The annual lecture and music series at Manalapan’s J. Turner Moore Memorial Library features three nights of entertainment for library members and their guests. Author Donna Scott will start things off when she discusses topics from her historical fiction novels at the library at 6 p.m. Feb. 16.
The series continues at 6 p.m. March 2 with a musical interlude, Duo Arpeggione, with performances by pianist Catherine Lan and cellist Claudio Jaffe.
The series concludes at 6 p.m. April 13 with a lecture on Palm Beach’s gilded age by the Historical Society of Palm Beach County, looking specifically at the Flagler Era when Henry Flagler’s railroads began bringing wealthy guests and residents. Library members can be either a resident (membership is $35) or a non-resident (membership is $50). Wine and appetizers are served at each of the events.

— Staff report

Installing sidewalks on both side of Andrews would mean that a lot of driveways, landscaping and utilities would need to be modified. Jerry Lower/The Coastal Star

By John Pacenti

The Delray Beach City Commission threw cold water on a proposal to put in sidewalks and bike paths along Andrews Avenue, where beachgoers continue to snarl traffic and cause safety hazards as residents are forced to walk in the middle of the road.
There seemed to be no appetite for transforming the street that runs parallel to State Road A1A, a project that would require the city to reclaim right-of-way by bulldozing picturesque trees and removing homeowners’ walls on a stretch of road that conveys undeniable beachside charm.
The commission would need to pursue funding through a grant from the Palm Beach County Transportation Planning Agency for the project.
The Coastal Star spoke to a handful of residents in the area — none of whom were in favor of the project. But Public Works Director Missie Barletto told the commission at its Jan. 10 meeting that a survey showed that residents liked the idea.
Barletto said 75% of the 114 responses to the survey favored building sidewalks and a majority wanted a bike path of some sort. She shared a comment from a resident who said it was “a terrific idea” to calm traffic.
But another resident responding to the survey called the proposal ridiculous. “These are quiet residential streets, which on weekends are already packed with beachgoers illegally parking and jamming the streets,” the resident wrote.
Jack Barrette lives on Seaspray Avenue and would see his manicured ficus hedge meet its demise if the road improvement project commenced.
“I don’t think anyone understands what a ‘complete street’ project really means. It would take away old-growth trees, hedges and all kinds of other stuff that may be on easements,” he told The Coastal Star.
Barrette said the survey was poorly worded and included part-time residents, so that it did not reflect the unified disdain by homeowners of a project that would turn the quiet neighborhood on the narrow street into a construction zone from Atlantic Avenue to George Bush Boulevard.
At the Jan. 10 meeting, the prior night, Vice Mayor Adam Frankel expressed a similar viewpoint: “This seems to be an area where residents want less traffic and less people. This is just inviting the opposite.”
Deputy Vice Mayor Juli Casale said that while campaigning in the neighborhood for the March 14 election, she could not find one homeowner in favor of the project.
Commissioner Ryan Boylston said an Andrews Avenue revamp is a low priority for him.
The Beach Property Owners Association is taking a wait-and-see approach, wanting to see more details on any plan.
Mayor Shelly Petrolia said she was taken aback by the proposed scope of the project, claiming that the idea of putting in sidewalks started when former Mayor Cary Glickstein spoke to the commission last April and proposed sidewalks just near Atlantic Avenue.
“He was talking about a shorter area, I understand,” Petrolia said. “This body has not asked for this. I question whether the previous mayor actually asked for this because when he was up here speaking, I heard something very different.”
Glickstein told The Coastal Star he never asked for an overhaul of Andrews Avenue as was proposed, adding the survey was “a complete waste of time and lacked context.”
“I never asked for bike paths. There is no room for bike paths,” said Glickstein. The former mayor said he envisioned a sidewalk on one side of the road from Beach Drive to Atlantic Avenue where there is simply no room for pedestrians if there are two cars traveling in opposite directions on the road.
Andrews Avenue area residents who spoke to The Coastal Star didn’t want to give their names but said rogue parkers camp in front of their homes for hours, blocking service vehicles from entering and exiting the neighborhood.
And, indeed, while a Coastal Star reporter asked questions of residents, a bottled water truck was forced to back up on Seaspray Avenue, negotiating the space left by a parked SUV with Michigan plates that neighbors say is a daily beachgoer.
Commissioner Shirley Johnson said that the issue on Andrews Avenue encapsulates the entire problem on the barrier island with parking, forcing beachgoers to park on people’s lawns, hoping they don’t get towed.
“We haven’t done anything to resolve it,” said Johnson, proposing the city build a parking facility near the beach.
In the meantime, commissioners said the city needs to explore erecting “No Parking” signs to keep beachgoers from parking on the easement and residential property on Andrews.
“Then you don’t have that very narrow road where people are walking and biking. There are probably easier things we can do that could both accommodate the residents of the neighborhood and help alleviate some of the problem,” Casale said.

Lisa Morgan of Gulf Stream loves meeting students as scholarship committee chair of the Community Foundation for Palm Beach and Martin Counties. Tim Stepien/The Coastal Star

Even the most well-intentioned people tend not to know a lot about the Community Foundation for Palm Beach and Martin Counties. Lisa Morgan was one of them when she was nominated by a friend to serve on its board of directors six years ago.
“We jokingly say it’s the best-kept secret in town, but that’s not a good thing,” Morgan said. “You can only do good if people know about you and support you.”
Morgan, whose broad spectrum of philanthropic endeavors includes being a founding board member of Impact 100, soon learned that the Community Foundation, founded in 1972 by Winsome and Michael McIntosh, has awarded more than $200 million in scholarships and grants on behalf of more than 9,000 donors and nonprofits.
Morgan, 62, became chairwoman of the scholarship committee five years ago, an appointment she said has “just grabbed my heart.”
“I felt this is where I need to be,” said Morgan, who has “come into contact with the most amazing young people.”
Fellow board member Tim Burke, the former publisher of The Palm Beach Post who serves as marketing director for the foundation, said Morgan is a huge asset in her work with scholarships.
“She’s a real champion of students in our area,” Burke said. “She’s amazingly passionate.”
The Glades is one area that has long been underserved by philanthropic efforts. The foundation has addressed that with the recent addition of Tammy Jackson-Moore — a community organizer, leader and founder of Guardians of the Glades — to the scholarship committee. Students are more typically identified with the help of high school guidance counselors throughout the region.
“People are often under the assumption that you can only be a philanthropist or establish a scholarship fund if you are a millionaire, but that is not true,” Morgan said. “The Community Foundation donors come from a wide variety of economic levels. It serves as a hub for our community aligning donors with the needs of our community.”
A resident of Gulf Stream since 1994, Morgan is married to Scott, the mayor of Gulf Stream. They have three children: Ashley, who resides in San Francisco; Charley, who is in Dallas; and Bennett, who is in Los Angeles.
In her free time, Morgan enjoys tennis, bridge, cooking, and walking A1A in the early morning to catch the sunrise.

— Brian Biggane

Q: Where did you grow up and go to school? How do you think that has affected you?
A: I grew up in Pennsylvania, but from an early age, I spent four months of the year in South Florida, usually attending school in a multigrade classroom with other seasonal students like myself where we each worked independently. I then attended Pine Crest School in Fort Lauderdale for high school, then Vanderbilt University where I earned a B.S. in molecular biology. After college I earned a JD by attending the Dickinson School of Law and the University of Pennsylvania School of Law. I also earned additional certification as a licensed patent and trademark attorney.
Growing up in central Pennsylvania had great impact on my approach to life and my core values. The people there are generally salt of the earth — patriotic, hardworking, kind and loyal. You could do business on a handshake. I have a great respect for many of the people I employed and did business with, and I still love doing business there.

Q: What professions have you worked in? What professional accomplishments are you most proud of?
A: I began as an attorney with the firm of Morgan, Lewis & Bockius practicing litigation and patent law, and subsequently my husband and I opened our own firm. I left the practice of law to run a midsize raw materials company producing and selling aggregate, concrete, asphalt and building materials. I actually had a pink monogrammed hard hat that the employees gave me. Little did I know that in addition to being a nice gesture, it was also a way they had a heads up when I was on site because no one else had a pink hard hat! They only told me that years later. I left that industry when I moved to Florida in 1993, and have since been president of a commercial and industrial investment and development company.
In my professional career what I am most proud of is having succeeded in two industries that were at the time — and actually to some extent still are — male dominated. In my time in the construction industry, probably 99% of my employees and business contemporaries were male. In almost all of my interactions, I was the only woman. The same thing remains true in my commercial and industrial development dealings where nearly every principal of the development groups I have dealt with over the years has been male. I was just on a Zoom call this afternoon — six men and me. It has been a challenging road at times to stand confident in the room and garner respect, but I definitely learned how to hold my own.

Q: What advice do you have for a young person seeking a career today?
A: To understand that a career and success are not given to you — you earn them through hard work and perseverance. You need to have a strong work ethic. Also, young people should not feel that they are locked into the career they first choose. Life is full of opportunities and you can always pivot! Look at me: I went from science to law to business, and each one of those experiences gave me broader knowledge and shaped me as a person. When I graduated law school, my dad ended a note to me by saying “Go for it!” and I take his words to heart every day.

Q: How did you choose to make your home in Gulf Stream?
A: Gulf Stream School was the initial lure. What a unique and wonderful place to educate your children. But the feel of the neighborhood has kept us there. Understated, peaceful and a true sense of community among its residents. My husband and I always say that we are so lucky to have found and live in this place.

Q: What is your favorite part about living in Gulf Stream?
A: The camaraderie and sense of community among the residents. The Gulf Stream Civic Association hosts a meet-and-greet event every year, and there is always a great turnout and a very convivial atmosphere that I think exemplifies the neighborhood. It also helps that I can walk to the beach and that groceries and Atlantic Avenue are only five minutes away.

Q: What book are you reading now?
A: I am reading two. One is for my book group — Horse by Geraldine Brooks — and the other one I have been wanting to read, An Army at Dawn by Rick Atkinson. I recently finished The Code Breaker about the woman who first figured out how to use CRISPR to alter genes which was the basis for the ultimate development of the mRNA vaccines. Amazing stuff. My nightstand has a pile of books in a queue.

Q: What music do you listen to when you want to relax? When you want to be inspired?
A: My taste in music is actually quite eclectic. I am a country music fan and that is what is invariably playing in my car. For relaxation, however, I listen to James Morrison, Al Green or the Amos Lee station, and Kenny Loggins’ House at Pooh Corner is still a family favorite from when our kids were young. For inspiration, anything with a great beat, which can range from Motown to disco to the Rolling Stones.

Q: Have you had mentors in your life? Individuals who have inspired your life decisions?
A: My father was my biggest mentor and inspiration in my life decisions. He taught me the importance of education, to be independent, and the responsibility to actively give back to your community. He also emphasized to me that every person on this Earth has value and you can learn something from everyone. As a result, I would say my friends are as eclectic as my music.

Q: If your life story were made into a movie, who would play you?
A: I actually asked my college girlfriends about this one and some of the answers were very funny. But, the consensus was Reese Witherspoon because she is a strong woman who has a playful and fun side. I definitely have a playful side, as my friends will tell you!

Q: Who/what makes you laugh?
A: My husband makes me laugh every day. And my girlfriends.

By Tao Woolfe

Workers were putting finishing touches on the grounds of the $85.3 million Avion Riverwalk last month, laying stone walkways around newly planted palms and flowering trees.
The 10-story luxury apartment building at the southeast corner of Woolbright Road and Federal Highway is scheduled to open in late April or early May, according to a leasing agent who declined to give her name. The leasing office could be open as soon as next month, the agent said.
The building — with 326 units and 41,976 square feet of retail space — was approved by the City Commission in January 2017. Construction work on the building and on the tenants’ parking garage — begun in 2021 — appears to be almost complete.
Earth-moving equipment and pallets of walkway stone occupied the grounds leading from the building to the Riverwalk Plaza parking lot late last month. Men in bright yellow vests kept visitors from walking inside the orange netting surrounding the work.
The project was the site of a construction accident last March that killed two workers.
Boynton Beach police and fire officials reported that part of the concrete structure had collapsed, crushing the workers, identified as Jeremias Mendez, 32, and Eduardo Cruz-Moran, 25, both of West Palm Beach.
The regional Occupational Safety and Health Administration office in Plantation, following a six-month investigation, cited subcontractor Riverblock Solution, LLC with three “serious” violations of workplace safety and fined the company about $25,000.
The OSHA citations specified that Riverblock Solution:
• “Did not ensure the formwork was braced to support the vertical and lateral loads during the dismantling process.”
• “Did not develop safety procedures to ensure formwork was adequately braced during its assembly and dismantling process.”
• “Did not provide training to employees to recognize and avoid hazards associated with the assembly and dismantling of formwork, thus exposing employees to struck-by hazards.”

By Joe Capozzi

The second half of the town’s dune restoration project has been postponed until 2024 because of damage from Hurricane Nicole. 
“We are basically out of luck for anything for dune restoration for another whole year and let’s hope we don’t get hit with any bad storms this summer,’’ Mayor Bonnie Fischer said at the Town Council meeting on Jan. 10.
All beaches in South Palm Beach, a town roughly five-eighths of a mile long, abut private land. As a result, the town must rely on Lantana and Palm Beach to renourish its beaches and dunes. 
Fischer and Town Manager Robert Kellogg learned about the delay in a phone call Jan. 9 with Lantana Town Manager Brian Raducci and Robert Weber, the coastal program manager for the town of Palm Beach.
Sand for the $360,000 restoration project had been stockpiled about 3 miles north of South Palm Beach, on a berm next to the Palm Beach Par 3 Golf Course south of Phipps Ocean Park, Weber said. But it was washed away in November when Nicole approached South Florida and made landfall south of Vero Beach.
Officials are waiting to hear from FEMA if they can be reimbursed for the lost sand, Kellogg said in an interview. 
Nicole also damaged the sea wall at the east end of Ocean Avenue at Lantana Municipal Beach, the access point for equipment for the dune restoration. It could be late fall before the sea wall is repaired, Kellogg said. 
“It was unfortunate to hear that but there’s nothing we can do because we are at the whim of what Palm Beach does and also Lantana,’’ Fischer said. “We need both of them to even do anything on that beach.’’ 
The first phase of the dune restoration was completed in May 2021 for $739,000. There is more sand — more beach — on the north end of town near Palmsea Condominiums than on the south end of town, where the limited beach allows surf to pound against condo sea walls. 
“It’s getting very scary,’’ said Fischer, who lives in Imperial House at the south end of town. 

Town Hall architects
For the second time in three months, the Town Council is looking for architects to design a new Town Hall constructed with structural insulated panels. 
In November, the council chose Slattery & Associates over two other firms to design the building. But on the advice of the town attorney Glen Torcivia, council members decided Jan. 10 not to offer Slattery & Associates a contract because of concerns with the firm’s experience with the SIPs method.
The town has issued a new request for qualifications and the council could pick a new firm in March.  
When council members interviewed Slattery & Associates, they were left with the impression that the firm had experience designing buildings that could be constructed with structural insulated panels.  
But after the November meeting, town officials took a closer look at the firm’s experience with SIPs and determined “it’s very minimal,’’ Kellogg said. “We want to have someone that has significant experience in the design phase of installing SIPs.’’

Recertification rules
Town Council members Jan. 10 heard a presentation from Highland Beach building official Jeff Remas on new state recertification rules for coastal condominiums. 
A summary of Remas’ presentation will be shared with representatives of the 27 condominiums in South Palm Beach. 

By Larry Barszewski

The Coastal Star walked away with 15 awards in the annual Florida Press Club competition, including a top award for in-depth reporting. The awards were announced at a Jan. 14 ceremony in Daytona Beach.
The paper received the prestigious Lucy Morgan Award for In-Depth Reporting for its look at south Palm Beach County’s aging condos following the 2021 collapse of the 12-story Champlain Towers South condominium in Surfside. The Classes B-C award is given to publications with under 40,000 circulation.
The award was one of three first-place prizes the paper received in its class. Coastal Star reporter Joe Capozzi won the other two first-place awards, one for a story about the heavy pace of burials at the Delray Beach Memorial Gardens Municipal Cemetery during the height of the coronavirus pandemic, and the other in the public safety writing category for articles about bicycle-riding dangers, regulations and enforcement on State Road A1A.
The Lucy Morgan Award is the third for The Coastal Star, which also received the award in 2015 for a package about the 1984 Karen Slattery murder and the status of her killer on Death Row, and in 2014 for an article about lessons officials learned from the coastal damage done by Hurricane Sandy.
Judges gave high marks this year for the paper’s report on aging condos, a staff effort led by reporter Joel Engelhardt. The work in August 2021 also won the top in-depth reporting award from the separate Florida Press Association 2022 Weekly Newspaper Contest.
“A journalist’s sacred duty is to distill the critical, but potentially deadly boring details in a way that connects our common humanity. I’m happy to say this has been accomplished,” one Florida Press Club judge wrote of the paper’s entry. “This is a towering achievement in community news, in the scope of information offered, in its compelling prose and the way it grabbed the reader by the throat and wouldn’t let go.”
In the public safety category, another judge lauded Capozzi’s coverage of bicycle hazards on A1A, saying he had “excellent use of first-person accounts to focus the issue.”
The other Florida Press Club award winners this year from the The Coastal Star are:
• Rich Pollack: second place for coronavirus reporting for his article about how charities dealt with fundraising during the pandemic lockdown; and second place for public safety reporting for his article about boating safety on the Intracoastal Waterway;
• Janis Fontaine: second place for her coverage of religion news and third place for education writing, the latter for her coverage of the dispute between St. Joseph’s Episcopal School and St. Joseph’s Episcopal Church;
• Brian Biggane: second place in the “That is so … Florida” category for his article about iguanas on golf courses;
• Tim Stepien: second place in the portrait/personality photography category;
• Charles Elmore and Mary Hladky: second place in health writing for their package about a drop in overdose deaths and what local governments were doing to get money from large opioid lawsuit settlements;
• Ron Hayes: second place for light features based on a collection of his work;
• Jan Norris: third place for travel and tourism writing for her article about a tourism boom locally;
• Mary Kate Leming: third place for column writing for a collection of her Editor’s Notes;
• Scott Simmons, Jerry Lower and Tracy Allerton: third place for feature page design layout;
• The Coastal Star staff: third place for special sections, for the paper’s annual philanthropy and arts sections.

By Rich Pollack

Charges against a 29-year-old Boynton Beach woman accused of killing her newborn daughter and later tossing her into the Boynton Inlet have been reduced to second-degree murder.
Prosecutors now say the death of the infant known as Baby June in 2018 does not appear to be premeditated.
Arya Singh, who was originally charged with first- degree murder by investigators at the Palm Beach Sheriff’s Office, could face a maximum sentence of life in prison if convicted of the second-degree murder charges.
Prosecutors with the Palm Beach County State Attorney’s Office have also charged Singh with abuse of a dead human body, a second-degree felony punishable by up to 15 years in prison.
Detectives, in announcing the arrest of Singh late last year, said it appears that the baby — born two days before she was found in the water — was dead before she was put in the inlet.
In paperwork filed with the court, prosecutors accuse Singh of killing the baby by asphyxiation, “although without any premeditated design to effect the death of any particular individual.”
Singh’s arrest in mid-December came 41/2 years after Baby June’s body was found on June 1, 2018, by an off-duty Boynton Beach firefighter.
With no one claiming responsibility for the infant’s death, sheriff’s detectives launched an exhaustive search that involved going over hundreds of birth records as well as making several public appeals for information.
The break in the case came when members of the sheriff’s forensic biology unit identified relatives of the father using DNA evidence.
Armed with the lead — gathered in part through a public database — detectives met with the father, who led them to Singh.
The father said he was unaware of Baby June’s birth and has not been charged with a crime.
Singh last month entered a plea of not guilty.

By Steve Plunkett

The Little Club’s golf fairways have been saved.
The town adopted what it once called Plan B and will install water filtration trenches along its roadways to guide excess rainfall to the Intracoastal Waterway. It originally wanted the club to rejigger its fairways in order to enlarge a lake on the golf course to handle additional stormwater.
Gulf Stream “redesigned the project after some discussion with The Little Club to accommodate water quality within our right-of-way through exfiltration trenches,” Assistant Town Manager Trey Nazzaro told town commissioners on Jan. 13. “We have obviated the need for lake expansion.”
The revised plan, good for another 20 years, and the town’s capital improvement project to improve drainage throughout its Core district “will significantly reduce the amount of water that will need to discharge into the club,” Nazzaro said.
“It will adequately allow the town to continue to discharge the limited amount of stormwater drainage in extenuating circumstances.”
Mayor Scott Morgan called the earlier proposal to dig a wider lake “significantly problematic.”
“The engineers went back and reworked it so that … we would not need to enlarge the lake,” he said. “So it works out, it’s a win-win.”
Last June, commissioners fretted that a demand by The Little Club to have its own engineer review the town’s plans would add an extra year to Gulf Stream’s 10-year capital improvement project. The club had agreed a year earlier to accept the town’s plan.
The town’s consulting engineers are scheduled to finish drawing up plans in the spring.
Gulf Stream intends to improve the streets, drainage and water mains on both the west and east sides of the Core. Part of the plan includes replacing a 24-inch drainage pipe from Polo Drive to a canal off the Intracoastal Waterway with a 48-inch pipe. To get the South Florida Water Management District to sign off, engineers proposed enlarging a quarter-acre lake at The Little Club to a half-acre.
The water management district does not consider a lake smaller than a half-acre as helping drainage.
At the time, Gulf Stream Commissioner Paul Lyons said he hoped to live longer than the construction.
“The 10-year CIP plan—that’s a long time. I just want to be sure I have enough years to enjoy it,” he said.

By Joe Capozzi

Town officials may soon take a hard look at resiliency related policy changes to protect Ocean Ridge from future storms, flooding and climate-change projections. 
Among possible changes for a coastal town that historically has battled drainage issues: raising the height on new and rebuilt sea walls, and raising the elevation on roads when they are repaved. 
The ideas were discussed at a joint meeting of the Town Commission and advisory Planning and Zoning Board on Jan. 11, nearly two months after the town experienced serious flooding by Hurricane Nicole, which made landfall 80 miles north, near Vero Beach.
“For us, it is like the eleventh hour at this point,’’ Commissioner Martin Wiescholek said. “It is unconscionable if we do not do anything about this right now.’’
Nicole, a Category 1 storm, dumped 4.87 inches of rain over a two-day period on Ocean Ridge — the highest total of any town in Palm Beach County. Aside from the rain, the flooding was exacerbated by storm surge and king tides induced by a full moon. 
In some neighborhoods, roads became impassable and water came within inches of breaching homes. 
“The biggest problem beside the potential for it coming into people’s homes was that the roads became unnavigable,’’ said Vice Mayor Kristine de Haseth.
“The one that really concerned me was that the Ocean Avenue bridge was closed for 26 hours. If that storm had taken a sideways turn and gone from a 1 to a 3 and we all decided we’re finally going to heed the evacuation that was suggested, there wouldn’t have been the opportunity necessarily to use that bridge to get off.’’ 
Town officials will review what Palm Beach County and other coastal towns require for sea wall height. Most new sea walls in Ocean Ridge are capped at 4 feet, said building official Durrani Guy. 
“Hurricane Nicole had 2-foot swells and half the walls were breached,’’ he said. “We need to look at this and I do believe we need to mandate at least 5 feet for new sea walls.’’
Raising the road elevations may create new problems, commissioners and board members agreed. 
If street surfaces are raised an inch or two, in some cases they will be higher than residential driveways and yards, increasing the need for swales to prevent water from flowing into driveways and homes. 
“There’s no easy answer, but I think we’d be remiss in continuing spending any municipal dollars at the level we are at knowing it’s already a problem and it’s a problem that’s going to continue to get worse,’’ de Haseth said. 
“I don’t have a solution. I just want everybody to be conscious of it,’’ she said. “We just can’t keep doing what we (have done) and expecting different outcomes.’’
Nicole should serve as a wake-up call, Wiescholek said.
“We were on the good side of the hurricane. It was a Category 1 that didn’t hit us and we had water up to people’s front doorsteps. At some point we have to go: You know what, accept the reality. This is what’s happening, and we have to do something about it,’’ he said in an interview in November, a few days after Nicole made landfall.
“We need to shore up our sea walls, we need to bring the town higher, we need to raise the roads. None of that is cheap. Those are massive spending bills, but if we kick the can and say let’s look at it next year, we will always be behind the [eight-]ball.’’

By Joe Capozzi

Police Chief Richard Jones was finally given a contract Jan. 9, more than 16 months after he took charge of the Ocean Ridge public safety department.
Jones, who makes $115,763 a year, said he requested a contract when he replaced retiring chief Hal Hutchins in August 2022. But he said he was told at the time by then-Town Manager Tracey Stevens that the commission did not want to issue him a contract.
That apparently was not true, an issue commissioners didn’t become aware of until Stevens announced her resignation last July.
At the time, some commissioners asked Jones if he would consider serving as interim town manager. But the chief declined because, among other reasons, he said he was never given a contract when he took over for Hutchins. A contract, he said, would have offered protections.  
Hutchins was given a contract when he became chief in 2015 after the forced resignation of Chris Yannuzzi, who also had a contract. 
On Jan. 9, commissioners voted to give Jones a three-year contract that provides 16 weeks of severance pay if he is terminated without cause.
If the chief resigns, he must give the commission 90 days notice.
Vice Mayor Kristine de Haseth suggested changing town rules to require a supermajority of four votes, instead of the current three, to fire the chief, an idea other commissioners did not support. 
Jones has received praise from commissioners and residents since taking over as chief, not only for his public-safety work but for his assistance on information technology issues. 

In other action:
• Commissioners on Feb. 6 will consider ways to regulate the placement of “No Trespassing” signs on the beach, which have generated controversy and heated debate off and on over the years. 
Commissioners agreed to put the issue on the agenda after more than a dozen residents complained during public comments at the Jan. 6 meeting about signs outside the Turtle Beach condominium on Old Ocean Boulevard.   
• Each of the town’s five commissioners will get town-issued cellphones dedicated to town business. Each phone will cost $55 a month. 
Commissioner Martin Wiescholek suggested the idea after attending annual ethics training for local elected leaders. Town-issued phones will allow commissioners to, among other things, avoid using their personal phones for town business, which will expedite public records requests by reducing the time needed to separate personal calls from town calls. 
“Everything town related is on there and we don’t need to use our personal phones for anything town related,’’ he said. “Once a commissioner leaves, that phone is handed to the next commissioner.’’

By Tao Woolfe

The Boynton Beach Police Department, like other police departments across the nation, is struggling to recruit and retain officers.
Police Chief Joseph DeGiulio received some good news, however, when the City Commission on Jan. 17 approved enough money for the department to hire six more officers.
Though commissioners discussed no specific amount, the starting salary for new officers is $56,825. The department is offering a $5,000 signing bonus for certified police officers — those who have already received police academy training.
“We’re always catching up. As we’re hiring, people are leaving,” said Commissioner Aimee Kelley, who is married to a Boynton Beach police captain. “We’re behind the eight-ball.”
Holly Picciano, the department’s public information officer, said after the meeting that the shortages run deeper than losing people through attrition or recent retirements from the force.
Boynton Beach is growing rapidly and calls for service have increased dramatically, Picciano said.
Further, she said, fewer people are interested in law enforcement careers in the wake of high-profile killings across the country and the resultant protests, calls for budget cuts, and increased scrutiny of police departments.
“Not a lot of people want to do this job anymore,” Picciano said. “We are constantly advertising for officers.”
Last spring the possibility of bringing the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office in to replace the Boynton Beach Police Department was raised following months of tumult and anger — especially from the Black community — after 13-year-old Stanley Davis III was killed during a Dec. 26, 2021, high-speed police chase. The teen was riding a dirt bike.
Residents had expressed frustration that an internal investigation was taking so long. Nevertheless, Black and white residents had repeatedly said at commission meetings that they did not want PBSO to replace the city’s police.
Instead, residents said, the local force should be winnowed of bad officers and more enlightened policies enacted.
The city opted to follow that advice and shortly after voting to retain and revamp the department, it fired Mark Sohn, the officer involved in the deadly chase. He is fighting for reinstatement.
The City Commission’s recent unanimous vote to provide extra funds for new hires was welcome, and unexpected, Picciano said.
“We are happy to be able to add six positions,” Picciano said. “It will help.”
Even with those six extra positions, however, the department would need to hire another dozen officers to be at full capacity, she said.
The new hires will be placed on road patrol, Picciano said.
The department is recruiting separately to replace three officers and a service aide to restart the Community Redevelopment Agency’s Neighborhood Officer Program. It was halted last year because of staff shortages.

DELRAY BEACH — Catherine “Kay” S. Revelas, mother of 19-year Delray Beach resident Irene Revelas, died on Nov. 9 at Greenfields in Lancaster, New York. She was 91.
Mrs. Revelas was a proud Greek-American who expressed love of her heritage and culture through her extraordinary baking skills, mailing baked goods each December to friends, colleagues and family across the country.
The only child of Greek immigrants Glenn and Irene Calafates, Kay was born on March 29, 1931, in the historic Erie Barge Canal Village of Medina, New York, and graduated from Medina High School in 1954.
She married and had four children, eventually moving her family to nearby Lockport, New York.
Southeast Florida was always a part of Mrs. Revelas’ life. Her maternal grandmother, Olga Asprodites, lived in Medina with Kay and her parents in the summer and fall, and with her uncle John White, owner of White’s Candies in Surfside, during the winter and spring.
Mrs. Revelas’ annual Miami Beach family visits as a child were followed by annual spring break family visits to Surfside with her children.
In the 1970s, Mrs. Revelas became manager of the Royal Sweet Shoppe family restaurant, and next opened Sweet Stuff, an artisanal confection and gift store, both in downtown Lockport. In the 1980s, Kay returned to her hometown as the executive director of the Medina Chamber of Commerce. She started with a focus on Main Street, where her father’s Mayflower Restaurant had been located for decades.
Mrs. Revelas understood the importance of historic structures to the fabric of a downtown community. She successfully pursued one of the first New York Main Street Alliance grants to help owners improve their historic buildings. This work resulted in a 1984 Preservation League of New York State Main Street Revitalization Award to Medina for its commercial façade program. Mrs. Revelas received a citation from the New York state Assembly in 1994, recognizing her for the successful Medina Main Street program.
Mrs. Revelas’ next project was activation of the heritage tourism potential of Medina’s Erie Barge Canal Basin. Under her leadership, a canal task force was formed and grants were obtained to develop the canal basin, including a docking system, park area and an annual “Woods ‘N Wetlands Festival.”
On April 16, 1996, state Sen. George Maziarz issued a resolution paying tribute to Kay upon her retirement, “in recognition of her many years of community service and exemplary leadership.”
Although Mrs. Revelas was a busy volunteer for a variety of arts, culture and downtown development organizations, she found retirement didn’t suit her and, at age 65, she started a new career in Buffalo with Univera as a Medicare specialist. During her 10-year career at Univera, Kay discovered Delray Beach through a National Trust for Historic Preservation magazine article about the Sundy House restoration. As a result, Kay became a regular annual visitor to Delray Beach long into her retirement years.
Mrs. Revelas is survived by four children, nine grandchildren, and two great-grandchildren. Donations in her memory may be made to the nonprofit Delray Beach Preservation Trust, 455 NE Fifth Ave., Suite D-250, Delray Beach, FL 33483.

— Obituary submitted by the family

BOCA RATON —Wendy May Francis Bonner died surrounded by her daughters and her grandson on Jan. 12. She was 79.
She was born on Jan. 2, 1944, the daughter of Victor Francis and Helene Francis.
She lived a wonderful life growing up here in Florida. She was a Boca Raton debutante and went to Pine Crest High School and was a pillar of the community.
Wendy lit up a room when she was in it, and always had a smile on her face even if times were hard. She had a wonderful sense of humor and a great sense of beauty and fashion.
She will be missed by her family and many friends. Wendy is survived by daughters Tammy Sue Hamilton and Victoria Francis Bonner Kelley and grandson Chad Victor Hamilton.

— Obituary submitted by the family

By Rich Pollack

HIGHLAND BEACH — Highland Beach was a perfect match for Bev Hillman.
“She was a small-town person,” her husband, Highland Beach Mayor Doug Hillman, said about his wife of 54 years, who died on Jan. 16. “She was always very comfortable in those places.”
Mrs. Hillman, who battled COPD for the last several years, was 76.
“She truly was the love of my life and my partner,” Mr. Hillman said.
Originally from Danbury, Connecticut, Beverly Hillman met her husband while both were in separate colleges. They spent a few years in Connecticut before moving to Maryland, where they remained for three decades.
During those years, Mrs. Hillman served as an informal adviser to her husband, a business executive who held several corporate positions including as president of London Fog, maker of raincoats and other apparel.
“I would always share business decisions with her,” Mr. Hillman said. “She was my rock.”
It was in 2009, when the Hillmans decided to become snowbirds, that Mrs. Hillman fell in love with Highland Beach and with the condominium apartment they bought in the Boca Highland Beach Club & Marina.
“She was just incredibly happy here,” Mr. Hillman said. “She spent many of her days on the balcony overlooking the Intracoastal.”
Oftentimes she took a book or a crossword puzzle out there.
Mrs. Hillman was a golfer and boater who enjoyed vacations on the couple’s boat. She loved to travel, with Venice, Italy, one of her favorite places. She and Mr. Hillman also spent parts of a dozen years vacationing with friends on the island of St. Croix in the U.S. Virgin Islands.
Mrs. Hillman was at home surrounded by family when she died. She is survived by her husband; son Michael; daughter-in-law Michelle; granddaughter Molli, and grandson Miles.
A gathering and brief ceremony in Mrs. Hillman’s memory were held at the Boca Highland Beach Club & Marina.

BOCA RATON — Barbara Rewey Miner, known to all as “Gramma Barb,” died Jan. 12 surrounded by her loving family. She was 92.
Born in Flint, Michigan, on Feb. 3, 1930, to Ormond and Blanche Rewey, Barbara began a long life well lived.
She married the love of her life, Frederick Bishop Miner, on Jan. 9, 1954, and together they became residents of Royal Palm Yacht and Country Club in 1964. The couple were avid anglers, world travelers and generous and gracious merrymakers.
Mrs. Miner had an infectious personality, a wicked sense of humor and was never afraid to speak her mind.
She was also one to never stand still. She was a Girl Scout troop leader, den mother for Cub Scouts, Singing Pines volunteer, Junior League member, Boca Raton Museum of Art fundraiser, Garden Club member, founding member of the Boca Raton Regional Hospital and founding member of St. Gregory’s Episcopal Church. In her spare time, she “crafted, sewed, knitted, quilted, stitched and bitched,” family said.
She is survived by her four children: Fritz, Doug (wife, Mary), Beth (husband, Brad Osborne), Bruce (wife, Jodi); 11 grandchildren, and 10 great-grandchildren.
Her celebration of life was held at St. Gregory’s Episcopal Church followed by entombment at the Boca Raton Mausoleum.
In lieu of flowers, the family kindly asks that donations be sent to St. Gregory’s Episcopal Church in Boca Raton.

— Obituary submitted by the family

By Sallie James

BOCA RATON—Philanthropist, mentor, organizer, socialite, businesswoman, world traveler, beloved wife and mother. They all accurately describe the late Yvonne S. Boice-Zucaro, but her widowed husband, Al Zucaro, may have summed up her legacy best:
“She was a force of nature,” said Mr. Zucaro, who married her in 2009, a second marriage for both and a union he described as “the best years of my life.” Mrs. Boice-Zucaro died on Jan. 13 at home of natural causes. She was 85.
“When she got interested in something she was willing to commit her time, her energy and her money to the course,” Mr. Zucaro said. “She was one of the best organizers that I ever met. She was incredible in terms of her commitment to many different platforms and her follow-through with all of these. I still keep uncovering things that she was involved with and doing that even surprised me.”
Born in New Brunswick, New Jersey, on Sept. 6, 1937, Mrs. Boice-Zucaro graduated from New York University with a bachelor’s degree in marketing. Education was one of her passions and over the years she received three honorary doctorate degrees, from three schools: Franklin Pierce University in Rindge, New Hampshire; Daemen College in Buffalo, New York; and Lynn University in Boca Raton. Her South Florida adventure began in 1983 when she moved to Boca Raton as the wife of real estate executive Grant Boice, who died a short time later. His unexpected death catapulted her into the business world. She rose to the occasion, successfully taking over management of the newly developed Shoppes at Village Pointe while also running her own pet project, Fugazy International Travel.
She met her future husband, Al Zucaro, on the Palm Beach County Film and Television Commission, where the two served as board members. They became friends, sharing common interests, passions and politics. After Mr. Zucaro’s wife died in 2008, the two became closer and eventually married a year later.
Mrs. Boice-Zucaro was always busy.
She was a world traveler who had visited more than 150 countries at the time of her death, believing that “the only way to true education was through travel.”
Mentoring women was also a huge passion throughout her life, and she was boldly outspoken about why it mattered. Mr. Zucaro recalled a time when his wife traveled to the Middle East with the State Department to speak at a conference about film, where she expressed concern about how women there were always portrayed as victims. A male attendee spoke out, saying, “That’s the way it is and the way it will always be.”
“(My wife) sort of put a fist down on the table and said, ‘Ladies, don’t believe it.’ Then she made an offer to the women in the audience that if they produced a film that depicted Middle Eastern women differently, she would advance that film at the Palm Beach International Film Festival to help change attitudes,” Mr. Zucaro said. “That is the kind of spur-of-the-moment thing she would do.”
Mrs. Boice-Zucaro represented the United States at four high-profile overseas business conferences during her life: the Middle East and North African Women’s Conference in Abu Dhabi; the Global Summit of Women in Berlin; the Global Summit of Women in Hanoi; and she traveled to Bolivia to speak with an audience of indigenous women about small business ownership and political action.
Longtime friend Arlene Herson, also a Boca Raton philanthropist, said Mrs. Boice-Zucaro took her under her wing decades ago, introducing her to the movers and shakers in the community so she could make essential connections. The two spoke every day about everything.
“She was an amazing woman. She made me feel special. She once gave me a pillow for my birthday that said, ‘You are the friend everyone wishes they had,’ so I would say that about her,” Herson said. “She was an extraordinary woman. I will miss our daily calls.”
Mrs. Boice-Zucaro also produced galas for the Palm Beach International Film Festival; she was involved with the Centre for the Arts in Boca Raton; was an appointee to the Palm Beach County Film and Television Commission, and chaired the 50th anniversary celebration of the National Endowment for the Humanities.
She served on the Palm Beach State College Foundation Board and funded Lynn University scholarships to support international travel.
“She never stopped doing the things that she did,” her husband said. “She was dedicated to the things that she believed in and she worked very hard to make things happen. She was the first to step up to help someone, particularly if that someone was doing something that she was interested in.”
Her appearance was very polished — hair, nails, makeup and clothes were always in order, her husband noted, reflective of the way she lived her life.
“We had a storybook romance. We were absolutely committed to each other. We loved one another very much. We traveled the world together,” he said. “We had fun together. The 15 years that I had with Yvonne were the best years of my life.”
In addition to her husband, Mrs. Boice-Zucaro is survived by her daughter Lauren, in Boston. A celebration of life was held on Jan. 20 at Glick Family Funeral Home in Boca Raton.
Memorial donations can be made to Boice-Zucaro International Programs and Services at Lynn University or the STEAM scholarship program at Palm Beach State College.

DELRAY BEACH — Peter Blum, a longtime resident of Palm Beach County, businessman and philanthropist, died Jan. 23, his beloved wife, Mary, by his side. He was 93.
Mr. Blum, a man dedicated to his family, faith and the welfare of all, was born Aug. 14, 1929, in Peoria, Illinois, to Peter Blum and Ruth (Sill) Blum. On May 8, 1948, he married his high school sweetheart, Maureen “Teena” Forbes. During their honeymoon in Florida, the seeds were planted for their eventual move in 1962.
Upon arriving in Boca Raton, Mr. Blum bought property on Federal Highway and opened a furniture and design studio, Blums of Boca.
While establishing his business, Mr. Blum became involved in the civic arena of Boca Raton. His many accomplishments include: founding member of the Boca Raton High School Booster Club, planning and zoning board member of Boca Raton, president of the Boca Raton Chamber of Commerce, member of the Boca Raton Community Hospital board where he served for 20 years (nine as chairman), founder of Sunrise Kiwanis Club of Boca Raton, member of the Bethesda Hospital Foundation board, member of the Foundation Board of FAU, member of the Manalapan Town Commission for more than 30 years, including multiple terms as mayor and vice mayor, named Outstanding Philanthropist of the Year by the National Society of Fund Raising Executives, Boca Raton Man of the Year, and Industrialist of the Year. He also established scholarships at St. John Paul II Academy, Bethesda Hospital, YMCA and Northwood University.
His childhood in Peoria led to his proudest accomplishment, when in 1970 he and other Boca Raton civic leaders started the planning process for the Boca Raton YMCA (now known as the Peter Blum Family YMCA). Because of his relationships with business leaders, he was a master fundraiser. Nothing brought Mr. Blum more pride and joy than walking into the Boca Raton YMCA, just as he did as a young boy at the Peoria Y. He loved reading to the toddlers with his beloved rescue dog, Lady, by his side.
In 2013, Mr. Blum married his best friend, Mary Morrell. They loved living in Delray Dunes, visiting with family, laughing and living life to its fullest. They were a true match, and their deep love was felt by everyone they encountered.
Mr. Blum enjoyed traveling, playing tennis, watching and singing along to Broadway musicals, reading, and watching Notre Dame football.
Mr. Blum is predeceased by wife Teena, his sons Peter and Larry, and his sister and brother-in-law Dodie and Bill Harris. He is survived by his son Randy (Debby), stepdaughter Caitlin (Brian) Moran, granddaughter Marlena (Rob) Pernett, and grandchildren Peter and Michael Blum and Lincoln and Ainsley Moran, as well as eight great-grandchildren.
A celebration of life will take place at St. Mark Roman Catholic Church, 643 NE Fourth Ave., Boynton Beach, on Feb. 6 at 1 p.m.
In lieu of flowers, please send donations to the YMCA, 6631 Palmetto Circle S., Boca Raton, FL 33433, or Bethesda Hospital Foundation, 2815 S. Seacrest Blvd., Boynton Beach, FL 33435.

— Obituary submitted by the family

A few vendors were still serving lunch and drinks as of Jan. 20. BELOW RIGHT: The Delray Beach Market opened in April 2021. BELOW LEFT: A window sign promises improvements. Photos by Jerry Lower/The Coastal Star

Remodeling to make room for two nightspots as select vendors return

By Christine Davis

The Delray Beach Market closed Jan. 30 and is looking to reopen this summer, with the space to undergo a redesign for the Bounce Sporting Club nightspot and Lefkes Estiatorio, a Greek restaurant and nightclub.
“Delray Beach has always been such a celebrated home for destination dining and entertainment,” said Craig Menin, CEO of Menin Development, the company that developed and operates the 150,000-square-foot food hall at 33 SE Third Ave. “We are so thankful for our vendors and community as they brought Delray Beach Market to life.
“However, as we’ve had to look at where we started from and where we are today, we’re making decisions that aren’t easy in one respect. But in the other, we hope to create a unique and exciting experience for our guests, while continuing the opportunity we’ve been given for community growth and gathering.” 
The re-imagination of the space is connected to several challenges faced since the onset of the pandemic, said Jordana Jarjura, Menin Development’s president and general counsel.
 “Though we’ve accomplished so much despite the pandemic, it was the F&B industry — most significantly small businesses and fast-casual restaurants — that could not sustain the increased food and labor costs, following the brutal global shutdown,” she said. “We have had to pivot from our original goal of being a mom-and-pop food incubator to finding a delicate balance between small businesses and seasoned restaurateurs.” 
The market opened in April 2021 with 29 vendors. The current vendors were informed in writing about the closing this past December, although conversations with vendors Menin wanted to stay began in early summer and are ongoing.

***

Choice Mortgage Group celebrated the opening of its new corporate headquarters at 2424 N. Federal Highway, Suite 100, Boca Raton. The ribbon-cutting event was attended by members of the Greater Boca Raton Chamber of Commerce; Broward, the Palm Beaches and St. Lucie Realtors association; Florida Atlantic University cheer and dance team and mascot Owsley, plus staff and guests.

***

With the recent $6 million purchase of the 2.47-acre Truist Bank property at 315 S. Federal Highway, Jim O’Neill owns almost an entire block of Boynton Beach. His land fronts on South Federal Highway and backs Southeast Fourth Street between Southeast Second Avenue and Southeast Fifth Avenue.
O’Neill, the previous owner of Acura/Hyundai dealerships on Federal Highway in Delray Beach, was represented in the sale by broker Merv McDonald, president and CEO of the Lancore Group. The deal was recorded on Jan. 4.
This was the last deal in a series of four on that block; it was supposed to be the deal that got the ball rolling four years ago.
“We thought we had bought the bank property, but then SunTrust and BBT merged and became Truist, and we got shut down,” McDonald said. “Then COVID hit. You have to have a lot of patience because some projects take years to put together.”
In January 2022, O’Neill acquired the .38-acre parcel at 515 S. Federal Highway for $5.9 million. The previous owner was Boynton Beach Group LLC and Boynton Beach Group 2 LLC, entities connected to Moshe Abramson.
Then in February 2022, O’Neill bought 412 and 420 SE Fourth St. The cost for 412 SE Fourth St. was $820,000. The .49-acre parcel was previously owned by Ocean Hudson LLC, managed by Michael DuBose.
The purchase price of the .66-acre parcel at 420 SE Fourth St. was $1.78 million. The previous owner was Exsorro One Inc., with DuBose signing as president.
That adds up to a recorded $14.5 million for 4 acres zoned mixed-use-2 (50 units to the acre, with a bonus provision of 25% of the 50 for affordable housing), but the cash value was in excess of $15 million including some commissions, closing costs, taxes and carrying costs.
The only other parcel remaining on the block is Flamingo Plaza at 407 S. Federal, which is owned by Behn and Rita Wilson.
“We are in discussions with Behn and no decisions have been made by either party,” McDonald said.
O’Neill says that after he sold his dealerships and properties on Federal Highway in Delray Beach, he was looking to buy commercial properties. “I tried being retired for about a week and didn’t like it at all. I like being busy. After only a week since I bought the Truist property, we’ve already been approached by a dozen major players,” he said. “I’m weighing all my options and working with the city of Boynton Beach. We want the city’s blessing.”

***

An ocean-to-lake turnkey compound in Manalapan called Villa Oceano Azul recently sold to Rama Raju Mantena and Padmaja Mantena for $48.37 million. The property at 1400 S. Ocean Blvd. has a 16,000- square-foot main house and a 1,200-square-foot guest house. Previous owners were Francis and Dolores Mennella.
The seven-bedroom estate was built on speculation by Manalapan Mayor Stewart Satter’s Carnegie Hill Development Corp. The listing was held by Philip Lyle Smith and Carla Ferreira-Smith, broker-owners of Luxury Resort Portfolio of Delray Beach. The Mantenas were represented by agent Mark Griffin of Bear’s Club Sotheby’s International Realty.
The  property has gone through a number of price changes. In January 2022 it was listed  for $74.99 million and it was reduced in October 2022 to $62.988 million. The Mennellas paid  $25.2 million for the estate in 2016.
Then in 2018, they bought a 2-acre lot at 1940 S. Ocean Blvd., from a company controlled by Billy Joel, and built a new home. 
“We were honored to represent the Mennellas on the purchase and sale of 1400 S. Ocean Blvd. and the purchase of the land at 1940 S. Ocean Blvd.,” Philip Lyle Smith said. “What made 1400 S. Ocean unique is that it has two pools and it’s on almost 2 acres with 200 feet on the ocean and Intracoastal. Most of the other parcels are 1.5 acres with 150 feet fronting the ocean and Intracoastal” along that strip.
“There are only a handful of properties in South Florida that have ocean and Intracoastal frontage, and Manalapan is one of them. Also it was a Marc-Michaels interior designed property.”

***

Edmund Schlacher, owner/publisher of City Publications South Florida, received the January Recognition Award from the Boynton Beach Professionals leads group in acknow-ledgement of his work for the group and community.  
“I am very grateful for this reward, which is an excellent morale-booster that will encourage me to continue doing my best work,” Schlacher said.
“I am also very appreciative of those who recommended me and for the effort put into this monthly award process.”

***

Eloise Kubli won an American Society of Interior Designers award for turning a Boca Raton warehouse into a residence for a classic-vehicles collector. Photo provided by Horton Photo

Eloise Kubli, interior designer and president of the Plantation-based Collective Construction & Design Inc., won the ASID Florida South Chapter’s “Inclusion by Design” 2022 Design Excellence Award in the wild card category for her Man Cave project. She took on the project, located east of Federal Highway in Boca Raton, with her husband, general contractor Art Kubli.
They were tasked with transforming a vacant warehouse without utilities into a dream retreat for a classic car and motorcycle collector. Besides room to house and display the collection, the warehouse has a lounge, bar and full apartment.

***

The welcoming of 2023 marks one year of operation for the marketing company Fifth & Cor, founded by Robin Dimond. Over that time, the company, which aims to make marketing an immersive experience, has developed strategies for 46 businesses, nurtured 28 strategic partnerships and published 16 case studies. 
“This is not a one-person job and our success comes from our team working together to create results for our clients,” Dimond said.
 Within South Florida, Fifth & Cor is a service provider for Nova Southeastern University’s Alan B. Levan Broward Center of Innovation. It also engages in philanthropic endeavors that include veteran-focused organizations.

***

At the League of Women Voters of Palm Beach County’s Hot Topics luncheon, Joe Ann Fletcher, executive director of Dress For Success Palm Beaches, will make a presentation from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Feb. 15.  Her topic will be “Dress for Success: The Road to Resilience.”
Attendees are encouraged to donate to Fletcher’s organization by bringing new mascara, purses (especially black or brown), shoes (pumps or flats, especially size 10 or larger), costume jewelry, toiletries, and/or shopping bags from Marshalls or TJ Maxx. 
Registrations, lunch choice and payments must be made in advance online at lwvpbc.org/event/hot-topic-dress-for-success-the-road-to-resilience/

***

The Executive Women of the Palm Beaches Foundation will hold its 39th annual Women in Leadership Award on April 19 at the Kravis Center for the Performing Arts. Women will be honored for their accomplishments and an “Emerging Leader” will be recognized. 
Guest speaker will be Sylvie Légère, an internationally recognized social entrepreneur, philanthropist and investor committed to civic engagement. The honorary chair is Marti LaTour, and chair is Vicki Pugh. Nominations for the WILA awards are open through 5 p.m. March 3.
Visit www.ewpb.org/nominations to download a nomination form. For more information or sponsorship opportunities, contact Pugh at Vpugh@advancementexperts.com or Tara Laxer at info@ewpb.org.

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

Longtime Seaside Deli & Market manager Chelsea Steen rings up cyclists Ellie Beaulieu (left) and Marie Prevost during their final visit to the deli after a dispute over the lease forced it to close. Photos by Tim Stepien/The Coastal Star

By Joe Capozzi

The customers kept coming until the very end.
As they walked in that final weekend, it was hard for them to miss the eviction notice, taped across the front doors by a sheriff’s deputy on Jan. 12. But they held out hope that surely a resolution could be reached so the Seaside Deli & Market, the “heartbeat” of the small but proud County Pocket, could continue to sell sandwiches, sodas and snacks to customers like bike riders, billionaires and beachgoers as it had since at least the 1980s.
“I was hopeful that this might just be a tenant dispute that can be resolved. We didn’t realize it was really this imminent,’’ Gulf Stream snowbird Darren Alcus said Jan. 14 as he watched employees clear the shelves of Fritos, Fruit Loops and other inventory while waiting on his sandwich order. 
“It’s terribly sad,’’ he said. “It’s truly the end of an era.’’
That era, during which surfers, celebrities and generations of families like Alcus’ came to regard the Seaside as an essential part of the community, ended a few hours later. On that chilly Saturday night, deli owner Randy McCormick rang up the final sales, turned out the lights and locked the doors.

Owner Randy McCormick chats with Natalie Willoughby (left) and Cheryl Marier in the deli’s final hours. He decided to retire rather than look for another location.

 “I am throwing my arms up and walking away,’’ said McCormick, the latest and perhaps last operator of the convenience store at 4635 N. Ocean Blvd., in an unincorporated pocket just south of Briny Breezes.
When a judge ruled against Seaside on Dec. 22 in an eviction lawsuit brought by the building’s landlord, McCormick briefly flirted with the idea of finding a new location for the deli but decided to retire. 
“I don’t have the resources to start anything again,’’ he said. “I’m just going to call it a day.’’
McCormick and a few longtime staffers returned Jan. 15 to wipe down the shelves and mop up the floors in the empty 2,131-square-foot shop. Sometime after that, they would hand the keys over to a deputy to give to the landlord, a company owned by former major league baseball player Rafael Belliard.
Belliard, a Boca Raton resident who bought the Seaside building in 2014 and leased it to McCormick in 2017, played 17 years for the Pittsburgh Pirates and Atlanta Braves before retiring after the 1998 season.  
McCormick and Seaside loyalists accuse the retired shortstop and his wife of turning a squeeze play that forced the beloved deli to shutter. 
Although Palm Beach County Circuit Judge Paige Gillman sided with claims by Belliard’s company, Ocean Blvd 14 LLC, that Seaside failed to pay $40,279 in back rent, McCormick insisted that he tried to pay the rent. 
In a complicated dispute over the lease, the Belliards refused to accept the payments, McCormick said. 
McCormick said he has checks for the rent, and the sealed envelope Ocean Blvd 14’s attorney would not open, to prove his point.
McCormick and others think the Belliards, who operated the deli for three years before turning it over to McCormick in 2017, didn’t accept the rent payments because their long game is to sell the building. 
McCormick said he spoke a year and a half ago to two potential buyers from Gulf Stream who discussed with him the possible terms of a new lease. One of the potential buyers, who did not want to be identified or quoted, confirmed that he and some partners at one point spoke to the Belliards about buying the site and spoke to McCormick about a potential lease.
Belliard’s wife, Leonora, who handles the company’s business dealings, said in a brief interview a week before Seaside closed that she “would like to have it rented,” possibly to another deli or convenience store. 
“We are trying to figure it out,’’ she told The Coastal Star, declining to comment further. 
Although the building that housed Seaside Deli stands on a small footprint, many locals worry it may be a piece of a larger plan developers are eyeing for high density, multifamily condos.
“The deli is located in the only unincorporated county pocket remaining on our barrier island. County rules for residential development are vastly different from Gulf Stream and Ocean Ridge, and even from Briny Breezes, which is undoubtedly destined to undergo significant change in the years ahead,’’ the nonprofit Florida Coalition for Preservation said in a statement Jan. 12 after the eviction notice was posted.

The interior of the Seaside Deli & Market one day before it was forced to close.

Hub of the community
Seaside’s next-door neighbor, Nomad Surf Shop, said developers should not bother approaching it. At least that was the message surf shop owner Ryan Heavyside said he was hoping to convey in a video posted on social media two weeks after the judge’s ruling. 
“We just want to say thank you to the Seaside Deli for being such great neighbors over the years. Most of you have heard they are moving on, so it’s a pretty sad time for the community,’’ Heavyside, whose father, Ron, opened the surf shop in 1968 and died in 2018, says in the Instagram video. 
“But we just also want to say Nomad’s been here for 55 years. We are not going anywhere. We’re going to be here for another 55.’’
The surf shop and the deli, tucked together at the southeast corner of State Road A1A and Briny Breezes Boulevard, served as the unofficial center of the community, a place where parched bicyclists mingled with barrier islanders who took pride in not going “OTB,” meaning over the bridge, unless absolutely necessary.  
Whether picking up Bloody Mary mix on a Sunday morning, a six-pack on a Saturday night or a lottery ticket, customers could always turn to the Seaside, as they called it.
It was a place where famous customers like retired hockey star Mario Lemieux, comedian Jim Carrey and baseball Hall of Famer Derek Jeter could pick up snacks and sandwiches without being hounded for autographs. 
“This place is vital. It is an essential part of this area. This makes it a town. You remove this, now everyone has to start going further afield,’’ longtime regular Harvey Brown of Delray Beach said Jan. 13.
“It’s sort of like a little heartbeat here,’’ he said. And when it closes, “I think everyone is going to realize what it meant to them.’’
Just before Christmas, the Florida Coalition for Preservation launched a campaign to “Save the Deli,’’ as a banner on the building proclaimed. More than 1,000 signatures were gathered on a petition, which continued collecting names after the eviction notice was posted.

‘Destroying little people’
“I’m heartbroken,’’ said Natalie Willoughby, a former Seaside clerk who returned to help McCormick pack up. “I think it’s wrong, destroying all the little people. It’s a sad, sad day.’’ 
Volunteers and employees spent Jan. 13 and 14 boxing the inventory and driving it south to Deerfield Beach, where McCormick donated the goods and supplies to the Second Avenue Deli. McCormick owned that store years ago but sold it when his wife died. 
In 2017, he decided to go back into the bodega business and took over the Seaside Deli. He brought loyal workers like store manager Chelsea Steen and deli worker Emmy Brandt, both of whom quickly got on a first-name basis with regulars. 
Steen, who usually wore casual clothes to work, put on a black dress on Jan. 13 — not so much a symbol of mourning, she said, but because she just felt that wearing something nice on her last Friday at the Seaside was the right thing to do. 
“It’s like the last day of school and you have to say goodbye to all your friends,’’ she said. 

Fred Podvesker (right), former owner of the Seaside Deli & Market, reminisces with longtime customer Lawrie Bird.

Those final two days often felt like a class reunion, with former store owner Fred Podvesker and his son, Richie, stopping by to collect photos and knick-knacks from the walls and to pay final respects.
Coffee and sodas were given away for free that weekend, while wine, cigarettes and other items were sold at half price. 
“I’ve got to get out of here or I’m going to start crying,’’ said Fred Podvesker, who ran the place from 1993 until 2014 when he sold it to the Belliards.  
No one is sure exactly how long a deli operated out of the space, but old-timers remember when it used to be a bar and a chicken restaurant. Heavyside said his mother waited tables there when it was a restaurant. Before Podvesker and his sons took over, it was called Seaside Superette, a name still used by many of the store’s longtime suppliers.
“It was nice to get the support from so many people. It’s heartwarming to know that everybody cared so much, not just for the store but the people who worked there,’’ McCormick said. 
Despite the gloom hanging over the place, there was no shortage of smiles and laughter as customers hugged Steen goodbye and tried to cheer her up with bad jokes.
One that made her smile: “Today is Friday but tomorrow is a sadder day.” (Get it? A Saturday.) 
The dumb joke turned out to be true, since Seaside’s last day was a Saturday, with the deli’s long menu of famous sandwiches reduced to a handful of choices made from whatever ingredients were left. 
As Brandt and co-sandwich maker Casey Shugar took final orders that day, they heard something odd: their own voices echoing across the empty store. 
“It was definitely one of those weird moments,’’ Brandt said.
Brandt made the deli’s last sandwich, a BLT without tomato, for longtime customer Brandon Martel of Ocean Ridge, then gave away small containers of the remaining chicken salad and tuna salad.
“There were people coming in when we had nothing left to sell,’’ said Brandt. “One group of customers turned around and said, ‘We’re just going to go out to the parking lot to cry.’’’
As customers walked out the door for the last time that final weekend, they received the same send-off that Steen repeated over and over on her last day behind the register. 
“It’s been a pleasure,’’ she said. “Thank you for coming and being part of the family.’’

Tammie Sellman (left), Wayside House’s chief development director, with Martha Grimm and Lisa Jankowski, who are co-chairing the event. Photo provided

By Amy Woods

The Spring Boutique & Trunk Show, an annual fundraiser for Wayside House, will sport a new look this month as it unfolds in a new venue.
The event is set for Feb. 14 through 16 at the Aloft Delray Beach.
“Everyone will be on one floor,” co-chairwoman Martha Grimm said, referring to the former location at the Old School Square Fieldhouse, where the market took place on two levels with steep stairs.
“Another great thing about the Aloft is they will provide almost everything that we had to provide — food, tables, chairs. There also will be valet parking.”
The fresh digs will welcome the old vendors that patrons of the much-anticipated shopping opportunity have come to adore.
“The vendors are very excited to be here,” Grimm said. “This is their livelihood. I think our shoppers appreciate that there is so much to choose from under one roof. It makes shopping for everybody on their list easier.”
Most vendors return year after year, making the trip from all across the country, with one coming from Germany. A total of 27 vendors will offer a variety of merchandise such as high-end clothing, designer jewelry, home décor and more.
“We’re sort of hopeful couples will come and maybe a Valentine’s Day present or two will be bought,” co-chairwoman Lisa Jankowski said, noting the “Share the Love with Wayside” theme. “Because this show has been going for so many years, people really look forward to it. People actually tell me they are saving their money for the Wayside show.”
Wayside House, founded in 1974, serves women in a residential drug-and-alcohol rehabilitation center in Delray Beach. It has expanded throughout the decades to include partial hospitalization and outpatient services. It is one of two facilities countywide that accepts pregnant women.
“What we’re trying to do is address the whole picture for these women,” Jankowski said. “We’re trying to address the whole heart and soul, and one of the ways we do that is to make sure their families stay intact.”
Among the programs that will benefit from the proceeds is parenting education.
“Women battling addiction who have children face specific challenges,” spokeswoman Marlene Passell said. “Some have lost custody of their children because of their addiction, and many must deal with guilt, grief and stress over how their addiction is impacting their children. We help them with much of that with services aimed at improving their parenting skills, interacting with their children, etc.”

Send philanthropy news to Amy Woods at flamywoods@bellsouth.net

If You Go
What: Spring Boutique & Trunk Show
When: 5-7 p.m. Feb. 14 and 9 a.m.-4 p.m. Feb. 15 and 16
Where: Aloft Delray Beach, 202 SE Fifth Ave.
Cost: $125 Feb. 14, $5 Feb. 15 and 16
Information: 561-278-0055 or www.waysidehouse.net