Firefighter Jesse Rivero was sworn in March 24 by Town Attorney Max Lohman. Rivero’s wife, Kerri, held the Bible. Mary Thurwachter/The Coastal Star

By Mary Thurwachter

Newcomer Jesse Rivero, a 50-year-old firefighter, defeated veteran Town Council member Lynn “Doc” Moorhouse for Lantana’s Group 1 Council seat.

Moorhouse, 81, a retired dentist, has been on the council for 21 years and was endorsed by the Professional Firefighters/Paramedics of Palm Beach County — a surprise and disappointment to Rivero, who has served 20 years with Palm Beach County Fire Rescue.

But Rivero said at a candidates’ forum sponsored by the Chamber of Commerce eight days before the vote, “He may have the endorsement of the union, but I have the endorsement of the community.”

Rivero collected more than 58% of the vote compared to Moorhouse’s 41%. Only 733 of Lantana’s 6,131 registered voters cast ballots in the March 11 election.

Reached by phone election night, Rivero, celebrating with family and a few friends at El Bohio Cuban Restaurant, said Moorhouse had already called to concede and extend congratulations. Mayor Karen Lythgoe and Police Chief Sean Scheller also called with best wishes.

“Like I said at the debate, I didn’t get the endorsements Doc got, but the people were behind me and whatever the people decide will happen,” Rivero said.

Rivero said he thought the election would be close because Moorhouse had history in the town and knew a lot of people. “But I know a lot of people, too.”

Moorhouse did not respond to phone calls seeking comment.

Asked to comment about the election and what Moorhouse’s departure would mean, Lythgoe said: “Doc possessed a deep understanding of the council’s history and provided institutional knowledge to the council. I look forward to what Jesse may bring.”

With Moorhouse gone, the longest serving council members are Lythgoe and Mark Zeitler, both of whom were first elected in March 2020.

Kem Mason, who holds the Group 2 spot, was elected automatically when no one else filed to run for the position during the election qualifying period that ended Nov. 15.

Mason, 66, is a retired firefighter and is completing his first term.

Rivero and Mason were sworn in during the March 24 Town Council meeting.

Council terms are for three years.

By Steve Plunkett

Briny Breezes Town Manager Bill Thrasher is preparing a budget for fiscal year 2026 that will raise town property taxes to $6.75 per $1,000 of taxable value, up 80% from the current $3.75 rate.

“Its purpose is for covering debt service with a possible loan,” he told town aldermen at their March 27 meeting.

Thrasher said he was developing different budget packages to respond to possible changes in local funding by state lawmakers in Tallahassee, including their potentially doing away with property taxes entirely.

“As far as I know, that hasn’t been picked up,” he said. “I don’t think that’s really going to happen.”

But proposals to increase the homestead exemption by $25,000 or even $50,000 might, he said, so he was preparing budgets to take each scenario into account. The next fiscal year starts Oct. 1.

Briny Breezes has 156 properties that claim a homestead exemption, he said.

Alderman Bill Birch said a $6.75 tax rate would have a small effect on residents’ total property tax bills, which include levies from Palm Beach County, the county School District and other taxing authorities.

He held out his own property tax bill as proof.

“If it went from $3.75 to $6.75 my tax bill would change by $133 a year total coming back to Briny. I would only wind up paying an increase of $11 a month. So it’s not doubling your tax bill by any means,” Birch said.

Fiscal year 2024 was the first time since 2009 that Briny Breezes did not levy $10 per $1,000 of taxable value, the maximum allowed by state law, and levied only $3.75 per $1,000. The maneuver was said to give the town room to raise taxes, perhaps back to the $10 rate, to repay loans it might take out to finance sea walls, drainage improvements and new streets to fight sea-level rise.

Meanwhile, Briny Breezes Inc. paid 70% of the cost of police and fire rescue services in town, which it offset by charging residents of the mobile home park higher annual assessments.

In prior years, the town used the maximum $10 tax rate to enable residents to take a higher deduction on their federal tax returns. 

It took this southbound driver more than six minutes to clear State Road A1A tunnel construction about 5 p.m. March 26, even with signal timing adjustments made for the heavier southbound traffic flow. Jerry Lower/The Coastal Star

By Larry Barszewski

Manalapan town commis-sioners say there should be a time for homeowners of lots stretching from the Intracoastal Waterway to the ocean to build tunnel passageways under State Road A1A — just not during tourist season when traffic on the road is at its peak.

A traffic nightmare surfaced in late February and March with the simultaneous construction of two tunnels next door to each other, causing heavy traffic backups on A1A on weekends and during weekday rush hours. The work isn’t expected to be completed until the middle of May, Town Manager Eric Marmer said on March 27.

It’s not as if officials couldn’t see the problem coming. Town residents Mary and Ralph Gesualdo asked commissioners in January to force a delay in their neighbors’ efforts to build the tunnels for properties at 1890 and 1900 S. Ocean Blvd. because of the crush of traffic on the road this time of year.

However, at that meeting, Town Attorney Keith Davis said the property owners, Jagbir and Sarla Singh, had permits approved in July for the work and that the town had no authority to stop a valid permit.

The tunnels originally were to be completed in November, but the owners ran into delays with Florida Department of Transportation permitting for the project and then the town requested work be postponed so it wouldn’t cause traffic problems around the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays.

Marmer told commissioners at their March 11 meeting that at least three or four more tunnels are being planned for under A1A, which allows property owners to connect the houses where they live on the west side of A1A with the beach and their beach houses to the east — without the owners’ having to cross the roadway.

Marmer asked commissioners what they want to see done.

“We do have somebody over there part time that monitors the traffic and has dealt with some road rage incidents over there,” Marmer said.

Commissioners are interested in creating an ordinance that only allows the tunnel work from April 15 through October, possibly limiting construction to one tunnel at a time.

Typically, in the past, the affected two-lane section of road was closed for a week while crews worked near nonstop to put in a tunnel. It was also possible to close down one lane of traffic at a time to build a tunnel, adding another week to the timeline.

In the recent situation, the state required the homeowners to build a “bypass road” on their property to allow a lane of traffic to continue during construction. The new requirements can create a bigger nightmare, affecting traffic for six weeks or more, town officials said.

“If they close the road down it takes five days. If they do half the road (at a time) it takes two weeks. So now it’s taking six weeks (or longer). I don’t understand,” Commissioner Cindy McMackin said.

Marmer said the town is checking with FDOT to see if it would allow homeowners to go back to the previous ways of building the tunnels.

The recent traffic problems have been exacerbated by portable street signals that have been giving equal time for northbound and southbound traffic to access the single-lane bypass — no matter the difference in the length of the car lines.

“My experience is almost always a one-way problem. Like, we’re coming up and there are 10 cars going north and 125 going south, things like that,” Commissioner Dwight Kulwin said. “They’re during predictable times and I think if you had somebody there to readjust things and move things along, I think that would go a great way.”

Marmer said it should not be police handling the timing of the signals, but construction crews. “We’re not looking for the police to be flagmen, though. We’re looking for them to be present at the site,” Marmer said. The cost of providing police should be picked up by the applicant, officials said.

Police Chief Jeff Rasor, who had implied a traffic-oriented role for the police earlier in the meeting, backed what Marmer said.

“Obviously, anytime you have a traffic congestion problem, people’s patience becomes very thin, for lack of better words,” Rasor said. “A police presence there obviously has a calming effect on everybody.”

And Vice Mayor Simone Bonutti said there were safety concerns as well. “I even had a runner coming at me this morning, going through that bypass. It’s like a death wish,” she said. “I just want to prevent an accident from happening.”

By Steve Plunkett

Town residents, acting as shareholders of Briny Breezes Inc., strongly endorsed allowing the town government to proceed with its plan to make “material alteration” of Briny Breezes, meaning its drainage and sea wall project.

The Feb. 26 vote was 65% in favor and 12% against, with 23% of shares not voting. The measure needed 51% to pass.

“I’m so thrilled that we were allowed to go forward with this project,” Council President Liz Loper said at the council’s regular meeting the next day.

But a month later, at their March 27 meeting, the aldermen were dismayed by news of the status of the town’s $1.4 million grant from the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

“Our federal grant is paused,” Town Manager Bill Thrasher said. “I’ve received a letter from the Treasury Department that our grant is in pause. Our grant has not been denied or pulled back as of this moment.”

Thrasher did not consider the federal action to be a setback.

“We’re not quite ready to move forward anyway,” he said. “The Resilient Florida grant, we’re trying to modify it to achieve some of our purposes. … But there is a pause on the federal side. I’ve not been given any notices whatsoever from the state side.” 

Briny Breezes qualified for a $7.2 million grant from the Resilient Florida program. The town hopes to build a comprehensive, townwide drainage system and raise its sea walls to fight perennial flooding and expected sea-level rise. The total project cost is $14.4 million.

In February, Palm Beach County rejected the town’s request for a $5 million grant to help pay for the project.

But County Commissioner Marci Woodward “was very impressed with your dedication and efforts, and asked our resilience team to continue exploring other potential options for the town moving forward,” Caitlin Joyce, Woodward’s chief of staff, wrote in an email to Thrasher. 

By Brian Biggane

The South Palm Beach Town Council heard 30-minute presentations March 13 from a pair of engineering firms regarding the long-awaited construction of a new lift station.

As Mayor Bonnie Fischer put it after the vote at the special meeting, “I was impressed with both.” The tally reflected that statement as Mock Roos of West Palm Beach edged out Holtz Consulting Engineers of Jupiter in a 435-433 vote.

Each of the five council members received a scoresheet and awarded points — up to a maximum of 100 for either applicant — covering different criteria. The two most significant were “ability and experience” and “successful past performance,” with each of those criteria eligible for up to 35 points from each member.

Replacing the aging lift station has been a priority for several months. Earlier this year, the council approved a measure authorizing a payment of more than $7,000 to address the latest emergency repairs. 

The lift station receives sewage from the town’s condos and sends it to the Lake Worth Beach treatment plant. The station is between the Brittany and Concordia West condominiums.

Town Manager Jamie Titcomb issued a request for bids in late 2024, but failed to receive the required three bids. After a reissue of the request still left the town with only two bids, the council decided to go ahead and choose between those two.

Holtz Engineers, led by Vice President Christine Miranda, went first, pointing out that while it is on the small side, with just 22 employees, 13 of those are professional engineers. Miranda said she has 25 years of experience in the field dating back to working with the Loxahatchee River District, which is the wastewater entity for the town of Jupiter.

Next up for the team was Steve Fowler, who would serve as project manager. He described constructing lift stations as “our day-in, day-out business.” Fowler said he has 20 years of experience and has worked extensively for Palm Beach County, as well as for Lake Worth Beach, the Loxahatchee River District and Palm Beach Gardens.

The third and final member of the group was Kristin Feko, whose expertise is in the area of grant management and grant application. She expressed confidence she could find ways to mitigate the town’s expenses.

Titcomb said while many factors play into the cost of the project, he expects it to come in between $500,000 and $1 million. 

Next up was Mock Roos, whose four-man contingent came with the expectation it would be participating in an ask-and-answer session rather than a presentation, but regrouped quickly.

Senior Vice President Garry Gruber introduced the quartet and stressed the experience they would bring to the project.

Prospective project manager John Cairnes, whose 17 years with the firm was the shortest tenure of the four, said he has become “one of the most experienced, top-notch lift station engineers in Palm Beach County,” having designed more than 100 such rehab projects. He said he has evaluated more than 1,000 lift stations for the county Water Utilities Department and more than 100 for the village of Wellington.

Cairnes said the significant change his team would make from the existing lift station would be to put in a slope rather than a flat bottom.

That would mean all the refuse and debris “goes right into the pump and it gets sucked out, so there’s less maintenance there,” he said. “So, if a storm came through … you’d be able to just continue normal operation.

“You really wouldn’t have to do anything, kind of a ‘set it and forget it.’”

Cairnes added that with the improvements, materials and technology, “you wouldn’t have to touch it, hopefully, for another 50 years.”

Cairnes said the firm is contracted to build new lift stations for Manalapan and the town of Palm Beach, with those being the two closest pump stations to South Palm Beach.

Council member Elva Culbertson said that proximity was a factor in her giving the edge to Mock Roos.

Cairnes said a delay in the availability of materials means the Manalapan project won’t begin construction until early next year. South Palm Beach would face similar delays.

Town Attorney Ben Saver met with the quartet from Mock Roos immediately after the meeting to start negotiations toward a contract. The council said if no deal can be struck it would turn to Holtz next. 

Town commissioners begin new terms — While voters in some towns were going to the polls March 11 to elect town officials, Manalapan Town Clerk Erika Petersen started the day swearing in Mayor John Deese and Commissioners Simone Bonutti, Cindy McMackin and David Knobel to new two-year terms.

Town voters didn’t need to have a say as the four were automatically elected during November’s qualifying period when no one else filed to run for their seats. The swearing-in took place at the regular Town Commission meeting. Commissioners then voted to keep Bonutti as vice mayor and Commissioner Elliot Bonner as mayor pro tem.

Electric lines going underground — Town Manager Eric Marmer announced that FPL plans to underground electric lines on Point Manalapan in about two years. Marmer said he plans to talk with AT&T to see if it could place fiber-optic cables at the same time for better internet access — and Bonutti said she’d like to see natural gas lines installed there as well.

Point Manalapan residents soundly rejected having natural gas lines in 2015, but Bonutti said she thinks current residents may be more amenable to the idea.

Police ATV gaining beach access through South Palm Beach — The absence of public access to the beach in Manalapan makes it challenging for police to use their beach ATV on the north end of town. They have to truck it about 2.5 miles south to near the Boynton Inlet and then head back north up the beach.

Police Chief Jeff Rasor told commissioners a better situation is starting. He said the town of South Palm Beach has agreed to let Manalapan police use a condominium association beach entry point in that town, a short way north of Manalapan.

“It gives us a little bit of extra time maybe to quickly deploy onto the beach. Certainly, it makes it a little bit faster and easier for us,” Rasor said.

Flooding problems to be investigated — The Florida Department of Transportation plans to start a feasibility study regarding perennial flooding problems on State Road A1A, Marmer said. He expects the town should hear something by September, with the state coming up with short-term, mid-term and long-term priorities. The flooding in town is most acute near the intersection of A1A and Ocean Avenue.

“They will present to us at some point their projects that they’re going to do to address all these issues over here, which might come down to fixing the sea wall along here where it floods, the back-flow preventers, raising the roads,” Marmer said.

No more town emails for emergencies — Residents will have to get on board Manalapan’s Code Red service if they want to be notified of emergencies, as the town will no longer be sending out that information through town emails, Marmer said.

Code Red started in the town last year, he said. Gas leaks, road closures and tornado warnings are among the items sent out via Code Red.

“It’s kind of a liability to have those emails go out,” Marmer said of the town’s notices, which will continue for non-emergency items. Residents who haven’t done so can register for Code Red alerts on the town website, www.manalapan.org.

July 8 chosen for crucial budget meeting — Commissioners have to approve a tentative budget and a maximum property tax rate in July, but getting a quorum that month can be difficult as board members flee the summer heat. Last year, McMackin resigned so that the three commissioners at the meeting would be enough for a quorum (instead of the four typically needed). She was then reappointed in August.

“We need a quorum in the room, otherwise Cindy has to resign again,” Town Attorney Keith Davis joked.

The commissioners settled on holding the budget/tax rate meeting on July 8 along with their regular meeting. Marmer had hoped to hold the meeting later in the month, giving him more time to make any needed adjustments based on the final property tax assessment totals. Those are not expected from the county property appraiser until July 1, but he assured commissioners he could meet the earlier deadline. The commission also scheduled a budget workshop for June 5.

— Larry Barszewski

Dog ban persists after split vote — Both the beginning and the end of the South Palm Beach Town Council meeting in March featured moves to rescind an ordinance adopted in September 2023 prohibiting dogs from being on Town Hall property.

Council member Ray McMillan began the meeting with a motion to place a measure on the April agenda to remove the ordinance. It was originally adopted because some dog owners had been bringing their dogs to the back of Town Hall to do their business, and then not disposing of the poop even though there were bags and trash receptacles nearby.

“I already have an idea how to prevent that from happening,” McMillan said, “besides a sign or something expensive. We can make it work.”

Mayor Bonnie Fischer voted with McMillan but the other three council members voted against, killing the proposal.

At the end of the meeting, resident Rafael Pineiro introduced a petition that he said more than 20 dog owners had already signed seeking to rescind the ordinance. 

“This isn’t just about dogs — it’s about people,” the petition read. “The ban excludes dog owners from fully participating in Town Hall activities, eroding the community spirit our public places should foster.”

Fischer clarified the issue, saying that residents have been gathering at the turtle sculpture in front of Town Hall in the late afternoon on a daily basis and the ordinance essentially bans dog owners from participating if they have their pets with them. Pineiro said he would continue the push and hoped to collect 100 signatures or more.

Residents get meeting with Town Hall architects — Council members had their final face-to-face meetings with CPZ Architects regarding the design of the new Town Hall on March 13 and voted to have CPZ present its plans at a public charette on April 3.

Town to dispose of car ­— A 2015 Ford Explorer police car from when the town had its own police force will be put up for sale. It has not been driven in more than two years.

Lighting improvements approved — The Town Council authorized $7,346 be paid to American Lighting & Electrical Services, Inc., for improvements to 19 streetlights and ballasts at the south end of town on State Road A1A.

Trash pickup agreement passes — The council finalized its new five-year contract with Waste Management, Inc., to collect and dispose of the town’s refuse.

Fees for wellness classes dropped — The council decided to discontinue charging fees for regular health and wellness classes. The council determined that tracking the fees had become more trouble than the nominal amounts they were generating.

— Brian Biggane

Ocean Ridge residents are upset that some dog owners are bringing their pets to the beach against town rules. They insist town officials enforce the rules and increase patrols to keep dogs off the beach. Jerry Lower/The Coastal Star

By John Pacenti

Man’s best friend is public enemy No. 1 in Ocean Ridge. The dogs illegally romping in the sand, playing in the surf — and yes, pooping — had town commissioners, residents and police snapping at each other like chihuahuas.

Maybe everybody was a bit tired and a bit hungry after an interminable — and draining — presentation on the town’s comprehensive plan at the commission’s March 3 meeting, but there was a lot of bark when it came to dogs on the beach.

“We hear this every single year at this time, from February 1, around May 1. We go through this every single one of these meetings,” Mayor Geoff Pugh said.

Resident Stella Kolb was rabid mad about the issue.

“This past week, I can’t tell you, there has to be at least four or five times that I have seen dogs poop on the beach, and only one of the owners would pick it up,” Kolb said.

Resident Lucy Brown added, “The worst thing about no dogs on the beach is that there are big signs on every beach access saying dogs are not allowed on the beach. So every single time that a resident or nonresident goes happily skipping past the sign with their dogs, we are saying to them, our rules mean nothing.”

Pugh got consensus on the commission to increase fines for first offenders from $25 to $100 and went one step further, addressing Police Chief Scott McClure.

“What about the next budget cycle, add whatever one of you thinks would be necessary to increase, whatever you have to increase to have somebody patrolling the beach, especially during the weekends, and taking care of it,” he said.

McClure pushed back first on Vice Mayor Steve Coz’s claim that his department wasn’t using its all-terrain vehicle on the beach. “They never left the beach,” he said. “We do one patrol every shift.”

He tried to explain that officers were giving people warnings as they walked their dogs across State Road A1A to Beachway Drive to access the beach. And they were issuing citations. However, there is a mighty big loophole for dog owners.

“Officers can only ask two questions: Is that a service dog and what service does it provide,” he said. “If they give us an answer of one of the designated services, then they can have a dog on the beach.”

McClure noted that the town has not seen a single stolen car or burglary in two years thanks to street patrols.

He stressed to residents not to confront dog owners on the beach. “Please contact us first because these people are even confrontational with us,” he said.

Lt. Aaron Choban then gave a hard dose of reality, noting that three officers work at a time and sometimes one of those officers is on personal time off.

Dedicating one of those officers to doggy patrol “leaves one officer in town to respond to any number of situations. We saw what happened with the wood chipper incident,” referring to a January incident when a tree trimmer was killed at Town Hall while putting branches into a wood chipper. “We have people in town who have heart attacks.”

Always the pragmatist, Pugh said, “I’m not saying be on the beach all the time. You guys are making it sound like I want some guy sitting there getting baked by the sun the whole time.”

Kolb then returned to the podium, saying it wasn’t just about dogs, but about safety. She and another woman were followed from the beach, she said. “I don’t pay taxes here to live like this. I am very upset. My husband is very upset. This is not about dogs.”

McClure then told Kolb, “In that circumstance you said something to somebody with a dog.”

At the end of a nearly 31/2-hour meeting, Pugh finally found consensus among everyone present: “I am about dog tired right now.”

By Mary Thurwachter

Lantana police officers will add three in-car cameras to their fleet, thanks to the Town Council, which authorized the purchase on March 10.

Cost of the cameras, from Axon Enterprise, Inc., is $36,842 and funds have already been budgeted.

The cameras will be installed in three SUVs. Twenty of the department’s vehicles already have cameras.

Police Chief Sean Scheller said the cameras are “a great tool for police for retrieving stolen vehicles and help with transparency and community confidence.” Police, he said, can share footage to show professional conduct and maintain public communication.

Dash cameras, he said, provide an unbiased account of what really happened.

Many other departments in the county, including in Delray Beach and Boca Raton, use in-car cameras and body cameras.

Lantana police have been using body cameras for police for five years and dash cameras for two years. 

By Steve Plunkett

Work on Phase 2 of the town’s $13 million water main, drainage and road project — affecting homes on the east side of Gulf Stream’s Core area — did not start as expected in March, a delay that will push construction into 2026.

How far into next year? “I think that would be dangerous to give you any kind of date,” Town Manager Greg Dunham said.

The contractor, Roadway Associates LLC, had hoped to reach “substantial completion” of the first phase by March 27 and get permission to start the second, which it then expected would have been finished in mid-December. But the company and the town had widely different definitions of “substantial.”

“I just believe based on historical performances and meeting deadlines that they in fact set for themselves to meet, I don’t feel comfortable moving on and starting a new phase with so much that’s left to do in Phase 1,” Dunham told the Town Commission on March 15.

“We were presented with the idea that we were going to be able to start Phase 2 when Phase 1 was not 100% completed,” Roadway project manager George Perez countered.

The main hang-up was the fact that the Palm Beach County Health Department had not approved the new PVC piping on the west side of the Core as “fit for public use,” nor had it been asked to as of April 1.

Delray Beach, which supplies the town with drinking water, also has to accept the new pipes, Dunham said.

Obtaining Health Department approval could take two to four weeks once the application is submitted, officials said at the March 15 commission meeting. Then 78 homes will need to be connected, at the rate of five homes per day, Perez said, or about 16 workdays.

“You’re not realistically getting this thing wrapped up … till like the middle of June,” Vice Mayor Tom Stanley said.

Dunham said the contractor has continued to restore the landscaping, sprinklers and driveways of homes affected by the first phase.

Gulf Stream has put Roadway on notice “that the date of substantial completion has passed and that we are starting to calculate liquidated damages,” Assistant Town Attorney

Trey Nazzaro said. Those damages are set at $500 for each additional day the project isn’t finished.

And Perez said the contractor will be requesting additional days beyond the date specified in its contract to make up for unforeseen problems it encountered. “It’s about 60 days if you make me try to guess,” he said.

New vice mayor — As the Lantana Town Council reorganized for the upcoming year, Kem Mason was selected by fellow council members to serve as vice mayor. 

Chris Castle was chosen March 24 as vice mayor pro tem. 

Mason is beginning his second three-year term. Castle is serving his first term.

The council also selected Annemarie Joyce to be an alternate on the Planning Commission. Joyce had served previously as an alternate and said she looked forward to returning.

Planning for budget — Lantana will hold its annual visioning retreat from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. April 11 at Finland House, 301 W. Central Blvd. Department heads will tell the Town Council what their needs and priorities are going into the next fiscal year. This discussion will begin the budgetary process, according to Town Manager Brian Raducci.

Remembering Lantana Lou — Mayor Karen Lythgoe announced that the town will be honoring Louis M. Canter, aka Lantana Lou, with a plaque to be hung on a tree at the public beach. Lythgoe displayed the plaque at the March 24 town meeting.

For many years on Groundhog Day, Lantana Lou, wearing a jeweled crown and snazzy cape and carrying a trident and a large fish, would emerge from the beach to predict “six weeks of sunny weather.”  

He was Lantana’s answer to Punxsutawney Phil.

Canter, 94, a former vice mayor in town, died at his home last December. He retired from his Lantana Lou appearances about 10 years ago.

Egg-citing adventure at Maddock Park — Lantana’s Eggstravaganza Egg Hunt is set for 8:30 to 10:30 a.m. April 19 at Maddock Park, 1200 W. Drew St. The free egg hunt includes photos with the Easter Bunny, prizes, family games, a hayride, face painting, balloon twisting, arts and crafts, and vendors.

Free parking will be available at Lantana Middle School. For more information or to volunteer, contact Nadine Shawah at 561-540-5754 or via email at nshawah@lantana.org.

— Mary Thurwachter

By John Pacenti

With the Florida Department of Transportation starting to repave East Ocean Avenue in March, Ocean Ridge Mayor Geoff Pugh wanted to make sure FDOT officials were aware of flooding on the road — especially during king tides.

The $1.3 million project will repave Ocean Avenue from Federal Highway to State Road A1A and will stretch late into this year. It will include milling and repaving, upgrading signage, adding LED lighting, and improving pavement markings for motorists and bicyclists, said FDOT spokeswoman Silvana Ojeda.

Pugh said at the March 3 Town Commission meeting that his concern is that FDOT already doesn’t maintain a 36-inch pipe that feeds storm water to the Intracoastal Waterway.

“When that happens, during these king tides, and that thing is not cleaned out, it floods the whole road,” he said.

When FDOT mills the road for asphalt, it’s going to be even lower by 4 to 6 inches, “So we will have even more water on the road,” Pugh said.

Tuck Lee, the design project manager, said the 190-day contract builds into it weather delays. Furthermore, the milling will be followed by the repaving before that section is reopened to traffic. Only one lane will be closed at any one time.

Pugh’s additional concern was noise, especially after 5 p.m. “You can’t be milling at night next to these homeowners that are right there,” he said.

The plan currently is to mill during the day and pave at night, Lee told the commission.

By Rich Pollack

Rates for Delray Beach water customers will increase by about $9 a month in October as city leaders wrestle with the challenges of building a new water plant under strict new federal regulations aimed at removing “forever” chemicals.

During a meeting last month, consultants and city leaders told commissioners the new water treatment plant — replacing a 73-year-old facility — will have a price tag of about $280 million and won’t be coming online until 2028.

Initially, the city had planned to keep the existing water treatment plant, which uses lime softening to treat water, and incorporate a membrane filtration process. That plan, which would have had two buildings side by side, would have cost about $120 million.

Last April, however, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency revised standards for the chemicals PFOA, PFOS and Gen-X, which means Delray Beach will have to build a new plant twice the size of the current plant and eventually demolish the existing one.

“The reason this becomes a bigger plant is because of forever chemicals,” Utilities Director Hassan Hadjimiry said.

As a result of the new requirements and the switch to a total membrane filtration system, the city will also need to build two new deep-injection wells for the reject water created during the treatment process.

The city, which currently has 30 production wells drawing raw water from the aquifer, will also be adding six raw water wells, which Hadjimiry says will improve operational flexibility.

The deep-injection wells, consultants said, will come at a cost of about $33 million, which is incorporated into the total $280 million cost.

Construction of the new facility, commissioners were told, is planned to begin as early as October.

Hadjimiry said that in addition to improving the quality of the water Delray Beach customers receive, the new plant will increase the maximum amount of clean water that can be produced.

The current plant’s maximum, he said, is about 17 million gallons a day. With the new plant, the city will be able to produce 19 million to 20 million gallons a day.

To cover the cost of the plant, the city will issue bonds and raise water rates over 30 years.

In 2022, the city raised the water rates $3 a month for the typical customer using 6,000 gallons per month. The current rate for that customer will go up another $9.32 per month — to $78.43 — beginning with the new fiscal year Oct. 1. Monthly rates will continue to go up between $6.73 and $8.73 in each of the next five years after that, based on a consultant’s projections.

This year’s increases will help the city cover the cost of items that need to be purchased well in advance of when they will be needed, with the procurement process for $22 million worth of equipment already underway.

Hadjimiry and City Manager Terrence Moore are quick to point out that prior to 2022, Delray Beach water rates had not been raised for 15 years.

The projections could raise a typical bill by about $40 a month by the end of 2031, at which time the rate structure will again be evaluated.

At the end of the presentation, the City Commission gave the green light to move forward with a finance plan, which included issuing two 30-year bonds of $140 million each at a 4.75% interest rate.

Robert D’Amelio, a seasonal South Palm Beach resident and Vietnam-era veteran, visits with his 2-year-old grand-daughter, Siena. D’Amelio was one of thousands of workers who cleaned up the World Trade Center site after the September 2001 terrorist attacks and was part of the massive project erected afterward in New York City. Tim Stepien/The Coastal Star

Must-see stops on a visit to New York are the 9/11 Memorial and Museum and the impressive array of buildings that now constitute the rebuilt World Trade Center area.

Among thousands of others, one of the workers responsible for both the cleanup after the September 2001 terrorist attacks and the massive project erected in their wake is Robert D’Amelio of South Palm Beach.

D’Amelio, 80, not only participated in the years-long cleanup of Ground Zero, but later served as a superintendent in construction of the Oculus, a transportation hub that according to Trip Advisor “serves as a representation of New York City’s strength and resilience after 9/11.”

“Four-and-a-half months I was there” during the recovery, D’Amelio said. “For years after that ... I couldn’t bring myself to look at that hole. Ten years later, when my company got the contract to build the Oculus, I didn’t know if I could do it. I said, ‘I don’t know if I want to go through this (expletive) again.’

“But by the time we got ready to build it, you didn’t even recognize it.”

D’Amelio worked for a construction company that did recovery at the site of the twin towers. All work would stop when word went out that there was a “hit,” he recalled.

“They called the bodies ‘hits,’ and you would call either the Fire Department or the Police Department and they would come in and exhume the bodies. Whenever that happened, whenever they found a bone — any bone, it could even be a chicken bone — all work would stop, they would call the families, and they would come down to see if maybe that was a friend or relative.”

Asked how many times he saw this happen, D’Amelio said only, “Lots.” 

Since that experience, D’Amelio and his fellow workers are required to undergo an annual physical and meet with a psychiatrist to assess how much it still affects them. D’Amelio, who also spent two years in the Navy, said he has been diagnosed with PTSD.

He has been married to his wife, Joanne, for 54 years, and their primary residence is in Hopatcong, New Jersey. They have three children: Melissa and Joe are teachers living in New Jersey, and Jason, a rehab trainer, lives in Harlem in New York City. The couple have five grandchildren. 

In South Palm Beach, D’Amelio spends his free time in the gym, playing golf and enjoying the beach outside his Imperial House condo. 

— Brian Biggane

Q: Where did you grow up and go to school? How do you think that has influenced you?

A: I grew up in Paterson, New Jersey, and moved to Totowa, not far from Newark, when I was 12 or 13. My father died when I was 15, so I was raised by my mother. I attended Passaic Valley Regional High School. After the Navy I used my VA benefits to attend William Paterson College for two years, but had a family so I had to go to work.

I really believe my street experience helped me more than my school experience. You learn so much from the streets — how to defend yourself, how to manipulate people, how to read people, who to stay away from and who tries to lure you in and screw up your mind. To me the streets are very important.

Q: What professions have you worked in? What professional accomplishments are you most proud of?

A: I started out as a truck driver for 10-11 years. When I got married, I got into the carpenters union and spent 26 years as a carpenter. Then I became a construction superintendent, working high-rises and things like that. One of my biggest accomplishments was being a part of the rebuild at World Trade; I was there five-and-a-half years.

Q: What advice do you have for a young person seeking a career today?

A: Learn the streets. Learn all you want academically, but it’s not going to work for you unless you know the streets. If you want to be a drunk you hang with drunks. If you want to be successful you hang with successful people. Your surroundings, whether you know it or not, have a lot to do with who you become. So, education and the streets are compatible. You have to have both.

Q: How did you choose to make your home in South Palm Beach?

A: My uncle died in 1984 and willed a condo to my brother and me. We held off on selling it and more recently we started to fix it up and I started to give it a chance. I still only spend a few months a year down here, but it could be more as time goes by.

Q: What’s your favorite part about living in South Palm Beach?

A: Weather, accessibility to things. People? Send the Northerners back North (laughs). No, I’ve met a lot of nice people. People who needed time to get to know who I am. I may have an aggressive look, an aggressive approach, an aggressive-sounding voice. I’m not that way all the time, but it takes time for people to know that.

Q: What book are you reading now?

A: I’m not a big reader, but I’ve just started reading Swing and a Hit, by Paul O’Neill, the baseball player. It’s about his experience starting to play at 5 years old, being signed by the Cincinnati Reds and playing alongside Pete Rose, who was one of his idols, then being shipped over to the Yankees. Military books interest me also.

Q: What music do you listen to when you want to relax? When you want to be inspired?

A: If I want to think back to my young years I’ll listen to the ’50s: Tony Bennett, Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin. If I want to think about my growing-up years I like doo-wop time — Four Seasons, the rhythm and blues, the girl groups like the Ronettes. When I get to the ’70s and ’80s I think about where I’m at, going into the future. But I don’t want to make the mistake of getting caught up in the past.

Q: Have you had mentors in your life? People who have inspired your life decisions?

A: My father for a time, but then street guys who taught me how to deal with things. Roger Giardello was a smart guy, arrogant but smart. He was older than me. I was concerned about going into the military and not being able to take orders, and if it turned out that way I might be released or get a dishonorable discharge. So, he taught me how to roll with it.

In the military I met a guy named Pat Currie who worked as a contractor with the military. He was so Irish, and I was Italian, so he called me “Irish” (he says with a laugh). We would sit and talk for hours, and he knew the streets, but could also talk to any politician one-on-one.

Q: If your life story were to be made into a movie, who would play you?

A: Al Pacino. Andy Garcia. Robert De Niro. They’re the ones that I can relate to. I know their style, or they would know my style is a better way to put it.

Q: Is there something people don’t know about you but should?

A: We adopted a nun. Nuns who are cloistered are sworn to silence and poverty. One nun, who was older, was the liaison for the monastery. I would sit outside with her and we would kibitz, and she had a hearing aid that wouldn’t work, and it became like a vaudeville act. But her health began to fail and she went back to her vows, so there was one day a year we could go see her. So, we donated in her name and we got papers saying we adopted her.

Railroad gate upgrade could cost more than $1 million — Upgrading three Delray Beach railroad crossings in the wake of the Dec. 28 Brightline train collision with a city fire truck will cost up to $1,050,000, City Manager Terrence Moore informed commissioners.

It is yet another cost associated with the crash for the city, which includes — among other things — pending litigation, medical costs and the purchase of a new $1.4 million fire truck. 

The city is also checking to see if there may be grant money available to offset some of the cost for the crossing gate upgrades.

Brightline video shows the aerial fire truck attempting to go around the downed crossing gates on Southeast First Street. The driver of the fire truck, David Wyatt, remains suspended with pay. 

The upgrades to crossings at Northwest 14th Street, Southeast First Street and Lindell Boulevard will prevent vehicles from being able to traverse the tracks from the other lane when the gates are down. Other crossings in the city already have those protections.

Implementation estimates from Florida East Coast Railway run between $150,000 and $350,000 for each crossing, Moore told commissioners in his March 14 memo to them. 

There is an additional $15,000 cost for survey and design services.

FEC will complete all associated work, with the city to reimburse respective expenses, Moore said.

New vice mayor and deputy vice mayor — The Delray Beach City Commission on March 27 unanimously chose Commissioners Rob Long and Angela Burns to serve as vice mayor and deputy vice mayor for the next year.

The positions are largely ceremonial. Long will preside over the body if Mayor Tom Carney is unavailable and Burns will preside if both are out of pocket.

As usual with this commission, picking the positions was hardly a simple affair. The outgoing Vice Mayor Juli Casale nominated Commissioner Tom Markert as vice mayor, saying he is diligent about attending almost every city event.

Long objected, saying that the position was supposed to be rotating and as deputy vice mayor, it was his turn. Carney agreed not only for Long to be vice mayor but Long’s nomination to make Burns deputy vice mayor.

Casale and Markert, showing collegiality, voted in favor as well.

— John Pacenti

The Police Benevolent Association was banned from participating in Delray Beach parades for a year after its mobile billboard, shown above, changed its messaging in the St. Patrick’s Day parade from holiday-oriented to one critical of the city’s elected officials. Photo provided

By John Pacenti

Delray Beach banned the Police Benevolent Association from participating in parades for a year after the union changed a “Happy St. Patrick’s Day” sign on a mobile billboard during the March 15 parade to one that attacked elected officials over the state of contract negotiations. 

It was just the latest stunt by the PBA, which has been telling residents that crime is spiking in the city and that their electeds want to defund the police. 

At the City Commission meeting on Feb. 18, the union filled the gallery with dozens of members. Officers in the front row puffed up their biceps and flashed their extensive tattoos. 

Officer Friendly this was not. Some residents critical of the PBA have written emails to city officials, calling the union’s tactics “thuggery.”

John Kazanjian, president of the PBA in Palm Beach County, said during the public comments at the Feb. 18 meeting that officers were fleeing Delray Beach.

“I’m not saying that we’re in a crisis yet, but I’m going to tell you, the city of Delray is that close to being in a crisis. You’ve lost eight officers since we’ve been negotiating the contract,” he said.

Then came the mobile billboard. First showing up the weekend of Feb. 22, the signage was adorned with images of Mayor Tom Carney and Vice Mayor Juli Casale. “Violent crime is rising in Delray Beach,” one slide read. It urged residents to contact elected leaders “to start funding our police force.”

The city said the PBA promised, in its application to participate in the St. Patrick’s Day parade, to use its mobile billboard to wish residents a happy holiday. Somewhere along the March 15 route, the billboard changed the display to images of Carney, Casale and Commissioner Tom Markert. “Our police are among the lowest paid in Palm Beach,” the billboard read.

The stunt did not go over well with City Manager Terrence Moore, who wrote to the PBA on March 19 that the union submitted false information and would be suspended for a year from participating in city parades.

“Well, there’s a time and a place for everything, and this wasn’t the time or the place,” Carney said.

Kazanjian fired back in a letter on March 21, saying Moore was lying about the permit, calling it “more of the same from the city: silence critics and hide the truth from the city’s residents when it comes to low officer pay, poor officer retention and rising violent crime statistics.”

Kazanjian ended the letter by saying the union would not abide by the ban. “We look forward to participating in next year’s parade whether we’re ‘allowed’ to do so or not.”

Delray Beach, in the meantime, released information that violent crime had gone down by 70% and property crimes decreased by 65% since 1996. The city said it has offered police a 14% increase over three years and a comprehensive benefits package.

“The city of Delray Beach remains committed to ensuring public safety through proactive law enforcement and community partnerships, resulting in a steady decline in crime since 1996,” Moore told The Coastal Star.

“While we negotiated in good faith with the PBA, we continue to stand by our offered competitive compensation package that supports our dedicated officers without compromising the city’s financial responsibility to residents,” Moore said.

Carney added that officers and their families have free rein of services at Delray Medical Center. “We have this Wellness Center, which has doctors and everything. They don’t pay a dime. They’re in the system. They can take their kids there. They get free drugs,” he said.

Some of the highest-paid employees in the city are police officers, with 14 making well north of $190,000 a year, according to data provided to The Coastal Star. The city does concede nine officers have left since contract negotiations started last June, but says it has recruited replacements. 

Carney said the real issue for the union is retirement benefits for the top-ranking officers in the department. He said the union wants an expansion from five to eight years of the Deferred Retirement Option Program — known as DROP.

“If approved, this extension would allow senior officers to collect their full salaries while simultaneously receiving at least 70% of that salary in retirement benefits, for three additional years,” Carney told residents in his news release.

Senior officers have advanced to supervisory roles, holding the rank of sergeant, lieutenant, or captain or chief.

So tax dollars, the mayor said, would go not to providing more officers but to paying retirement benefits. The city says 17 Delray Beach officers are currently in the DROP program. Hypothetically, an officer earning $100,000 per year would continue collecting his or her full salary while also banking at least $70,000 per year in retirement benefits, Carney said.

“It’s the senior officers, and there’s a bunch of them that are in the five-year drop, that are coming off the five-year drop, which means they want to stay an additional three years to collect their salary. I mean, I’m sorry,” Carney said.

By Rich Pollack

GULF STREAM — Joe Zaluski was a teacher’s teacher — an educator who stood out for his passion for his craft and a teacher who enjoyed passing on that passion to those who crossed his path during the 14 years he led the Gulf Stream School. 

Mr. Zaluski, who retired as head of school in 2019 and moved back to Ohio to be near family, died on Feb. 16, leaving behind a legacy of caring about the people who walked through the Gulf Stream School’s doors, whether they were preschool students or veteran classroom teachers. He was 72.

Warm and kind like a favorite uncle, Mr. Zaluski is remembered by his staff and former students for his compassion and dedication to their success. 

It is no surprise that one of the people he admired most was educational television host Fred Rogers, and that was reflected in how he spent every day. 

“Joe was a Mister Rogers to many people,” said Sally, his wife of 45 years.

In addition to the responsibilities he had for running the prestigious school — a full-time job — Mr. Z, as he was known, still took time to teach two sixth-grade reading classes every week.

“Reading is the most valuable skill for success,” he said during a 2019 conversation with The Coastal Star. “I want the students to be lifelong learners.”

During that interview, Mr. Zaluski said that during all his years at the school there wasn’t a day that went by that he didn’t learn something new. 

Much of what he learned he shared with teachers, staff and often students. 

“He fostered a love of teaching but also a love of learning,” said Danielle Cooper, a longtime teacher at the school who was hired by Mr. Zaluski. 

Teachers and staff will tell you that one of his greatest strengths was building an environment where teachers — and students — focused on doing their best. 

“We all felt like we wanted to make Joe proud,” Cooper said. 

A trademark of Mr. Zaluski’s was his welcoming students at the front of the school every morning, shaking hands on occasion and saying hello to parents as well.

That gesture blended in well with his goal of making sure students knew the school was a safe place for them. 

“A child needs to know ‘I can come to school and know that I’m going to be greeted by people who love me, care about me and want to help me succeed academically and emotionally and accept me for who I am,’” he said during the 2019 interview. 

As an administrator Mr. Zaluski helped keep the school financially strong while raising its profile. 

He oversaw renovations to every classroom and the construction of a new pavilion with three classrooms above it. All were funded through a major capital campaign.

Mr. Zaluski also loved adventure and shared passion with students and faculty. 

At least once he jumped out of an airplane, took flying lessons, went scuba diving     off the Keys, hot air ballooned and attempted to climb   Mount Rainier.

During his tenure at the school, he made sure eighth graders took trips to places like the Grand Canyon or Canada or to Homosassa Springs, where they swam with manatees.

In 2016 he took the entire faculty to Crystal River, where they went scalloping as part of his effort to bring the teachers together, another thing that was a priority. 

A graduate of the University of Dayton in Ohio, with a master’s in education, Mr. Zaluski started his career as a sixth-grade teacher and coach and advanced to administrative positions in the elementary grades for most of his 43 years in education

Cooper, who is the director of the Gulf Stream School’s Julien Arts & Innovation Center and who teaches innovation, literature, technology and math, says that Mr. Zaluski was an inspiration to those who have followed in his footsteps. 

“Joe was why you wanted to teach,” she said. 

In addition to his wife, Mr. Zaluski is survived by a son, Zachary, a daughter, Katelin, and two young granddaughters, and he is remembered by many members of the Gulf Stream School family.

A private celebration of life will be held in New Jersey, where he was born and raised.

Donations in the memory of Mr. Zaluski can be made to the Outdoor Education Center at Glen Helen (Glenhelen.org) in Yellow Springs, Ohio.

By Larry Barszewski

There’s good news for boaters — the Intracoastal Waterway near the Boynton Inlet is being dredged for the first time in 12 years — but expect a boatload of inconveniences this month as the work continues, including the closing of the Harvey Oyer Park ramp for about a week.

The dredged sand is also good news for Ocean Ridge as it will be used to shore up the coastline in the town near Palm Beach County’s Hammock Park — but you won’t be able to stand on any of the new beach sand unless you go in the water. That’s where the sand is going.

“This isn’t that large dredge project that you’ll see every six to eight years that really widens the beach; this is more of a smaller project,” said Andy Studt, environmental program supervisor for Palm Beach County’s coastal resource management, which is overseeing the $1.9 million project. It’s expected to place about 63,000 cubic yards of sand near the shore, he said.

“We’ll be adding it below the water line, but it will add to the near-shore system and strengthen the beach over the near term,” Studt said.

The county also plans “a follow-on project this coming winter in conjunction with the Army Corps of Engineers to restore storm damages, where we’ll be placing about half-a-million cubic yards from an offshore bar source,” he said.

“That’s the one that’ll really widen the beach and protect us from future storm events, both for Boynton Beach Oceanfront Park and about a mile south of the inlet.”

Studt’s comments came during the Boynton Beach City Commission’s April 1 meeting. The dredged sand is coming from three interior shoal areas in the Intracoastal: from a county sand trap immediately adjacent to the inlet, from the Intracoastal’s main navigational channel in partnership with the Florida Inland Navigation District, and from the Oyer Park boat channel in partnership with Boynton Beach.

“We have discussed it with city staff and it sounds like the best way forward is to close the boat ramp for a short period of time while we’re dredging the western part of the Oyer Park boat channel,” Studt said. “When we stick a dredge in that small channel area, it’s not going to be safe to navigate around it.”

Commissioner Thomas Turkin was relieved that the work is finally being done, but not that it took so long.

“You said the last time this was dredged was 2013. How can we ensure we don’t wait that long … that we don’t have this large of a lapse again?” Turkin asked. “There’s a lot of recreational use there, but also a lot of commercial use, a lot of people’s businesses that rely on that boat ramp, you know, that allow them to put food on the table for their families.”

Future dredging should occur more frequently, Studt said. In the past, the county had to get individual permits each time it wanted to dredge.

“This time we’ve got about a 15-year permit where we can go out multiple times within that time period and dredge as needed — the city’s channel and our sand trap,” Studt said.

Because of the extended permit, the county also may be able to let Boynton Beach do more frequent dredging of the park’s boat channel if it desires. In that case, the dredged sand probably wouldn’t go to the beach but be used in a habitat restoration project along the Intracoastal, Studt said.

The delay in the current dredging project was caused in part because the county didn’t know the last time the western part of the Oyer boat channel had been dredged.

“We know it’s been dredged in the past,” Studt said, but the county could not find a record of it with the Army Corps or the city. “So, since there wasn’t a record, it had to be considered new dredging. We had to go through the mitigation process.”

Boynton Beach commissioners were also upset about the timing, especially the impact on the long-planned Boynton Beach Firefighter Fishing Tournament and Firehouse Chili Cook-off at Oyer Park on April 26 that could be jeopardized.

“It’s not just a fishing tournament for our fire guys, it’s a fundraising effort,” Commissioner Aimee Kelley said.

The tournament, with more than $10,000 in cash and prizes, is sponsored by the Boynton Beach Firefighter Benevolent Association and raises money for the association and the city’s Kiwanis Club.

Studt said he couldn’t guarantee the tournament would be unaffected, but would work to try to avoid a conflict. The timeline is cutting it close, given how dependent the work is on the weather.

That Oyer Park channel work has been “ballparked” to start between April 14 and 21.

“We’re hopeful for a week or less dredging the city channel area and then we’ll have it cleared out for the next couple of years presumably,” Studt said.

The Oyer Park channel has to be done last because the county will need to bring in a smaller dredge to handle the narrower boat channel, he said.

DELRAY BEACH — Rita Ellis, former mayor of Delray Beach, died on March 15 due to complications from diabetes. She was 74.

Born in Spencer, West Virginia, Mrs. Ellis later moved to Florida, where she graduated from Eau Gallie High School in Melbourne. In August 1970, she married Dean Ellis, the love of her life, and together they built a beautiful marriage of nearly 55 years. They raised their daughters, built a business, and dedicated themselves to their community, always as a team. 

Their love was a steadfast foundation, filled with humor, devotion and a shared passion for Delray Beach, where they lived for over five decades.

Beyond her professional and civic accomplishments, Rita and Dean shared a love of travel, exploring the world together and making lifelong memories. They visited destinations across the globe, experiencing different cultures and embracing adventure side by side.

Mrs. Ellis was an accomplished businesswoman and a natural leader. She began her career at Southern Bell, where her exceptional talent, work ethic and dedication led her to rise through the ranks at a time when few women were advancing in corporate leadership. 

In 1973, she and Dean founded their mechanical services company, Climate Control Services, in Palm Beach County. Bringing her experience from management roles in customer service and operations, she played an integral role in the company’s success. She eventually succeeded Dean as president and CEO. The business remained in the family until its sale in 2022.

Mrs. Ellis is best known for her deep civic engagement in Delray Beach, where she dedicated herself to the city’s growth and well-being. Her early leadership roles included graduating from Leadership Delray; serving on the Delray Beach Chamber of Commerce board of directors, including as chairwoman; serving seven years on the Downtown Development Authority, including four years as chairwoman; serving as the city’s Vision 2010 facilitator; chairing the Local Government Affairs Committee; chairing DelPAC’s board of directors; and serving on the Delray Medical Center board of trustees. 

She was also honored with the Ambassador Rising Star Award, the Greater Delray Beach Chamber of Commerce Business Person of the Year, the Ken Ellingsworth Community Service Award, and recognition as a Spady Museum Community Hero.

In 2005, Mrs. Ellis was elected unopposed to the Delray Beach City Commission and was appointed vice mayor by her fellow commissioners. During her tenure, she championed stricter historic preservation guidelines and was a strong advocate for the city’s progressive affordable housing initiatives. In 2007, Mrs. Ellis became the first woman elected mayor of Delray Beach. (In 1954, Catherine Strong had been appointed mayor for one year.) 

As mayor, Mrs. Ellis continued her commitment to public service, representing Delray Beach on the inaugural Palm Beach County Homeless Advisory Board.

Complications from an injury, coupled with her longtime treatment for insulin-dependent diabetes, led her to forgo a reelection bid in 2009. However, her impact on the city was undeniable, and in recognition of her service, she was awarded a Key to the City. Even after retiring from public office, Mrs. Ellis remained deeply engaged in her community, volunteering and serving on the Delray Beach Property Owners Association until her death.

Mrs. Ellis requested no memorial service, believing she had received ample recognition and love from friends, Delray Beach residents and colleagues during her lifetime. In keeping with her generosity and dedication to advancing medical knowledge, she donated her body to science in the hopes of helping improve the care and well-being of diabetes patients.

The family requests that donations be made to Old School Square in Delray Beach in lieu of flowers. Those wishing to honor Mrs. Ellis’ legacy may also do so by supporting local resources and initiatives that uplift their communities, particularly for underrepresented residents.

Mrs. Ellis was predeceased by her grandparents, Jake and Thelma Lowe; her parents, Mary Ellen Sheriff, Charles Walker, and Jim Sheriff; and her brother, Gene Lowe.

She is survived by her devoted husband of 54 years, Dean Ellis; daughters Brandy Ellis of Boynton Beach and Amy Ellis (Chris Caswell) of Little Rock, Arkansas; brother Charles “Chuck” Walker (Dr. Maureen Whelihan) of Boynton Beach; nephews Charles “Charley” Walker of Palm Beach Gardens and Marshall Lowe of Largo; niece Nicole Bjornvick of Seminole; and many cherished in-laws, stepsisters and extended family members.

— Obituary submitted by the family

The Plaza del Mar owners hope to turn the area into Manalapan’s ‘downtown,’ with regular community events. Photo provided by Katz and Associates

By Larry Barszewski

When it comes to downtowns, Boca Raton has Mizner Park and Delray Beach has Atlantic Avenue.

But downtown Manalapan? Where’s that?

Could it be Plaza del Mar?

The owners of the plaza, the town’s only shopping center, think so. They’ve adopted the downtown title and have high expectations for the plaza they purchased in December.

“This is essentially your downtown,” Scott Loventhal, the managing member for the new owners, told town commissioners at their March 11 meeting. Loventhal was in town to introduce himself to commissioners and brief them on plans for the center at the southwest corner of State Road A1A and Ocean Avenue. His company, Manalapan Plaza del Mar LLC, is a subsidiary of New Jersey-based Garden Commercial Properties, which has 70 years of experience in retail plazas.

“We are all about our local connection,” said Loventhal, whose New Jersey roots showed through as he pledged to work with the “township commission” and “township professionals” on any future improvements to the center.

While the company’s short-term goals are to lease vacant storefronts and bring the center more into compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act, Loventhal said he would also like to see the plaza become a place for community activities.

“What we also found looking at Plaza del Mar is that there isn’t that interaction with the community as it relates to what is your Main and Main, your downtown,” Loventhal said. “What is a downtown all about? A downtown is all about where residents can also gather and see one another.”

One downtown idea is already being considered.

“I think that our goal would be to try to put something on the calendar to create a fall festival this year,” he said.

Commissioner David Knobel gave him a suggestion for another event: “We have some interesting cars in garages in this town, too.”

Loventhal replied that having a car show “is really a wonderful thing.”

“I can only imagine,” he added, mulling over the possible entries from town residents. “I’d like to come visit on the car show day because there have been some interesting cars shopping at Publix, as I’ve noticed in my visits. Some cars I’d never seen before.”

The company’s first priority, though, is to fill the vacant storefronts. A woman’s clothing boutique now based in New Jersey, Addicted Chic, will be opening in June. It was signed by the previous owners.

The plaza will be patient, Loventhal said, making sure the additions contribute to the overall mix and “what we hope will be some experiential retail, what we hope will be personal services.”

At the same time, the company will be creating an accessibility plan.

“The center is not fully ADA compliant,” Loventhal said. “We always feel it’s important in our shopping centers [to be accessible], especially in Southeast Florida where there are certainly residents that need to take advantage of those ADA improvements.”

But there are no plans for major changes at the plaza and Loventhal said the company will respect the existing leases.

“For what it is, and that is a Publix-anchored community strip center, it’s incredible to see the number of tenants that are there 20 to 30 years,” he said. “What does that say to you? They’ve done well, despite what pre-COVID was essentially a seasonal location.”

Publix will have a say in how the center is used for special events, since its lease gives it control over a large part of the parking lot, Loventhal said. While there is probably enough space to hold events outside of the Publix spaces, he said he would meet with store officials to see what else might be possible.

In case he forgot he was in Manalapan, Loventhal was quickly reminded of that point when he talked about eventual plans to improve the signage at the plaza. He said the current signs “don’t really give the tenants the visibility that’s needed to improve their sales.”

When he added “there are no restrictions” about signage, Vice Mayor Simone Bonutti jumped in to say yes there are. Any changes that did not meet the town’s current standards would have to be approved by the commission, he was told.

Loventhal summed up his company’s desires this way:

“We want to make Plaza del Mar better than it is today and improve upon what we think can be a much more vibrant downtown.”