be a particularly significant issue,” Morgan said.
Jacks estimated the amendment would mean a loss of $35,849 for Gulf Stream.
She also predicted lost tax revenues of $40,795 in South Palm Beach, $70,129 in Lantana, $9,294 in Manalapan, $11,595 in Briny Breezes, $1.6 million in Boynton Beach, $1.6 million in Delray Beach and $153,864 in Highland Beach.

By Dan Moffett

For the third time, Publix tried to persuade the Manalapan Town Commission to allow a free-standing wine and liquor store near the company’s new supermarket in Plaza del Mar.
And for a third time, commissioners politely said thank you for your service, but no.
“You’re offering a convenience, but the community is telling us they don’t want that convenience,” Mayor Keith Waters said during the commission meeting on Oct. 23. “The feedback has not been positive.”
The opposition again was largely focused on the proposed liquor store’s proximity to the beach — roughly 200 yards. Commissioners worried that students on spring break would find it too easy to abuse alcohol and party in places and ways they shouldn’t.
“I’m worried about underage drinking,” said Vice Mayor Peter Isaac. “We could be enabling binge drinking at the beach.”
Commissioner Clark Appleby said even a “high-end liquor store” would be likely to “invite a certain crowd” that would cause problems for police and residents.
Mark Klein, general manager of the Eau Palm Beach Resort and Spa, told the commission that a carryout liquor store would hurt the hotel’s business. Klein said that, though the Eau serves alcohol in its bars and restaurant, the drinking occurs in a controlled environment.
“No doubt that hard liquor does encourage poor decision-making,” Klein said. “However, every one of our service staff is trained to recognize potential overindulgence and poor behavior. We do have controls.”
The commission voted 6-1 against Publix, with Commissioner Hank Siemon siding with the company. Waters did not have a vote.
“I don’t see the moral hazard and health concern,” Siemon said. “We have a history with Publix. We know what they do and they do it very well. Publix is a good neighbor, and I think they would handle it very well.”
Matt Buehler, a retail vice president with plaza landlords Kitson & Partners, told the commission that Publix’s request for a separate liquor store was necessitated by a Florida law that prohibits selling hard liquor inside supermarkets. Only beer and wine are allowed in the main store.
“There has to be separation,” he said. “This is a retail package store. It is not a bar.”
Buehler promised the commission that the liquor store would be “an extension of the Publix retail store” and run as efficiently as the grocery operation, with a security guard on site.
But commissioners, as they have said repeatedly over the last two years, were steadfast against the idea.
“It diminishes the value of the property in the neighborhood,” Mayor Pro Tem Simone Bonutti said. “I’m looking at the public health and safety of our kids, too.”
When the original plans for building the Publix first came to town officials over two years ago, a liquor store some 30 feet west of the supermarket was included. But the company, faced with opposition, pulled the store from the site plan before the project got underway. Last March, with the supermarket’s grand opening nearing, Publix again brought the liquor store issue to the commission, and commissioners voted it down as they did in October.
Twenty years ago, Publix stayed out of the liquor business. But as competition within the supermarket industry intensified and grew even more cutthroat, the company has gradually changed course. Over the last decade, Publix has acquired or built more than 100 liquor stores throughout the Southeast as a way to maximize profits.
According to industry analysts and the Distilled Spirits Council of the United States, a liquor store can generate more than twice the profit margin per square foot as its companion supermarket next door.
Waters said he would not be surprised if the company keeps trying.
“I have a sneaking suspicion we’re going to see this again,” the mayor said. “I would hope logic would tell you that to move forward would be moving forward against the wishes of the community.”

By Steve Plunkett

The race for District 89 in the Florida House may well come down to which party gets more voters to the polls Nov. 6.
The ballot features two barrier island residents: Ocean Ridge Mayor and lawyer Jim Bonfiglio, the Democrat, and Delray Beach accountant Mike Caruso, the Republican.
The Aug. 28 primaries were close, party-wise, with 12,437 Democrats casting ballots compared with 12,028 Republicans. District 89, which typically leans Republican, stretches along the coast from Boca Raton to Singer Island.
A third candidate, business owner Deborah Wesson Gibson, a Delray Beach mainlander, was not affiliated with a party and dropped out of the race in August.
In a letter to the state Division of Elections, Gibson, 55, said she was withdrawing to not peel off votes from the Democrat in the race. “It is not my intent to split the party’s votes and effectively lend a hand to whoever wins the Republican primary,” she said.
Bonfiglio, 65, who has campaigned on making life “easier, safer and better,” has been on the Ocean Ridge Town Commission since 2014 following 14 years on its Planning and Zoning Commission. He had $84,258 in campaign contributions through Oct. 19, the latest numbers available. He also lent his campaign $270,000 and added $5,368 in in-kind donations.
Bonfiglio, who was named mayor by his fellow commissioners in March, received only $2,003 from six donors with Ocean Ridge addresses. He had $311,975 in expenses and $47,651 cash on hand.
Caruso, 60, a forensic CPA who qualified to run for the House by collecting 1,241 signatures, says he will bring “real, experienced, community-based leadership” to the state Capitol. He has been a member of the Delray Beach Police Advisory Board and president of his homeowners association. As of Oct. 19 he had collected $227,787 in contributions, lent his campaign $204,125 in cash and given $304 in kind. His 51 donors with Delray Beach addresses contributed $25,662. Caruso’s expenses were $374,212 and he had $58,004 cash on hand.
Caruso, a self-described fiscal conservative, says now is not the time to raise taxes. “Instead we need to allow [everyday Floridians] to keep more of their money in their own pockets to help continue to fuel our robust Florida economy,” Caruso told the League of Women Voters.
Bonfiglio says the state needs to find more equitable and reliable revenue streams.
“I support 1) legalizing and taxing recreational marijuana, 2) legalizing and taxing sports betting, 3) look more to corporations, LLCs and businesses to pay their fair share for the costs of government based on their revenue and degree they draw from our education system and use/over-use our infrastructure and threaten our environment, 4) claw back some of the tax breaks given to large businesses and corporations, especially the most recent federal income tax breaks,” he told the league.
Caruso has the endorsements of Boca Raton Deputy Mayor Jeremy Rodgers, departing District 89 state Rep. Bill Hager, the Boca Raton Chamber of Commerce and the county firefighters union.
Bonfiglio is endorsed by U.S. Rep. Lois Frankel, Boynton Beach City Commissioner Justin Katz and School Board member Frank Barbieri, as well as the county Classroom Teachers Association.
Hager, who first won the District 89 seat in 2012, is leaving office because of term limits.