By Sallie James

    A controversial plan to build an upscale restaurant on a 2.3-acre parcel near the Intracoastal Waterway and East Palmetto Park Road is moving forward.
    Deputy Boca Raton City Manager George Brown announced plans for the Wildflower property during the May 24 City Council meeting. The on-again, off-again project is slated to come before the city’s Planning and Zoning Board on June 9.
    Boca Raton purchased the waterfront property in 2009 for $7.5 million so residents could have access to the waterfront. After the city began negotiations to lease the land to the Hillstone Restaurant Group, the property was fenced off from the public with locked gates.
    Original plans called for a Houston’s restaurant on the water, but current plans describe the proposed eatery only as a “full-service restaurant . . . compared to Hillstone’s other operations.”
    No dock is proposed, but a lease summary says Hillstone would not oppose a dock if it were installed by the city and as long as it did not obstruct patrons’ views of the water.
    The project, which would put millions of dollars into city coffers, has drawn ire ever since it was proposed. Residents who live in the area have cited concerns over increased traffic problems in an already congested area, while others are adamant about preserving the area for a park.
    An earlier proposed lease agreement fell through late last year when Hillstone withdrew from negotiations.
    Under the most recent proposal, Hillstone would initially pay $600,000 a year for five years, with the payments rising every five years to nearly $700,000 annually in years 16 through 20.
    The proposal includes five-year renewals, with payments increasing every five years for a lease total of more than $33 million. The city would pay all of Hillstone’s property taxes and the city could get added rent if gross sales exceed targets.
    According to Brown, the Planning and Zoning Board will review the project’s site plan on June 9 and make recommendations to the City Council on any land-use changes, rezoning, conditional use approvals and the lease. The project is expected to come back before the City Council on June 14, with a final public hearing at its next meeting on July 26.
    Meanwhile, more than 60 residents are carrying petitions in hopes of getting enough verifiable signatures by June 24 to put a referendum on the Aug. 30 primary election ballot. The referendum would demand that city-owned parcels adjacent to the Intracoastal Waterway be used only for public recreation and boating access.
    “All we want is for citizens to be able to share their voice on the use of the property and the city has refused it,” said longtime resident James Hendrey, a city activist. “What we are trying to say is ‘Please let the citizens express their wishes,’ and the best way we know of getting that done — legally we are forced — is to develop [a question] we can put on the ballot.”
    The group needs at least 1,500 signatures, but Hendrey said it is hoping for 2,000.
    Citizens would vote “Yes” if they would like the properties on the west side of the Intracoastal Waterway to be used for recreation and boating. Citizens could vote “No” if they were amenable to other types of uses, Hendrey explained.

    The good people of Boca Raton are in position to build the first homeless kibbutz in the USA. The United States’ shelter system for homeless people is a failed system. It makes nothing better, it only makes the situation worse.
    It is time to re-homestead our homeless people on small portions of land that they own in common. A small, working, agricultural kibbutz. A social experiment consisting of 25 homeless people, or 25 homeless American veterans, can be built on 1 acre of land. They could do this along with the right to erect shelter for the purpose of survival in 25 tents that may evolve into 25 tiny houses. Empty land above an abandoned septic tank or two portable toilets would be required.
    Over time, homeless people will come and homeless people will go, and a kibbutz could include many homeless people on the way to a more constructive life. Should the experiment work well for the city, then the city can build a second, third or fourth kibbutz, each on 1 acre of land. The city can increase or decrease the land leases as needed.
    I read the article by Sallie James, “Homeless in East Boca.” It is a well-written, unbiased explanation of the situation that the city finds itself locked into forever. A homeless person has lost more than the lawful right to enter and remain in a building; a homeless person has lost the right to land, altogether. The Industrial Revolution is over in the Western World; it is no longer necessary to force people off of the land into the cities to provide labor for industry. Industry is now a Rust Belt. It is time to re-homestead our homeless people on land that they own in common. Three million to 4 million homeless people in America exist on the land without a lawful place to be, and some of them end up in Boca Raton.
    Soon, about 15 million to 20 million American families that have lost their mortgages will spill out onto the land. Being forced to live without shelter causes the natural consequence of unnatural death. Homeless people exist on the land; it is the responsibility of society to organize this basic fact of life.
    In 2014, I went before the Boca Raton City Council and pleaded with them for this social experiment. I was ignored. The combined wealth and intelligence of this community can find every answer that we need to build the first homeless kibbutz in America. We know it works in Israel. Please visit the website homelesslandmodel.com and Facebook.com/American Homeless Land Model or send an email to american_homeless@yahoo.com.  
— Ken Churchill
Boca Raton

By Rich Pollack

    Highland Beach residents soaked by high water bills as a result of large leaks could soon be getting some relief.
    During discussion of a proposed ordinance that would include changes to the town’s water-rate structure — including a minimal rate hike for all water users — commissioners appeared to support the idea of giving customers a one-time break following a major leak.
    Commissioner Lou Stern, who has pushed for the change, said big water leaks are not uncommon in Highland Beach.
“We’ve had it happen twice on our street, including to our 10-unit condominium,” he said. “It can be a lot of money.”
    At the Coronado Ocean Club, a large underground leak led to water bills covering a four-month period adding up to about $143,000 — double what it would have been normally.  
    Dennis Dowd, the vice president of the condominium association, told commissioners in a May 3 letter that the leak had been fixed, but he wondered if it would be possible to help the condo association defray at least a portion of the large cost.
    One reason why Coronado’s water bills — and those of others who have big leaks — are so high is that Highland Beach uses a tiered-rate structure, similar to that used by other towns.
    With that structure, customers with high usage pay a higher per-gallon rate.
    In most cases, an underground water leak on the customer’s property will push the rate to the higher tier.
    Resident Jerry Wolff, whose six-unit townhome community received a $4,100 bill instead of the normal $300 to $400 bill for a two-month period in 2013, said if it weren’t for the tier system, the bill would have been in the $1,200 to $1,500 range.
    Under a proposed resolution brought to the commission last month, town officials would use prior bills to estimate the amount of water lost due to a leak.
    They would then adjust the customer’s bill to reflect only the water estimated to have been used. The customer would then be billed at the lowest-tiered rate.
    The one-time adjustment, according to the proposed resolution, would be at the discretion of the town manager.
    It would require customers to demonstrate they have repaired the leak and submitted a request for the adjustment within two billing cycles of the higher bill.
    The town manager would also have the ability to allow customers who suffer from unusually high bills, including those who do not qualify for the adjustment, to make up to four quarterly payments.
    Wolff, who said his community has seen two or three smaller leaks since 2013, would like commissioners to offer customers adjustments every two or three years rather than one time only.
    “The bottom line is the town should not benefit from someone else’s hardship,” Wolff said.
    The proposal, which commissioners will vote on before finalizing the budget for the fiscal year beginning Oct. 1, follows the recommendation of a consultant and includes a rate increase for water and sewer customers of about 2.4 percent.
    For a customer using 6,000 gallons per month, the increase would be about $1.13.
    A customer using 30,000 gallons per month would see a $3.26 increase.
    If approved, the increase would mark the first time Highland Beach has hiked its water and sewer rates since 2009.

By Dan Moffett

    Prospects dimmed for a barrier island fire district as officials from six coastal communities dug deeper into a consultant’s feasibility study last month.
    The preliminary report from Robert Finn, a manager with Texas-based Matrix Consulting Group, uncovered two significant problems that could derail the plan. Both are costly.
    For one, contrary to earlier estimates, revised numbers suggest that it would be difficult for the six towns to save money on operational expenses if they provide their own fire-rescue services. In fact, forming a district likely would require them to pay more each year.
    The other problem is delivering service to a district that stretches roughly 20 miles from South Palm Beach to Highland Beach and that is connected mostly by a single two-lane road, State Road A1A. Safety officials now believe that it will take four fire stations to cover the zone, meaning two new facilities would have to be built somewhere between the existing stations in Manalapan and Highland Beach.
    Even with four stations, the town representatives say they would still need mutual aid agreements with mainland service providers to ensure the proposed district is properly covered during the tourist season and periods of high recreational use.
    The preliminary report suggests that the price tag for creating the district is significantly higher than previously thought.
    “That’s the big gorilla in the room — cost,” said Bob Vitas, South Palm Beach town manager.
    Finn said he would have the study revised and completed before the end of June. Then the report will go to the elected bodies in the six towns — South Palm Beach, Manalapan, Ocean Ridge, Briny Breezes, Gulf Stream and Highland Beach — for consideration.

By Sallie James

    Should the city hold a special election to fill a vacant City Council seat or should council members continue appointing someone to the opening? It’s a question at least one elected official continues to ponder.
    City Council member Scott Singer in April proposed a change to the city charter that would have required council vacancies be filled by special election no later than 60 days after the day the vacancy occurred.
    The way Singer figured, someone appointed to that vacancy could serve up to two years without voter approval. Singer said he wanted to give control back to voters.
    But when he presented the plan to council members in early May, the proposal failed amid a barrage of criticism citing unknown costs, among other things.
    Singer introduced a revised proposal at the May 24 City Council meeting extending the time frame for an election to 90 days and including language that outlines the efficiency and cost-effectiveness of holding special elections concurrently with previously scheduled elections.
    Council member Robert Weinroth called it a “solution to a problem that doesn’t exist.” He also expressed concern about the cost if the special election didn’t coincide with a previously scheduled election. Other council members also expressed concerns about cost.
    “I think the system that is currently in place has worked well,” Weinroth said. “I am at a loss to think why [Singer] wanted to bring it back so quickly. I am kind of surprised. I thought he might have realized there really wasn’t much support for what he is trying to do.”
    According to a memo from Boca Raton City Clerk Susan Saxton, a special election held in conjunction with a primary or general election could cost the city anywhere from $7,500 to $10,000. A standalone special election — which would include all actual costs incurred by the county supervisor of elections — would cost between $120,000 to $135,000, the memo stated.
    If City Council members approve the proposed charter amendment, the measure could come before voters in the Aug. 30 primary election.
    The revised charter change provides that a special election for a council vacancy would take place the Tuesday following the 90th day after the vacancy occurs or as soon as practical. The amendment goes on to say if the vacancy occurs within 150 days of a previously scheduled federal, state, countywide or city election, the special election can be held concurrently.
    Both Mayor Susan Haynie and council member Jeremy Rodgers agreed in early May that the measure needed more study. Singer’s proposed changes were in response.
    Also at the May 24 meeting, Weinroth introduced a revised ordinance that proposes salary hikes for the mayor and City Council members, changing some of the original proposals he made in late April.
    The April proposal suggested elected officials get pay raises that more than quadruple their salaries, and stated that if Palm Beach County commissioners’ salaries are raised, Boca Raton council members’ salaries would be raised the same amount.
    The revised ordinance, which would also go before voters on Aug. 30 if the council approves, removes the automatic salary increases and slightly reduces the previously proposed annual salaries.
    The earlier proposed salary of $38,550 for the mayor was reduced to $38,000 in the revised proposal, and the initial proposed salary of $28,766 for City Council members was reduced to $28,000 in the revision.
    Weinroth said he proposed the revisions because feedback from the community and the Chamber of Commerce showed support for the increase, but reservations about making them automatic.
    “The real issue was people had some concerns that they wanted to have a voice in future increases and certainly I could understand that,” Weinroth said. “If [automatic increases were] the only reason they would not support it, I wanted to take that off.”
    Boca’s mayor currently is paid $9,000 a year. Council members are paid $7,200 a year.
    Previous attempts in 2004 and 2006 to increase the salaries both failed.
    If voters approve, the pay hikes would become effective in October 2017.

Boca Raton Fire Rescue Capt. Jason Owens checks on the shark bite victim

before she was taken to the hospital.

Photo provided

By Sallie James

    It was an “only in Florida” story if there ever was one: A young woman went for a swim in the ocean and emerged with a baby nurse shark attached to her forearm.
    A shark that had latched on so tightly that rescue workers decided not to remove the shark from the woman’s arm, but took her by ambulance to Boca Raton Regional Hospital with the creature still attached.
    “If it can happen, it will happen in Florida,” said Boca Raton Fire Rescue spokesman Bob Lemons. “There was very little blood — there wasn’t really any active bleeding when the marine patrol or we were on scene. She was in very good spirits. She made several social media posts.”
    The woman’s name was not released. Her condition is unclear and it’s unclear how the shark was removed.
    The odd incident occurred around 1:20 p.m. on May 15, when a woman showed up at Lifeguard Station No. 8 with the shark firmly attached to her right forearm.
    Boca Raton Ocean Rescue Capt. Clint Tracy was on duty at another location when he heard radio chatter about the shark. Ocean rescue workers are careful not to tie up the airwaves with idle chatter, so the transmissions caught his attention immediately.
    “We have a young lady with a small nurse shark attached to her arm,” a rescue worker from Lifeguard Station No. 8 said.
    “I asked him if he needed fire rescue at the time. He said, ‘Not at this time,’ and then a lieutenant arrived and said we did,” Tracy said. The first lifeguard on scene — who was new to the job — was extremely calm and handled the situation well, Tracy said.
    By the time Fire Rescue arrived, Ocean Rescue had pretty much stabilized everything. However, the 2-foot-long shark — which was dead — was still attached to the woman’s arm, he said.
    According to National Geographic, nurse sharks have strong jaws “filled with thousands of tiny, serrated teeth, and will bite defensively if stepped on or bothered by divers who assume they are docile.”
    Rescue workers put a splint underneath the woman’s arm and underneath the shark so she could be transported with the shark on her arm. Rescue workers didn’t want to pull off the shark and possibly cause unnecessary tissue damage.
    How the incident occurred remains in question.
    According to some witnesses, several people in the water were antagonizing the shark. A friend said the shark just came out of the water and bit the woman.
    “We were there to keep her comfortable and transport her to the hospital. I think it was just a very unique situation,” Lemons said. “Everybody worked well together.”

Related story: Higher cost estimates could scuttle fire district plan

By Rich Pollack

    Another deadline for when Highland Beach has to let Delray Beach know if it plans to continue contracting with the city for fire and rescue services has come and gone — and still no decision has been reached.
    Negotiations are continuing, however, with both municipalities agreeing to extend the deadline for 90 days.
    “Extending the deadline gives us the opportunity to continue negotiating further,” Highland Beach Town Manager Beverly Brown said.
    While town officials continue back-and-forth talks with Delray Beach representatives, Highland Beach is also exploring the possibility of contracting with Palm Beach County Fire Rescue.
    Currently, Delray Beach staffs a Highland Beach-owned fire station adjacent to Highland Beach’s Town Hall. The town owns a 10-year-old rescue wagon and rents a fire truck from Delray Beach for $8,500 a month.
    Brown said the town had discussions with Boynton Beach officials but ruled out contracting with that city’s Fire Rescue Department because of concerns over the time it would take for a backup rescue or fire truck to respond in an emergency.  
    Also still under consideration is the possibility of Highland Beach joining a proposed barrier island fire district being explored by six municipalities. But Brown said there are several issues that could prevent the town from partnering with others.
    “It’s not as viable an option as it once was,” she said, citing start-up expenses and backup response times.
    Discussions regarding a new 10-year fire-rescue service agreement between Delray Beach and its smaller neighbor have been going on for months. At one point this year, an agreement seemed unlikely after Delray Beach commissioners proposed adding a 20 percent administrative fee to the proposed $3.5 million annual contract.
    Negotiations resumed, however, after representatives from both municipalities realized they could benefit from continuing the partnership.
    “The notion that Highland Beach gets more out of this than we do is not factually accurate,” Delray Beach Mayor Cary Glickstein said during discussions in March.
    Brown said she does not think delays in reaching an agreement with either Delray Beach or Palm Beach County will affect Highland Beach’s ability to have a fire rescue service provider in place by the time the current contract expires in September 2017.

Related story: Atlantic Avenue business sales drive Delray’s value increase

By Mary Hladky

    As the housing market collapse fades into memory, the taxable value of Palm Beach County properties has risen to within striking distance of the historic high set in 2007.
    Estimates released by Property Appraiser Gary Nikolits’ office on May 27 show that taxable values have increased for the fifth year in a row.
    Countywide, the amount grew by 7.85 percent from 2015 to 2016, to $164.5 billion. That is just short of the record high of $169.5 billion, and well above the low point of $124.4 billion in 2010.
    Delray Beach bested other cities and towns in south Palm Beach County, with taxable values rising 10.1 percent. Boynton Beach jumped 7.7 percent and Boca Raton rose by 6.7 percent.
    The county and its 38 cities and towns could soon completely wipe out the losses of the recession, Nikolits said.
    “It is probably within the next couple of years. We are practically there now,” he said. “We will be back to where we would have been if we had not gone through all the upheaval.”
    Local governments will use Nikolits’ estimates to calculate how much property tax money they can expect in the coming year and to set their annual budgets and 2016-17 tax rates.

    A preliminary tax roll will be submitted to the state on July 1, and governments then approve new budgets and tax rates — a process that ends in about mid-September before the start of the new fiscal year on Oct. 1.
     An increase in taxable values means that the county, cities and towns will collect more money from property owners if they keep their tax rates the same as last year.
    While elected officials can increase the tax rate, most typically are loath to do so and anger residents. They also can reduce the tax rate any amount or enough that the new rate will bring in the same amount of tax revenue as last year.
    “It is a double-edged sword,” Nikolits said of the rise in taxable value. “It is good news for the property owner. It is bad news for the taxpayer, who is usually the same person, because it affords the taxing authorities the ability to take in even more tax revenue. It is a very rare taxing authority that won’t take advantage of that.”
    Indeed, only seven of the county’s cities and towns lowered their property tax rates enough to avoid tax increases last year.
Boca Raton was among those that did not do that. But Mayor Susan Haynie notes that the city has the lowest tax rate of any “full service” city in the county, meaning a city that does not outsource any of its municipal services. The current property tax rate is $3.67 for every $1,000 of assessed property value.
    “The important thing is we are able to provide world-class municipal services at the lowest tax rate in the entire county,” she said.
    Delray Beach City Manager Don Cooper said his city’s gains in part reflect development in the central business district. The projects fall within the Community Redevelopment Agency area and, as a result, any additional tax revenue generated will remain within the CRA rather than benefiting the city as a whole.
    Cooper said it’s too early to predict next year’s property tax rate since the 2016-17 budget is still being worked on. The current rate is $7.33 per $1,000 of assessed property value.
    “We certainly are not going to go up,” he said. “We will stay the same or drop.”
    Boynton Beach officials declined to talk about the tax rate. It currently is $7.90 per $1,000 of assessed value.
    Taxable values increased by 7.3 percent in Briny Breezes, 5.5 percent in Gulf Stream, 6.5 percent in Highland Beach, 9.1 percent in Lantana, 9.9 percent in Manalapan, 7.5 percent in Ocean Ridge, and 7.9 percent in South Palm Beach.
    While estimated taxable values have gone up, the property appraiser’s numbers show growth has slowed in recent years. Taxable values jumped 9.7 percent countywide last year. In just two other examples, Boynton Beach was up 10.1 percent while Boca Raton increased 7.6 percent from 2014 to 2015.
    Before the real estate crash, a 4 percent to 7 percent increase “was considered a normal market,” Nikolits said. “What we are seeing over the last two years is that we are returning to a more normal market — not double digit (increases).”
    The average increase for all cities was 8.22 percent.
    Realtors have noted that increases are slowing.
    “Sales prices for high-end properties in the coastal communities have regained ground lost during the recession and then some,” said Pascal Liguori, a broker associate with Premier Estate Properties. “Now prices are beginning to level off, reflecting a more normal rate of appreciation.”
    Yet the market remains very active, he said. “It always goes back to the fact that there is more demand for property in the coastal areas than there is supply,” he said.
    Jack Elkins, an agent with Fite Group, agrees demand remains strong in the coastal communities, although values now are edging up rather than skyrocketing.
    One change he is seeing that bolsters business is that instead of buying vacation homes, more out-of-staters in the market for luxury homes are opting to become Florida residents. As a result, he said buyers are willing to pay more for a permanent home than a vacation property.
    While not certain why this is happening, he posits that changes in tax laws up north are making it more expensive to live there. Florida has low taxes and owners can homestead for additional tax savings.

Michelle Quigley contributed to this story.

By Steve Plunkett

    Talk of the city annexing five subdivisions north of Clint Moore Road has the Greater Boca Raton Beach and Park District crying foul.
    District commissioners were already chafed by the 2013 annexation of the Royal Palm polo grounds, which also are north of Clint Moore Road and outside district boundaries. Royal Palm polo residents are able to use beach and park district facilities but do not pay beach and park taxes.
    “It is unfair to tax some people and not others. Whatever it takes to make it fair to everyone is what needs to be done,” District Commissioner Dennis Frisch said.
    The Boca Raton City Council heard a preliminary analysis of the possible annexation of Le Lac, Azura, Fieldbrook Estates, Boniello Acres and Newport Bay at its May 9 workshop session. Combined, the 435 residences in the neighborhoods would bring in an additional $505,567 in city taxes, Deputy City Manager George Brown said.
    Arthur Koski, the beach and park district’s interim executive director, estimated that the Royal Palm annexation, with a planned 247 homes, would mean about $250,000 a year in unpaid district taxes when built out. A buyer paid $2.2 million for the first residence there in December, according to county property appraiser records.
    “This is not small change,” Commissioner Earl Starkoff said, adding that the missing revenues over 10 years would pay for most of a beach renourishment project.
    The five targeted neighborhoods would bring the district about $277,000 a year in taxes if the new residents also become part of the district. But if not, they too will get free use of beach and park facilities.
    “It would seem to me, simply, that all the existing city residents and the existing district residents would be subsidizing those annexed citizens as they come into the city. Everyone else would be paying the [$1 per $1,000 of taxable value] to the district except for these annexed citizens,” Koski said.
     Koski also said that if the annexed residents were to pay district taxes, existing residents might see a tax decrease. But changing the district’s boundaries is not a simple task; it requires a state legislative act, and city officials must give their approval first.
    Commissioners told Koski to write the City Council and ask its members to support a change to the district’s legislation to include newly annexed areas. Frisch said to also request that they consider the matter at their June 14 meeting since the council meets less frequently in the summer.
    “If we get a letter there next week and it doesn’t get put on until the July or August agenda, it defeats our purpose of making things go,” Frisch said

The Early Literacy Backpack program is giving Suzanne Endruschat’s daughter, Maggie, 4,

a head start on developing her reading skills.

Photo provided

By April W. Klimley

    Maggie Endruschat just turned 4, but she’s already getting ready to read — and enjoying it — says her mother, Suzanne, thanks to Boca Raton Public Library’s new Early Literacy Backpack program launched in April.
    The libraries offer 12 backpacks that parents can borrow: six at the downtown branch, six at Spanish River. Each backpack is filled with books, toys, educational puzzles and even puppets and stuffed animals.
    The idea is to help children up to 5 years old become familiar with the concepts of reading — such as the alphabet, phonics and storytelling — and thus prepare them for learning to read in kindergarten.
    The themes of the backpacks range from the basic ABCs and numbers to pets, bears, toys and bugs. The program is based on the six skills identified by the American Library Association for successful reading readiness: print motivation, print awareness, letter knowledge, vocabulary, phonological awareness and narrative skills.
    “All the backpacks were checked out in about a week,” says Amanda Liebl, the library’s youth programs director. Liebl says that many parents found out about the program during story time for their tots. Now there is a waiting list.
    Maggie has already gone through the ABC and Number backpacks, so she was ready for new themes, according to her mom. The bear backpack is based on the popular folktale of Goldilocks and the Three Bears. It contains a stuffed bear, several board books, a puzzle in a frame, a lacing card and laminated sheet with pictures of the three bears story.
    Suzanne Endruschat, who works in accounts services for the library, says Maggie has enjoyed all the backpacks so far. And now, with the bear backpack, her little girl has started telling the three bears story herself. Maggie points to different pictures on the laminated story sheet as she tells the story to her mother.
    Lynne Holloway, collection services librarian, observes that the backpack program is not just for the children. “It’s for the parents, too,” says Holloway. “The backpacks give guidance to the parents or caregivers.” They enable adults to learn new ways to help their children become “reading-ready,” whether or not the children also attend a day care program where they might be learning these skills as well.
    Endruschat also believes the backpacks benefit parents. “I do think the backpacks are really fun for her,” she says. “But they also give me ideas on how to do other things with her. It makes you think of ways you can engage your child to enrich the stories you tell. It’s all about engaging your kids.”
    A further appeal of the backpack program may be the packaging itself. “The tinier kids see the big kids carrying backpacks for school,” says Endruschat. “So part of the appeal is the ‘big kid’ feel of the backpack.”
    For more information about the Early Literacy Backpack program, visit www.bocalibrary.org.

By Steve Plunkett

    Night owls behind the wheel can expect to encounter up to 30-minute delays on Interstate 95 on select Tuesdays and Thursdays.
Work on the Spanish River Boulevard interchange this month will include erecting bridge beams across the highway from 11 p.m. June 7 and June 9 until 5 a.m. the next day.
    The Florida Highway Patrol will restrict northbound I-95 traffic beginning at Southwest 10th Street; motorists can expect a half-hour delay. The I-95 northbound entrance ramps from westbound and eastbound Glades Road will be closed from 10 p.m. to 5 a.m. those days in conjunction with the pacing operation. Traffic will be detoured via Federal Highway.
    I-95 southbound bridge beam work is scheduled for 11 p.m. June 14 and June 16 until 5 a.m. the next day. The FHP will restrict southbound I-95 traffic at Atlantic Avenue; motorists can also expect a half-hour delay there. As part of this operation, the I-95 southbound entrance ramps from westbound and eastbound Yamato Road will be closed from 10 p.m. to 5 a.m. both days; traffic will be detoured via Congress Avenue.
    Continuing work on the $69 million project means I-95 northbound and southbound between Glades Road and Congress Avenue may have up to three lanes closed, with the first lane closing at 9 p.m. and the second lane and third lanes, if needed, closing from 11 p.m. to 5 a.m. Sunday through Friday. The new interchange is expected to be completed in summer 2017.
    Drivers can visit www.d4fdot.com or call the Florida Department of Transportation at 954-777-4090 or 561-214-3358 for more information.

By Steve Plunkett

    The Greater Boca Raton Beach and Park District is sending a counterproposal filled with additions and deletions to the City Council, which wants “sole discretion” to make changes at parks.
    The district and the council now must compromise when they don’t see eye to eye. District Chairman Robert Rollins says the city plan would be “an unlawful delegation of our legislative authority.”
    “The only thing left for the district is to tax our constituents and write a check,” Arthur Koski, the district’s interim executive director, said.
    “That’s the way I interpreted it,” Commissioner Susan Vogelgesang said.
    Rollins said he told Mayor Susan Haynie he was unhappy with the city’s proposal and wanted to scrap it and start over. But Haynie urged him to suggest changes instead.
    The city and the district have eight contracts with each other governing the operation and maintenance of one park or another, Koski said. He saw nothing wrong with trying to consolidate the agreements into one provided the new document was “properly worded.”
    Commissioners compiled a list of changes they want in the contract at their May 24 meeting. Koski said they did not have to accept the document as proposed.
    “Keep in mind, we are not a board of the city. We do not respond to City Council wishes,” he said.
    Rollins objected to a clause that would let the city bill the district for any work the city decided was not up to its standards and had to be redone.
    “When I’ve had somebody come to my house, I typically tell them what work I want them to do for me. This is totally opposite of that,” he said.
    The kicker, he said, was a statement that the city could terminate the agreement for any reason, “or no reason,” with six months’ notice. There was not a similar out clause for the district.
    “This contract was in play for five months before we saw it,” Rollins said. “This was a great opportunity for us to have some communication, I thought.”
    Commissioner Earl Starkoff said city officials “sideswiped” the district with the proposal and called it a “threat to our existence” and a “totally one-sided money and power grab.”
    “We never asked them to consolidate the agreements,” Starkoff said.
    Commissioners also decided to seek a 10-year contract with automatic renewals instead of 30 years, and the ability to send the city payments via electronic transfer rather than U.S. mail. They also planned to invite the City Council to a joint meeting on July 25, when council members are scheduled to have a workshop session.
    “I don’t want us to send this and find another five months goes down the line,” said Commissioner Dennis Frisch.

By Steve Plunkett

    Arthur Koski, longtime attorney for the Greater Boca Raton Beach and Park District, will relinquish his additional role as interim executive director of the agency Oct. 1.
    Koski, who has been under attack from city officials seeking a full-time director, said his decision to step aside was not a result of outside pressure.
    “None whatsoever,” he said. “It takes an issue off the table.”
    Boca Raton city officials last year included a clause in a proposed contract between the two government entities requiring the district to have a full-time executive director. City Council member Robert Weinroth made a similar demand in a March 15 email.
    “For the record ... I believe the District needs to [make] securing a permanent executive director as a top priority,” Weinroth wrote.
Koski became the district’s interim director after Robert Langford retired in 2012.
    In Koski’s private law practice, he represents two city residents who are suing Boca Raton to block construction of a chabad on the barrier island.
    Koski, who announced his intention to quit at the district’s May 24 meeting, recommended that district commissioners promote Briann Harms, the assistant executive director, into the top spot.
    “She’s ready,” he said.
    District Chairman Robert Rollins signaled his desire to change the status quo earlier in the meeting.
    “We probably need a full-time executive director,” he said.
    Harms has been with the district since 2005. She started as a recreation center supervisor at the district’s Sugar Sand Park, became information supervisor for the district in October 2013 and was named its assistant director a year later.
    She has a bachelor’s degree in sociology from Florida State University.
    Commissioners appeared ready to embrace Koski’s recommendation for his successor. They will make a decision at a future meeting.
    “I think you can see, we all appreciate the talents you bring to the board,” Rollins told Harms.
    “It’s really a joy, Briann, to see young professionals coming up and fulfilling their potential,” Commissioner Earl Starkoff said.

By Sallie James

    The Boca Raton City Council after much disagreement last month again delayed approving an ordinance that would limit building heights in areas zoned local business and multifamily residential.
    The proposed ordinance would limit building heights in certain zoning districts to 30 feet and accessory buildings in another type of zoning district to 25 feet. Both zoning categories currently allow heights up to 50 feet with council approval.
    Discussion centered on whether eliminating an option that allows for increased height was a good idea. In the end, the ordinance was tabled until the fall.
    Robert Eisen, who works for Investments Ltd., at 215 N. Federal Highway, spoke on behalf of himself and 16 other property owners. He said eliminating an increased height option could pose problems in the future as land becomes more scarce and commercial demands increase.
    Architect Doug Mummaw echoed his concerns.
    “Change is inevitable and zoning codes are meant to be flexible,” Mummaw said.
    Mummaw and Eisen suggested establishing a planning task force that would focus on the B1 zoning in the neighborhoods east of the Intracoastal Waterway and include homeowners on the barrier island, business owners and Chabad of East Boca, which has already been granted approval to build a much taller structure in the area.
    Council member Robert Weinroth even suggested consideration of a completely different zoning district in light of the concerns.
“I think the community and everyone who has spoken ... is of a mind that we have something special on the barrier island and it needs to be handled differently,” Weinroth said.
    In other action in May, the City Council, acting as the Community Redevelopment Agency, delayed action on approving an updated rule requiring developers to set aside green space and open space in front of downtown buildings. The move delays the proposal until the July 25 CRA meeting, which will give the public more of a chance to speak on the issue.

    The public is invited to attend an architectural roundtable from 6:30-8:30 p.m. June 8 at Boca Raton City Hall, 201 W. Palmetto Park Road.
    The focus of the roundtable is to discuss the creative reinterpretation of the Mizner tradition as it relates to community redevelopment.
    Members of the Boca Raton City Council, the Boca Raton Community Redevelopment Agency, the Planning & Zoning Board and the Community Appearance Board are expected to attend.
    Boca Raton Mayor Susan Haynie and Community Appearance Board Chairman Juan Caycedo will host the roundtable.
— Sallie James

Stratford Arms’ use of multiple kinds of palm trees makes for a stunning entrance feature.

BELOW: The Atrium uses colorful plants to make the assisted-living facility more inviting to its clients.

Photos provided

By Deborah S. Hartz-Seeley

    On May 26, Jo-Ann Landon, of the Boca Raton Beautification Committee, presented the Annual Landscape Excellence Awards to 11 properties throughout the city.
    “Award recipients take great civic pride in what they do and work to maintain their landscaping at a high level,” said Mayor Susan Haynie, who helped present the awards.
    “The nomination process is pretty simple,” said Dick Randall, who co-chairs the awards program with Landon. Committee members look for commercial properties, homeowner’s associations, residential communities, schools, parks and other public spaces that are worthy of consideration. Then they consider them in a variety of categories, such as High-Density Ungated Residential, City Property and Shopping Center.
    The award criteria include tree canopy, proper pruning, variety, color and texture as well as how the property is fertilized, irrigated and maintained.
    “All that plays into landscape excellence,” Randall said.
    Residents living on the beach at the Stratford Arms Condominium, at 2600 S. Ocean Blvd., contend with not only sun but also salt and wind. Sabal, royal and date palms are the perfect landscape choices for this High-Density Residential winner.
    Farther north, at Broadstone North Boca Village at 7801 N. Federal Highway, this High-Density Ungated Residential property is screened from traffic and the railroad by southern red cedars, royal palms and magnolias.
    “The cedars are a first for Boca Raton,” Landon said.
    Charlene Smith-Plaisted, co-owner of Treasure Coast Landscape Services in Boynton Beach, was proud that the Woodfield Hunt Club, at 4420 Woodfield Blvd., took this year’s award for Low-Density Gated Residential. Properties that she and her husband have landscaped or maintained have taken seven awards since 2008.
    Along with residential properties, the awards honor Boca businesses such as Choice Mortgage Bank, at 40 SE Fifth St., which took the Large Commercial category.
    “There are a lot of cars driving by our bank so we want our building to look professionally maintained; not like a mishmash,” said CEO Michael Kodsi.
    The awards committee gave the property kudos for properly pruned palms. Landon explains that you should think of the top of a palm tree as a clock face where none of the fronds above 9 and 3 o’clock should be removed.
    Silver Companies, at 1001 E. Telecom Drive, in the Large Industrial category also won for its landscape techniques as well as its natural buffer along Yamato Road.
    In the Small Industrial Category, the owners of Custom Artisan Cabinetry, at 1070 NW First Ave., eschewed professionals to do the landscaping themselves.
    “For us, it was all about color,” said Sara Barni, who hand-picked and planted the shrubs and trees to create an “oasis in an otherwise industrial area.”
    In the Institutional category, the Atrium at Boca Raton, at 1080 NW 15th St., also won for its colorful plants that welcome the up to 150 residents who call this assisted-living facility home.
    Landscaping that doesn’t need much fertilizer, maintenance or water helped Office Depot, at 6600 Military Trail, garner an environmental designation as well as a landscape award.
    And in the Shopping Center category, Glades Plaza North, at 2300 W. Glades Road, was chosen because it is “manicured like a high-end residential property.”
    That’s just how general manager Jerry Busbee wants to keep it.
    “We’re on the highest-density road in Palm Beach County, so we want our place to look great,” he said.
    Victory Church, at 3499 NW Boca Raton Blvd., was a standout in the Place of Worship category. Here, Loxahatchee grass and butterfly-attracting fire bush form a border that softens and screens the parking lot. Spreading oaks shade the property.
    Oaks also provide a dense canopy at Boca Isles Park, at 1200 SW Second Ave., a small neighborhood attraction that won as a City Property.
    “Through all of this, our main goal is to encourage people to plant trees,” said Bob Jennings, who is chairman of the beautification committee. “They have a lot of scientific benefits, but this time of year when it’s hot out there, we can all appreciate the shade.”

Eddie James and Tommy Woodard, known as The Skit Guys, will perform June 10 in Delray Beach.

Photo provided

By Janis Fontaine

    The Skit Guys — Tommy Woodard of Edmond, Okla., and Eddie James of Sachse, Texas — have been using comedy and drama to teach God’s word for more than 20 years. Best friends since high school, they’re the class clowns but with an important message.
    The duo performs around the world and also creates videos and scripts that are used by thousands of churches. Both are husbands and fathers and, when not touring, are active in their community churches.
    They return to Cason United Methodist Church at 7:30 p.m. June 10 as part of the church’s Run & Fun event. Tickets are $15; $25 for VIP, which includes early admission and preferred seating. The church is at 342 N. Swinton Ave. in Delray Beach. 276-5302; www.casonumc.org.

Good works recognized
    Three local humanitarians were honored for their contributions with awards from Catholic Charities Interfaith Health & Wellness at its annual Faith Community Nursing Awards luncheon in April.
    IFHW presented Dr. John Whelton of Palm Beach, a rheumatologist, with the event’s highest award, the Mother Teresa Humanitarian Award, because he “exemplifies profound care and compassion to help and care for those in need.”
    Registered nurses Jennifer Hynes of West Palm Beach and Patricia Weaver of Lantana were recognized for their roles in IFHW’s Faith Community Nurse Program, which provides churches, temples and faith communities with lifesaving interventions, free health assessments, screenings, health education and referrals.
    More than 100 people attended the luncheon, held at the National Croquet Center in West Palm Beach. www.catholiccharitiesdpb.org.

Join the pack
    A mobile food-packing event takes place June 4 at Advent Lutheran Church in Boca Raton in partnership with Feed My Starving Children, a Christian nonprofit organization that sends prepackaged meals to more than 70 countries — including Haiti, which is facing its worst food crisis in more than 15 years.
    It’s a sobering topic, but this is a fun event with everyone working together on a big assembly line to package meals to feed the children of Haiti.
    Volunteers will be filling 100,000 plastic bags with cups of chicken-flavored rice and freeze-dried vegetables fortified with vitamins and nutrients. Just add boiling water — each MannaPack provides six servings of food.
    Advent Life Ministries has received community support from sponsors Florida Community Bank, Tijuana Flats, All County Pavement Management Solutions, Sonitrol Verified Electronic Security, Duffy’s Sports Grill and Chick-fil-A. 954-427-2222, ext. 4020, or www.FoodForThePoor.org/jointhepack.

Spirited discussions
    The Interfaith Cafe meets from 7 to 9 p.m. the third Thursday of the month at South County Civic Center, 16700 Jog Road, Delray Beach. Coffee, tea and light desserts are served. Suggested donation is $5. Email jane@aurorasvoice.org.
    JAM & the All Broward County Interfaith Group meets from 7 to 8:30 p.m. the third Monday at the Istanbul Cultural Center, 2500 W. Sample Road in Pompano Beach. The group, which has been meeting since the 9/11 attacks, promotes an interfaith dialogue and understanding by uniting people of different faiths in conversation. A different topic is discussed each month over coffee and tea. Admission is free. 954-600-6848 or email kathleenleonard@bellsouth.net.  

Dinner helps campers
    At 5:30 p.m. June 4, join the congregation of First United Methodist Church, 625 NE Mizner Blvd., Boca Raton, for dinner and games in support of the church’s Children and Student Ministries. Dinner: $15 adults, $8 ages 10 and younger.  Proceeds will help send campers to Warren Willis Camp and for the high school summer mission trip to Tennessee. www.fumcbocaraton.org.

Join the fun
    • Temple Sinai is hosting a cruise Dec. 4-9 to the western Caribbean on the Royal Caribbean’s Navigator of the Seas. Fares begin at $471 and include port charges, taxes and a bus from Delray Beach. 496-6137 or 803-548-9165.
    • Advent Lutheran Church of Boca Raton will host a trip to Italy on Sept. 21-30 led by Pastor Andy Hagen. The itinerary includes Rome, Vatican City, Tuscany, Florence, Chianti, Siena and San Gimigano. Tickets for double occupancy are $2,650. The single supplement is $590. Prices do not include airfare. 843-7261 or email ahagen@adventboca.org.
    • Temple Sinai of Palm Beach County is hosting the Israeli Scout Show at 3:30 p.m. June 12. The Israeli Scout program, designed to connect kids in Israel with the American Jewish community, began in the early 1960s.
    The group uses dancing, music and an old-fashioned meet-and-greet with the Tzofim summer delegation. These 16- and 17-year-olds are high achievers who have proven leadership experience, a broad knowledge of Israeli and Jewish history, fluency in English and strong communication skills. They go through extensive interviews and intensive preparation to make the team.
    Tickets are $8 or $11 for premium seating. 276-6161, Ext. 133, or templesinaipbc.com/activities.htm

Janis Fontaine writes about people of faith, their congregations, causes and events. Contact her at janisfontaine@outlook.com.

Dr. John Strasswimmer is helping bring skin cancer screenings and treatments

to the local migrant community. Behind Dr. Strasswimmer at Caridad Center

are Dr. Sherry McQuown and Wilfido, a patient of Dr. Strasswimmer’s.

Tim Stepien/The Coastal Star

By Lona O'Connor

    Between his private practice in Delray Beach and his volunteer work at Caridad Center in western Boynton Beach, dermatologist John Strasswimmer treats people of every way of life and every skin tone. What they often have in common is their lack of knowledge about melanomas, the skin cancer that is Strasswimmer’s specialty.
    Strasswimmer, a nationally recognized skin cancer expert and surgeon, is using a $68,000 grant from the American Academy of Dermatology, the Pfizer Foundation and the Palm Beach County Dermatology Society to build a skin cancer education program for Caridad’s clients.
    At the end of this year, Strasswimmer and his team are scheduled to produce a report detailing their results.
    “What’s really exciting is that this will be a platform to train community health educators, a way for them to get the knowledge they need to educate the public,” said Strasswimmer. 
    The study is the first of its kind for a low-income population in South Florida, who have not been involved in a melanoma study despite the fact that many of them work outdoors. 
    The largest free clinic in Florida, staffed by volunteer medical professionals, Caridad Center serves the working poor and recently uninsured clients. This summer Caridad is scheduled to open a melanoma center, including free screenings and treatment, just one part of the $5 million expansion of its facility from 7,500 to 15,000 square feet.
    Caridad CEO Laura Kallus has a long wish list of equipment to fill the expanded center, including items as basic as a standard operating table. The doctors have so far made do with a gurney they adapted for surgery, shared by several doctors.
    Educated at Tufts, Harvard and Yale, Strasswimmer served on the faculty of Harvard Medical School and the staff at Massachusetts General Hospital before moving to Palm Beach 10 years ago with his wife, Karin, an economist. He’s been volunteering at Caridad since then.
    Strasswimmer is the medical director of the melanoma and cutaneous oncology program at the Lynn Cancer Institute at Boca Raton Regional Hospital. He also serves on the faculty at FAU Medical School in the surgery and biochemistry departments.
    The couple has gone on several medical missions to Africa, the Caribbean and Latin America.
    On a recent day at the clinic, he greeted staff and checked on patients, flowing easily from English to Spanish, which he learned in high school.
    “It’s a very satisfying way to remember why you became a doctor,” he said.
    
Skin cancer facts
    Whether sun exposure comes from work or play, snorkeling or landscaping, many South Floridians are at risk.
    Here are a few points Strasswimmer makes to dispel misconceptions he encounters:
    • Melanoma is the No. 1 cancer for people ages 25-29.
    Fair-skinned people are not the only ones vulnerable to skin cancers. Dark-skinned people who never get sunburns can have melanoma and other deadly skin cancers.
    • Among the results he is soon to publish is that 20 percent of people in minority communities think they can never get skin cancer.
    “My wife’s boss at MIT, an Armenian American professor, refused to wear a hat when he went fishing,” says Strasswimmer.
    • Sun exposure increases risk, but cancers can appear “anywhere you have skin, even areas not exposed to the sun,” Strasswimmer says.
    One of his patients at Caridad is a 30-year-old mother of three who had a skin cancer on her foot, which had to be amputated. Strasswimmer and his colleagues were able to provide her free treatment, including a prosthetic foot.
    “Expect the dermatologist to look for them in places you never thought anybody would look,” Strasswimmer says.
    • Not wearing sunblock in order to absorb Vitamin D?  “The level of Vitamin D that an internal medicine specialist would like us to have in our bodies is almost impossible to get by sun exposure,” he says.
    • In addition to skin cancer, long-term sun exposure can lead to pterygium, sometimes called “surfer’s eye,” a cancer that can cover the surface of the eye and cause blindness.
    •  Melanoma is not always a dark splotch on the skin. It could be pink, red or clear. And it does not have to be large to be deadly.

Send column ideas to Lona O’Connor at Lona13@bellsouth.net.

More information
    American Academy of Dermatology: www.aad.org
    Skin Cancer Foundation: www.skincancer.org.

Boca teen’s prototype harnesses ocean energy

and wins her a ticket  to the White House

Hannah Herbst, at an FAU lab, shows her floatable prototype designed to provide

a power source by using untapped energy from ocean currents. She won the Discovery Education

3M Young Scientist Challenge for her work.

Tim Stepien/The Coastal Star
Hannah shows her creation to President Barack Obama at the White House Science Fair.

Photo provided

By Lucy Lazarony
       
    Two years ago, Hannah Herbst was on a boat in the Boca inlet that was rocking back and forth due to the power of the ocean’s currents.     
    She wondered at the time why no one had collected this power.     
    So she decided to do it.      
    “I started to develop my prototypes late in my seventh-grade year,” says Hannah, 15, who just finished her freshman year at Florida Atlantic University High School.     
    With help from a 3M scientist, whose company sponsors the annual science challenge, Hannah created an ocean energy prototype that aims to provide a stable power source to developing countries by using untapped energy from ocean currents. The scientist she was paired with is Jeffrey Emslander, a chemical engineer at 3M who works at a Minneapolis lab. The two communicated via Skype.    
    The prototype they came up with is suited toward those who live near the ocean, as Hannah’s family does.
    “It’s for anybody who lives near moving water,” she says.      
    Hannah explains her prototype this way:      
    “The ocean currents spin the Pelton wheels that are attached to a generator.
    “The generator transfers the energy. It doesn’t create it. It transfers it because energy doesn’t get created or destroyed. It’s one of Newton’s laws.”     
    In October, Hannah’s project won the 2015 Discovery Education 3M Young Scientist Challenge.   
    Her idea and hard work took her all the way to the White House.       
    On April 13, she participated in President Barack Obama’s sixth annual White House Science Fair, with other top science, technology, engineering and math students from around the country.     
    How was her trip to the White House?       
    “It was so cool,” Hannah says. “We saw all the rooms I watch on TV. It was pretty amazing.”     
    And she was the very first student the president talked to at the science fair.

    “There were 40 kids displaying but he came to six,” Hannah says. “He said, ‘How are you?’ ”
    They spoke for about 10 minutes. What did the president think of her ocean energy prototype?     
    “He said it was cool,” Hannah recalls. “And he said he thought it would be a pretty good solution to the energy crisis.”      
    Did she take a selfie with the president after their chat?     
    “I did not take a selfie with him, but I got a selfie with Bill Nye the Science Guy,” Hannah admits.
    The next stop for the budding inventer is the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair in Arizona. “It’s the largest pre-collegiate science fair in the world,” she says.         
    Where did Hanah get her great love of science and innovation?     
    “In the seventh grade, my parents (Julie and Joel Herbst of coastal Boca Raton) took me to a science camp here at FAU. That’s where my love of science was born,” Hannah says. (Her dad is assistant dean of the pre-college schools and educational programs at FAU).
    “It was a camp where we built robots.      
    “It was really empowering, and I began to do more stuff that I couldn’t do before.”

    She has a younger brother,   Max, 13, who is also interested in science.

Dana Cook holds two of his Sea Turtle Hatcher fishing lures.

Willie Howard/The Coastal Star

By Willie Howard

    Many Palm Beach County anglers know that mutton snapper linger in shallow water during the summer months, waiting for baby sea turtles to enter the water from the beach.
    Dana Cook of Boynton Beach, a lifelong angler and fly-tier who holds a degree in fine arts from Florida Atlantic University, knows that many ocean fish eat sea turtle hatchlings.
    Watching a documentary on the hatchling sea turtle feeding frenzy led Cook to develop the Sea Turtle Hatcher, an imitation sea turtle lure made from a “leather-like” material tied to a 9/0 circle hook.
    Cook says his lures will catch snook, tarpon, snappers and groupers along with pelagic fish that feed along the offshore mats of floating sargassum, where hatchling sea turtles spend the first year or more of their lives.
    “Grouper have been caught on them. Sailfish have been caught on them. Pelagics love them,” Cook said.
    Cook said the imitation sea turtle lures feature legs that move independent of the body, giving the Hatchers a realistic appearance in the water. Once saturated, the sea turtle lure suspends in the water and moves up when the angler’s rod tip is lifted.
    Cook grew up tying flies in Philadelphia. After moving to Boca Raton, where he attended high school, he started fishing more and continued to create fish-catching lures on his fly-tying vise.
    At one point in the early 1990s, Cook worked as a mate on the Two Georges drift boat, where he sold his buck-tail streamers, a drifting jig made with double hooks designed for catching kingfish with dead sardines.
    Cook’s marketing plan for the Sea Turtle Hatcher goes beyond selling to American tackle shops. He says the lure can prevent poaching of real sea turtle hatchlings that are used as bait.
    “My ultimate success is going to be selling to countries like Trinidad that are in dire need of an alternative to prevent poaching,” Cook said, adding that he’s contacting government officials in the Bahamas, Belize and the Dominican Republic about his imitation sea turtle lure.
    Daniel Evans, research specialist for the Gainesville-based Sea Turtle Conservancy, said people catching sea turtles for bait might pose a threat to hatchlings in some areas, but “it is certainly not a major threat to sea turtles on a regional or global scale.”
    But Evans noted that tarpon, dolphinfish, jacks, snook and “pretty much any large predatory fish found in tropical and subtropical waters” will eat sea turtle hatchlings.
    The Sea Turtle Hatchers are available through Cook’s website, www.dcclures.com, along with trolling darts, snapper lures, two imitation shrimp, buck-tail streamers and an imitation field mouse for freshwater anglers trying to fool largemouth bass.
    Still in development: life-size spiny lobster and stingray lures for large grouper and snapper.

Lake Worth Lagoon Fishing Challenge set for June
    Fishing and fisheries science will come together in June during the Lake Worth Lagoon Fishing Challenge — a fishing tournament that will help scientists better understand Palm Beach County’s largest estuary.
    Participants in the challenge will submit photos and other information about fish caught in the Lake Worth Lagoon, the estuary that extends 20 miles from North Palm Beach to Ocean Ridge.
    Deadline for submissions is midnight June 30.
    “By sharing details about the fish being caught in the lagoon, participants will help us better understand this local treasure that we are working hard to protect, restore and enhance,” said Rob Robbins, director of Palm Beach County’s Department of Environmental Resources Management.
    To receive points in the Fishing Challenge, anglers must submit the date and time of their catch, the type and length of the fish caught as well as the location, which can be done through the tournament app.
    For more details, go to www.LWLI.org/FishingChallenge or call 233-2400.

Michael Wood shows the 50.6-pound kingfish that won biggest overall fish in the Sail Inn KDW Fishing Tournament

and the Lantana Fishing Derby. The Sail Inn Tournament raised $11,000 for the Hospice of Palm Beach County Foundation.

Willie Howard/The Coastal Star

Team Woody’s kingfish wins two tournaments
    Michael Wood of West Palm Beach, fishing with his father, James, and two sisters, won heaviest fish awards in two fishing tournaments May 14 with a kingfish caught off Jupiter.
    Wood said the big kingfish hit a live goggle-eye rigged with titanium leader and a stinger hook in 100 feet of water around 9:45 a.m.
    Bull sharks were in the area, so the Wood family made sure to move their 25-foot boat Woody to the fish and gaff it as soon as possible.
    “We were really fortunate we got him in the boat,” Michael Wood said.
    The kingfish weighed 50.5 pounds on the scales at the Old Key Lime House in the Lantana Derby and 50.6 on the Sail Inn’s tournament scales at Boynton Harbor Marina.
    The Wood family registered for both tournaments. Their hefty kingfish won them the $2,500 top prize in the Lantana Fishing Derby and $7,220 from the Sail Inn Tavern.

Delray brewery developing edible six-pack rings
    Plastic six-pack rings that can entangle marine life could be replaced with something more biologically friendly.
    Delray Beach-based SaltWater Brewery recently partnered with New York-based WeBelievers to produce an edible six-pack ring made from wheat and barley.
    The first prototype batch came out in April and was offered to customers at the SaltWater Brewery’s tasting room in Delray Beach, brewery spokeswoman Katelyn Perkins said.
    “Over the next three months, we plan to perfect the product and produce 400,000 of them,” Perkins said. Beer should be available in the rings later this summer, she said.

The Bootleggers fishing team won the $10,000 top-fish prize in the May 21 Downtown Showdown KDW tournament

with this 86-pound wahoo caught on a live goggle-eye in 160 feet off Jupiter. From left are team members

Mike Minia of Boynton Beach, Brian Humphreys of Wellington and Alicia Lipscomb of Boynton Beach.

Willie Howard/The Coastal Star

Coming events
    June 4: Palm Beach County KDW Classic fishing tournament for kingfish, dolphin and wahoo based at Riviera Beach Marina. Captain’s meeting and final registration 6 p.m. June 3 at Riviera Beach Marina. Entry fee $275 per boat. 832-6780 or www.kdwclassic.com.
    June 4: Basic boating safety class offered by Coast Guard Auxiliary in Boca Raton. Class is 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. in the headquarters building at Spanish River Park, 3939 N. Ocean Blvd. Fee $35. Register at the door. Bring lunch. 391-3600 or email fso-pe@cgauxboca.org.
    June 5: Memorial service for Flip Traylor of Ocean Ridge, who died in March at age 86. Friends and family with gather from noon to 3 p.m. at the Boynton Beach Woman’s Club. RSVP by emailing Pam Anwyll at panwyll@verizon.net.
    June 18: Gold Coast Lionfish Derby, Waterstone Resort & Marina, 999 E. Camino Real, Boca Raton. Weigh-in 4-6 p.m. Free lionfish tasting after the weigh-in. Cash prizes for largest, smallest and most lionfish. Entry fee $200 per four-diver team. Captain’s meeting 6 p.m. June 17. 368-2155 or world-of-scuba.com.
    June 18: Horizon’s Fishing Tournament for kingfish, dolphin, wahoo, grouper and snapper. Captain’s meeting 5 p.m. June 16 at Riviera Beach Marina. Weigh-in 1-4 p.m. at Riviera Beach Marina. Entry fee $200 per boat by June 15 or $300 after. 494-6888 or www.hpbcf.org/fishing.
    June 25: Lake Worth Fishing Tournament for kingfish, dolphin, wahoo and snapper. Captain’s meeting 6 p.m. June 24 at Tuppen’s Marine & Tackle, 1002 N. Dixie Highway, Lake Worth. Weigh-in 1-3:30 p.m. June 25 at Palm Beach Yacht Center in Hypoluxo. Entry fee $175 per boat through June 20 or $250 after. 588-3366 or www.lakeworthfishingtournament.com.
    June 25: Coast Guard Auxiliary offers basic boating safety class, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., Harvey E. Oyer Jr. Park, 2010 N. Federal Highway, Boynton Beach. Fee $40. Register at the door. 331-2429.

Tip of the month
    Want a chance to win a boat, a truck or scholarship money by fishing this summer?
    Check out CCA/Florida’s STAR tournament.
    The statewide fishing tournament began May 28 and continues through Sept. 5.
    Anglers must be CCA/Florida members (or junior members) and registered for the STAR tournament to be eligible for prizes in several divisions.
    The first seven registered anglers who catch one of 160 tagged redfish released around the state will be eligible for prizes, including a truck.
    Anglers can also win prizes, including boats and college scholarships, by catching and submitting photos of a variety of other fish: snook, seatrout, cobia, sheepshead, dolphin, kingfish and lionfish.
    An adult CCA/Florida membership costs $30. The entry fee for the STAR tournament is $35.
    For details, go to www.ccaflstar.com.

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