By Christine Davis
In line with votes cast by Coastal Living magazine’s readers and website visitors, Delray Beach ranked third on its list of “The 10 Happiest Seaside Towns.”
Here’s what Coastal Living’s July/August issue has to say about Delray Beach: “Talk about a place that has its priorities in order. At the heart of this fun-loving city of 61,231 are two miles of gloriously white-sand public beach where sky blue cabanas and loungers stand ready for rental — a bit of Côte d’Azur meets Old Florida. But there’s nothing snooty about Delray. Enjoying the influences of tony Palm Beach 24 miles to the north and urbane Miami 50 miles to the south, the city has quietly grown its own sense of culture, including a lively nightlife that parties on weekends, an up-and-coming arts district, a world-class tennis facility, beautiful Japanese gardens, and a seashell museum.”
Crane’s Beach House Boutique Hotel & Luxury Villas, 82 Gleason St., Delray Beach, has launched its sixth annual series of Thursday Fun-Raisers to benefit local nonprofit organizations. Open to the public, and held from 6 to 8:30 p.m. at the hotel’s Tiki Bar, each event is $20 in advance and $25 at the door. Attendees will each receive one free drink ticket with additional drinks available at happy hour prices.
Crane’s will also provide an array of hors d’oeuvres and treats from leading local restaurants, and live music will be performed. The first for this season is scheduled for Sept. 3 and will benefit the Boca Raton Museum of Art with food from Cabana El Rey. The Sept. 17 Fun-Raiser will benefit Plumosa School of the Arts, and the food will be provided by Papa’s Tapas, Delray Beach. Stay tuned for October and November Fun-Raisers.
Taste your way through Delray Beach during Downtown Delray Beach Development Authority’s 7th annual Tastemakers of Delray Beach, 5:30 to 9:30 p.m. Aug. 5 and 6. Purchase a passport for $30 and enjoy cuisine paired with a beverage from 50 Ocean, Burger Fi, Cabana El Rey, Caffe Luna Rosa, Caffe Martier, Deck 84, El Camino, FY&I Yogurt, Lemongrass Asian Bistro, Mastino at Solita, Max’s Harvest, Mellow Mushroom, Mussel Beach, Smoke BBQ, Taverna Opa, The Office, Vic & Angelo’s and Ziree Thai & Sushi. For information, call 243-1077.
Chosen from nurses who work at Lifespace Communities’ 12 senior living facilities around the country, Harbour’s Edge of Delray Beach nurse LaRet Harvey received the title “Nurse of the Year for Lifespace Communities,” voted by her coworkers because of her kindness and caring demeanor. While a single mother, she earned a bachelor’s degree in nursing, and she followed in her mother’s footsteps to become a nurse at a senior living community. She’s now working on a master’s degree, and has inspired two of her four children to become nurses.
Christel Silver, owner of Silver International Realty in Delray Beach, recently attended the annual meeting of the Immobilien Verband Deutschland in Berlin, Germany, where she was a featured speaker and taught a certified international property specialist class.
Cara Abbott has joined the Institute for Regional Conservation as its education and outreach coordinator, serving as the primary liaison of the organization at local meetings, events and conferences. The Institute for Regional Conservation, 100 E. Linton Blvd., Delray Beach, is focused on the protection, restoration, and long-term management of regional biodiversity as well as the prevention of regional extinctions of rare plants, animals and ecosystems.
Boca Raton businesswoman and philanthropist Yvonne S. Boice recently received an honorary doctorate from Franklin Pierce University, New Hampshire, which also rechristened its performing arts center to honor her dedication to advancing the arts locally, nationally and globally.
Boice currently is the chair for the 50th anniversary celebration of the National Endowment of the Humanities, the chair for the STEAM initiative at Palm Beach State College, and the chair emeritus for the Palm Beach International Film Festival. She’s also involved in the Boca Raton Historical Society, Boca Raton Centre for the Arts, World Trade Center, and YMCA of South Palm Beach County.
Robb & Stucky, a century-old furniture retailer based in Southwest Florida that went bankrupt in February 2011, recently announced that it’s opening two new east coast showrooms and seeking more locations in South Florida. In spring of 2011, Robb & Stucky was acquired by Taiwanese businessman Samuel Kuo and his family, who named Steve Lush as president. Lush assembled a group of new talent and some Robb & Stucky veterans who helped build the brand in the past.
The first new Robb & Stucky opened in Fort Myers in January 2012 and its new flagship store in Naples opened in January 2013. One of its new east coast showrooms, a $12 million venture to be located on U.S. 1 in Boca Raton, will break ground later this year and open in 2016. Each new store is expected to hire about 40 people.
The building, to be designed by MHK Architecture & Planning, will feature an open floor plan with more than 100 room-settings showcasing furniture and accessories.
In 2016, Naples home furnishings retailer Clive Daniel Home will open its second store, to be located at 1351 Boca Raton Blvd., Boca Raton. A ground-breaking ceremony was held in June. Clive Daniel Home has invested about $12 million in the project, with $8 million slated for construction on the 70,000-square-foot two-level building. Butters Construction & Development will build the furniture showroom.
Gary Broidis, principal of Delray Beach-based Atlantic Commercial Group Inc., announced the $4.1 million sale of the 9,819-square-foot Northwood Building, 630-638 E. Atlantic Ave., Delray Beach, comprising retail (currently J&J Seafood Bar & Grill and Carolina Cigar and Hookah) and office space in an off-market transaction on July 17. Broidis is a limited partner of the buyer, a subsidiary of Thor Equities.
According to public records, Northwood Financial Holdings, whose managing member is John Scarpa, last purchased the property in April 2010 for $1.2 million.
According to news sources, in 2011 the building was seized in foreclosure over a $3.77 million judgment.
Thor Equities owns property throughout the United States, Europe, Canada and Latin America, with a $10 billion portfolio and development pipeline totaling over 20 million square feet. Founded by Joseph J. Sitt, Thor Equities is based in New York City with offices in London, Paris and Mexico City.
In May, Boca Raton Regional Hospital was designated high performing in heart-failure, hip-replacement and knee-replacement procedures in the U.S. News & World Report Best Hospitals for Common Care ratings, which evaluated 4,500 hospitals nationwide on five common inpatient procedures and conditions. Roughly 10 percent of the hospitals reviewed were listed as high performers. Boca Regional was the only hospital in Palm Beach County and one of only 10 of the 145 studied in Florida to be cited as high performing in three or more categories.
U.S. News created Best Hospitals for Common Care to help patients find better care. Outcome measures such as deaths, infections, readmissions and operations that need to be repeated, as well as patient satisfaction data, largely determined the ratings. The Best Hospitals for Common Care ratings rely on Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services data for patients 65 and older, as well as survey data from the American Hospital Association and clinical registry data from the Society of Thoracic Surgeons.
Within its first year of opening, Waterstone Resort & Marina, a DoubleTree by Hilton, earned the AAA Four Diamond Rating. Waterstone, with 139 guest rooms, two restaurants, and marine docking, is at 999 E. Camino Real, Boca Raton.
The Kretzer Piano Music Foundation’s fourth annual Physicians Talent Showcase will be held at the Harriet Himmel Theater at CityPlace in West Palm Beach at 7:30 p.m Aug. 18. Among the 14 performing physicians will be Dr. Peggy Hunter, a Boca Raton resident associated with both PBC Dermatology and JFK Medical Center. She is a classical pianist and this will be her second appearance. Also, Lake Worth resident Dr. Jack Zeltzer, a vascular surgeon associated with Palm Beach Surgical Associates, Palms West Hospital, Wellington Regional Medical Center and JFK Medical Center and past president of the Palm Beach County Medical Society, will be a four-time performer. He is a talented drummer.
Tickets are $75 each and can be purchased through Complete Ticket Solutions at (866) 449-2489. Profits raised from this year’s event will enable the foundation to expand its music education programs for children in need.
H&M’s new 19,000-foot store is now open at the Boynton Beach Mall. H&M sells location clothing for the whole family at reasonable prices.
For the third consecutive year, Boynton Beach resident John M. Campanola was awarded membership into the 2015 Executive Council of New York Life Insurance Company’s elite sales force. Campanola, who was named the Greater Delray Beach Chamber of Commerce’s 2013-2014 Ambassador of the Year and received the Ken Ellingsworth Community Service Award that year, is on the board of directors for a private nonprofit Delray Beach organization, The Institute for Regional Conservation. His office is at 401 W. Atlantic Ave., Delray Beach.
Dr. David C. Brodner, a board-certified sinus surgeon, claims some of the credit for popularizing balloon sinuplasty, a minimally invasive technique that replaces traditional sinus surgery. His research and clinical trials helped pioneer the 30-minute procedure, which can be performed in the physician’s office. Brodner, who travels across the country lecturing, presenting research, and training other physicians on this technique, has presented his research at the American Academy of Otolaryngology showing that this procedure can now be performed on patients with a deviated septum.
“The balloon results in less bleeding and pain than existing surgical procedures because it works without removing delicate bone and tissue,” he explained.
Sinusitis afflicts 37 million Americans each year. Patients suffer headaches, congestion, fatigue and other symptoms. Sinusitis is typically treated first with medication. But, in at least 20 percent of patients, medication alone is not enough, and surgery is required.
Brodner’s office is at 8794 Boynton Beach Blvd., Boynton Beach.
Boynton Beach resident Claudia Bartra, co-founder and CFO of La Granja Restaurants, will be one of 12 Latinas honored for their contributions to South Florida communities at the Hispanic Women of Distinction charity luncheon in Davie on Aug. 14. The event is presented by Bank of America in partnership with Latina Style magazine, and co-sponsored by Baptist Health South Florida, Latin Business Today, Univision Networks and Sylvester Cancer Center. La Granja, a family-owned business that began 20 years ago, has more than 40 restaurants, including some franchises owned by former employees. For locations, visit lagranjarestaurants.com.
Hair Cuttery, a family-owned and operated chain of hair salons, plans to donate back-to-school haircuts to children in need this August through its 16th annual Share-A-Haircut program. From now through Aug. 15, for every child up to age 18 who purchases a haircut at one of Hair Cuttery’s salons, one free haircut certificate will be donated to an underprivileged child in that same community.
“On the first day of school everyone deserves to look and feel their best, and our stylists love nothing more than being able to give children in their community a much deserved boost of confidence,” said Dennis Ratner, Hair Cuttery’s founder and CEO.
Certificates are distributed with the help of local government and community nonprofit organizations. To date, the Share-A-Haircut program has reached more than 925,000 children with haircut certificate donations, valued at $16.65 million. To find a nearby salon, visit haircuttery.com.
In June, the Realtors Association of the Palm Beaches’ Young Professionals Network hosted its annual White Attire Fundraiser, which raised $8,000 to benefit Dress for Success Palm Beaches and Pay It Forward. Event sponsors included All My Sons Moving and Storage; Cornerstone Lending; ASD Surfaces A Francois and Co. Company; Picture It Sold Photography; Braman Motorcars; Tito’s Handmade Vodka; Kendra Scott Jewelry; Ham Studios “Highly Ambitious”; The Sugar Monkey and Title Trust Services.
Women artists, ages 55 years and older, who live or work in Palm Beach County, have up until Aug. 7 to apply for the Dina Baker Fund for Mature Female Artists at the Cultural Council of Palm Beach County. The $10,000 fund, which aims to stabilize and strengthen the careers of qualifying artists, can be used to support professional development, arts-related exhibition expenses, equipment, supplies, health care costs and/or basic living expenses. For information on how to apply, call the Cultural Council at 471-2901.
The bachelor of science in nursing program at Palm Beach State College has earned accreditation from the Accreditation Commission for Education in Nursing. For information about the program, visit www.palmbeachstate.edu/programs/bachelor.
Also the college’s ophthalmic medical technology program, the first of its kind in South Florida, was recently awarded accreditation by the Commission of Accreditation of Ophthalmic Medical Programs. This program is one of 30 nationwide to earn this accreditation and one of five programs in the U.S. accredited for certified ophthalmic medical technologist training. For more information, visit www.palmbeachstate.edu/programs/OMT.
Dr. Richard Staller of Advanced Dentistry South Florida, through a Palm Beach County inter-agency council for persons with developmental disabilities grant, will provide a free dental care day to clients of the Jewish Association for Residential Care on Aug. 17. This “Caring Heart Day” will be held from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Advanced Dentistry South Florida, 15340 Jog Road, Suite 100, Delray Beach. Staller along with Dr. Naved Fatmi, owner of Regency Court Dentistry, in partnership with Palm Beach County Dental Hygiene Association, will provide pro-bono dental care to these clients at this event. For information, call 495-2099.
Send business news to Christine Davis at cdavis9797@gmail.com.
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