The stained glass windows and sweeping roof line help to define the interior of the Church of the Palms. Photo provided

Church of the Palms is repairing the stunning stained-glass art in its sanctuary and narthex that has decorated the church since the mid-1960s. This is mouth-blown sheet glass manufactured by Lamberts Glass in Germany, the most expensive stained glass produced in the world. The glass is known for its transparency and colors and its special texture.
Because the windows were custom-designed for the Delray Beach church some 60 years ago, there’s little value to a buyer, so church leaders decided to preserve and restore the originals installed by Nobis Studios from Canton, Ohio.
They were not hurricane protected. Over time, the panels have weakened. In April 2022, a plan — and an agreement by the congregation to borrow $300,000 to be repaid from a capital campaign — led to the hiring of McMow Art Glass and DeMattia & Son Construction to do the work.
In January, church leaders reported the campaign raised more than enough money to restore the windows, and work began late that month.

Safely reinstalled behind impact glass, the panels in the narthex should be safe from hurricane damage.

In late March, the restored stained-glass panels in the narthex were reinstalled, safe behind hurricane-resistant glass. Impressive craftsmanship makes the windows look new.
The windows depict the hand as a symbol for God; the fish as a symbol for Jesus, the Christ; and the descending dove as a symbol for the descent of the Holy Spirit.
The Rev. Todd Petty, with the help of vice moderator Bud Scott, is overseeing the project. It’s detailed and difficult work and the church is grateful to have McMow’s gifted artists doing the job.
The next windows to be restored are the second-story windows behind the altar, which are already challenging workers who have to climb the bulky scaffolding to reach the highest pieces of fragile glass. The windows need to be hurricane protected before they can be reinstalled. 
Still, the project is fascinating to anyone interested in the art of stained glass.
Church services are held at 10 a.m. Sundays at 1960 N. Swinton Ave., Delray Beach. 561-276-6347 or www.churchofthepalms.net.

Boca Helping Hands
needs donors, volunteers
Everyone is feeling the bite of inflation but local food banks are in dire need of help. The demand for a pantry bag from Boca Helping Hands skyrocketed by 37% over last year, with almost 10,000 people lining up to take advantage of the nonprofit’s services. Even at the height of the pandemic, the demand was lower: BHH gave out about 6,100 bags per month.
Cereal4All, the nonprofit started by twins Jett and Luke Justin of Boca Raton in 2016, stepped up its collections and delivered nearly 2,500 boxes of cereal to BHH, and the Junior League of Boca Raton fills weekend bags to feed students when they’re not in school.
So how can you help any food bank?
• Clean out your pantry and donate whatever you can.
• Hold a canned food drive. Or a “donation party,” which sounds like a lot more fun. The cost of admission to your next pool party or barbecue could be some non-perishables.
• Volunteer your time.
• Make a cash donation so the food bank you support can buy what it doesn’t get. Some of them are Boca Helping Hands, Caring Kitchen, the Palm Beach County Food Bank and Feeding South Florida’s branch in Boynton Beach.
• Encourage your kids to get involved with Cereal4All or another group fighting hunger.
• Think outside the kitchen: Some food banks also accept hygiene products.
• Don’t forget the condiments! Mustard, mayonnaise, salt and pepper, catsup and hot sauce are staples to some people.
• Write your legislators to express your concerns.

Nuremberg jurist
Ferencz dies at 103
Benjamin Berell Ferencz, the last living Nuremberg trials prosecutor and a resident of Delray Beach, died April 7 at the age of 103.
Known for investigating Nazi war crimes after World War II, Ferencz was born in Hungary (now Romania) to illiterate parents. But his intellect was recognized and his grades at City College of New York earned him a scholarship to Harvard Law School. After law school, he enlisted in the Army and he landed at Normandy and fought across France and Germany.
After his discharge, he volunteered to serve as chief prosecutor for the U.S. Army in the war crime trials against the Nazis. He indicted 24 men and convicted all of them.
Ferencz remained in Europe after the trials, until 1956 when he returned to New York to practice law. But the Vietnam War drove him underground to write books promoting peace. Ferencz was the author of nine books, hundreds of articles, and he spoke half a dozen languages.
A family man, Ferencz married his teenage girlfriend, Gertrude Fried, in New York in 1946. They remained married — “without a quarrel,” he claimed — until she died in 2019.
They had four children: a son, Donald Ferencz, and three daughters, Nina Dale, Robin Ferencz-Kotfica and Keri Ferencz. They had three grandchildren.
Ferencz lived with his son in Delray Beach for the last few years. He died at an assisted living facility in Boynton Beach.

Cason UMC will let you
shred papers for a fee
Thank goodness that online access to information has decreased the amount of waste paper the average person produces, but as we purge old records, it’s paramount that we dispose of sensitive material safely.
Cason United Methodist Church will hold a shredding event from 9 a.m.-noon June 24 at the church at 342 N. Swinton Ave., Delray Beach.
Accepted items: paper, checkbooks, statements, tax returns, bills, receipts, manila folders. Paper clips and staples are OK.
Excluded items: boxes, cardboard, X-rays, food, newspaper, glass, magazines, plastic, dark colored folders, metal objects or equipment.
This is a church fundraiser so the cost is $5 per banker’s box, $10 per bag. Cash is preferred. Credit cards will be accepted with $25 minimum. Call 561-788-2822 with questions.

— Janis Fontaine

Doing their part on Earth Day, Turtle Beach condo residents (l-r)
Elizabeth Hilpman, Gina Benedict, Susan Hurlburt, Geraldine Plaia, Jane Waldman, Steve Waldman, Debbie Schecter and Jackie Schwerling spent part of the morning picking up plastic and other trash along the beach in Ocean Ridge. RIGHT: A small sampling of the plastic and trash. Photos provided

Patrick J. McNamara, CEO of Palm Health Foundation. Photo provided

By Jan Engoren

Patrick J. McNamara, CEO of Palm Health Foundation, is leading the charge for better mental health.
The Boynton Beach resident reminds us that May is Mental Health Awareness Month and says Palm Health Foundation, a nonprofit that is taking the initiative to advocate for better mental health care in Palm Beach County, partnered with bewellpbc.org to raise awareness of brain and mental health issues.
Green is the color of Mental Health Awareness Month and McNamara, 52, encourages people to “get your green on.”
“We have shifted from thinking about mental health primarily in terms of psychiatric disorders to thinking about brain health, a broader category that considers health as well as disease,” he says.
Originally from New Orleans, McNamara came to this field while studying political science at Georgetown University on an Army ROTC scholarship when his older brother Michael McNamara took his own life in 1989.
Through the Palm Health Foundation, he created the Mike McNamara Scholarship Fund in his brother’s memory.
“Our untreated mental illness, addiction and suicide are in direct proportion to our tendency to take one another for granted,” he wrote in a 2016 tribute to his brother.
Five of his seven siblings suffered from mental health issues, including anxiety, depression and eating and bipolar disorders.
He switched his major to psychology, became a licensed clinical social worker, earning his MSW from Tulane University, and now heads a $100 million foundation with a vision for all Palm Beach County residents to thrive and reach their full health potential.
The National Institute of Mental Health reports that nearly one in five adults and nearly one in two adolescents live with a mental illness such as anxiety or depression.
And, a study conducted this year by Dana Foundation and Research America found that about 8 in 10 Americans are affected by brain health issues.
Three of the U.S. Surgeon General’s priorities include a focus on brain health, health worker burnout and youth mental health.
“Mental health exists on a continuum from illness to wellness,” McNamara says. “Currently, we are ill-equipped to meet our mental health needs.”
Improving access to care and reducing long waiting lists for services, especially for kids and for those without mental health insurance, will help. So will having more mental health service providers, including psychiatrists, nurses, licensed mental health counselors and clinical social workers.
“It’s not an us vs. them issue,” says McNamara. “The reality is we all have mental health and lie somewhere along the continuum. We’re making progress on the stigma but need to do better, especially in Florida.
“Everybody has a role to play,” he says. “We’re asking for a change in mind-set and understanding.”
McNamara leads the Palm Health Foundation NeuroArts Collaborative, which focuses on the convergence among science, the arts and technology and the effects of these experiences on brain, body and overall health.
“Besides biochemical interventions, expressive therapies such as talk and art therapies have been shown to change your brain,” McNamara says.
The collaborative includes the FAU Stiles-Nicholson Brain Institute, the Max Planck Florida Institute for Neuroscience, the Cultural Council for Palm Beach County, and The Palm Beaches.
The collaborative also has aligned with the NeuroArts Blueprint, a joint venture with Johns Hopkins International Arts + Mind Lab Center for Applied Neuroaesthetics and the Aspen Institute. 
“Healthy social relationships, good nutrition and exercise can all support positive brain health,” McNamara says.
To keep his brain healthy, McNamara, a married father of three, exercises daily, reads voraciously and practices Catholic-centered mindful meditation. He is part of a men’s book club — on its 78th book by a recent count.
One he recommends is Thomas Insel’s Healing: Our Path from Mental Illness to Mental Health.
“We should not accept our status quo,” McNamara says. “We need to do better for our loved ones who are suffering, while supporting and championing those on the front lines.”
At the Community Foundation’s annual Founders Luncheon in February, he quoted President John F. Kennedy, whose family also struggled with mental health.
“The mentally ill need no longer be alien to our affections or beyond the help of our communities,” he said.
Visit palmhealthfoundation.org.

Jan Engoren writes about health and healthy living. Send column ideas to jengoren@hotmail.com.

Students from Crosspointe Elementary School in Boynton Beach visited the Marine Education Initiative in Delray Beach on their first post-pandemic field trip. They learned about growing plants in water, without soil. Photo provided

By Faran Fagen

During their field trip to the Marine Education Initiative, the students in Donna Leech’s class at Grandview Preparatory School learned how much water could be saved by aquaponic farming. They learned that only 3% of the water on Earth is freshwater, and only 1.7% of it is drinkable.
“On the bus ride back to school, my students talked about how much water we could save, and how we could lower our carbon footprint by growing our own vegetables at school and not buying them and having them delivered,” Leech said. “They said that this is what we can do to help save the water in the Everglades. This way, there will be more water for the wildlife and animals that live there.”
The Marine Education Initiative aquaponics program is focused on providing Palm Beach County students with access to immersive STEM education focused on sustainable agriculture. As a result of its efforts, MEI has provided science, technology, engineering and math education to more than 400 students and distributed more than 50,000 meals to underprivileged communities.
“Seeing the excitement on the faces of the students we work with as they discover the wonders of aquaponics and sustainable agriculture has been an indescribable experience,” said Nicholas Metropulos, MEI executive director. “Knowing that we are helping to cultivate a deep love and appreciation for the natural world in these young minds fills us with hope for the future.”
MEI recently landed a big catch because of its hard work and impact on the community.
Thanks to a $300,000 contribution from the Hamilton Family Charitable Trust, the organization is expanding its efforts to empower students to grow their own fresh, healthy food some day and prepare them for careers in STEM.
MEI has been helping the community since 2012 by providing education opportunities for students and giving fresh fish and produce to soup kitchens.
Aquaponics is a combination of aquaculture (the growing of fish and other aquatic animals) and hydroponics (the growing of plants without soil) in one recirculating environment.
In aquaponics, the fish produce waste that the nitrifying bacteria convert into nutrients for the plants. Plant roots absorb these nutrients to thrive. In return, the plant roots clean and filter the water for the fish to live.
The donation from the Hamilton Family Charitable Trust went in part toward MEI’s recent expansion to a larger facility to fight food insecurity and to educate more students. The grant enabled MEI to hire additional staff and will assist in covering operational costs as well as investing in new technology.
The organization strives to make its outreach program as inclusive as possible. Title I schools are able to participate at no cost, while other schools are charged a fee of $10 per student.
For Leech, who lives in Delray Beach but has taught at the Boca Raton-based Grandview Prep for 23 years, MEI has cultivated an abundant interest in agriculture in her students.
Leech said her students’ favorite thing was to tell classmates how a cow uses 1,860 gallons of water to make four hamburgers, and that it takes 40 gallons of water to grow one pound of vegetables in soil and only 1.9 gallons of water using aquaponics.
“They were really amazed at how much water could be saved just by farming in water,” she said.
Her students started a project to bring aquaculture and hydroponics to Grandview. They created a PowerPoint presentation and presented it to all the administration families and student body at the Lower School convocation.
They were given permission to put an aquaponics fish tank and grow light in each Lower School classroom and to construct a hydroponics shelf growing system in the Great Room. They applied for, and received, a $500 grant from Earth Force to help get the project off the ground.
In 2021, MEI initiated its operations at a modest 1,000-square-foot facility in eastern Boca Raton in response to the produce supply-chain issues experienced during the pandemic. To accommodate growth, they’ve expanded and moved their operations to a 7,500-square-foot facility on Northwest 17th Avenue in Delray Beach.
“Looking ahead, we plan to educate more than 1,000 students and distribute over 100,000 meals to those facing food insecurity in Palm Beach County within the next year,” Metropulos said.
Once MEI is fully expanded, Metropulos intends to broaden its impact in neighboring areas such as Broward and Miami-Dade counties.
To participate in the program, contact Director of Education Alyssa Dorfman (alyssa@marineinitiative.org). For more information on Marine Education Initiative, visit www.marineinitiative.org.
The organization hosted the grand opening of its new facility on April 22. To make a donation to its programs, visit https://marineinitiative.networkforgood.com

More than 100 Briny Breezes shareholders attended in person – and another 75 joined via zoom – as the Briny Breezes corporate board on April 19 discussed and later rejected an unsolicited offer to purchase the entire community. Staff photo

Staff report

The town of Briny Breezes’ corporate board today unanimously rejected a South Florida developer’s $502.4 million offer to purchase the tiny seaside town. 

The developer was not identified during the emotional 75-minute morning board meeting April 19, attended by more than 100 residents at the Briny Breezes Community Center and another 75 people on Zoom, but sources told The Coastal Star the offer came from The Kolter Group.  

Board members said the offer was “unattractive” because it was too low and had too many unfavorable tax consequences, but perhaps most important, a majority of shareholders are not interested in selling their patch of paradise. 

“I think the public needs to realize that this offer is ridiculous and the more that gets out into the public, maybe we'll get a billion-dollar offer,’’ said Board member Cindy Holbrook. 

Many of the 30 or so shareholders who spoke at the meeting expressed disappointment that the board was even considering the offer, pointing out that a majority of shareholders in February said they had no interest in selling the town. 

Board members acknowledged that point, but said the board nonetheless had an obligation to bring it to the shareholders at the meeting.

“I don't believe any of us thinks this deal is a good deal for any of us,’’ Board member Holly Reitnauer said. “But we are just telling you guys to let you know that we got this offer, and that's all there is to it. Period. Case closed. It does not mean we are selling Briny.’’

Briny Breezes, one of the last seaside mobile home communities in Florida, has courted offers from developers since at least 2006. 

The town faces many climate-change challenges because it’s located between the Atlantic Ocean and Intracoastal Waterway. 

The town, which already experiences chronic flooding on the Intracoastal side during storms, is planning for millions of dollars in resiliency improvements to protect it from future sea level rise. 

But some residents, who worry if those improvements will be enough, wonder if the town’s days are numbered regardless of whether its sea walls, roads and homes are raised. 

A letter from corporate officials to shareholders on April 11 said an Ocean Ridge man representing a large developer recently expressed interest in buying the town’s marina. 

While some shareholders said it may make sense to put Briny Breezes on the market to see what kind of offers might come in, many others said there is no pricetag for their special town.

“The big question of the day really is, what is your cost for paradise?’’ asked resident Chuck Swift. “Without question Briny Breezes is unduplicable. There is only one on the entire planet that has everything: the beach, a clubhouse, a marina, a lifestyle that millionaires – our neighbors – are paying multi-, multi-, multi-millions for their residences. We've got it right here in Briny.’’

By Jane Musgrave

Delray Beach on Wednesday agreed to pay $818,500 to settle a lawsuit filed by a former utilities worker, who claimed she was fired for reporting that water from the city’s reclaimed water system was making people and pets sick.

The settlement, announced April 5  in U.S. District Court in West Palm Beach, came a day after attorneys for former city worker Christine Ferrigan and the city spent a day on a Zoom call, remotely hashing out their differences under the guidance of U.S. Magistrate Judge William Matthewman.

Had the warring parties failed to reach an accord, a federal jury next week would have decided whether the 65-year-old Ferrigan deserved what could have been millions in damages for being fired in January 2022 after reporting her concerns to state health officials.

The settlement, which splits the money between the worker-turned-whistleblower and her lawyers, is expected to be approved by the City Commission on April 18. City Manager Terrence Moore and Utilities Director Hassan Hadjimiry, also named in the suit, signed off on the agreement. Neither they nor the city admitted any wrongdoing.

In a statement, Ferrigan said she hoped her lawsuit and the agreement she reached with the city will empower others.

“Today’s settlement is about more than me — it’s about whistleblowers everywhere who are standing up for community safety,” she said. “The people of Delray Beach, and people everywhere, deserve clean water and to know when their health is at risk. I hope today’s settlement will encourage potential whistleblowers everywhere to speak up and know their legal protections.”

Her attorneys, from the Washington, D.C.  law firm Mehri & Skalet, and the Palm Beach Gardens office of Cohen Milstein, echoed Ferrigan’s sentiments. They lauded her for fighting to make sure city residents have safe water to drink. 

“Christine Ferrigan took courageous action by blowing the whistle on dangerous water contamination in Delray Beach,” they said in a joint statement. “Today’s settlement is a step towards justice for Ms. Ferrigan, for the citizens of Delray Beach, and for whistleblowers and public health advocates everywhere.”

In a separate statement, city officials also praised Ferrigan.

“The parties have reached a mutually acceptable resolution of the dispute regarding Ms. Ferrigan’s respective separation from the city,” said Moore. “The city thanks Ms. Ferrigan and recognizes her contributions to the City’s Utilities Department.” 

The settlement ends a disturbing – and expensive – chapter in the city’s history. 

The city paid a $1 million fine to the state in December 2021 after a lengthy investigation by Palm Beach County health officials confirmed that partially treated reclaimed water had been allowed to mix with drinking water supplies.

Ten years after the reclaimed water program was instituted, residents in 2018 began complaining that their drinking water was smelly, yellow with algae, and sandy, and that some residents and their pets were getting sick, according to Ferrigan’s lawsuit. 

The Health Department got involved in January 2020 after a South Ocean Boulevard resident called to say she was not properly informed of a cross connection found on her street in December 2018. A cross connection occurs when reclaimed water pipes used for lawn irrigation are wrongly connected to the drinking water lines.

Health officials found that the city failed to implement its Cross Connection Control Program when the reclaimed water system was launched in 2008. It also found the city violated at least nine regulatory standards. 

Ferrigan, hired in 2017 as an industrial pre-treatment inspector, reported water quality problems to her supervisors, she said in her lawsuit. When they failed to act, she reported her concerns to both the Palm Beach County Inspector General’s Office and health officials.

In response, she was fired, she claimed. City officials insisted she was dismissed as part of a reorganization designed to promote “efficiency and austerity.” 

In addition to paying the fine and $21,000 for the state agency’s investigation, the city spent more than $1 million on inspections and adding missing backflow preventers to stop the reclaimed water from mixing with drinking water. It remains under a five-year consent order, requiring it to properly monitor the system.

This is the second time Ferrigan has received a settlement from a Palm Beach County city after filing a whistleblower complaint. She received $322,500 and her attorneys were paid $215,000 to settle a lawsuit she filed against Boca Raton after she claimed she was improperly fired from its utility department in 2008. The money was paid by the city’s insurer and Boca Raton officials did not admit any wrongdoing.

It also marks the second time in a week that Delray officials agreed to settle a high-profile lawsuit. On March 31, city commissioners asked their legal team to negotiate a settlement with the nonprofit that sued the city after it was ousted from its longtime control of Old School Square. 

The nonprofit, Old School Square Center for the Arts, lost its contract to run the city’s signature arts center in August 2021. City managers said it failed to turn over financial records and mishandled the renovation of Crest Theatre. The removal inflamed the center’s monied patrons.

After the nonprofit sued the city in November 2021 for violating the lease and state open meeting laws, the city counter-sued for breach of contract. 

While details of the proposed settlement haven’t been made public, an attorney for the nonprofit said both sides will drop their legal claims.

Jane Smith contributed to this story.

This story was updated to include additional comments.

Ocean Ridge Commissioner Martin Wiescholek stands and gathers his belongings as he prepares to leave after resigning in the middle of the Town Commission's April 3 meeting. Wiescholek announced his resignation after a split commission voted 3-2 to hire interim Town Manager Lynne Ladner to the full-time position. Joe Capozzi/The Coastal Star

By Joe Capozzi

In a span of less than two hours Monday night, Ocean Ridge gained a full-time town manager and lost two town commissioners. 

Commissioner Martin Wiescholek announced his resignation an hour after being sworn in to his second three-year term April 3, then stood up and walked out of Town Hall with the commission’s April meeting still in progress. 

Commissioner Kristine de Haseth announced her resignation nearly two hours later, at the very end of the meeting, citing a need to spend more time on family obligations.  

Wiescholek resigned just minutes after the commission voted 3-2 to hire interim Town Manager Lynne Ladner as the full-time town manager, a move that reversed the commission’s 3-2 vote Feb. 27 to not give her a contract for the full-time job. 

Ladner’s hire Monday night is a direct result of a change in Town Hall power dynamics that arose from the March 14 municipal election when newcomer Carolyn Cassidy and Wiescholek won a three-way race for two commission seats. Incumbent Mayor Susan Hurlburt finished third, losing her commission seat.

Hurlburt, Wiescholek and de Haseth often voted in concert, as they did Feb. 27 when they voted against Ladner’s hiring because of concerns that she had aligned herself with a faction of two other commissioners and their community supporters. 

Cassidy was endorsed during her campaign by incumbent commissioners Geoff Pugh and Steve Coz, and on her first night as a commissioner Monday she voted with Pugh and Coz to hire Ladner full-time. 

“I think Lynne has been doing an outstanding job in reaching out to the community,” Cassidy said. “We’ve had a very unstable work environment that has suffered a bit from a lack of leadership. I think the time for healing has to start now.” 

Wiescholek reminded the commission why it voted in February to not hire Ladner, who he said had been influenced by two commissioners to fire Police Chief Richard Jones (who has since left to take the police chief job in Gulf Stream). 

At the Feb. 27 commission meeting, Jones corroborated Wiescholek’s concerns when he described how Ladner came into his office two days after he’d announced his resignation and told him “that the commission wished for me to leave early. At this point I go, ‘The commission?’ It was clarified, ‘at least two commissioners,’” Jones said.

Pugh and Coz denied pressuring Ladner to fire Jones. 

On Monday, Wiescholek said: “There’s this whole thing about who-said, what-said, but somebody walked into Chief Jones’ office and said the commission wants you fired. Either Lynne did that on her own and lied about it or she was instructed by two commissioners to walk into Chief Jones’ office and say the words ‘the commission wants you fired’ without talking to the other three commissioners. It’s inappropriate or it's a flat-out lie. That in itself disqualifies anybody from holding a position in this town.”

The commission had been scheduled to select town manager finalists on May 1 and interview them May 9. The firm the town hired for $29,500 to find candidates, Colin Baenziger and Associates, considers the latest pool of 18 applicants “superior” to the previous candidates, said de Haseth, who said she’d been in contact with Baenziger. 

“We started the (search) process. We have a process to follow and we need to continue the procedure and move forward from there,” de Haseth said. “You can't do an about-face in the middle of the stream."’

“That’s exactly what the commission did (Feb. 27),” Coz retorted, pointing out how the commission in January had selected Ladner on a 5-0 vote while officials drafted a contract that was supposed to be approved Feb. 27.

“I think the town is in a period of healthy rebirth. I think Lynne is part of that,” Coz said before the commission voted to hire Ladner, who will make $142,000 a year. Her predecessor, Tracey Stevens, was making $132,500 when she left Sept. 11 to become town manager in Haverhill.

A few minutes after Ladner’s hiring Monday, as the commission was considering a new agenda item, Wiescholek interrupted and said, “Based on the decision that was just handed down, with the renewal of the contract for Lynne Ladner, I feel that town is doing itself a grave disservice. I feel that the town is putting itself at great risk. The implications that pass off that are staggering at best. I will not have my name associated to that. Hereby, I resign.”

Many of the 50 or so people in the audience cheered as Wiescholek stood up and walked off the dais, happy to see him go.

In an interview outside Town Hall a few minutes later, Wiescholek said he had no plans to change his mind.  

“What they have there right now is a town manager that they can tell what to do: ‘You need to hire this person and that person.’ They can manage and massage anything into their own world. I am not going to be a part of it,” he told The Coastal Star.

After the meeting, de Haseth said she had been considering since December to step down because of family obligations, but decided to wait until after the election. 

“I was sorry to see her go," Coz, who was selected as vice mayor, said after the meeting. “She was a great asset to the commisison." 

Pugh, who was selected Monday as mayor, said after the meeting that he expected the town to put out a notice for candidates to apply to fill the remaining terms of Wiescholek and de Haseth. The final selection for each vacant commission seat will be voted on by the Town Commission, possibly at a special meeting, he said.

By John Pacenti

A newly transformed Delray Beach City Commission decided March 31 to settle litigation with the ousted nonprofit that previously ran Old School Square, ending a contentious 18 months that split the city’s power structure.

The decision comes just weeks after the city, in an email obtained Friday by The Coastal Star, added to the controversy by alleging that the nonprofit – “with felonious intent” – took three glass sculptures by famed artist Dale Chihuly worth about $18,000 belonging to the cultural arts center, a claim the nonprofit disputed. The email demanded the artwork be returned or the city be compensated triple its value, or $54,000.

Attorney Marko Cerenko, the attorney for the nonprofit Old School Square Center for the Arts, Inc., said that under the proposed settlement, both sides will surrender their legal claims.

“My client felt that with the breath of fresh air with the new commission, that their resources were far better served in serving the community,” Cerenko said.

The old commission, in one of its final acts in power March 28, tried to insulate the Downtown Development Authority, which was just given control in February over managing the downtown cultural center. The commission removed from the DDA contract a 180-day “without cause” cancellation clause that the new commission could have used to change the management back to the nonprofit.

After the March 14 elections, only Mayor Shelly Petrolia is left on the dais from the 3-2 majority that removed the nonprofit in August 2021 for its failure to disclose its financials and for a mishandled renovation of the Crest Theatre.

Discussions about the settlement were not public because of attorney-client confidentiality, but when commissioners emerged from their special, closed-door session held Friday morning, March 31, they opened the door to reestablishing a relationship with the nonprofit. All of this was done without Petrolia, who had a prior commitment.

The nonprofit sent the proposed settlement to the city the day before, after the prior commission’s final meeting on Tuesday, leaving the city’s decision on the proposal to the new board.

The commission voted 4-0 Friday to have the city attorney go ahead and negotiate a final agreement and execute a settlement. Then Commissioner Adam Frankel – long an ally of the nonprofit – said commissioners should meet in a workshop with Old School Square Center for the Arts representatives to make amends and find ways to work together.

When City Attorney Lynn Gelin suggested that the DDA be present at a workshop, Vice Mayor Ryan Boylston shot that idea down and it was agreed that the commission will meet only with the nonprofit.

“I clearly recognize that Old School Square did make some mistakes here but I don’t think they were fatal mistakes,” Frankel said.

He said that he wanted to sit down with the nonprofit to “try to reestablish some kind of partnership, not only with the DDA, who we asked to do things at the campus, but also with the city.”

Boylston said the DDA will be brought in after the workshop with the nonprofit.

“We’ll bring in our established partner that we’ve already made a decision on, which is the DDA, and they are out there and doing their thing and we have a partnership with that,” he said.

“But I think first we’ve got to mend fences more than we did today and have a conversation about what does the future of our relationship look like between these two entities.”

Frankel could not be reached for comment after the meeting.

Laura Simon, the executive director of the DDA, said she had not heard about the commission bringing the former managers back into the fold.

The turnaround by the commission was remarkable but not surprising.

The commission voted 3-2 in August 2021 to oust the former operators for failing to turn over its financial records and for mishandling the renovation of Crest Theatre.

Petrolia and Commissioners Juli Casale and Shirley Johnson voted to throw out the nonprofit. But in the city’s recent elections, Casale lost to Rob Long; Angela Burns won the seat that Johnson had to vacate because of term limits.

Both won their seats by less than 400 votes and both campaigned on wanting to return the management of Old School Square back to the nonprofit.

Five former mayors backed Long’s candidacy, as well as board members of the nonprofit.

Casale said on Friday that “handing the keys back over to a group that mismanaged Old School Square to fulfill campaign promises seems like collusive government at its worst.”

An internal auditor found that the nonprofit had missing records, including an annual budget report, an annual audit report and two IRS forms that pertain to nonprofits.

The Coastal Star discovered the nonprofit reported more than $746,000 in net income for the fiscal year 2018-2019.

The auditor also found the nonprofit may have inadvertently “double-dipped” by using a federal Paycheck Protection Program loan to pay for the same payroll expenses already covered by Community Redevelopment Agency money.

The CRA demanded a return of $187,500 and stopped the flow of taxpayer money to the nonprofit.

Long and Burns said during the campaign they want to reorganize the CRA, taking it away from the commission, which comprises five of the CRA governing board’s seven seats.

The decision to oust the nonprofit enraged not only the entity but its well-monied supporters. The nonprofit filed suit in November 2021 against the city, Petrolia and others for allegedly breaching the lease, violating the state’s Government in the Sunshine open meetings law and civil conspiracy.

The city countersued, claiming breach of contract for, among other things, leaving the Crest Theatre in a demolished state.

Regarding the missing Chihuly artwork, Cerenko said the art always belonged to the nonprofit, not the city, and the letter was just attempted leverage by “certain commissioners” in the litigation.

He said the nonprofit is “hoping that the new commission is going to be significantly more supportive of what they have done and what they continue to do, as opposed to the old commission.”

Boylston, in a text message to The Coastal Star on Saturday following the meeting, said it was time to mend fences.

"Ending these lawsuits is the right thing to do for the taxpayers and four our community; paying endless lawyer bills to prove a point is just wrong," Boylston wrote. "It's time for a long overdue public workshop with the board of Old School Square Inc. to address whatever issues are outstanding, because only then  can we move forward with any decisions on the future management model of the Old School Square campus."

Note: This story has been updated to include additional comments.

By Steve Plunkett

St. Joseph’s Episcopal School will shutter its campus at the end of the school year, its board of trustees announced March 31. 

The trustees madethe "agonizing decision to close" in a meeting the day before, Board Chairman Bill Swaney and Vice Chairman Peter Philip said in a letter to the school community.

St. Joseph's Episcopal Church, which owns the property on which the school has sat for 60 years, told the school in April 2022 that it would not renew its lease. The school sought accommodations with the church and also looked for a new location  "only to learn that extensive permitting and remodeling would prohibit the completion of any move for at least two years," the trustees’ letter said.

"Despite all these good efforts, it is clear now that the church has forced the school to close," the trustees said. "We’re devastated for our students, parents and teachers."

The church’s spokeswoman did not immediately respond to a phone call or email seeking comment.

The school on Feb. 20 lost its bid for an injunction to let it continue operating on the church’s grounds until a lawsuit between them was resolved. Circuit Judge Bradley Harper ruled the school did not have "a substantial likelihood of success … given the absence of any writing which establishes the existence of a 99-year lease agreement.”

The school claimed it had an oral, 99-year lease to stay where it is, at 3300B S. Seacrest Blvd., until the year 2093.

The church said the school signed a five-year written lease in 2012 and was given a five-year extension that expired last November. Both sides last year agreed to extend the lease until June 30 while the dispute headed to court.

The church has not given its reasons for not wanting to renew the $5-a-year lease.

"We remain perplexed about why the church chose to ignore the interests of our constituents,” the trustees said in their letter. “We are extremely disappointed and angry that the church has behaved so callously.

“Perhaps above all, we are crushed that the school will no longer exist in service to the community of which it has been so integral a part.”

The letter also said the school’s Early Childhood Academy, at 2515 N. Swinton Ave. in Delray Beach, will remain open next school year.

The school had 175 students enrolled in pre-K through eighth grade. While the two entities share the St. Joseph’s name and the same location on Seacrest Boulevard, the school split off from the church in 1995.

That was a year after Swaney gave the church approximately $2.5 million worth of stock in his company, Perrigo, “for the express purpose of the church constructing buildings and facilities for use by the school,” the school’s lawsuit said.

Swaney, the suit claimed, made it clear to the church’s vestry that he was making the gift in exchange for a promise, made orally several times, that the school would never be displaced from the property. The church sold the stock and built a gymnasium, library, classrooms and administrative offices.

By Rich Pollack

Just six days before he was set to begin his second term in office, Highland Beach Mayor Doug Hillman died March 15 following a brief battle with pancreatic cancer. He was 77.

Mr. Hillman’s death, which came less than two months after his wife of 54 years died, was a shock to town leaders and residents, with some just learning about his illness less than a month ago.

Elected mayor three years ago after serving on the town’s Financial Advisory Board and having run unopposed this election cycle, Mr. Hillman was well respected for his leadership style and his ability to use a touch of levity to lighten serious discussions while working to build consensus.

Town Manager Marshall Labadie, who has worked with many elected officials over the course of his career, praised the late mayor as “one of the best.”

“It really doesn’t get much better than Doug,” he said. “His leadership style and his concern for the community set him apart from most local leaders I have worked with. He became a mentor and a friend.”

Vice Mayor Natasha Moore said one of Mr. Hillman’s strengths was his willingness to listen to others.

“All of his decisions centered around what he thought would be best for the town,” she said.

In addition to his leadership in Highland Beach, Mr. Hillman also served as president of his condo association at Dalton Place, as well as president of the umbrella organization at Boca Highland Beach Club and Marina. 

“As president of Dalton Place and Boca Highlands, Doug was considered a visionary and smart and business-savvy,” said friend and neighbor Ron Reame, who is vice president of Dalton Place and on the board of governors of Boca Highland. “He was the voice of reason.”

Reame said that it was Mr. Hillman who led efforts to revitalize their building, bringing it up to “five-star resort” quality.

“Doug was a man of integrity, was kind, helpful, patient, fair and complimentary to all who worked with him,” Reame said. “He was influential and inspiring to our community.”

With Mr. Hillman’s death, Moore will automatically fill in as mayor for no more than 30 days. Within that time, the Town Commission will have an opportunity to appoint a mayor who will serve until March 2024, when an election will be held to fill the remaining two years of Mr. Hillman’s term.

Moore, who has served as vice mayor for two years, said that Mr. Hillman was instrumental in helping her grow in the position.

“Not only was he a colleague, he was also a mentor,” she said. “He put all of us in the right position to make good decisions.”

Prior to coming to Highland Beach, Mr. Hillman served as an executive for some of the best-known men's, women's and children's apparel, accessory and footwear brands, including Levi's, Dockers, Burlington Hosiery, Keds, Pro-Keds and Sperry Topsiders, as well as London Fog, where he became president.

Mr. Hillman also served as a business adviser to the governor of Maryland and as a consultant to the Baltimore Police Department. In addition, he was a professor at both Johns Hopkins University and American University, where he taught advanced marketing courses at the graduate level.

Mayor Hillman is survived by son Michael, daughter-in-law Michelle, granddaughter Molli and grandson Miles.

A memorial service will be held at 10:30 a.m. March 19 at Dalton Place in Boca Highland Beach Club and Marina.

By Steve Plunkett

The ailing sea turtles at Gumbo Limbo Nature Center have been temporarily moved to other facilities, its veterinarian has quit, and the coordinator of its turtle rehabilitation program and her assistant are no longer there.

“The rehabilitation facility is CLOSED until further notice,” the city-operated nature center says on its website.

The unexpected turmoil comes as Boca Raton prepares to hand off operation of the rehab program to the nonprofit Gumbo Limbo Coastal Stewards, formerly known as the Friends of Gumbo Limbo.

“Obviously some people aren’t happy about certain things,” city spokeswoman Anne Marie Connolly said.

The Loggerhead Marinelife Center in Juno Beach took six of the program’s turtles; Zoo Miami is caring for two and the Florida Oceanographic Society in Stuart has one. Seven of the turtles are patients; two, named Morgan and Cane, are Gumbo Limbo “residents.”

The turtles were moved March 14, she said, following the resignation of veterinarian Dr. Maria Chadam.

Chadam, who cared for Gumbo Limbo’s turtles for more than a decade, said the time was overdue for her to focus on other aspects of her life.

“A culmination of events has quelled my optimism to a point where I cannot continue as a key member of this organization. This decision does not reflect a concern related to any one person or on any specific event,” she wrote in a Feb. 13 letter giving 30 days’ notice.

John Holloway, CEO and president of the Coastal Stewards, answered the next day: “Effective immediately, your services under the contract are no longer required,” he wrote.

“Once she resigned, that put our permit in temporary status,” Connolly said.

The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission issues permits for sea turtle research and rehabilitation, with one provision being that a rehab program must have a veterinarian on staff.

Also gone from the nature center are the rehab program’s coordinator, Whitney Crowder, who started working there in 2012 as the assistant coordinator, and Emily Mirowski, her assistant, who gained worldwide attention with a Facebook post about a baby turtle who died after eating 104 bits of plastic. Both were laid off after they decided they did not want to work for the Coastal Stewards.

“Unfortunately, as far as the staff members … it didn’t work out the way we intended,” Connolly said, praising their contributions to the program. “We would have hoped they stayed onboard.”

Adding to the confusion at the nature center is the final stage of a $3.2 million project to connect pipes to a new pump on the east side of State Road A1A that will push seawater to Gumbo Limbo’s viewing tanks and aquariums. The new system should be complete by the end of the month.

Some of the relocated turtles might recover and be released back into the ocean before a new veterinarian and program staff are hired and the FWC permit is reauthorized.

“Of course, we will miss Morgan and Cane while they are away, but everyone is committed to welcoming them home as soon as possible,” Holloway wrote in an email to interested parties. “Please consider donating, shopping sustainably in the gift store, joining our membership, and check our website and social media often for exciting updates and ways you can be a part of our future.”

The city started negotiating last fall for the Coastal Stewards to assume responsibility for the rescue, rehabilitation and release program. As part of the new arrangement, donations collected at the door, which used to go to the Stewards, will now be used for ongoing maintenance and improvements.

The city owns Gumbo Limbo and the surrounding Red Reef Park; the Greater Boca Raton Beach and Park District pays for all operations and improvements.

The rehab program has grown tremendously over the years, Connolly said.

“While the city and the (Beach and Park District) want to support the success of the program, both organizations believe the animal rescue and veterinary component of this program can be better served by a nonprofit organization with fundraising capabilities, membership support, and the flexibility that local government agencies don’t have,” she wrote in an email. Years ago, she noted, Boca Raton transitioned all operations of the Tri-County Animal Rescue west of the city to a nonprofit.

Still open at Gumbo Limbo are its boardwalk, nature trails, gopher tortoises, aquariums, butterfly garden and exhibits. The Boca Raton City Council in late February approved spending $2.4 million from the Beach and Park District and the Stewards to rebuild Gumbo Limbo’s observation tower.

By John Pacenti

Delray Beach voters handed Mayor Shelly Petrolia a major defeat on Tuesday – and she wasn’t even on the ballot.

The electorate – roughly 6,900 out of more than 46,000 registered voters – rejected the candidates Petrolia supported in favor of two candidates who promised to return Delray Beach to an old way of doing business, eschewing controversial decisions and trumpeting civility. 

Those who showed up to vote also approved $120 million in two bond measures, which are slated to pay for a potential new police station, for renovations of existing fire stations and for park improvements.

Businessman Rob Long defeated one-term Commissioner Juli Casale for the District 2 seat – 53% to 47% -- with a margin of 377 votes.

Angela Burns, a former teacher and community organizer, defeated former Commissioner Angie Gray for the District 4 seat, 52% to 48% – or by 213 votes.

She takes the seat vacated by Commissioner Shirley Johnson, who could not run again because of term limits. Johnson often voted with Casale and Petrolia on key issues.

Results shift power on commission

The election very much leaves Petrolia playing Don Quixote against a stacked commission. 

Long said the election was a repudiation of Petrolia, who once called for his removal from the Planning & Zoning Board when he criticized the city’s water quality. “I think this election was a referendum on the mayor's leadership style and the decisions that have been made over the last couple of years,” he said.

 “That being said, I hope the mayor and I can find common ground and work together to serve our residents at the end of the day. That's all that matters.”

A 13-year resident of Delray Beach, Long serves as the chairman of the Palm Beach Soil & Water Conservation District.

Casale was a political neophyte in 2020 who came to office after fighting a development in her Sabal Lakes neighborhood.

"The residents are either far more pro-development than I thought or far more apathetic than I thought," Casale said in a text message on Wednesday. "Either way the result is the same."

Burns campaigned as the only non-politician running, saying that the people’s voices weren’t being heard at City Hall. “Our community has spoken loud and clear and it’s proof our message resonates,” Burns said.

Gray could be reached for comment on Tuesday. Neither could Mayor Petrolia. 

The Long and Burns connections

Burns and Long hired the same political consultant and at public forums agreed on nearly every issue.

Both talked about bringing civility back to the City Commission after recent years brought a water quality scandal, an ousted city manager and the removal of the longtime nonprofit that ran Old School Square – Old School Square Center for the Arts, Inc.

But their victories may bode something else as both have said they want to return the running of Old School Square to the ousted nonprofit and wrest control of the Community Redevelopment Agency from the commission – decisions that won’t come easy.

The commission voted just last month to hand over the reins of the city cultural center to the Downtown Development Authority.

The commission also took over an independent CRA in 2018 after it said the CRA repeatedly ignored the needs of businesses west of Swinton Avenue, instead supporting more affluent areas. Commissioners now hold five of the seven seats on the CRA’s governing board.

“My goal is to bring unity to the city to start more or less a healing process to bring civility and professionalism back to the dais,” Long told The Coastal Star.

He acknowledged, though, that the election was close and the city remains divided, adding, “I’m here to serve every resident, not just my supporters but my opponents’ supporters, too, because in an election this close I want to represent the entire community.”

The Long victory will be seen by his opponents as a win for developers as he sat on the Planning and Zoning Board that greenlighted many of the new high-end developments that are under construction or in the pipeline.

During the day on Tuesday, the Casale campaign team expressed worry that Long in an 11th-hour robocall portrayed himself as against overdevelopment, fearing that could turn the tide.

The South Florida Sun-Sentinel reported in January that a lawyer representing developers funneled business to Long’s grassroots outreach business, Door 2 Door Strategies. Long voted on one project in question based on the advice of an assistant city attorney who said he didn’t have a conflict of interest.

The Long-Burns quinella was also a win for Commissioner Ryan Boylston who is said to be angling for Petrolia’s job. He threw his support over the weekend to Long and Burns, deriding the “toxicity” of the commission and said “I for one want the ‘Delray Way’ back.”

Certainly, Delray Beach’s old guard will be happy – five former mayors supported Long.

Police and fire unions will also be happy. Casale had pivoted recently to calling for an audit of the Fire Rescue Department and investigating overtime abuses in the Police Department. Both police and fire unions endorsed Long and Burns. Long said at public forums that it was critical to have good collaborative relationships with first responders.

State-ordered audit is city’s latest drama

On Monday, the state Legislature’s Joint Legislative Auditing Committee unanimously approved a request by State Rep. Peggy Gossett-Seidman (R-Highland Beach) for the auditor general to examine what Delray Beach has charged Highland Beach for fire service the last six years. 

The city and town are fighting over what is owed and the audit underlined what Long and Burns characterized as continued chaos. 

Team Petrolia upending the apple cart the last three years did produce drama. 

The firing of the nonprofit running Old School Square for lack of accountability and mismanagement occurred at a commission meeting where it wasn’t even on the agenda. 

The firing of former City Manager George Gretsas made sure the city ran through more city managers than Spinal Tap does drummers.

Both the nonprofit and Gretsas have sued the city.

The city also agreed in November 2021 to pay $1 million to the Florida Department of Health for water safety violations – the foremost being that reclaimed water was making its way into the drinking water system.

Two bond issues approved

In a vote that almost certainly has more long-lasting implications, voters overwhelmingly approved a $100 million public safety bond and a $20 million parks bond. Both bonds received support from more than 60% of voters.

City spokeswoman Gina Carter said the parks bond will bring much needed improvements. 

She said the public safety bond “will allow our police and fire departments to grow. It will enable state-of-the-art technology and hurricane hardening to be central to our public safety infrastructure.”

Carter added the bond will also add a dedicated Emergency Operation Centers, which will serve the city during storms and emergencies.

At a forum on the bonds in February, the city said $80 million would be allocated either for building a new police headquarters or a major renovation of the existing structure. The rest would go to help renovate its aging fire stations.

The $20 million for parks will include improvements to Catherine Strong Park, such as covered basketball courts, a covered practice field, walking trails and improvements to restrooms and lighting.

The general obligation bonds will be paid for by revenue from property taxes. The city is required to levy enough property tax to pay for the debt service on the bond.

The estimated cost over 30 years to a resident with a home having $1 million in taxable assessed value would be $428 for the first year of the public safety bond. That amount would decrease to $360 annually when the city retires two previous bonds next February.

The parks and recreation bond is a separate cost. The 30-year estimated cost will be an additional $88 annually for a home with a $1 million taxable assessed value.

Unofficial vote totals updated as of 10 a.m. March 15.

By Mary Hladky

Boca Raton voters soundly defeated a measure that would have increased City Council members’ terms of office from three years to four.

The proposed change to the city charter, the only matter on the March 14 ballot, was opposed by 59.4% of voters and favored by 40.6%.

It would not have changed the two-term limit for council members.

The outcome was a major defeat for Mayor Scott Singer, who proposed the change and actively urged residents to support it.

In pressing for the initiative, Singer said that of the state’s 25 largest cities, Boca Raton is the only one that does not have four-year terms.

Longer terms would give council members more time to bolster their expertise on city matters. And because they would stand election less frequently, they could focus on city issues rather than campaigning, he said.

But opponents, including unsuccessful 2021 City Council candidates Brian Stenberg and Josie Machovec, argued that residents have not called for such a change.

They also said it was a waste of city money to spend about $225,000 to hold an election that would draw little interest because no council candidates would be on the ballot. Singer, Fran Nachlas and Marc Wigder won election without opposition.

Singer countered that the change would save money over time, since it would result in fewer elections being held.

Council members voted 3-2 in December to place the charter change on the ballot. Voting against were Deputy Mayor Andrea O’Rourke, whose final term ends on March 31, and Nachlas, who said she could not support a change that benefited her with a longer council term.

By Rich Pollack

There will be two new faces on the five-member Town Commission following the March 14 vote, which saw just over 800 of Highland Beach’s 3,900 registered voters casting ballots.

Newcomer Judith Goldberg defeated challengers Maggie Chappelear and Peter Kosovsky and will serve the one year left in the term of Peggy Gossett-Seidman, who resigned to run successfully for state representative.

“I am just thrilled to represent this magical town,” Goldberg said, adding that she believes her forthright conversations with residents helped her get votes. “I just spoke about the issues honestly.”

Goldberg received 408 votes, or just over 50% of the total votes cast, with Chappelear receiving 30.5% or 246 votes while Kosovsky received about 19% or 152 votes.

In a two-way race for a three-year term, newcomer Don Peters defeated incumbent John Shoemaker, capturing 53% of the votes to Shoemaker’s 47%.  

“A lot of people worked hard for me and I’m very thankful,” Peters said.

The former police officer and town supervisor in Yorktown, New York, said he believes his victory is the result of residents wanting more of a voice in the way the town is run.

“People just want their government to listen,” he said.

Both Peters and Goldberg were backed by the Committee to Save Highland Beach, a political action committee that sends messages to more than 2,000 email addresses.

The election marked the first time since 2020 that voters had an opportunity to select a town commissioner; all candidates running in the last three years ran unopposed.

During this year’s campaign season, transparency and increased public input in decision-making was a common theme among the candidates.

Chappelear, who first got involved with the town when she supported safer boating conditions on the Intracoastal Waterway, ran her campaign with a focus on being the voice of residents on the commission. A 38-year resident of Highland Beach, Chappelear has also been a strong supporter of dune restoration.

Goldberg, an attorney and mediator, ran her campaign focus on transparency and having energy and vitality for good governance. She is a supporter of preservation of natural resources and property values and supports effective growth planning.

Kosovsky ran his campaign on public oversight and involvement believing there needs to be more public involvement in the running of the town. In an unusual move in what had been a very civil election season, Kosovsky was openly critical of Goldberg for what he claims were violations of campaign rules. 

In the race for the three-year seat, Peters often spoke about keeping taxes low and also wants to see residents having a greater voice in the decisions made by town leaders.

Shoemaker, who served three years on the commission, ran on his experience and on the effectiveness of the current commission in addressing long-standing issues. He says he ran on continuity, collaboration and competence. 

The low turnout, Shoemaker said, may be a reflection of how well the town is operating.

“When things are going well, people don’t seem to have as much interest in local affairs,” he said.

The election in Highland Beach remained mostly civil, with all candidates each spending less than $10,000 on signs, emails and online and print advertising. 

Goldberg, who had a strong online presence, led the pack in expenses, spending more than $8,200, according to the latest campaign finance reports. Kosovsky was next spending just under $4,000, while Chappelear spent just under $1,400.

In the seat for the three-year term, Shoemaker spent about $2,250, while Peters spent only about $750.

In all, the five candidates spent about $16,500 for their campaigns.

By Mary Thurwachter

Not long after the polls closed in Lantana’s Town Council races March 14, the winners — incumbent Mark Zeitler and newcomer Christopher Castle – celebrated with friends and supporters at Lantana Pizza.

“I’ve been up since 2 a.m., I’m so wired,” Zeitler, 67, the owner of an air-conditioning firm, said by phone after seeing the final results of his Group 3 race. “I look forward to doing good things for the town.”

He defeated newcomer Ray Lastella, 32, an entrepreneur with a boat detailing company and a jet ski rental company, by a vote of 488 to 393.

For the Group 4 position, Castle, 37, a maintenance facilities director for PetMeds, won 470 to 406, outpolling Army veteran (and manager of Ace Rental Place in Lantana) John Raymer, 53. This was Raymer’s second run for office. He ran unsuccessfully last year against veteran Council member Lynn “Doc” Moorhouse.

“I’ve been through all the emotions from giggles to glee,” Castle said on the phone. Early results showing mail-in ballots had him worried, he said, but in the end, he won with more than 53% of the vote. He’s looking forward to being sworn in on March 27 and getting to work for the town.

Council terms are for three years.

Lantana residents also voted 507 to 341 to change the Town Charter to put an end to runoff elections. Currently, a candidate must receive at least one more than 50% of the votes in a race to be elected. If no candidate gets a majority, a runoff election is held between the two candidates receiving the most votes in the race.

Forced runoffs in two council races last year made some elected officials consider a change to a plurality system, where the candidate receiving the highest number of votes in a race — whether or not it is a majority — is the victor. Voters agreed. Proponents argued that runoff elections were an unnecessary expense.

SOURCE: Palm Beach County Supervisor of Elections (unofficial results)

SOURCE: Palm Beach County Supervisor of Elections (unofficial results)

SOURCE: Palm Beach County Supervisor of Elections (unofficial results)

SOURCE: Palm Beach County Supervisor of Elections (unofficial results)

37 of 38 precincts reporting

SOURCE: Palm Beach County Supervisor of Elections (unofficial results)