News

By Steve Plunkett

    Two commissioners of the Greater Boca Raton Beach and Park District each drew two challengers for the Aug. 30 election.
    Incumbent Dennis Frisch, a podiatrist, will face one-time City Council candidate Craig Ehrnst and medical physicist Shayla Enright.
    Commissioner Earl Starkoff, an information technology services executive, will face John Costello, an accountant, and Erin Wright, who co-owns a home inspection service.
    Steve Engel, the commission’s vice chair, was re-elected to his second four-year term without opposition when no one filed to run against him by noon June 24.
    Ehrnst, 52, is corporate treasurer at NCCI in Boca Raton and has a master’s in business administration from the University of Michigan. He is on the board of directors for the Boca Raton YMCA and the Boca Raton Children’s Museum and spent three years on the city’s Financial Advisory Board. He lost his only run for a City Council seat in 2014.
    “Put residents first! Protect and cherish our most valuable assets,” Ehrnst said.
    Enright, 26, earned dual bachelor’s degrees in physics and chemistry at Florida Atlantic University in 2011, then received a Professional Science Master’s degree in medical physics at FAU in 2014 followed last year by a master’s degree in biomedical engineering from the University of Miami.
    This is Enright’s first run for office, but elections are nothing new to her family. Her mother, Jean, is running for her fourth term on the partisan Port of Palm Beach Commission.
    “Unfortunately, there is a discord between the beach and park district and the city of Boca Raton, which prevents things from getting done. I would work to make the communication between the district and city more fluid, and make sure the voices of the residents are heard,” Enright said.
    Frisch, 61, is a graduate of Boca Raton High School and the University of Florida. He earned his medical degree from the Dr. William M. Scholl College of Podiatric Medicine in North Chicago. He has been a member of the city’s Parks and Recreation Advisory Board since 2007 and was first elected to the beach and park commission in 2008.
    “Any reported differences between the city and the district are really quite narrow in comparison to the achievements made together. We must seek continued opportunities to expand green space and facilities for our children and our grandchildren.” Frisch said.
    Costello, 47, who was born and raised in Boca Raton, has a degree from the University of Florida in forest resources and conservation. This is his first run for office.
    “I’d like to bring some fresh ideas and new blood to the commission,” Costello said.
    Starkoff, 67, has an MBA from the University of Miami and is finishing up his 12th year on the commission. He is also past president of the Soccer Association of Boca Raton.
    “I will continue to lead with sound, debt-free fiscal management as a grass-roots listener and voice to protect, preserve and provide all of our residents with the beautiful beaches, open green spaces and parks that define Boca Raton,” Starkoff said.
    Wright, 37, who moved to Boca Raton when she was 6, has a master’s degree in exercise science and health promotion from FAU. She was an environmental health and safety specialist at the university before opening her home inspection service with her husband, a city firefighter. Wright was also a member of the city’s Green Living Task Force/Green Living Advisory Board for almost two years.
    “This commission needs a breath of fresh air … someone who is extremely familiar with the beaches and parks and the needs of the young families and citizens of Boca. I am ready to improve the lines of communication between the commission and the city, which I believe is vital to making our beaches and parks the best they can be,” Wright said.
    Beach and park commissioners are paid $80 for each meeting they attend and usually meet twice a month. They oversee a $46 million budget. The elected term begins Jan. 1.
    Aug. 1 is the last day to register to vote in the Aug. 30 contest.