The Dec. 9 concert, to start at 5 p.m., will mark the eighth year that players of tuba family instruments have entertained crowds in Boca Raton. Coastal Star file photo by Tim Stepien

By Christine Davis

Want to start a new holiday tradition? Consider this family-friendly event.
Tuba Christmas is an annual free concert held worldwide to celebrate the holidays, but also as a tribute to teachers whose passion is teaching music. Harvey Phillips, a tuba student, created the concert as a tribute to his music teacher, William J. Bell, who was born on Christmas Day in 1902.
The first Tuba Christmas was in 1974 in New York City, and this year at least 200 such concerts are planned in the United States.
The Dec. 9 event in the Mizner Park Amphitheater will mark the eighth year of the local Tuba Christmas concert, which is led by Dr. Marc Decker, assistant professor of music and the associate director of bands at Florida Atlantic University.
The concert is a kind of come-as-you-are performance, open to students of all levels who play instruments in the tuba family, including the sousaphone, baritone, euphonium and its rare cousins the helicon, ophicleide, serpent and double-bell euphonium.
Concerts range in size from a tiny tuba quartet to several hundred performers at the biggest concerts in Los Angeles and New York. Because musicians’ holiday schedules are packed, the only rehearsal is the one right before the show. There is a nominal fee ($10) to play.
Boca Raton players will check in from 1:30 to 2:30 p.m. and rehearse from 2:30 to 4. After a short break, they will be back on stage for the 5 p.m. concert.
Players are asked to wear festive attire, and they do. From a Christmas sweater made by grandma to Santa hats and Rudolph’s antlers, if it’s red or green, it’s a hit. Even the instruments get decorated with garland and lights. The music book the players use, “Carols for a Merry TubaChristmas,” is available for sale.
You can bring your own chairs or blankets or rent a chair for $5. Food and drink vendors will be on site. Admission is free. Info: www.myboca.us/826/Mizner-Park-Amphitheater

Holidays for Delray Beach will be produced this year by Stephanie Immelman’s new company, Grapevine Communications. At the center of the festivities will be the city’s iconic 100-foot Christmas tree.
“A whole generation of children has grown up with the tree,” Immelman said. “People share their memories with us all the time and we see a marriage proposal in the tree nearly every year.”
Visitors can walk inside it through Jan. 1 for a dollar donation, and Santa will be at the tree until Dec. 23. He will also make an appearance at the annual Cookie Cruises throughout the month on board the Lady Atlantic.
The Seas & Greetings holiday parade will take place at 6 p.m. Dec. 8 along Atlantic Avenue, and other holiday happenings include the Holiday Boat Parade on Dec. 14, a Kwanzaa celebration at the Spady Museum on Dec. 30, and the Delray Beach Historical Society Holiday Craft Workshop at 6 p.m. on Dec. 11.
A family-friendly New Year’s Eve celebration in Old School Square Park is scheduled for 5 p.m., with fireworks at 9 p.m. For details, visit www.100FtChristmasTree.com.

The Palm Beach Poetry Festival launched its Ekphrastic Poetry Contest, which uses as its inspiration the “Tech Effect” exhibit at Old School Square’s Cornell Museum of Art. The deadline for entries is Feb. 17. To enter, writers should submit up to 30 lines of original poetry inspired by one of eight designated images featured in the exhibition.
The images are: Back Up, by Ellen de Meijer, Emotion #2, by Walter Brown, Fractal, by William Montgomery, Galloping Towards the Dream, by Camomile Hixon, Graine, by Alain Le Boucher, No More Dialectics #4, by Daniel Fiorda, Mona Lisa, by Antoine Geiger, and Skull, by Brian Dettmer.
The winning poet will receive a $100 prize, and $25 will be given to each of the four runners-up. For information on how to submit and to view the tech effect images, visit  www.palmbeachpoetryfestival.org/news/tech-effect-poetry-contest/.

Offering awards totaling $15,000 in prizes, the Palm Beach Student Showcase of Films competition is open to student filmmakers, writers, graphic designers and digital media artists enrolled in Florida high schools and colleges. To enter, visit www.pbfilm.com/ssof. Deadline for submissions is Jan. 25.
This student showcase is funded by the Palm Beach County Commission through the Department of Housing and Economic Sustainability. Major sponsors include Lynn University and the Palm Beach County Film & Television Commission. Category sponsors include Keep Palm Beach County Beautiful, Inc., Film Florida, Michael Chasin, and the Information Television Network. 

On Nov. 14, in celebration of Veterans Day, the cadets from Boynton Beach High School joined the residents of Barrington Terrace, a senior living community, for a day of remembrance and learning.  After the cadets marched through the community, presented the colors and shared lunch, they heard an educational presentation offered by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, and participated in a pinning ceremony as their expression of gratitude to the veterans. Barrington Terrace is at 1425 S. Congress Ave., Boynton Beach.

Since this summer, Copperpoint Brewing Co., headquartered in Boynton Beach, has won a variety of medals from top beer competitions by distributing its beers in can form. They include a gold medal in the chocolate beer category at the Great American Beer Festival; two grand champion awards at the 24th annual United States Beer Tasting Championship; and three international awards as well as a silver and two bronze medal national awards at the 2018 U.S. Open Beer Competition. 

Board members of the Delray Beach Housing Authority were appointed in October. They include Krystina Buckley, James Hiler, Marcus Metcalf and Jesse D. Saginor, who will serve as chairman.

Jet Coast Homes of One Sotheby’s International Realty has partnered with Inspiration Charity to raise money in the fight against breast cancer. The launch party event, which was held at Tim Finnegan’s Irish Pub in Delray Beach, raised more than $15,000. The Jet Coast team members will donate a portion of each sale in the names of the buyers and sellers. Jessica Rosato, co-founder of Jet Coast Homes along with Eva Blow and Theresa Melocco, said “being able to make a difference in someone’s life is priceless, and it’s something that we are so excited to do in the name of our buyers and sellers.”
“Instead of a traditional closing gift, we give an impactful gift that can help someone fighting the battle against breast cancer. We’ve all been touched by cancer in some way, and giving back through Inspiration Charity is one of the ways we’ve decided to make our contribution.” 

One Sotheby’s International Realty announced in October the acquisition of affiliate brokerage Nestler Poletto Sotheby’s International Realty, a nearly 80-agent firm with offices in Boca Raton and Delray Beach.
“We’re honored and privileged to join forces with another real estate powerhouse in the Sotheby’s brand, especially one that is growing with tremendous strength like One S.I.R.,” said Mark Nestler. 
“This is the absolute best decision for our exceptional sales associates and staff in keeping us on the forefront of luxury real estate sales in South Florida,” said John Poletto.

Motivational speaker and author Grant Cardone sold a 102-unit apartment complex at 1202 and 1300 SW First Ave. and 1150 SW Second Ave. in Boca Raton for $16.8 million. Records from Nov. 5 show Boca Islands East secured a $10.1 million loan from Hunt Real Estate Capital to purchase the property, which includes apartments and office space. Cardone’s company, Realm 102, paid $12.5 million for the 1.2-acre site in 2015.
Cardone has acquired multifamily properties across the country, including in South Florida, and in September, Cardone Capital paid about $90 million for the 346-unit Atlantic Delray Apartments in Delray Beach at 14050 Pacific Point Place. Previously, the property was owned by a joint venture between Atlantic | Pacific Companies and the Rockpoint Group.

The 30,683-square-foot Winfield Plaza in Boca Raton sold for $13.1 million to 20th Street Investments LLC, with James Batmasian listed as title manager. The sale was recorded Nov. 1. The seller is Taormina Investments S.A., led by Giovanni Cannavo, Juan Alvarez and the Panamanian law firm Galindo, Arias & López. Holliday Fenoglio Fowler’s Eric Williams, Manny de Zárraga, Danny Finkle and Luis Castillo represented the seller.
The retail strip center is on 2.82 acres at 471-515 NE 20th St. and 2001, 2151 and 2181-2201 N. Federal Highway. It’s 93 percent occupied, with tenants including Osha Thai Restaurant, Sweet Deals Chocolates, Subway and Señor Burrito.

Fort Lauderdale-based AutoNation sold its Nissan dealership at 2200 S. Federal Highway in Delray Beach to HGreg for $11 million in November. The dealership comprises 47,694 square feet on a 3.76-acre site. The last sale price for the dealership was $5.2 million in June 2005. Canada-based HGreg got a $10.5 million mortgage loan from Nissan Motor Acceptance Corp. in connection with its acquisition of the Delray Beach dealership.

For sale: McKinney estate, tree house too. Photo provided

Home builder and designer Frank McKinney’s restored 1930s John Volk oceanfront compound, Ocean Apple, was recently listed for sale for $5.49 million with Steven Presson, an agent with the Corcoran Group. Located at 610 N. Ocean Blvd., Delray Beach, McKinney’s six-bedroom, six-bathroom home features 100 feet of Atlantic Ocean frontage, cypress walls and ceilings, Dade County pine flooring, a newly renovated kitchen, and let’s not forget his tree house, which has ocean views, a bathroom, a bamboo desk, hardwood flooring, cedar walls, and a king-sized bed loft area with a TV.
“Frank definitely wants to stay in the area, but he is looking to downsize now that his daughter is in college,” Presson said. “Even though Frank has a long career of building and designing modern beachfront masterpieces, he always preferred to live in more historical, older homes with character. But now Frank finally wants to move into something more modern like homes he’s famous for designing.”

Cathy Balestriere was voted Chamber Business Person of the Year at the Greater Delray Beach Chamber of Commerce’s annual fundraiser in October. Balestriere, who is the general manager of Crane’s Beach House Boutique Hotel & Luxury Villas, was recognized for her dedication and expertise in her business operation and her continued support of the Chamber and the community.
The Delray Beach Elks Lodge was voted the Chamber’s Business of the Year for its continued service to the community. A long-standing member of the Chamber, the Elks are committed to supporting programs that help young people in the community. Former Mayor David Schmidt was awarded the Crystal Palm Award for exceptional and continued service and dedication to the Delray Beach Chamber of Commerce and the Delray Beach community. 

My Palm Beach Box, a new subscription-based service headquartered in Boca Raton, offers gift boxes that include gift cards, event tickets, and beauty products from South Florida businesses such as Ouzo Bay, Jupiter Candles, Lost Harbour Distillery and The Original Popcorn House.
Individual boxes cost $39.95; four boxes per year cost $160; birthday boxes and foodie boxes cost $49.95.
“You can find at least $300 worth of products from local businesses in each one,” said Delray Beach resident Sarah Schuh, who co-founded the business with Palm Beacher Krisann Simon. 
For more info, visit www.mypalmbeachbox.com.

Send business news to Christine Davis at cdavis9797@gmail.com.
Janis Fontaine contributed to this report.

By Mary Hladky

A compromise between antagonists in the most recent dispute over construction of the luxury Alina Residences Boca Raton condominium appears likely to clear the way for quick city approval of the project.
Bonnie Miskel, the attorney for developer El-Ad National Properties, told Boca Raton City Council members, sitting as Community Redevelopment Agency commissioners, on Nov. 26 that a tentative agreement had been reached and she thought El-Ad would approve it shortly.
Council members agreed to delay their vote until Dec. 10, giving time for the agreement to be finalized.
“I am all for postponing this for them to work out a deal,” said council member Monica Mayotte.
Alina Residences, formerly known as Mizner 200, is one of the most contentious projects in the city’s history. Downtown residents complained that it would be too massive and a symbol of downtown overdevelopment.
El-Ad proposed a 384-unit condo on about 9 acres along Southeast Mizner Boulevard that would replace the 246 Mizner on the Green townhouses.
El-Ad made concessions on building design, landscaping and setbacks that eventually won over critics, and the project was approved after a flurry of last-minute deal making in 2017.
But earlier this year, El-Ad asked for approval to build the project in two phases, add valet parking and to not fully complete a pedestrian promenade until the second phase was finished.
Residents of the neighboring Townsend Place condo strongly objected, saying they had a firm deal with El-Ad in 2017 and the developer was now reneging. They had the support of Investments Limited, a major downtown landowner, and the BocaBeautiful downtown activists.
Their chief concern was that the three-tower project would be built in phases, even though El-Ad originally said it would be built all at once. That raised the possibility that the second phase would not be built if the condos did not sell well, which would leave them with one new condo tower next to the run-down townhouses.
They also objected to delays in completing the pedestrian promenade along Mizner Boulevard, fearing it never would be finished if the second phase was not built.
Under the new deal, project opponents no longer are objecting to the project’s being completed in phases.
“In trying to get a settlement, we backed off the phasing,” said Norman Waxman, a Townsend Place condo board member.
“You have to pick your battles,” said Robert Eisen of Investments Limited.
But Waxman got something he wanted. The pedestrian promenade in front of what would be Phase 2 would be an enhanced version of what El-Ad said it would build earlier this year, and it would be built more quickly.
El-Ad also would add landscaping between Townsend Place and the Phase 2 property to buffer the condo residents from the construction.
Investments Limited would get the concession that if El-Ad asks the city to approve changes to Phase 2, it will not be allowed to change the pedestrian promenade or the spaces between the three condo towers that allow for eastward views to the ocean. Investments Limited wants to redevelop its Royal Palm Place across the street from the Alina Residences property.
“We all kind of got what we wanted,” Eisen said.
As of Nov. 26, Waxman was crossing his fingers.
“I do think we are close to agreement,” he said.

By Rich Pollack

It was just about two years ago when a pair of vacationers swimming in the ocean off Highland Beach got caught in a riptide and found themselves unable to get back to shore.
Using a condominium’s private beach access, Highland Beach Police Chief Craig Hartmann and Delray Fire Rescue Capt. Chris Zidar ran from the town’s nearby police and fire stations to the beach and pulled the swimmers to shore safely.
While the rescue had a happy ending, the situation might have been different had a vehicle been needed to assist the swimmers.
That’s because there are no municipal beach access points along State Road A1A that can accommodate the Police Department’s all-terrain beach vehicle or any other rescue apparatus.
Now commissioners are putting a priority on finding a way to make it easier for first responders and others working for the town to have easier beach access.
To reach the beach by vehicle, emergency personnel now have to drive the Police Department’s all-terrain vehicle to access points either in Delray Beach or Boca Raton. There is no public beach in Highland Beach.
“We don’t have a town access point,” Vice Mayor Alysen Africano Nila said during a commission meeting last month. “It’s easy to say we have never had a problem with this before, but that doesn’t mean there won’t be one in the future.”
Hartmann said his department does have agreements with condominiums and private property owners along A1A that allow officers and other first responders to access the beach on foot.
The department, for example, has security codes for walkway gates leading to the beach and has permission from many homeowners to walk through their property to get to the water.
“We are able to get anywhere on the beach quickly in an emergency,” he said. “But for routine patrols and any situation where a vehicle would be used, we need access. Right now, there’s not a central point that makes it easier to get to the beach.”
Nila and Town Manager Marshall Labadie said in addition to public safety, municipal beach access would make it easier for the town to address issues such as beach raking and beach erosion.
“One of the biggest constraints to moving forward with beach and shoreline concerns is a lack of access,” Labadie said.
Vehicle access would also make it easier for the public works team and the town’s code enforcement officer to get to the beach.
The Public Works Department, for example, uses a vehicle to empty trash cans along the beach, but must leave town in order to get to the beach and return.
The town manager said he would reach out to property owners along A1A to see if there is any interest in working with the town to resolve the issue.
Labadie said some of the options could be shared land-use agreements or municipal vehicle easements.
While the town is hoping that access could be provided at no cost to taxpayers, Labadie said all options will be explored.
“Nothing has been ruled out and everything is on the table,” he said.
Labadie said that should the town find a way to get vehicles on the beach, access would be limited to municipal vehicles and others receiving town permission.

By Mary Hladky

In their continuing effort to alleviate downtown parking shortages, Boca Raton City Council members have agreed to implement a number of measures that would help, but not resolve, the parking problem.
Still on the to-do list are long-term projects, including building a parking garage in the downtown and implementing a smartphone app that would allow people to find and pay for public parking.
City officials have been unable to build a parking garage because downtown property owners are unwilling to sell their land to the city.
Mayor Scott Singer has suggested building one on city-owned land near City Hall and using a shuttle or circulator system to ferry people from there across the FEC railroad tracks to popular destinations such as Mizner Park and Royal Palm Place.
A city consultant found that the downtown will be short as many as 425 spaces by 2023, and up to 750 spaces by 2040.
The city technically has enough downtown parking right now. The problem is that many of the public spaces are not located near where people want to shop and dine, and they don’t want to park and walk several blocks. That creates a parking crunch at popular spots.
Council members, sitting as Community Redevelopment Agency commissioners, agreed Nov. 26 to activate 26 unused meters located south and east of the Hyatt Place hotel.
But for now, they did not endorse adding 245 metered parking spaces on East Palmetto Park Road, the Sanborn Square area and north of Royal Palm Place.
They also agreed to add 54 spaces that have time limits, but no meters, between Dixie and Federal highways south of Palmetto Park Road. The city will buy a license plate recognition system to better enforce time limits.
The city early next year will seek a business to implement an on-demand transit program, using something like electric golf carts to move people from outside parking areas into the downtown.
The Green Market that operates at Royal Palm Place will move because business owners say it causes parking problems. It could be relocated to the City Hall parking lot or to Mizner Park.
Another measure council members want to move forward with is making excess parking spaces in private parking garages or lots available to the public. Property owners willing to offer up their spaces when not in use, such as after business hours, would notify the city manager.
Council members approved making information about where public parking is available in the downtown available on the city’s website and on social media.

By Mary Hladky

Mizner Park’s owner, Brookfield Property Partners, is considering exercising its option to buy much of the land underneath the shopping and dining destination from the city.
The sale of the so-called retail lease, one of four 99-year Mizner Park ground leases, could be a financial boon to the city. But it is impossible to know now how much the city could realize.
Brookfield owns the buildings and parking garages in Mizner Park. The Community Redevelopment Agency owns the land underneath them.
At the time Mizner Park was developed, the city granted whoever owns the buildings sitting on the retail lease the right to purchase the land beginning in 2016.
The city had discussions with Mizner Park’s previous owner, General Growth Properties, but that company decided not to buy.
The city’s option to purchase states that the building owner must notify the city it is exercising its option and submit its estimate of fair market value of the land. If the city disagrees, fair market value will be determined by arbitration.
An entity controlled by Brookfield notified the Community Redevelopment Agency in a Sept. 26 letter that it is considering exercising its option. But before it can do so, it must be certain the city and Brookfield agree on how to calculate fair market value, the letter states.
The city and Brookfield disagree on how to do that. City Attorney Diana Grub Frieser told Boca Raton City Council members on Nov. 13 that Brookfield has filed a formal demand with the American Arbitration Association seeking a decision on how to calculate fair market value.
Frieser contends Brookfield is not entitled to arbitrate now “for a series of reasons.” One of them is that Brookfield has not submitted a fair market value estimate. She said the city has hired an outside lawyer to protect its interests.
Stripping away the legalese, the dispute boils down to this: Both the city and Brookfield want to get the best of any final resolution.
Brookfield wants the fair market value to be low, based on current Mizner Park buildings and tenants. That would result in a low purchase price.
The city wants the fair market value to be high, based on how the property could be redeveloped. That would result in a higher purchase price.
“The city wants the maximum value on the property and Brookfield wants the minimum and therein lies the argument,” said Assistant City Manager Mike Woika.
It is unclear if Brookfield is seriously interested in buying the land, or if it is simply testing the waters.
Its attorney who sent the letter, Mitchell Berger, did not return calls or an email requesting comment. A Brookfield official in New York City also did not return a call and an email.
Brookfield, the real estate arm of Toronto-based Brookfield Asset Management Inc., gained full control of General Growth Properties, the second-largest U.S. mall owner, in March for $9.25 billion in cash. It previously had owned about one-third of GGP.
Mizner Park, which replaced the failing Boca Raton Mall, opened in 1991 in an effort to breathe new life into a dying downtown. The development was accomplished by a public/private partnership of the city, CRA, developer Crocker Partners and cultural users.

Mechanical/electrical problems with the Boca Inlet bridge forced Boca Raton police to send Nixle alerts via cell phones and social media six times in the last two weeks of November.
“We were telling our residents to avoid the area because the bridge is [temporarily] closed,“ said Jessica Desir, a Boca Raton Police spokeswoman. The short closures caused traffic backups each time.
The Florida Department of Transportation is responsible for maintaining the bridge, but it was unclear whether FDOT had plans to do any repairs or maintenance to fix the problems. FDOT did not return several calls seeking comment.
RIGHT: The bridge opens for a boat on Nov. 24. Tim Stepien/The Coastal Star

Residents in the area were further inconvenienced because the Camino Real bridge closed for repairs in April. That bridge, initially planned to reopen in April 2019, is now set to reopen in July, according to Andres Atehortua, the project administrator for the repair work.

The former Little House restaurant has been remodeled but remains empty. Jerry Lower/The Coastal Star

By Jane Smith

The bright yellow cottage that sits on East Ocean Avenue in Boynton Beach remains empty, more than nine months after its renovation was finished.
Its former owner, the city’s Community Redevelopment Agency board, talked about options for the future at its November meeting.
“They are attempting to find another tenant after the Living Room deal fell through,” said Michael Simon, CRA executive director.
The current owners, Richard Lucibella and Barbara Ceuleers, had planned to lease the restaurant to Lisa Mercado, who ran the Living Room eatery on Congress Avenue in Boynton Beach.
She wanted to call the 480 Ocean Ave. restaurant Fork Play, and serve light bites, craft beers and wine. But Mercado decided to take a much-needed holiday and spend a few months in Hawaii. The Living Room landlord didn’t want to allow anyone other than Mercado to run that restaurant, she said. That’s why it closed after more than 10 years.
Mercado wants to operate Fork Play at a reasonable rent and is willing to give the Little House owners a percentage of the profits.
Lucibella declined to comment about Mercado’s proposal.
“We don’t have a reverter clause in this contract,” Simon told the CRA board members. The agency used that clause to claw back the Magnuson House after the previous owner held the property for nearly 18 months but never moved forward with plans to convert the historic home into a restaurant.
“The restaurant has an extremely high asking rent,” Simon said at the meeting, speaking of the 480 Ocean site.
The owners are asking $61.52 per square foot, or $7,500 per month, according to the listing on the commercial real estate website LoopNet.
Lucibella, a former vice mayor of Ocean Ridge, said his real estate broker set the price based on comparable rents in the area.
He and Ceuleers paid $335,000 for the cottage, locally known as the Little House, the original restaurant’s name, to the Boynton Beach CRA. Since the April 2016 purchase, they installed a metal roof, enclosed the porch with impact windows and made other upgrades.
Despite all that work, the small restaurant with 1,463 square feet remains empty.
“Ocean Avenue development has had a lot of twists and turns during the past 30 years,” Lucibella said. “It’s difficult to rent when you’re the first business in that area. We have a lot of interest, but when we show the property the restaurateurs have second thoughts about the area.”
In June, the six-story 500 Ocean apartment complex opened across Southeast Fourth Street from the Little House. The apartment complex has 17,000 square feet of commercial space. The available bays vary in size up to 2,498 square feet and asking rents range from $20 to $29 a square foot, according to LoopNet. Kim Fitzgerald, the Crossman and Co. broker who has the listing, said 5,700 square feet, or about 34 percent, is leased to three tenants: a Colombian/Peruvian restaurant, a hair salon and a nail salon. She expects the businesses to open next spring.
CRA board member Justin Katz does not want the agency to own the Little House again.
“Under no circumstances should the CRA take it back,” Katz said at the agency’s Nov. 13 meeting.
But if the owners try to sell the Little House, the CRA holds the right of first refusal to purchase it, said Steven Grant, CRA board chairman.

David Del Rio in court with Gregory Salnick, one of his attorneys. Tim Stepien/The Coastal Star

By Rich Pollack

Palm Beach County prosecutors Monday filed 44 additional grand theft and exploitation of the elderly charges against David Del Rio, a financial adviser charged with siphoning nearly $3 million from Elizabeth “Betty” Cabral, an 85-year-old Highland Beach widow found murdered in April.

During a bail hearing for Del Rio, who has not been charged in connection with the homicide, prosecutors revealed that someone cut Cabral’s throat while she slept.

Palm Beach County Circuit Judge Glenn Kelley set bail at $463,000 for all 72 counts against Del Rio, who will remain in custody until defense attorneys can prove that any money he might use to post bail wasn’t obtained through unauthorized withdrawals from Cabral’s accounts.

During the hearing, prosecutors argued that Del Rio, 35, befriended Cabral and her husband William and took advantage of their trust to pilfer money from their bank accounts.

“What he was doing was using his relationship with that couple to steal their life savings,” Assistant State Attorney Brian Fernandes told Kelley. “He spent hours and hours a day so he could exploit them.”

Del Rio has been in custody since his arrest in mid-September when he was charged with 27 counts of grand theft, exploitation of the elderly, money laundering and fraudulent use of personal identification information. The additional charges filed Monday stem from new information investigators found in looking at financial records going back to 2013.

Investigator have said in court documents they think Del Rio fraudulently changed the will of Betty and William Cabral, making himself the sole beneficiary of the estate. William Cabral died in April of 2017 at 88.

Fernandes and prosecutor Aleathea McRoberts focused their arguments during Monday’s bail hearing on convincing Kelley that Del Rio was a danger to the community and should have bail set at $1 million. Del Rio’s attorneys asked the judge to set bail between $75,000 and $125,000, claiming Del Rio was neither a flight risk nor someone about whom the community should be concerned.

Defense attorney Michael Salnick presented several witnesses who said Del Rio was a good man and someone Betty Cabral thought of as a son.

“As a friend it’s hard for me to believe all this,” said Nick Simpson, who knows Del Rio through their church. “The charges that are being thrown at him are so far outside what I know David to be.”

Salnick argued that Del Rio has known since May that he was under investigation but did not try to flee, instead staying at home in Lehigh Acres is Lee County on Florida’s West Coast with his wife and four children.

Prosecutors, however, argued that Del Rio would have good reason to flee because of the volume of charges against him.

“He’s facing the potential of life in prison for the crimes he committed,” Fernandes said.

In setting the requirements associated with bail that included house arrest for Del Rio and a prohibition against him contacting any members of the Cabral family, Kelley acknowledged that Del Rio would remain in jail while attorneys sort out from where Del Rio would get the money for bail.

Several friends and family members said they would lend money to Del Rio to help him make bail, but that amounted to less than $15,000.

Relatives of Betty and William Cabral were also called on to testify, with one great niece saying Betty Cabral was concerned that her money was disappearing.

During her testimony, Maureen Forte said her aunt called her crying early this year because Del Rio told her she no longer had enough money to pay for home health care.

Forte said she reached out to Del Rio asking for a financial accounting of expenses but never heard back, which she said was unusual.

Also testifying on behalf of the prosecution was Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Det. Robert Drake, who said investigators think Del Rio used money taken from the Cabrals to buy expensive cars and to make home improvements.

He said Del Rio purchased two Audi vehicles, a Porsche, a recreational vehicle, two motorcycles, a smart car and a Chevy Silverado for a friend all in one year.

In looking at financial records, detectives could not find evidence that Del Rio used any money from Cabral’s accounts to pay her bills.

“I never found one penny that was paid from Del Rio’s account to care for the Cabrals,” Drake said.

The pool at Wellington Arms, a gathering point for residents, looks out over the lagoon and mangroves to the west. The lagoon is home to manatees, manta rays and a variety of birds. Jerry Lower/ The Coastal Star

By Dan Moffett

Judy Hollnagel had a long and successful business career in Milwaukee, but she never made a better deal than the one she struck in Ocean Ridge during a Florida vacation back in 1968.
Hollnagel heard about a condo project under construction across from Oceanfront Park and decided its prime location between the ocean and Intracoastal Waterway was worth an investment.
“I put down $100,” she said. “That’s what things were going for back then. We’ve had a place here ever since.”
The three concrete buildings with 49 units would become known as the Wellington Arms Condominiums. Judy and Harold Hollnagel would become known as the first family of the close-knit condo community.
From their third-floor bedroom window, the couple can look out and see the glistening Atlantic waters and the Oceanfront Park beach. From their back door, they can see a mangrove-rich lagoon sanctuary for a thriving array of wildlife.
“Every morning I wake up to see the sunrise over the ocean,” Judy said. “What could be better than that? Then I walk back there to the lagoon. It’s a magical place.”

Judy and Harold Hollnagel secured their condo 50 years ago with a $100 deposit and call the area a paradise. Jerry Lower/ The Coastal Star

The waters are a little darker, more brackish now than upon her first arrival a half-century ago, but Hollnagel still finds plenty of magic in the lagoon: manatees mating, manta rays patrolling the docks, mullet thrashing across the surface and an Audubon guidebook’s worth of wetland birds taking it all in from above.
The human species is on display by the lagoon, too — neighbors grilling fish for neighbors, and grandparents teaching their grandchildren how to catch dinner or how to keep a kayak from going sideways.
“It’s a piece of paradise,” Hollnagel said. “I can’t say enough.”
Last spring, Wellington Arms residents marked the community’s 50th anniversary with a lively get-together by the swimming pool overlooking the lagoon. Stories about their long shared history gave way to worries about an uncertain future.
Four years ago, William Swaim, of Waterfront ICW Properties in Delray Beach, came forward with a plan to fill in submerged land he owns adjacent to their properties and under the Wellington Arms boat docks. In a suit filed against homeowners along the lagoon, he’s demanded they remove their docks or agree to a deal to pay him for their use. Part of the deal would include ending their opposition to his development plans and retracting public objections they’ve made to state officials — especially environmental objections. Swaim also has taken the town of Ocean Ridge to court, asserting the right to an easement for a road next to the Town Hall to gain access to his land. In September, Swaim applied for a permit with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, seeking permission to truck in fill material to the 3.34-acre site and begin building three single-family houses.
A decision on the permit request likely is months away. Ocean Ridge officials and residents along the lagoon have been vocal in their opposition to the permit application and development plan.
“Without a doubt, we will be pointing out all of the issues with Mr. Swaim trying to do something back there,” Town Attorney Brian Shutt said during an October commission meeting. “There are things we can point out to the Army Corps.”
Said Mayor James Bonfiglio: “We will do everything that’s required to voice the objections. … We’ll do everything we can to help residents end the problem.”
Residents pleaded with officials to do more.
“We need your help,” Wellington Arms resident Phil Lambrechts told the Town Commission. “We need to get this ended.”
Lambrechts said residents along the lagoon have spent some $700,000 in legal fees fighting the plan, and most of that came from the condominium owners.
“Our community spent almost three-quarters of a million dollars now on lawsuits in the last three years,” Wellington Arms resident Jay Magee told commissioners. “And we’re just a small community. It’s a hardship for a lot of the owners.”

The legal fight centers on whether the lagoon is a naturally occurring waterway that deserves preservation or rather a manmade creation that does not. Swaim’s attorneys have argued the latter, saying bulldozers and dredges carved the lagoon out decades ago to create a mosquito control area.
Environmental groups have joined the town’s homeowners in rejecting that assertion, arguing the lagoon is an irreplaceable natural treasure.
The courts have appeared to be leaning both ways so far. In 2015, an administrative law judge in Tallahassee sided with South Florida Water Management District attorneys and cited environmental concerns and potential impediments to boaters as reasons for denying Swaim’s requests. In 2017, a mediation judge issued a judgment opinion that appeared to support Swaim, concluding parts of the lagoon were created by human activity and potentially not protected as sovereign state land.
“We lost and it’s devastating to the town,” condo resident Pat Ganley told commissioners after last year’s court hearing. “We need you to help. So fight it.”
Ocean Ridge is not alone when it comes to disputes with Swaim over submerged land. Two years ago, he sued the State of Florida and five fiber optic companies claiming they are trespassing on 2.5 acres he bought in the Intracoastal north of Lake Wyman in Boca Raton. Swaim accuses the state of wrongly allowing the companies easements. He wants the firms to pull out their cables and pay him damages.
Swaim also irked town of Palm Beach officials two years ago when he petitioned the Corps for permission to fill in some three acres of Intracoastal land he was considering buying about three-quarters of a mile south of the Lake Worth Bridge. The Corps has not issued a decision.

ABOVE: Residents have floating docks that give them boat, kayak and paddleboard access to the lagoon and Intracoastal. Jerry Lower/The Coastal Star BELOW: An old aerial photo shows the vacant land that became Wellington Arms. BOTTOM: A scene from the condo’s 50th birthday celebration last March. Photos provided

Residents stick together
In their condominium’s 50th year, residents say they are committed to protecting their community and are as close to each other as ever.
“It’s like a dorm,” said a smiling Judy Hollnagel.
Her friend Nadine Magee, Jay’s wife, put it this way: “It’s like … cooking someone else’s Thanksgiving turkey in your oven because it’s bigger and better. That’s literally the way people are here.”
Without the iconic lagoon, Wellington Arms wouldn’t be what it has been for five decades and Florida would lose forever another little piece of itself.
“It’d be a shame to see anything else out there but the manatees, the birds and the fish,” said Connie Sophie, an avid kayaker. “It means a lot to me.”
“It’s just a wonderful natural sanctuary,” Hollnagel said.

With the outer structure complete on the 3550 condo in South Palm Beach, the Town Council’s only recourse may be to fine the developer if the town determines that the building violates rules on height. Jerry Lower/The Coastal Star

By Dan Moffett

South Palm Beach council members want to double-check measurements of the 3550 South Ocean condominium project to make sure it complies with the town’s building code.
At issue are the structure’s height and the area set aside for green space on the site.
Councilwoman Stella Gaddy Jordan says she is concerned that the building’s six stories above a garage exceed the town’s height limit and that the structure’s footprint does not preserve enough open space.
“They’re both terribly incorrect,” Jordan said of the two code issues.
A spokesperson for the developer says Jordan is mistaken.
“3550 South Ocean has obtained all necessary approvals from the Town of South Palm Beach and is fully compliant with all regulations,” the spokesperson said.
The councilwoman blames the town’s building official for not bringing changes in the project to the council for approval. She said she believes the developer, Manhattan-based DDG real estate investment group, and contractor KAST Construction did not adhere to the original plans.
Jordan claims the building has grown to a height of about 106 feet from ground level, roughly 20 feet above what she says the council was expecting. Part of the increase is due to a foundation with a starting point above those of surrounding buildings — 7.6 feet higher — that is mandated by flood plain requirements. A 21-foot garage space and a roof with elevator shafts and stair towers account for more of the total additional height, officials say.
In response to Jordan’s complaints, Town Manager Mo Thornton inspected the building in mid-October with Hector Garcia, the project’s architect, and Mike Crisafulle, the town’s building official. Thornton said they measured the six floors of living quarters and together the height of those six stories was slightly less than 60 feet. She said they were unable to measure the equipment on the rooftop, however. Some of the roof structures are roughly 15 feet tall.
Jordan has complained that the structures on the roof were not part of the developer’s original plans.
Thornton said, based at least on the floor-to-ceiling measurements, the building complies with the town’s code.
“It’s built according to the approved plans,” she said.
Mayor Bonnie Fischer said the council will discuss Thornton’s measurements at the Nov. 13 town meeting and decide whether more double-checking is needed. Jordan wants to have the entire building surveyed from the ground up, but other council members have balked at spending several thousand dollars to measure a building that’s essentially already built.
Council members Elvadianne Culbertson and Bill LeRoy have questioned what remedy the town has to address the issues at this late date — now that the outer structure is built and developers are aiming toward a grand opening next summer.
“I’m still trying to understand,” Culbertson said. “What do we do about it?”
“We’re pretty much stuck with the building,” Jordan said, “unless we want them to tear off the top floor.”
She told the council it’s important, however, that the project’s changes go on the record, and if violations of town rules occur, then fining the developer is an option.
“I don’t think it’s wise to allow people to get away with so much without proper notification from the town,” Jordan said during the council meeting on Oct. 9. “This needs to be documented.”
With 30 luxury units priced between $3 million and $7 million, the 3550 project offers opulence unlike anything South Palm Beach has seen, appealing to affluent buyers from an international market and promising a huge boost to the town’s tax base.
Among the amenities are concierge service, a dog park and VIP access to the Eau Palm Beach Resort and Spa.
In October, DDG announced it was also offering buyers private jet service on demand. The developer has contracted with Star Jets International to provide 24-hour jet travel, with planes capable of leaving the runway within hours of request.

Retired Lt. Col. Mel Pollack at home in Boca Raton with a replica of the F-4 Phantom he flew in Vietnam. Tim Stepien/The Coastal Star

By Mary Hladky

Although retired Air Force Lt. Col. Mel Pollack’s military service ended decades ago, his commitment to service and veterans has endured.
Pollack was on his 78th combat mission flying an F-4 Phantom when he was shot down and captured by the North Vietnamese in 1967. He was imprisoned in the infamous “Hanoi Hilton” with John McCain, then a Navy pilot, later a U.S. senator whose funeral services riveted the nation in late August and early September.
Freed after 2,068 days as a prisoner of war, Pollack remained with the Air Force, retiring after 20 years of service. He then held various corporate positions and eventually moved from Delray Beach to Boca Raton four years ago. He now is vice chairman of the Boca Raton Airport Authority board.
This year Pollack became president of the Boca Raton-based nonprofit Vets Helping Heroes, which provides trained service dogs at no cost to active duty military members and veterans who are physically or psychologically injured.
Pollack, 76, has been active with the group since it was founded in 2007. He took on the role of president after the January death of his predecessor, Irwin Stovroff, a World War II veteran who spent 13 months in a Nazi POW camp after his plane was shot down.
“When you see what these service dogs do to improve the quality of life for the veteran, it can bring tears to your eyes,” Pollack said.
The organization is badly needed because “there is no federal program that will provide service dogs,” he said.
Their training is expensive. It totals $15,000 for a post-traumatic stress disorder dog, and $60,000 for a guide dog for the visually impaired, Pollack said.
Vets Helping Heroes has raised more than $7 million and placed more than 300 trained dogs. Donations have come from all over the country, he said, and 92 percent of the money is spent on dog training.
As president, Pollack wants the all-volunteer board of directors to take a more active role in the organization, and he is working to increase grant requests and expand public relations outreach nationwide to boost the amount of money Vets Helping Heroes raises.
“Our goal is to keep growing,” he said. “We haven’t put a percentage on it. We want to provide dogs to as many disabled veterans as we can.”

Mel Pollack, John McCain in 2016.

Imprisoned with McCain
Pollack graduated from New York University and joined the Air Force with the intent of learning to fly so he could eventually become an airline pilot.
He was 25 when his plane was hit by antiaircraft fire north of Hanoi on July 6, 1967. Pollack ejected from the plane and suffered back injuries when he slammed into a mountaintop. He was immediately captured.
Conditions at Hua Lo Prison, sarcastically dubbed the Hanoi Hilton by service members, were “awful” and his captors’ treatment of the POWs was “brutal,” he said.
“Our captors thought we had all the secrets of the American military,” he said. “They didn’t realize once we hit the ground, our war was over.”
He and the other POWs had no knowledge of future intended targets or new policy and tactics, he said.
Food was minimal. Medical attention was almost nonexistent. Pollack lost 35 pounds.
“They kept us alive because we were their ransom for the future,” he said. “We were worth something.”

A framed photo of Pollack shaking another officer’s hand in 1973 after Pollack’s release from the Hua Lo Prison. Photo provided

Their isolation was near total. They rarely left their cells, which usually housed four men, and the only outside “news” they heard came from two radio propaganda broadcasts each day.
To stave off madness, Pollack said, he thought about his life over and over again and talked to the other men.
They created clandestine communication systems to talk with prisoners in other cells. When these were discovered, punishment was swift and harsh. “We all have the mental and physical scars to show for it,” he said.
One system was to wrap a metal drinking cup in a towel to muffle sound and put the cup against the brick wall. A prisoner in an adjoining cell would do the same, allowing the two to hear each other. That was how he first communicated with McCain.
“We talked about everything, your life, personal aspirations,” he said.
More recent POWs would tell about the status of the war, news from outside and what was happening in the United States.
Word eventually spread that McCain’s father was a four-star Navy admiral.
Even so, “he was just John. He was just another guy trying to survive.” Pollack said.
The two came to know each other “pretty intimately.”
He and the other men knew McCain, then a 31-year-old lieutenant commander captured on Oct. 26, 1967, and badly injured, had refused an offer of early release. Many of the other POWs got the same offer, including Pollack, and also refused, he said.
“The only reason they offered the release was for propaganda value,” he said. McCain “would not play their game. As battered and wounded as he was, that was a very strong thing to do.”
In exchange for early release, interrogators wanted the POW to sign a letter admitting to committing war crimes and asking the people of North Vietnam for forgiveness.
“I told my interrogator, I am sorry I cannot do that,” Pollack said. “We had to uphold the code of conduct.”
Pollack finally met McCain face-to-face just prior to his release on March 4, 1973, after they were told the war was over and their captors let them out into a courtyard. McCain was released 10 days later.
“He once made a comment to me that my humor helped save his life,” he said. “That was very touching.”
The two men stayed in touch through reunions of members of the NAM-POWs veterans organization, and when Pollack would visit Washington, D.C. The last time they saw each other was in 2016, when McCain was in Boca Raton for a fundraising event for his U.S. Senate re-election campaign and they spent an evening together.
McCain’s funeral services amazed Pollack. He described them as “a week that outdid any president or head of state or royalty.”
“He deserved it,” Pollack said. “And it shows how much this country is looking for leadership today.”

To learn more about Vets Helping Heroes, visit www.vetshelpingheroes.org.

By Mary Thurwachter

The Florida Commission on Ethics has found probable cause that Lantana Mayor David Stewart misused his position to attempt to obtain a sexual benefit for himself. Probable cause also was found to believe he solicited sex from a constituent based on an understanding his vote, official action, or judgment would be influenced.
A probable cause finding is not a determination that Stewart violated ethics laws, but that there is enough evidence of a violation to allow the investigation to proceed to a full evidentiary hearing, if Stewart chooses, said Kerrie J. Stillman, a spokesperson for the Commission on Ethics.
If that happens, the matter would go before the Division of Administrative Hearings.
Another option for Stewart would be agreeing to a settlement, the terms of which would be decided by the commission’s advocate and Stewart and his legal representative.
The ethics complaint was filed in January by Lantana resident Catherine Padilla. She claims she and Stewart, 65, had become friends when both attended meetings of the Hypoluxo-Lantana Kiwanis Club.
Their relationship took an objectionable turn in 2015, according to Padilla, when, after a morning Kiwanis meeting, the two had lunch after which he drove her to a motel and propositioned her for sex. Padilla, 54, said she “wasn’t interested” and that Stewart drove her back to her car.
She said Stewart called her a week or two later and said he would guarantee her street would get speed tables, a safety measure for which she had lobbied, if she would have sex with him at the motel.
Stewart, who has been mayor for 19 years, has said the accusations were totally false and that he has never asked for, or accepted, anything in exchange for a vote. After the probable cause finding was announced on Oct. 24, Stewart said it would not be appropriate for him to comment, as he had not heard officially from the Commission on Ethics about the ruling.
However, in documents filed as a response to the advocate’s recommendation, Stewart denied Padilla’s accusations.
Among those interviewed by the advocate this summer were friends of Padilla — David Brinkley, Kem Mason and Pastor Michael DeBehnke — who said Padilla had confided in them about her accusations. Also interviewed by the advocate was Town Manager Deborah Manzo, who said Padilla had spoken to her on Dec. 5, 2017. Manzo, according to the documents, said that Stewart “never asked nor interfered in the process of granting and/or installing the cushions [speed humps]” in Padilla’s neighborhood.
In August 2015, the Town Council voted in favor of the traffic-calming speed humps for Padilla’s street. Another unanimous vote to approve the speed humps came this year on Sept. 24.
Padilla filed an amendment to her first complaint on Jan. 11, when the mayor came to her house to talk to her about the complaint and she called police.
Stewart, according to the police report, told officers he had learned of the ethics complaint filed with the state and had gone to Padilla’s house to talk with her about it.
Padilla, according to the police report, said that when she opened the door and saw Stewart, she shut it, locked it and took a photo of Stewart in his car before he left. The two never spoke during the incident, both told police.
Another complaint was filed by Padilla on March 27, accusing the mayor of using sexual innuendo during a Kiwanis Club dinner at the Whistle Stop Lounge on Oct. 24, 2017. Manzo was also in attendance. Padilla claimed she heard Manzo say she wasn’t happy with her choice of entrees and that Stewart remarked, “You haven’t tried my meat yet.”
The Ethics Commission dismissed that complaint in July “due to a lack of legal sufficiency,” according to a news release from the commission.
The Coastal Star attempted to reach council members regarding the probable cause ruling, but most calls were not returned. However, council member Phil Aridas said he didn’t know enough about the matter to comment.

For health and safety and money for the Town of Ocean Ridge, the county and the state, and as an owner at Ocean Park Manor, adjacent to the proposed Swain project, I would like to lodge my strongest objection to this permit.
Among the factors that the Army Corps of Engineers must consider when reviewing the permit application are safety, economics, aesthetics, recreation, the needs and welfare of the people and general environmental concerns. It would be right for the Corps to deny this permit because allowing any development of the area under consideration poses a serious health and safety risk.
It is not new that the proposed development cannot guarantee that the abundance of birds, fish and plant life now in that space will survive the construction. The proposed development will put not only wildlife at risk, but also the safety of the many people who use the lagoon for recreation.
In truth, it is only the vital natural resources of the lagoon that balance out the ever-increasing pollution that plagues our area.
To save our lagoon, we must rely on the powerful enforcement authority of the Corps. People young and old come daily into the lagoon on paddleboards, kayaks, fishing boats and even Jet Skis. Their discovery of all manner of wading birds, jumping fish and groups of manatees (including pups) provides fun and joy.
The investment in preserving this tiny eco-tourist spot has the proven advantage of bringing money to the local economy.
Hopefully, representatives of the Corps have had an opportunity to visit the lagoon and to take comfort in the fact that denying this permit will guarantee that the needs and welfare of the people who live in and visit this area will be protected.
Thank you for all the work the Corps does every day to protect and preserve our natural resources.

Beth L. Sindaco
Ocean Ridge

A story in the October issue incorrectly reported the number of people attending meetings at Delray Beach’s Crossroads Club. An estimated 750 people attend a meeting every day.

More than 35 firefighters with 14 trucks from Delray Beach and elsewhere in the county responded to a fire at the Gulf Stream estate of Anthony Pugliese on Oct. 29. They contained the fire to the multi-car garage and guest quarters, preserving the main home that was once the Phipps Estate. The Phippses were the founders of Gulf Stream Polo. Jerry Lower/The Coastal Star

By Steve Plunkett

A fire at the oceanfront Pugliese estate in Gulf Stream closed down State Road A1A for six hours while Delray Beach firefighters worked to control the blaze and extinguish intermittent hot spots.
No one was hurt in the Oct. 29 fire, which apparently started in a three-car garage between the guest house and the historic mansion. Firefighters did rescue two dogs, Delray Beach Fire Rescue spokesman Kevin Saxton said.
Homeowner Laura Pugliese, who with her husband, Anthony, were driving back from Jupiter, said when the fire alarm company called, she first thought it was a false alarm.
“I think it’s an actual fire, because there’s a lot of 911 calls,” she said the dispatcher told her.
Delray Fire Rescue was alerted at 5:50 p.m.
“When the first units arrived there was significant fire showing,” Saxton said.
Town Manager Greg Dunham said he got to the scene about 7 o’clock. “I couldn’t see flames, but there was smoke fully billowing out,” he said.
Fourteen vehicles responded to the blaze, including Highland Beach’s ladder truck, which Delray Beach operates. The fire was under control in about an hour, Saxton said, but firefighters stayed at the estate until about midnight.
“There were a lot of hot spots,” Saxton said.
Pugliese said an SUV in the garage had a full tank of gas, which probably caused the explosion some people heard.
Ocean Ridge police diverted southbound A1A traffic onto Woolbright Road. Delray Beach police directed northbound motorists to turn around in the parking lot of the Gulf Stream Golf Club.
“We were lucky, very lucky,” Laura Pugliese said. “No one was home, no one was hurt.”
But she and her husband had to cope with having no power or lights. “We slept with all the doors and windows open last night,” she said.
The Puglieses restored the Roaring ’20s mansion rather than tear it down. It was built by a member of Gulf Stream’s founding Phipps family.
An inspector for the state fire marshal’s office was at their home the next day. The fire marshal would take a few days to report on the cause and other details, Saxton said.

The next morning Gulf Stream police were at the scene, awaiting a fire inspector’s investigation. Jerry Lower/The Coastal Star

By Steve Plunkett

Gulf Stream’s new CodeRED emergency alert system is up and running.
“It is fully activated and ready to go,” Town Manager Greg Dunham told town commissioners at their Oct. 12 meeting.
The system allows town officials to send residents warnings via phone calls, email and cellphone text messages. CodeRED also has a smartphone app. But residents have to sign up to participate. “It’s not an automatic thing,” Dunham said.
The town is paying provider OnSolve LLC $1,500 a year for the service, which otherwise is free to residents.
CodeRED is designed to send critical and time-sensitive communications such as alerts about missing children, emergency preparedness, wildfires, emergency evacuation notices, a public health crisis and criminal activity.
Gulf Stream joins Delray Beach, Highland Beach and Boca Raton in offering CodeRED. The program is easily tailored to reach large and small audiences.
“We could do the whole town, or we could do one block of a street. Actually it could be as little as one or two houses,” Dunham said in July when he first pitched the idea to commissioners.
Some residents complained following Hurricane Irma last year that people in other cities got emergency notices on their cellphones, Dunham said then.
Vice Mayor Thomas Stanley, who was already signed up for Delray Beach’s CodeRED alerts, said he received six or seven text messages a day during Irma.
Town Finance Director Rebecca Tew said she hopes to convert everyone who sent Town Hall an email address for official notices into CodeRED participants. She has 300 to 500 email addresses of residents, house managers “and also a lot of personal assistants.”
Gulf Stream sent residents a letter urging them to go to the town’s website and click on CodeRED to sign up.
Residents can choose a user name and password or register with a Google, Facebook or Twitter account.
In other business, Dunham said Comcast has hired a subcontractor, Cypress Communications, to put its cable television and internet lines underground, much like Florida Power & Light hired subcontractor Wilco to bury its electric lines. Cypress, which expects to spend 90 days on the job, will start from Golfview and work north.
“We’re trying to get AT&T to start from the north side and move south,” Dunham said.

By Steve Plunkett

Palm Beach County Commissioner Steven Abrams, who leaves office Nov. 20, will spend only a few weeks unemployed before tackling his next job — as executive director of the South Florida Regional Transportation Authority.
His former colleagues on the SFRTA governing board hired him on a 9-1 vote to lead the agency that runs Tri-Rail, choosing his political savvy over the deep operational skills of rival job candidates.
“Oh, I’m thrilled,” Abrams exclaimed as well-wishers congratulated him following the Oct. 26 vote. “I’m excited about the opportunity.”
Abrams, who resigned as chairman of the governing board in May to apply for the director’s position, dismissed concerns about his lack of operational expertise.
“I have the background to jump right in,” he said.
The other finalists were Joe Giulietti, retired president of Metro-North Commuter Railroad in New York City and before that executive director of SFRTA for 13 years; Mikel Oglesby, SFRTA’s deputy executive director; Benjamin Limmer, assistant general manager of the Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority; and Tim Tenne, chief operating officer of the Maryland Transit Administration, who withdrew from consideration after his job interview.
Two other finalists — Joseph Black, a practice leader/director at Washington, D.C.-based Network Rail Consulting, and Raymond Suarez, chief operating officer of the Denton County Transportation Authority in Texas — withdrew before the interviews.
Jack Stephens, SFRTA’s current executive director, is retiring at the end of the year.
Abrams’ appointment seemed in jeopardy at first as board members discussed his nomination.
“I feel like the agency … needs some strong management right now,” said former state Sen. Jim Scott, a Fort Lauderdale lawyer, who preferred Giulietti.
Broward County Commissioner Tim Ryan was dismayed that so many applicants dropped out, including Tenne, “who hit it out of the park” in his interview.
“It just gave me a sense that there’s something else going on that I haven’t figured out in this whole interview process,” said Ryan, whose second choice was Limmer.
But Miami-Dade County Commissioner Esteban Bovo, who succeeded Abrams as chair and supported his candidacy, said all the applicants had good points and flaws.
“We need a person, in my opinion, that can navigate the politics of the three counties, and that’s not an easy thing to do,” Bovo said. “We need somebody that’s going to be able to go to Tallahassee, to the federal government. We need somebody that’s going to be able to exploit relationships and needs to do it immediately, the moment they hit the ground running.
“There’s no learning curve here, and that, by definition, perhaps may disqualify a few.”
The Nov. 6 general election will decide who succeeds term-limited Abrams on the Palm Beach County Commission. Running are Democrat Robert Weinroth, a former deputy mayor of Boca Raton, and Republican William “Billy” Vale, a pharmaceutical representative and political newcomer. The district covers coastal communities in the southeast portion of the county.
“The timing works pretty well,” said Abrams, who still has to negotiate his salary with SFRTA. Stephens is paid $260,000 a year.
Abrams, 60, is finishing his ninth year as a county commissioner and sat on the Boca Raton City Council as a member and mayor for 17 years.

Residents along the coast had to deal with the effects of red tide for more than a week. ABOVE: Dead reef fish lie south of the Boynton Inlet in early October. RIGHT: Lifeguard Lange Jacobs put up traffic cones and double red flags to warn of respiratory problems at South Inlet Park, a county beach in Boca Raton. Photos by Jerry Lower/The Coastal Star

By Henry Fitzgerald

Just as suddenly as red tide hit south Palm Beach County beaches a month ago, it went away. But officials say you can never be sure when these outbreaks — rare for our beaches compared to those on the Gulf Coast — will return.
“The latest results show the bacteria to be considered not present or at very low levels,” said Michael Stahl, deputy director of Palm Beach County Environmental Resources Management. “It’s certainly in decline from where we were at the end of September.”
Officials are continuing to test at the county’s beaches once a week, but that’s down from twice a week at the height of the outbreak, Stahl said.
The latest round of tests by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission at South County beaches took place Oct. 24 east of Ocean Inlet Park (very low), east of Gulfstream Park (not present), Delray Public Beach (not present), east of Spanish River Park (not present), Gumbo Limbo Nature Center (not present), east of Red Reef Park (not present), east of South Beach Park (very low), 2.9 miles east of the Boca Raton Inlet (not present) and South Inlet Park (very low).
“Countywide, we’re looking pretty good,” Stahl said.
At the end of September and beginning of October, beachgoers were complaining of runny noses, scratchy throats and burning eyes, as health officials confirmed the red tide.
Water samples from sites at south Palm Beach County beaches identified the presence of the Karenia brevis harmful algae bloom — the first appearance on Florida’s southeast coast since 2006-07.
At one point officials discovered dead fish ashore just south of the Boynton Inlet.
Officials in Lantana closed the beach there, but officials farther south monitored the situation and flew warning flags to let beachgoers know the risk.
“It was here for about two weeks,” said Kevin Saxton, public information officer for Delray Beach Fire Rescue. “We took down our warning flags on Oct. 12. I know it reduced the number of people on our beach at the time, but patrons are back. We’re glad it’s gone.”
Boca Raton took a similar approach at city beaches, deciding to keep them open, but flying a red hazard flag and the purple sea pest flag, said Chrissy Gibson, city spokeswoman.
“We monitored the situation closely, and we are still monitoring,” she said in an email. “We get daily reports from the lifeguards, are still taking samples at our beaches and are reviewing the results posted to the FWC map twice a week.”
Officials cautioned that even though red tide outbreaks are rare for this part of the state, you can never say never.
“It could return,” Stahl said. “It depends on the right environmental factors that allow for it to get into the Gulf Stream from the Gulf of Mexico and affect our beaches.”

Like its predecessor, the year-old 100-foot tree dominates the Delray Beach skyline. Tim Stepien/The Coastal Star

By Jane Smith

The 100-foot Christmas tree went up before Halloween this year, but it’s the same time as last year, said Stephanie Immelman of Grapevine Communications, LLC, the firm in charge of the tree.
Last year, Delray Beach purchased the new tree to replace the rusted structure that annually needed repair and moved the tree location to the east side of the Old School Square grounds.
“We wanted to make sure we had enough time to put it up,” Immelman said.
The tree-construction contractor, Christmas Designers Inc., finished its work in mid-October and will return in early November to build the ice skating rink and fill in the branches, she said.
The city needs volunteers to help assemble the holiday gift shop inside the tree and the interiors of the other gift shops nearby. Volunteers can sign up for shifts during the weeks of Nov. 5 and Nov. 12.
“We will start at 9 a.m. and go to 2 p.m. from Monday through Friday,” Immelman said.
Volunteers can sign up by emailing Tiffany Mazer, the tree’s “volunteer whisperer” and operations manager, at tmazer@delraybeach.com. Lunch will be provided each day.
This year marks the 25th anniversary of the 100-foot tree in Delray Beach.
“We are asking people to tell their tree stories,” Immelman said.
Anyone with tree tales can contact Mazer via email and type “tree memories” in the subject line. Photos are welcome. The deadline is Nov. 15.
Entries will be posted on a special website created for the tree, www.100ftchristmastree.com, and on the tree’s Facebook page.
The 100-foot tree lighting will be Nov. 29, the Thursday after Thanksgiving. Festivities begin at 5 p.m. Santa will light the tree at 7:15 p.m. and will stay around for photos after the tree lighting.
The event is free; nearby activities such as ice skating and the carousel rides have a nominal charge.

By Dan Moffett

Confronted with threats posed by rising seas and overly aggressive builders, Ocean Ridge commissioners are grappling with tough decisions about how much to tighten the town’s building rules.
At their Nov. 5 meeting, the commissioners will have to decide between two competing ordinance proposals that would set minimum drainage standards for lots under development.
One proposal requires developers to set aside 35 percent of their lots for pervious, or drainable, materials such as landscaping. The other proposal would also impose the 35 percent standard, up from the current 25 percent, but would carve out an exemption for smaller lots, those less than 12,000 square feet.
The commission appears divided on which rule to approve.
Mayor James Bonfiglio and Commissioners Steve Coz and Philip Besler say they are concerned about the possible hardship on homeowners with smaller lots and are considering supporting the exemption. Vice Mayor Don MaGruder and Commissioner Kristine de Haseth favor the blanket 35 percent approach, arguing Ocean Ridge needs to fall in line with neighboring communities that have stronger requirements.
The town’s Planning and Zoning Commission, on a 4-1 vote, recommended the 35 percent ordinance without exemptions, as did the town’s engineer, Lisa Tropepe, and outside planning consultant, Marty Minor of Urban Design Kilday Studios in West Palm Beach.
Mark Marsh, an architect who serves on the P&Z board, told the commission during a special meeting Oct. 15 that the stricter limit wasn’t innovative or unreasonable.
“It’s nothing out of the norm,” Marsh said. “We’re trying to catch up with other communities.”
Marsh said Manalapan already has the 35 percent standard, and Gulf Stream and Palm Beach are at 40 percent. He told commissioners that Ocean Ridge was under siege by builders who want to maximize profits.
“The whole goal is to preserve the ambience of this town,” Marsh said.
Tropepe told the commission that exceptions to the tougher standard would diminish the town’s ability to handle storm water and rising seas. She said the town needs more swales and green space — not more concrete, asphalt and brick.
“Any increase in impervious area compromises our stormwater drainage,” Tropepe said.
Bonfiglio said he thought residents should have one more chance to weigh in on the issue at the November meeting when both versions of the ordinance come up for a second reading and final approval. Only one can become law.
In May, the commission passed a moratorium on new construction projects in response to concerns about loopholes in the town’s building code. Commissioners could lift that moratorium on Nov. 5 by approving the proposed rule changes.
In other business, at the October special meeting, the commission unanimously approved the first readings of two proposed amendments to the town charter. With final approval in November, the amendments will be put on the ballot for residents to consider in the March 12 municipal election.
One amendment gives the town manager the authority to hire and fire all town employees without the commission’s approval — except for terminating the police chief, a matter that must come before the commissioners.
The other amendment provides for a limit of three consecutive three-year terms for commissioners. After serving the three terms, a commissioner must wait a year before running for office again.
At the commission’s regularly scheduled meeting on Oct. 1, commissioners advanced after first reading three other charter amendment proposals for the March ballot. One clarifies candidate qualifying periods and the beginning of commission terms. Another requires 24 hours’ notice, instead of 12 hours’, for special commission meetings and sets a three-vote minimum for approving any action. At present only a simple majority vote is required.
The third and most controversial proposed change calls for requiring a four-vote supermajority for the commission to approve increases to the allowable density or height of new developments.