Related: Talk of move rattled students: Art school ‘is for Boca, not for Delray’

By Anne Geggis

A plan for having art activities in newly renovated classrooms at the Crest Theatre building continued to elude the Delray Beach City Commission in June.

Six arts organizations made proposals in May to bring art classes to the city-owned space that’s been dark for five years, but confusion ensued about how long of a run the city is prepared to offer.

At one discussion, Mayor Tom Carney said that he wanted something to start this summer and only for a short contract. Given that renovations at the Crest Theatre itself haven’t been completed, Carney said he didn’t want a multiyear contract for the classrooms, because it could potentially limit the city from engaging someone who could run activities at both the classrooms and the theater.

At the June 18 commission meeting, Carney instructed the staff to come back with some definitive numbers on what it will cost to fix the Crest Theatre itself and plans for getting activities started in the classrooms.

“We keep dancing around the numbers, we keep dancing around the issue,” Carney said. “Let’s get something definitive. What is it going to take to fix it?”

Two of the major players, Boca Raton Museum of Art and Old School Square Center for the Arts, have dropped out of consideration for running classroom activities. Other discussions have involved the Downtown Development Authority or the city Parks and Recreation Department running the classroom activities.

A June letter to the community from the Old School Square Center for the Arts provides a peek into the behind-the-scenes chaos in the efforts to enliven the building.

“On June 5th, a phone call was made to 3 of the previous applicants, requesting a proposal within seven hours; only to occupy SEGMENTS of the building and fill the classrooms just for the summer months,” the letter reads. “We declined to follow through with this last request, due to the fact that we have never been short-term thinkers.”

 Gina Carter, city spokeswoman, said that the city is homing in on a possibility, although the potential for summer classes was melting away quickly.

“The commission is going to be working with the city manager to come up with a plan,” Carter said. “I can confirm that they are eager to come up with a plan to get the classrooms up and running.”

The discussion has reopened some old wounds about the previous 30-year engagement the Old School Square Center for the Arts had at the downtown center, which has been credited with making the city a draw for art lovers.

The nonprofit arts organization was instrumental in starting performances and other artistic endeavors at the former site of Delray Beach’s high and elementary schools. The old campus is the home of the theater, the Cornell Art Museum, the Fieldhouse (the former gymnasium), and an outdoor performance stage called the Pavilion.

But that run in the city-owned public facilities halted in 2021, when the City Commission ended the group’s lease amid allegations of financial mismanagement. The organization then sued the city, some commissioners personally and even some of its former board members — a suit that went away after a commission less hostile to the organization took office last year.

By Steve Plunkett

Gulf Stream’s license plate recognition cameras are “actually working phenomenally” a year after being installed, Police Chief Richard Jones said.

“What we currently have in place has been very effective,” he told town commissioners on June 14. “Need to knock on wood, we’ve had very, very little criminal activity — almost none — in the last 12 months probably as a result of our enforcement efforts and obviously, the installation of those cameras.”

Jones reported having “one burglary by definition” in May, “but really what it was, was leftover roofing material that was stolen from a job site,” he said. A suspect has been identified and the case was still being investigated, he added.

The chief also said he attended an FBI-hosted conference to learn what the federal agency can do for small departments such as Gulf Stream’s, “as well as give us some training opportunities to see things that we may not be aware of in technology and funding and various other areas.”

The FBI paid for the full cost of Jones’ trip, he said. Jones was one of 70 invited to attend.

Also at the town meeting, commissioners approved their side of an agreement to extend for five years getting fire rescue services from Delray Beach. That city’s commissioners were to sign off on the deal in July.

Delray Beach has provided Gulf Stream with fire rescue protection for more than 30 years with the latest agreement coming in 2009. The proposed extension has a built-in cost increase that will stay the same as under the current agreement, which is either 5% or the All Urban Consumers United States April Consumer Price Index, whichever is greater.

“So we are pleased with the services we’ve been provided,” Assistant Town Attorney Trey Nazzaro said.

Interim Delray Beach Fire Rescue Chief Kevin Green was “very positive” about his department’s relationship with the town and its residents, Nazzaro said, “and I returned the sentiment and thanked him for his department’s continued service to the town.”

Thank you so much for the article on “predatory parking.” I think we have fallen victim to the same scam. My 23-year-old son borrowed my car and we were slapped with a fine. I, of course, questioned him and he said he drove through the lot on Second but did not park. They had a picture of my car, so …

It would be great if the public could be notified as to which lots in Delray Beach or other areas are “private lots.” Dealing with these parking companies is extremely frustrating and often futile. It is my impression that they bank on the fact that many folks will just pay instead of embarking on a time-consuming process. 

The residents and visitors to Delray Beach should be given the opportunity to vote with their wallets. The only way companies like this will change their practices is through public pressure. In short, we should know which lots we should not even enter to look for parking unless we are willing to engage in the aftermath.  

— Tracy Souder, Gulf Stream

By Anne Geggis

From now on, State Road A1A will be dedicated to the man who drove home how changes in latitudes can change one’s attitude.

Gov. Ron DeSantis on June 27 signed a bill that passed unanimously in both chambers of the state Legislature designating the oceanside road that extends from Key West to the Georgia line as “Jimmy Buffett Memorial Highway.”

The legislation also calls for the Florida Department of Transportation to erect suitable markers for the designation by Aug. 30.

Senate Minority Leader Lauren Book, who sponsored the Senate bill identical to the one DeSantis signed, toasted the beloved balladeer synonymous with beach bumming.

“With this road naming, we are paying tribute to Jimmy not only as a musical icon, but also as a fierce protector of Florida’s natural treasures and our precious manatees,” Book said in a prepared statement.

Buffett died at age 76 in September from skin cancer.

“It truly is ‘a sweet life, living by the salty sea,’ and we could not think of a better way to honor one of our most legendary Floridians than by memorializing him along Florida’s coastal highway,” Book said. Buffett’s fifth studio album, released in 1974, was A1A.

DeSantis also signed a bill calling for the Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles to develop a “Margaritaville” specialty plate.

The plate that recalls Buffett’s most famous song will raise money for the Singing for Change charitable foundation that Buffett founded.

Tri-Rail, the South Florida commuter rail service, launched its weekday express service between West Palm Beach and downtown Miami on July 1.

The train will stop only at its station in Boca Raton, at the one servicing Fort Lauderdale/Hollywood International Airport and at the Metrorail transfer station, which will allow it to shorten the trip time to 95 minutes southbound and 90 minutes northbound, about a 30-minute reduction.

Travel time from the Boca Raton station is 70 minutes to Miami and 64 minutes back.

The express train goes directly into downtown Miami and passengers do not need to change trains at the Metrorail transfer station.

The train will depart the West Palm Beach station at 6:30 a.m., stop in Boca Raton at 6:55 a.m. and arrive at MiamiCentral at 8:05 a.m. The return trip will depart MiamiCentral at

5:35 p.m., reaching Boca Raton at 6:39 p.m. and stopping in West Palm Beach at 7:05 p.m.

The one-way fare from West Palm Beach to Miami is $8.75; round-trip is $17.50. One-way from Boca Raton is $6.25 and round-trip is $12.50, all the same as before. Monthly passes are available as well as discounts for children, seniors and employees of certain companies.

“We are thrilled to unveil this new enhancement to our train service,” David Dech, executive director of the South Florida Regional Transportation Authority, which operates Tri-Rail, said in a news release. “By offering a one-seat ride and reducing travel time, we aim to provide an enhanced commuting experience for our passengers and attract new riders to Tri-Rail.”

Tri-Rail began planning the new service before Brightline eliminated on June 1 a monthly trip pass that had greatly reduced its fares. Brightline also de-prioritized riders who use the higher-speed train as a commuter service, concentrating instead on those taking trips to and from Orlando.

— Mary Hladky

Beach gunfire disturbance — Delray Beach police responded to reports of multiple rounds of gunfire shot in the air near the beach as June 21 turned into June 22 near South Ocean Boulevard and East Atlantic Avenue, said police spokesman Ted White.

A large group of young adults had gathered near the beach around midnight and dispersed when the shots went off, White said. No one was hurt, but the incident remains an active investigation, White said. Anyone with information about this crime is asked to call Detective Kyle Kinney at 561-243-7828.

Another would-be DDA board member in question — A whistleblower whose complaint resulted in a Downtown Development Authority board member’s ouster now faces the same question of ineligibility that she raised about the ousted board member she replaced.

And the twist is that the ousted board member is the one who raised the issue about the whistleblower’s eligibility.

Got that?

Businesswoman Mavis Benson was appointed to a seat on the DDA board June 18 after her complaint about how board member Rick Burgess was ineligible to serve resulted in his ouster in April. But before Benson was seated, City Attorney Lynn Gelin said Benson was ineligible based on Burgess’s report — for the same reason the City Commission kicked Burgess off the board that oversees marketing for Delray Beach’s downtown.

Neither Benson nor Burgess pays taxes on property in the downtown district as DDA board guidelines require, although Burgess has since moved his business.

To fill two other seats, the City Commission chose Harold Van Arnem, in the investment business, and Jim Knight, who runs the real estate brokerage business Knight Group. Two incumbents who wanted second, three-year terms, Mark Denkler and Christine Godbout, did not get nods.

Police chief’s employment extended — Chief Russ Mager is going to extend his 28 years with the Delray Beach Police Department past the 30-year mark, after he agreed to continue leading the force for two additional years after his planned retirement in December.

Mager, a Tallahassee native who grew up in South Florida, entered the Deferred Retirement Option Plan program in January 2020, so that his last day would have been Dec. 31, 2024. But City Manager Terrence Moore has announced Mager is staying on, considering the flux at the city’s Fire Rescue Department.

Fire Rescue Chief Keith Tomey was fired from his job in May and Kevin Green has taken the reins on an interim basis there.

“I’ve determined that the continuation of stable organizational leadership structure for the time being in the Delray Beach Police Department is in the best interest” of the city, Moore wrote in his June 14 newsletter.

Golf course updates carry $15 million price tag — Renovating the city-run Delray Beach Golf Club rose to the top of city priorities at the City Commission’s May goal-setting session, and Missy Barletto, public works director, gave a status update at the June 18 commission meeting.

Full-scale renovations are needed for irrigation, tees, fairways, and maintenance building facilities, she told commissioners. Consultants also recommended new maintenance equipment and increasing annual operational resources.

The city has re-engaged Sanford Golf Design to provide design, bidding and construction services, Barletto said. A 2020 contract with the consultant ended when the city considered pursuing a public-private partnership to run the club at the point that 60% of the contract had been completed.

Barletto showed the commission a list of golf course projects that total more than $15 million. A replacement of the water main, which would cost $1 million, might not need to be done, Barletto said.

— Anne Geggis

By Sallie James

Ocean Ridge residents could pay a tax rate as high as $6.00 per $1,000 of assessed value under a tentative proposal town commissioners OK’d during a July 1 budget workshop.

But don’t swoon from sticker shock just yet: The town’s final tax rate is expected to be lower. Town officials are required to submit a maximum rate to the county by July 31, explained Town Manager Lynne Ladner. And in this instance, commissioners decided to give themselves some wiggle room in case more tax dollars are needed.

“It’s not our intention to go there but we can’t go back up,” explained Vice Mayor Steve Coz. “It’s our intent to lower it.” The final tax rate won’t be approved until September and residents will have a number of opportunities to weigh in.

Property owners in Ocean Ridge currently pay a town tax rate of $5.40 per $1,000 in taxable value.

The preliminary tax rate is bound to send off alarms, Ocean Ridge resident Roland Steies warned during public comments.

“You are exposing yourself publicly to $6 and that will encourage public discussion on that,” Steies said.

The good news is that the town’s overall taxable value is 10.3% higher than last year, higher than the county’s overall 10% increase, according to preliminary figures released by the Palm Beach County Property Appraiser’s Office. Ocean Ridge’s total taxable value for 2024 is almost $1.7 billion, the property appraiser reported.

Ocean Ridge is expecting an estimated $9.1 million in property taxes if the tax rate remains at its current rate of $5.40 per $1,000 assessed value, Ladner said.

Figuring out what to spend that money on is the next step, said Commissioner Ainar Aijala Jr.

The fiscal year 2025 estimated $12.5 million budget includes a range of long- and short-term projects with different levels of urgency and necessity.

“We have to figure out how much of that is left over (after expenses) and what we want to spend it on,” Aijala said.

The town has plenty of choices.

Commissioner Carolyn Cassidy supports hiring a lobbyist for $30,000 to help the town succeed in getting more money from the state.

“There’s a great return on the investment if it works the way we hope it will work,” Cassidy said.

Ocean Ridge recently lost out on an anticipated $250,000 to help fund the cost of a much-needed $500,000 water valve project when Gov. Ron DeSantis unexpectedly used his veto power to cut the money from the state budget last month.

A budget workshop last year revealed that the town had lost track of hundreds of valves that are part of its drinking water distribution system. As a result, the valves have fallen into disrepair and when a water line ruptures, it requires crews to dig along the water line until they can find and then uncover the buried valve.

The proposed project would find, raise, excise and pour a concrete collar for each valve so that all valves are in working order and visible.

Other tentative expenses include:
• $190,000 to hire two police lieutenants
• $75,000 for a water distribution engineering plan
• $750,000 for a water main replacement project

Town commissioners will discuss potential FY 2025 expenditures again at an 11 a.m. workshop on July 25, and during a 2 p.m. workshop on Aug. 5. Both workshops will be held at Town Hall.

The commission is slated to hold two budget hearings, both at 6 p.m., on Sept. 9 and Sept. 23 at Town Hall, before adopting the final budget and tax rate.

Property tax bills also include sums paid to the Palm Beach County School Board, the South Florida Water Management District, park districts and other entities.

Anne Geggis contributed to this story.

The roof of this home on Harbour Drive North has been in need of repair for years. Coastal Star photo

By Anne Geggis

A house in disrepair — for years now — is among the reasons that Ocean Ridge town leaders plan to consider dedicating a new position to keeping properties looking shipshape.

A Town Commission budget discussion June 3 pointed up the need for code enforcement to become a town employee’s designated job again. It turns out code enforcement hasn’t been assigned to a specific person since a police officer doing the job retired last year.

And it shows, Commissioner David Hutchins said.

“We want people to realize they have to take care of their property,” Hutchins said, noting that the house at 62 Harbour Drive North with missing roof tiles and a garage door that doesn’t close hasn’t been inhabited for years.

Even if commissioners are pointing at it, the house has not generated any code enforcement complaints since the current owner, Michael Hemlepp of Delray Beach, purchased the property in 2018. His attorney, John Nadjafi, said his client intends to tear down the building, but has run into delays designing the new home and finding the equipment and workers to do that.

“There are a lot of reasons construction projects get delayed,” Nadjafi said, citing the supply-chain woes during the COVID-19 pandemic and other factors.

Regarding the new staff position, Town Manager Lynne Ladner warned it is more dangerous to have someone who doesn’t wear a uniform doing code enforcement.

“Code enforcement is considered to be one of the higher risk professions,” Ladner said. “I have been to a code enforcement officer’s funeral. … He was shot, attempting to serve a friendly notice to someone about their yard.”

But police officers are not thrilled about doing it, either, and being in uniform unnecessarily escalates the situation, officers said during a discussion at the June 3 Town Commission meeting.

“Because we’re knocking on the door and saying, ‘Hey, you put out your debris in your yard’ … the homeowner might see that as something petty,” Ocean Ridge Officer Aaron Choban said.

Chief Scott McClure explained further: Sending police out to cite people for dirty roofs does not build community trust and rapport.

“Having someone with a gun and a badge tell you your house is dirty, it’s not the way to build good will,” McClure said, noting that his officers are stretched thin on road patrol, keeping dogs off the beach and checking for crime.

“We’ll handle complaints, but I think code enforcement should be strictly a civilian function. Our focus is keeping residents safe,” he said.

Among South County municipalities, the handling of code enforcement has taken on different forms. In Gulf Stream, for example, the police take note of homes that don’t comply with the code and notify town administration, which mails out official notices. 

South Palm Beach has a company doing its code enforcement, as does Briny Breezes. Highland Beach has the job attached to its Building Department, but police do the job when a code officer is not working. Boca Raton has a separate code enforcement division within City Hall, which works closely with police, according to city spokeswoman Anne Marie Connolly. Boynton Beach also has a civilian division within City Hall.

Delray Beach, however, is trying something new to beef up its civilian community services division that handles property not meeting code, said Police Chief Russ Mager.
If a police officer sees a quality-of-life issue, such as an unleashed dog, he or she will be empowered to write a ticket for the infraction that comes with a fine, Mager said.

Dr. Victor Martel, an Ocean Ridge resident since 1997, said the town should either enforce its codes or take them off the books. Since state law in 2021 made it so that complaints can’t be anonymous, he said he has seen the situation getting worse.

“This one house, the roof is close to black,” Martel said. “They are nice people. I’m not going to say anything, but it should be taken care of.”

Betty Bingham was honored by Mayor Geoff Pugh (background), who declared her 95th birthday on July 21 as Betty Bingham Day. After the speech, Town Manager Lynne Ladner and others presented her with flowers. Jerry Lower/The Coastal Star

Activism keeps her young as she prepares to turn 95 — No matter that her official birthday wasn’t for nearly three weeks. Ocean Ridge leaders celebrated local activist and longtime town resident Betty Bingham’s 95th birthday at the July 1 Town Commission meeting with flowers, hugs and a special proclamation designating July 21 as Betty Bingham Day in town.

The nonagenarian accepted the honor with grace, smiles and humor.

“I want to thank you all,” Bingham told the commission. “As far as I’m concerned, I’m chugging along.”

Originally from Baltimore, Bingham moved to Florida in 1971, eventually settling in Ocean Ridge where she has lived for more than 40 years. She is widely considered an expert on town history, and currently serves as an appointed member of the town’s Board of Adjustment. Bingham also served on the Town Commission for 12 years and spent another five years on the Planning and Zoning Board. She spent much of her younger years in banking and as a travel agent.

Bingham acknowledged that her activism keeps her young.

“I do enjoy working and doing things around town,” she conceded.

Of the proclamation?

“I think it’s kind of cool,” she said.

Garbage contract extended through 2029 — Waste Pro will continue to be Ocean Ridge’s approved garbage hauler for the next five years, but the company’s maximum annual fee adjustment will be linked to the Consumer Price Index.

Town commissioners on July 1 unanimously agreed to renew the company’s contract through 2029 for solid waste and recycling services with a few tweaks.

Commissioners also adjusted the company’s maximum annual fee increase to 5% instead of 3% after Waste Pro officials said rising operation costs necessitated the increase to continue providing the same level of service.

Commissioners linked the maximum annual increase to the CPI after Vice Mayor Steve Coz wondered what might happen if annual inflation reached only 1%, instead of 5%. He suggested an adjustable rate to address such a scenario.

— Sallie James

Tasers coming for all police officers — Ocean Ridge police officers will all have tasers assigned to them, instead of their cruisers, after Ocean Ridge commissioners agreed to the proposal at their June 3 meeting. They unanimously approved a $176,851 contract with Axon, based in Scottsdale, Arizona, that will include 16 new tasers, more than double the current arsenal of seven.

Ocean Ridge was the only South County police department that had not assigned a taser to each officer, according to Gulf Stream Police Chief Richard Jones, who left his position as Ocean Ridge’s top cop in 2023. 

— Anne Geggis

By John Pacenti

Florida’s portion of the massive national settlement with opioid manufacturers netted Delray Beach more than $239,000 so far. But a leading advocate — and chair of a key advisory committee — says municipalities would be better served partnering up with the county than going it alone in providing services.

“It’s best if we put all of our money together to have the best outcomes and the most impactful changes in abating this epidemic,” said Maureen Kielian. She chairs the Behavioral Health, Substance Abuse and Co-Occurring Disorders Advisory Committee for Palm Beach County.

“Why would Palm Beach Gardens, for instance, want to open an ASU (Addiction Stabilization Unit)? They can’t afford to, whereas we could do it and service these folks.”

There was some confusion among officials and stakeholders about how much in settlement funds Palm Beach County and its municipalities will receive through 2039. On June 27, the county’s drug czar — John Hulick, head of the Office of Behavioral Health and Substance Use Disorders — clarified that the total is $122 million, of which $25 million has been distributed.

The wild card in all of this is the U.S. Supreme Court’s 5-4 decision June 27 rejecting the settlement portion with Purdue Pharma because it would shield its owners, the Sackler family, from liability for civil claims related to the manufacturing of OxyContin. How that will affect the $50 billion settlement with the states is unknown, but Justice Neil Gorsuch wrote, “There may be a better deal on the horizon.”

The Sacklers’ ill-gotten gains are badly needed in a settlement that involves multiple opioid manufacturers and pharmacies. Of the 7,769 overdose deaths in Florida in 2022, 6,157 were attributed to opioids, according to the state Health Department reports.

Delray Beach spokeswoman Gina Carter said the city since 2022 has received $239,554. The City Commission was set to address how to use the money at its June 18 meeting, but the matter has been pushed to the July 16 agenda, she said.

Ariana Ciancio, a mental health specialist with the Delray Beach Police Department and a member of the advisory committee, said nobody has talked to her about how the money could be spent.

Mayor Tom Carney did not return a phone or text message for his thoughts on the issue.

Commissioner Angela Burns, also on the county’s advisory committee, said she would call for a workshop, saying the whole subject area is new to her.

“Staff is working on something now,” she said. “I’m looking for something that would be educational.”

That’s exactly what Kielian fears, saying that good-intentioned educational efforts from the days of “Just Say No” have been ineffective.

“These are — again — once-in-a-lifetime funds. We don’t need any more nonsense poster contests, stress balls or tchotchkes — that’s costing lives.”

The 18-member committee, including many on the front lines of the crisis, has recommended that 90% of the money go to housing, recovery support, job training, youth assistance and prevention. The rest would be earmarked for acute crisis care, such as medical detox.

Burns did say the amount Delray Beach has to work with currently is “just not a lot of money.”

“You hate to start a program and then have to end it because the funds run out,” she said.

Delray and drug recovery
Still, Delray Beach remains one of the top centers for drug treatment and recovery in the nation, if not the world. The city is home to 35 certified providers, according to the Florida Association of Recovery Residences.

It also played a starring role in the fraud scandal that rocked the industry some eight years ago and saw operators, associates and doctors go to federal and state prison.

At the advisory committee’s June 13 meeting, Kielian criticized proposals to use the money for programs such as foster children aging out of the system.

“I want to be very clear, I’m very empathetic towards that population; however, that’s not what the settlement is for,” said Kielian, also the head of Southeast Recovery Advocates.

She also worried the county could see the money as a piggy bank to shore up unexpected budget demands — such as funding its portion of Gov. Ron DeSantis’ new law banning homeless people from public spaces.

There are no safeguards that prevent states or counties from using settlement funds on programs already funded — and then moving the money supplanted back to the general fund, she said.

Comedian and political commentator John Oliver dedicated a May episode of HBO’s Last Week Tonight to the opioid settlement, saying some states are funneling it to law enforcement.

The advisory committee on June 13 adopted a motion calling on the county to use the opioid settlement for what it is intended to do.

County Commissioners Gregg Weiss, Michael Barnett and Sara Baxter have said they lost siblings to the opioid crisis. County Mayor Maria Sachs said at a May 21 workshop on the subject that she would follow the recommendations of the advisory committee.

“People need a house, job training, meds and treatment — right there in their community. Those who have been through it, lead us,” she said.

By Mary Thurwachter

Although the Lantana Town Council hasn’t officially voted to add a stormwater utility fee yet to cover the cost of drainage projects, officials are getting their ducks in a row to implement one. To that end, the town heard from the consulting firm it has hired, Chen Moore and Associates, during a June 10 workshop.

The fee is likely to cost property owners between $5 and $6 a month, according to Brent Whitfield, a project manager with Chen Moore and Associates.

Town Manager Brian Raducci said the utility fee has been a topic for the past eight to 10 months and was discussed at the council’s visioning session on April 19.

“Stormwater utility has a cost that has continued to grow,” Raducci said. “We anticipate it will be a larger part of our cost of operations in the future with probably the need for additional construction down the road. It’s time to take a good look at this.”

Lantana’s annual stormwater operations and maintenance costs are $320,030, according to a study done by the engineering firm.

That study also showed that the average monthly rate of utility fees for 130 Florida municipalities is about $8.

The fee is assessed based on the impact of stormwater generated from property within the town. The impact is calculated based on the amount of impervious area (land area covered or paved), and this is shown as an Equivalent Residential Unit or ERU.

In Palm Beach County, monthly stormwater rates range from $4 in Palm Springs to $19 in Wellington, with an average among eight municipalities of $8.91 (Palm Springs, Delray Beach, Jupiter, Lake Worth Beach, Boynton Beach, North Palm Beach, West Palm Beach and Wellington).

The council is expected to adopt a preliminary rate at its July 8 meeting. That rate would be sent to the county property appraiser by July 28 to be included in the TRIM (Truth in Millage) notice mailed to property owners in August. The final rate can be less, but not more, than the TRIM notice rate. The TRIM notice also includes all proposed property tax rates affecting a property.

The council is likely to have another workshop on a stormwater fee on July 22 when feedback from residents will be collected. First and second readings of the ordinance would be Aug. 12 and Sept. 9.

Although public comments were not accepted at the June workshop, one Hypoluxo Island man waited until the end of the Town Council meeting that followed the workshop to voice his objection during public comments.

“To go ahead and put an additional tax on the residents in my mind is not fair,” said Jordan Nichols. He also said hearings and meetings on important topics such as this should be postponed until February or March, since many island residents are away during the summer months.

By Mary Thurwachter

A first look at Lantana’s budget for the upcoming fiscal year gives residents a good idea of the Town Council’s priorities — and is an early indicator that the town’s current tax rate of $3.75 per $1,000 of taxable value is likely to remain the same.

During the town’s first budget workshop on June 18, Town Manager Brian Raducci said the top three priorities are maintaining infrastructure, continuing with beautification projects, and responsible development. Other important goals include attracting and retaining valuable employees, continuing to attract businesses (especially along Ocean Avenue), continuing to support the library, resuming the dune restoration project, and installing an ADA-accessible ramp at the beach.

Stephen Kaplan, the town’s finance director for 17 years, shared pertinent numbers. For example, the town’s certified taxable value for 2023 was $1.792 billion and the estimated taxable value for 2024 is $1.952 billion (including $8.8 million in new construction). That’s an 8.9% increase, or $159.7 million.

Kaplan said property tax revenue — assuming a $3.75 millage rate and a 95% collection rate — will be approximately $6.9 million.

The finance director reports that all of the town’s $6.3 million in American Rescue Plan Act funds has been committed for operating and capital needs. ARPA money has to be obligated by the end of this year and spent by the end of 2026.

Lantana hopes to seize on grant opportunities, something at which it was very successful this year. It received $2.3 million with help from grants writer Ryan Ruskay of RMPK Funding.

Lobbyist Mat Forrest helped the town secure $1.3 million in state appropriations and Congresswoman Lois Frankel and her staff aided Lantana in collecting $2.2 million in federal appropriations.

In April, the town submitted a $1.9 million federal grant application to upgrade its water treatment plant.

Lantana’s budget is broken down into three categories, including 67% for personnel, 26% for operating expenses and 7% for capital projects. The town has no debt.

A second budget workshop is set for July 8 and the Town Council is expected to set the preliminary tax rate at its meeting that day. The preliminary rate will be included on notices sent out by the Palm Beach County Property Appraiser’s Office to property owners in August, alerting them to what their proposed taxes are estimated to be.
Public hearings on the town’s budget and tax rate are set for Sept. 9 and 18.

Lantana Marine Safety Supervisor Marc Fichtner gave awards to (l-r) senior ocean lifeguard Sam Janssen and lifeguards Jasper Castaldo and Catherine Girard for their rescues of two swimmers. Photo provided

Related: Manalapan: Attempts fail to revive woman pulled out into the ocean

Lifeguards lauded — Three Lantana lifeguards were given lifesaving awards for their efforts to rescue two swimmers during a strong rip current on May 5. Awards were presented at the June 10 Town Council meeting by Marine Safety Supervisor Marc Fichtner to Sam Janssen, Jasper Castaldo and Catherine Girard.

The rescues began after Girard observed a swimmer caught in the current. She swam out to assist the distressed swimmer and Castaldo went out to help another struggling swimmer farther offshore. Janssen saw that Castaldo needed help with the second victim and went in to help him.

County firefighter/paramedics arrived and both victims were checked and determined to be OK.

“Thanks to the lifeguard team remaining calm and professional throughout the ordeal, an almost certain loss of life event was avoided,” Fichtner said.

Speed bumps to stay — After studies that showed the speed cushions on West Pine Street and on West Ocean Avenue have proved effective, the Town Council voted to make the traffic calming measures permanent. The speed bumps were installed in October 2022 and residents said they have been helpful in slowing drivers.

— Mary Thurwachter

By Anne Geggis

The cost of staffing a private security guard at the entrance of Point Manalapan has the town considering dialing the detail back to one 12-hour shift instead of around-the-clock coverage.

The bill for 24-hour coverage for next year is going to $270,000, a bump of about 2% from the current year. The cost for the Point’s security detail increased 30% in 2022 when the commission selected a new company in order to improve guardhouse security visibility.

The publicly funded amenity is a unique one among South County municipalities.

Having a security guard at the entrance of the Point only overnight would cut the bill in about half: $134,000. But it might also mean an increase for residents’ insurance bills.

“We’re trying to figure out if it’s a benefit the community needs and wants and can the police supplement that benefit a little bit without having to spend an additional $134,000 a year?” said Eric Marmer, Manalapan’s assistant town manager. “So that’s the question.”

Town Manager Linda Stumpf said, “The chief and I have been talking about it for a while that we didn’t really know if we really need 24 hours” a day.

Police Chief Carmen Mattox noted that the guardhouse itself serves as a kind of deterrent to crime.

Commissioner David Knobel said he wants to be able to talk to residents in the area he represents before the decision gets made.

“It’s not a great time of the year to get public comment,” Knobel said, noting that many residents are out of the area during the summer months.

Mayor John Deese, who lives in that section of town, said that it’s been mentioned to him.

“I’ve heard a lot of positive comments from people about the fact that we have someone there,” Deese said.

A police cruiser parked near there might be just as effective as paying someone to stand there, it was suggested.

Stumpf said she would budget the full, 24-hour cost for now and perhaps roll back that line item if Point Manalapan is amenable.

A memorial with a cross, angel statue, shells and plastic flowers is located in the dune not far from the pumping station at the Boynton Inlet. Coastal Star photo

Related: Lantana news brief: Lifeguards rescue two swimmers from rip current May 5

By Anne Geggis

A 56-year-old Boynton Beach woman drowned along an unguarded area on the northeast side of the Boynton Inlet on May 5 as a current ripped her away from an attempted rescue, according to a Manalapan police report.

Bystanders and police tried to revive Anna Lazur after she was pulled out of the water at about 12:30 p.m. that day. She was taken to Baptist Health Bethesda Hospital East in Boynton Beach in critical condition, according to the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office. Her obituary has since appeared online and a makeshift memorial near where she drowned has sprung up.

Teresa Bowyer, 66, of Hobe Sound, was one of the two friends who went to the beach with Lazur that day. She can’t stop thinking about her friend, the mother of two sons, whom she called or saw almost every day.

“I didn’t want to go in because it was too rough,” Bowyer said. “Anna was a strong swimmer.”

Red flags, which indicate rip currents are present, were out across the inlet at Ocean Inlet Park at the time tragedy struck, one bystander said.

Bowyer said the other friend in her trio, Iwona Wroczynska, 64, of Hobe Sound, first went into the water after they noticed Lazur in distress. And then Bowyer said she saw Wroczynska struggling.

“A big wave came over and separated them,” Bowyer said.

Bowyer said she felt she had no choice but to try to reach Lazur. Going in the water, she found herself panicking.

“I was struggling,” she said.

Wroczynska made it back to shore on her own, but a bystander, Nathaniel Holt, 22, pulled back Bowyer, she said. And then he went to get Lazur.

On the beach, Lazur was unresponsive and a woman who told police she was a nurse, Veronica Jean-Louis, attempted cardiopulmonary resuscitation.

Palm Beach County Fire Rescue arrived on the scene and took the patient to the hospital, the report says.

The report doesn’t mention rip currents, but the phenomenon has been blamed for eight deaths in Florida over four days in late June, according to The Weather Channel. These currents have proven fatal all over the state, mostly in the Panhandle’s Bay County, but also in Martin County.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration describes rip currents as powerful, fast-moving channeled currents that swimmers mistakenly try to resist by swimming straight back to the shore. Swimming parallel to the shore is a better strategy, according to NOAA.

Those are different from rip tides. Rip tides are caused by the swift movement of tidal water through inlets, estuaries and harbors, according to NOAA.

Bowyer said her other friend has sworn never to return to that stretch of the inlet, but she said she’s going because that’s where there’s a memorial to Lazur.

“I just can’t believe she’s gone,” Bowyer said.

Rescue personnel from Palm Beach County and other local and federal agencies search for the 8-year-old boy along the north side of the Boynton Inlet. Jerry Lower/The Coastal Star

By Anne Geggis and Mary Kate Leming

Police are investigating how a fishing outing turned tragic at Ocean Inlet Park in Boynton Beach early June 13, claiming an 8-year-old boy’s life in Boynton Inlet — widely known in the boating community as one of the state’s most dangerous.

The cause of death for Saul Cerrato-Vasquez of West Palm Beach has not been made public because he is a minor, and the official report had not been released as of early July because it concerned an active investigation.

Initial reports were that the boy and his father were fishing on the park’s south jetty on the west side of the State Road A1A bridge over the Boynton Inlet, authorities said. The call for help came at 6:09 a.m.

Capt. Tom Reyes of Palm Beach County Fire Rescue said that the victim fell into the water when his companion, presumably his father, turned to attend to some fishing equipment.

The boy is one of six children and was attending Hope-Centennial Elementary School, his mother, Roxanne Batista, said in a tearful, brief conversation with The Coastal Star. She acknowledged setting up a GoFundMe account so her son’s remains can be buried in such a way that they grow with a tree. By early July, the effort had raised more than $3,400.

Divers signal to the boat driver that they are clear after placing the body of the boy into a rescue boat. Tim Stepien/The Coastal Star

The 6900 block of North Ocean Boulevard, or A1A, was briefly closed to traffic as the rescue effort involving dozens of first responders ramped up.

Multiple agencies, including the U.S. Border Patrol and Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, responded to the inlet with divers, inflatable boats, Jet Skis and helicopters.

Reyes said the mission was declared a “recovery” operation at 7:55 a.m. The body was recovered nearly five hours after the initial call, about 100 yards from where the boy reportedly fell in. The recovery was on the northeast side of the bridge, however.

The jetty at Ocean Inlet Park is a popular place to fish — one of the few places open to fishing 24 hours a day, seven days a week. That morning, there was a strong current in the inlet with the outgoing tide, but the ocean was relatively calm.

This year, Palm Beach County Fire Rescue has responded to four open water incidents in the Boynton Inlet, twice the number of last year at the same time, said Reyes.

One of those incidents involved another drowning, in May (see related story).

“The width and depth of the Boynton Inlet, along with the strong tidal flow that passes through, can make it very dangerous,” Reyes wrote in an email.

Boca Raton first responders don’t categorize water calls to the inlet in the same way that would allow comparisons, but Michael LaSalle, Boca Raton Fire Rescue’s public information officer, said the level of danger at the Boynton Inlet, from a boating perspective, is far greater than at the Boca Inlet. He would rate it the second- most dangerous in the state, next to Baker’s Haulover Inlet in Miami-Dade County.

Zack Thomas, who writes a blog for Boat Outfitters, which supplies boat builders with custom fabricated accessories, puts Boynton Inlet in the top tier of those that should be used only if you know what you’re doing because of what he calls “machine washing conditions.”

Photographer Tim Stepien contributed to this story.

Ron Reame of Highland Beach says he got involved with governing his condominium ‘because I want to be happy in our 3.2 miles of paradise.’ He says his business background helps. Tim Stepien/The Coastal Star

Ron Reame never planned on getting involved in condo politics when he and his wife moved from Michigan to Highland Beach 13 years ago.

He never planned on having a leading role in overseeing the multimillion-dollar restoration of his building, which became the first in Florida to comply with the state’s new recertification laws.

And he certainly never planned to be a leader in a David-versus-Goliath struggle as town residents, especially in the south end, took on Palm Beach County in an effort to stop development of a beachfront park.

But then he ran into his neighbor Doug Hillman and before long they were leading the board of their 122-unit building as well as leading the umbrella board at Boca Highland Beach Club & Marina.

Hillman, who died in early 2023, would become mayor and Reame would later step into Hillman’s roles at Boca Highland, becoming the president of both organizations.

“I wasn’t thinking anything about getting involved in a condo association when I got here,” Reame said. “I’d never been involved in a condo association before.”

Although he had been president of his 14-member homeowners association in Franklin, Michigan, he knew getting involved with a condo board would be much different.

Reame has degrees in management from Michigan State University and finance from Wayne State University. He worked for large corporations and ran successful businesses himself. Now he is putting his business background to use as he focuses on keeping the condo associations running smoothly.

Early in his career Reame worked for big names in the corporate world — IBM and General Motors — before running companies in the equipment leasing and computer industries and getting experience in how to run businesses.

Reame said that he started questioning the way things were being run at his building, Dalton Place, soon after moving in. He and Hillman, who moved in about the same time, were playing golf one day and discovered they both had questions.

“The more questions we asked, the more we got involved,” he said.

Reame, 78, says his wife, Nancy, understands why he takes on the challenges that come with leading a condo association.

“I do it because I want to be happy in our 3.2 miles of paradise,” he said. “I want to protect my investment and enjoy living here.”

Reame, who chairs Highland Beach’s financial advisory board, enjoys traveling, one reason he’s not more involved in town government.

— Rich Pollack

Q. Where did you grow up and go to school? How do you think that has influenced you?
A. I grew up in Detroit and attended Michigan State University and Wayne State University with degrees in management and finance. I had solid Midwestern values and came from a working class, loving, Italian family.

Q. What professions have you worked in? What professional accomplishments are you most proud of?
A. I have worked for the most part in the equipment leasing sector and in the computer industry, mostly in services, training, and hardware and software. I have a very varied background in business with both corporate America and starting and running and selling small businesses.

Q. What advice do you have for a young person selecting a career today? 
A. Unless you’re lucky to invent something that no one else has and that everyone on the planet needs, you’re going to actually have to work really hard to be successful. I’ve found that few people actually know what that means. Hence the reason that not everyone does well in business.

Q. How did you choose to make your home in Highland Beach?
A. We looked from South Beach to up past Jupiter. We fell in love with the Highland Beach location and cohesive beach community and the fact that no one, including people who live in Delray or Boca, knows that we’re here.

Q. What is your favorite part about living in Highland Beach? 
A. Superb beachfront location with access to all of the best parts of South Florida and a well-run community.

Q. What book are you reading now?
A. Kill the Father, by an Italian author, Sandrone Dazieri. A murder mystery.

Q. What music do you listen to when you need inspiration? When you want to relax? 
A. I like good old rock ’n’ roll. And for some reason it relaxes me.

Q. Do you have a favorite quote that inspires your decisions? 
A. Make every day count — most important at this age. When I make decisions, I do not take a survey of the people.

Q. Have you had mentors in your life? Individuals who have inspired your life decisions?
A. I’ve been very lucky to have been surrounded by the best family and friends that one could have. Each is an inspiration in many ways to me.

Q. If your life story were made into a movie, who would you want to play you?
A. I suppose it would have to be Bruce Willis. People say daily that we look alike. Unfortunate medical issues for him now.

By Steve Plunkett

A half year after 10 coastal elected officials from southern Palm Beach County resigned their seats rather than be forced to fill out a more-detailed inventory of their wealth, a federal judge has stepped in and put the new state requirement on hold.

U.S. District Judge Melissa Damian issued a preliminary injunction on June 10 barring the Florida Commission on Ethics from enforcing the new requirement.

Prior to the ruling, mayors and elected officials of Florida’s towns and cities were facing a July 1 deadline to file for the first time the state’s probing Form 6 financial disclosure.

Members of the Florida Commission on Ethics “failed to show that (the) requirement that Plaintiffs file Form 6, as opposed to the previously required and less comprehensive Form 1, is the least restrictive means of addressing the government interests at stake,” Damian said.

More than 170 elected officials filed suit seeking to have the Form 6 rule, also known as Senate Bill 774 or SB 774, declared unconstitutional. It alleges a violation of the U.S. Constitution’s First Amendment right to free speech for compelling them to make “non-commercial, content-based” speech by saying, among other things, that “My net worth as of Dec. 31, 2023, was $________.”

Damian agreed that the plaintiffs “satisfied their burden of establishing a reasonable likelihood of success on the merits of their claim that SB 774, as applied to them, impermissibly compels content-based speech in violation of the First Amendment.”

“Therefore, Plaintiffs are entitled to an injunction enjoining enforcement of SB 774,” she wrote.

The judge’s ruling came too late for Briny Breezes Town Council President Liz Loper, who submitted her Form 6 on May 30. But she has no regrets about filing early.

“I don’t have a lot,” said Loper, who is listed first of the 170-plus plaintiffs in the lawsuit. “My husband and I don’t own a lot. We don’t have a lot of liabilities, so for me it was actually very, very easy. It was very simple to fill out.”

Other elected officials who joined Loper in filing Form 6 early included former South Palm Beach Vice Mayor Bill LeRoy, Ocean Ridge Vice Mayor Steve Coz, Briny Breezes Alderman Keith Black, Gulf Stream Mayor Scott Morgan, former Delray Beach Mayor Shelly Petrolia, former Delray Beach City Commissioner and current candidate for public defender Adam Frankel, and former Boca Raton Deputy Mayor Monica Mayotte.

The state Ethics Commission advised them that because they had filed Form 6 they would not have to also file a Form 1, Loper said. The commission extended the deadline for city and town officials to file Form 1 until July 15.

Form 6 requires the disclosure of net worth, earnings and tangible assets and has been applied to the governor, state legislators, county commissioners and other officers at the state and county levels since Florida’s Sunshine Law was enacted in 1978. Form 1, on the other hand, lists much less detail of a person’s finances.

Jamie A. Cole, the lead attorney in the federal lawsuit and in a similar lawsuit in a state court in Tallahassee, lauded Damian’s decision.

“This is the most intrusive form of financial disclosure that I am aware of in the entire nation, requiring more disclosure of quintessentially personal financial information than is required of the President of the United States, members of Congress and elected officials in every other state,” Cole, the longtime city attorney of Weston in Broward County, said in a statement.

“Most municipal elected officials receive little to no compensation for their public service, yet they are being asked to disclose their precise net worth, income and assets. This legislative overreach has already resulted in the mass resignation of about 125 municipal elected officials and, if allowed, would discourage many others from serving their communities.”

Richard Radcliffe, executive director of the Palm Beach County League of Cities, said a total of 34 elected officials across the county resigned because of Form 6 — affecting about a third of the local elected boards.

So, the lawsuit “worked out very, very well for everybody,” he said in a June 18 appearance before the Town Commission in Manalapan, which saw five resignations but is not taking part in the lawsuits.

Elsewhere in South County, Briny Breezes had three resignations and Ocean Ridge and South Palm Beach each had one.

Judge Damian took a dim view of the process by which Form 6 was made law, noting multiple times in her order that state senators and representatives cast votes without having researched the need for a change.

“A review of the Committees’ Analyses reveals that neither includes empirical data nor evidence suggesting that either Committee investigated, studied, or solicited reports on the need for municipal elected officials to comply with the more comprehensive requirement of Form 6,” she wrote.

“Nor does either Analysis demonstrate that the Committees considered alternative, less burdensome means that would have addressed the interests at stake or the purpose or intent of SB 774.”

Despite the injunction, Radcliffe said he thinks the Form 6 requirement will reappear for local elected leaders.

“I’m sure it’s not going to go away. This is something that passed almost unanimously in both houses,” he said. “I think we got a reprieve.”

Anne Geggis contributed to this report

Town Attorney Keith Davis will have to phone in to the July 25 meeting of the Briny Breezes Town Council.

The Florida Municipal Attorneys Association, whose members represent 800 cities, towns and villages across the state, is holding its annual conference July 25-27 in Naples, he said.

“For some reason they are making me president of the organization for next year, so I have to be there,” he told the Town Council last month.

Davis, who specializes in representing municipalities, also has Manalapan as a client.

The association is an offshoot of the Florida League of Cities. Among the seminars scheduled for the conference are sessions on “Code Enforcement,” “Keeping Shade Meetings Compliant and Confidential” and “Sea-Level Rise, Resiliency and Land Use.”

“It’s where people like me get smart every year,” Davis said.

Also starting this year, Davis will be an adjunct law professor in Virginia at the College of William and Mary Law School, his alma mater. He’ll spend one week each semester teaching ethics and other subjects.

— Steve Plunkett

Boynton Beach and Delray Beach might be asking what Gov. Ron DeSantis has against them after five of their projects totaling almost $3.5 million were vetoed by the governor in June.

In Boynton Beach, state money for three projects was cut by the governor. They are:

-- $1,018,400 for Sky Lake neighborhood road resurfacing;
-- $600,000 for a new generator at the city’s 911 communications center;
-- $591,066 for a Lake Shore bridge canal project.

Delray Beach saw funding vanish for two Legislature-approved projects:

-- $750,000 for underground utility improvements on Swinton Avenue north of Atlantic Avenue;
-- $500,000 for roadway restoration work on Southwest Eighth Avenue.

Delray Beach did have one of its appropriations go through, according to information provided by state Sen. Lori Berman’s office.

The city will receive $306,000 for an emergency response mobile traffic barrier and first responder protection.

— Staff report