boats - News - The Coastal Star2024-03-29T14:50:26Zhttps://thecoastalstar.com/profiles/blogs/feed/tag/boatsHighland Beach: Fighting a deadly wavehttps://thecoastalstar.com/profiles/blogs/highland-beach-fighting-a-deadly-wave2022-02-02T19:10:19.000Z2022-02-02T19:10:19.000ZMary Kate Leminghttps://thecoastalstar.com/members/MaryKateLeming769<div><p style="text-align:center;"><span style="font-size:14pt;"><a href="{{#staticFileLink}}10065901061,RESIZE_710x{{/staticFileLink}}"><img class="align-center" src="{{#staticFileLink}}10065901061,RESIZE_710x{{/staticFileLink}}" width="636" alt="10065901061?profile=RESIZE_710x" /></a></span></p>
<p style="text-align:center;"><span style="font-size:14pt;">Second fatality in five months and other injuries reflect growing trouble </span><span style="font-size:14pt;">on stretch of waterway plagued </span><span style="font-size:14pt;">by congestion and excessive speeds</span></p>
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<p><strong>By Rich Pollack</strong></p>
<p>It’s happened again. <br />For more than a decade Highland Beach residents living along the Intracoastal Waterway have complained that speeding boats throw off wakes that damage sea walls and docked boats. <br />They lobbied state legislators and the state agency with jurisdiction to create a no-wake zone and slow boaters down, warning that if nothing was done there could be dire consequences. <br />In August, those predictions came true when a 37-year-old woman was killed after the northbound center-console boat she was in crashed into a sea wall, ejecting her and six others, including children.<br />Then last month, a northbound center-console boat hit a wake and went airborne before crashing into pilings and hitting a docked boat. A 63-year-old grandfather died after he and two boys were tossed into the water. The injured boys were helped by residents from the nearby Seagate condominium and treated by paramedics before being taken to Delray Medical Center. <br />“We’ve had seven boating accidents behind our house over the years but there were no fatal crashes in the entire town until last year,” said Peggy Gossett-Seidman, a town commissioner who has lived beside the Intracoastal for three decades. “We’re in a more serious time now because there are so many more pleasure boats and less visibility of law enforcement due to budget cuts.”<br />Just two months before the first fatal accident, a 48-year-old Boca Raton man was seriously injured when a northbound boat slammed into the back of his smaller vessel. That boater, Harold “JR” Ewing, is still recovering from his injuries. <br />While accidents on the Intracoastal Waterway are not uncommon, the number of fatal boating crashes on the waterway remains fairly low. <br />Since 2016, there have been five fatal crashes on the part of the Intracoastal that cuts through Palm Beach and Broward counties, according to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, which oversees the waterway.<br />That two happened along the 3-mile stretch in Highland Beach — within just five months of each other — has residents hoping something can be done soon to slow boaters down. <br /> Following the second accident, state Rep. Mike Caruso reached out to leaders of the FWC, which is investigating the crashes. They told him a management team would soon be sent to the area to determine if a no-wake zone should be established, Caruso said. <br />In a Jan. 31 email, the FWC confirmed its staff had met with Caruso the previous week and that the agency would take steps to improve safety in the area.<br />The agency “previously met with county staff in regards to the application process for a boating restricted area,” an FWC spokesperson wrote. “We have also increased patrol efforts in this specific area.”<br />In addition, the town of Highland Beach hopes to launch its new marine unit, with a boat that will patrol the Intracoastal, by next month.</p>
<p><strong><a href="{{#staticFileLink}}10065901090,RESIZE_400x{{/staticFileLink}}"><img class="align-left" src="{{#staticFileLink}}10065901090,RESIZE_400x{{/staticFileLink}}" width="203" alt="10065901090?profile=RESIZE_400x" /></a>More and bigger boats<a href="{{#staticFileLink}}10065901681,RESIZE_400x{{/staticFileLink}}"><img class="align-right" src="{{#staticFileLink}}10065901681,RESIZE_400x{{/staticFileLink}}" width="239" alt="10065901681?profile=RESIZE_400x" /></a></strong><br />Veteran boaters John and Maggie Chappelear, who live just off the Intracoastal, say multiple factors make boating — especially on weekends — more dangerous than it used to be. More and bigger boats on the narrow stretch of water moving at faster speeds create wakes that can cause havoc for smaller vessels, the Chappelears say. “It’s all about the wakes,” Maggie Chappelear said. “Wakes are killing people.” <br />Wakes and speed, Gossett-Seidman said, create a dangerous situation, especially for less experienced boaters. <br />“If you see a big wake coming you can just slow down and, in most cases, just ride over it,” she said. “If you don’t slow down, you’ll hit the wake full speed and hit it hard. You can’t always control a boat under speed that’s hit by a large wake.” <br />Gossett-Seidman, herself a boater, said that traffic on the Intracoastal has continued to grow to the point where some more experienced boaters stay home on Saturday and Sunday. <br />“Some weekends it looks like I-95 on the Intracoastal,” she said. “It’s just one boat after another.” <br />The migration of people from the north during the pandemic could play a role in that, Gossett-Seidman says. <br />“So many people come here and want to live the boating life,” she said. <br />Slowing down the transplants and other boaters has been a battle Highland Beach leaders have been fighting for years. <br />The speed limit on the waterway by Highland Beach is 25 miles per hour during manatee season, which runs mid-November through March, and 30 mph off season. Even if boaters go the speed limit — and that’s a big if — they’re going too fast for the conditions, the Chappelears say.<br />They believe that requiring a minimum wake speed would cut down on the problems, but persuading the FWC to lower the speed has been a challenge.<br />Maggie Chappelear, who sits on the town’s Natural Resources Committee, says she’s been told that a vessel congestion study, an accounting for tickets issued on the waterway and additional data would be needed before lowering the speed would even be considered.</p>
<p><strong>Town especially vulnerable</strong><br />The Chappelears and Gossett-Seidman say that one reason the stretch of Highland Beach has so many accidents is that boaters coming from the south have to stay slow until they get to the Spanish River Boulevard bridge and boaters from the north remain slow as they approach the Linton Boulevard bridge. <br />Some boaters, they say, try to make up for lost time when they get to Highland Beach. <br />Maggie Chappelear said that several blind corners on the waterway, where entering boat captains can’t see if traffic is coming, also create issues. <br />Although the FWC does have officers on boats patrolling the Intracoastal, local law enforcement officials say that department just doesn’t have the staffing and the resources to make a significant impact. <br />That is one reason why Highland Beach is launching a new marine unit focused primarily on the Intracoastal but also available for use on the ocean and inland waters. <br />The decision by the Town Commission to spend $164,000 on the boat — and to staff it with a dedicated officer — came following the first fatal accident.<br />The focus, says Town Manager Marshall Labadie, will be on slowing boats down, primarily by being visible and through education. <br />“We’re finding that some boats are going faster than the speed limit,” he said. “A presence during high-use periods will be very useful.” <br />Highland Beach Police Chief Craig Hartmann says the department has already hired an experienced marine officer to oversee the marine unit operations and should have the boat in hand soon. He hopes to have the boat in the water as early as March. <br />“Like everything else, our goal with the marine unit will be on compliance,” he said.</p>
<p><strong>A push for state legislation</strong><br />Caruso (R-Delray Beach) believes the state Legislature can take steps to enhance safety.<br />He said he plans to meet with sponsors of a proposed bill addressing several boater safety issues and possibly introduce an amendment that would provide regulations for safer conditions on the Intracoastal. <br />He said he’s also concerned about the impact that wakes from speeding boats can have on sea walls as well as on manatees and natural areas that provide wildlife habitat. <br />“We’ve got a lot of concerns, and slowing boats can alleviate many of them,” he said. </p>
<p><a href="{{#staticFileLink}}10065903678,RESIZE_930x{{/staticFileLink}}"><img class="align-center" src="{{#staticFileLink}}10065903678,RESIZE_710x{{/staticFileLink}}" width="710" alt="10065903678?profile=RESIZE_710x" /></a><a href="{{#staticFileLink}}10065909283,RESIZE_180x180{{/staticFileLink}}"><img class="align-center" src="{{#staticFileLink}}10065909283,RESIZE_180x180{{/staticFileLink}}" width="176" alt="10065909283?profile=RESIZE_180x180" /></a></p></div>Boynton Beach: Boynton settles on $200 pass for boatershttps://thecoastalstar.com/profiles/blogs/boynton-beach-boynton-settles-on-200-pass-for-boaters2020-10-28T16:17:28.000Z2020-10-28T16:17:28.000ZMary Kate Leminghttps://thecoastalstar.com/members/MaryKateLeming<div><p><strong>By Jane Smith</strong><br /> <br />Boynton Beach boaters were able to persuade the City Commission to reduce the annual parking pass from $350 to $200 at Harvey E. Oyer Jr. Park on the Intracoastal Waterway.<br /> The Sept. 22 decision was made at the city’s final budget hearing. The new rate of $200 for Florida residents took effect on Oct. 1.<br /> “The $350 rate is causing quite an uproar,” Boynton Beach resident Sven Mautner told The Coastal Star on Sept. 9. “They are basing it on $1 a day.” <br /> But he said the annual parking pass cost just $50 in the financial year that ended Sept. 30.<br /> “I have a 21-foot boat with a single motor,” Mautner said. “I use it to go snorkeling with my wife. We bring along some sandwiches.”<br /> He first read about the proposed $300 increase in The Coastal Star. <br /> Resident Clifton J. Bell sent an email on Sept. 9 to Commissioner Christina Romelus and Public Works Director Andrew Mack with this subject line: “City Resident Boat Decal 700% Increase is EXTREME.”<br /> He objected to Boynton Beach residents’ having to pay the increased cost of the annual permit when the city has installed metered kiosks that operate 24 hours a day, seven days a week. “Our taxes already go towards funding of city parks,” he wrote.<br /> The city now charges any vehicle that uses the long boat spaces $1.50 per hour, payable at the two parking kiosks. <br />The maximum daily charge is $10 weekdays and $25 on weekends. <br /> Boynton Beach offers boat owners an annual parking pass at $200 for Florida residents and $350 for nonresidents.</p>
<p><strong>Ramp replacement in the works</strong><br /> At the Sept. 22 final budget hearing, Mack explained that the city is using penny sales tax money and a Florida Inland Navigation District grant to replace the boat ramp. Requests for proposals will go out in the first quarter of the new financial year, he said. Actual construction will start in late spring or early summer, Mack said. <br />Because of the boat ramp construction, Commissioner Justin Katz proposed a $100 annual parking pass. “Boaters might not be able to use the ramp,” he said. <br />But Mayor Steven Grant wanted to keep the parking pass at $200. <br /> “If you use the boat ramp eight times during the weekends or 20 times during the week, the pass will pay for itself,” he said. “People abuse the boat ramp and leave their trailers there.”<br /> The idea of charging for parking is to allow more boaters to use the park, said Colin Groff, assistant city manager. “Ten shorter spots will be free. But if you park in the longer spaces, you will have to pay,” he said. <br /> Reducing the pass cost by $150 would mean about $50,000 in reduced revenue to the city, Groff said. “But the city could sell more passes at the lower rate. We just don’t know where the numbers will be,” he said.<br />City commissioners narrowly approved the $200 annual parking pass rate, with Vice Mayor Ty Penserga and Katz voting no. Penserga had said at the first budget hearing that the pandemic was not the time to be raising rates.</p></div>On the Water: Gumbo Limbo beachcombing walks offer entertainment, educationhttps://thecoastalstar.com/profiles/blogs/on-the-water-gumbo-limbo-beachcombing-walks-offer-entertainment-e2019-02-27T00:27:18.000Z2019-02-27T00:27:18.000ZThe Coastal Starhttps://thecoastalstar.com/members/TheCoastalStar<div><p style="text-align:center;"><strong><a href="{{#staticFileLink}}7960839457,original{{/staticFileLink}}" target="_blank"><img src="{{#staticFileLink}}7960839457,original{{/staticFileLink}}" class="align-center" alt="7960839457?profile=original" /></a></strong><em>Beachcombers enjoy the breeze, sand and surf during a guided outing at Red Reef Park. <strong>Photos by Willie Howard/The Coastal Star</strong></em></p>
<p><strong>By Willie Howard</strong></p>
<p>Scavenging the wrack zone for shells and sea beans can fill collectors’ baskets and pique the curiosity of anyone interested in the origins of things deposited on the sand.</p>
<p>To learn a bit more about the many things that wash ashore, I attended one of the free Beach Treasures outings offered by Gumbo Limbo Nature Center.</p>
<p>Our beach guide and instructor, Debbie Wilson, began our session with a classroom talk at Gumbo Limbo to give us some idea of what to look for before we hit the beach.</p>
<p>Wilson showed us several types of seashells and the marine animals that live in them, as well as corals, sponges, sea stars, volcanic rock, sandstone, sea glass and “sea beans” or seed pods from plants, many from far-away places.</p>
<p><a href="{{#staticFileLink}}7960839085,original{{/staticFileLink}}" target="_blank"><img src="{{#staticFileLink}}7960839085,original{{/staticFileLink}}" class="align-left" width="330" alt="7960839085?profile=original" /></a><a href="{{#staticFileLink}}7960839882,original{{/staticFileLink}}" target="_blank"><img src="{{#staticFileLink}}7960839882,original{{/staticFileLink}}" class="align-left" width="330" alt="7960839882?profile=original" /></a><a href="{{#staticFileLink}}7960839692,original{{/staticFileLink}}" target="_blank"><img src="{{#staticFileLink}}7960839692,original{{/staticFileLink}}" class="align-left" width="330" alt="7960839692?profile=original" /></a><a href="{{#staticFileLink}}7960840290,original{{/staticFileLink}}" target="_blank"><img src="{{#staticFileLink}}7960840290,original{{/staticFileLink}}" class="align-left" width="330" alt="7960840290?profile=original" /></a></p>
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<p><em>TOP LEFT: The purple sea snail shell is a real find for beachcombers. TOP RIGHT: The lightning whelk gets its name from bolt-like streaks on its shell. BOTTOM LEFT: Walk leader Debbie Wilson displays a bowl containing golf ball beans, tropical almonds and mangrove seedlings. BOTTOM RIGHT: The sea heart, a seed pod from trees growing in South America and Africa, is <em>carried to Florida beaches by current and wind. <strong>Photos by Willie Howard/The Coastal Star</strong></em></em></p>
<p>After Wilson’s classroom talk, we drove to Red Reef Park — where we did not have to pay for parking — and headed onto the beach, where we found strong wind, piles of decaying Sargasso weed and purple Portuguese men-of-war, which we avoided after being warned about their venomous tentacles.</p>
<p>Our eager group found several golf ball beans — round, brown seed pods — as well as lighter colored tropical almonds. (Check them out on seabean.com.)</p>
<p>A flip-flop on the sand was covered in gooseneck barnacles, a sign that it had been drifting for a while. Some members of our group were rewarded with treasures, such as the shells of the purple sea snail and the lightning whelk.</p>
<p>“It’s really good for the kids to be out here,” said Jennifer Longinos of Delray Beach, whose son found a purple sea snail. <br /> Allison McCarrick, a winter resident of Lake Worth, used a stick to sift through decaying mats of Sargasso weed to find a sea heart — a handsome, dark-brown seed pod shaped like a heart.</p>
<p>Impossible to ignore was the rubbish on the beach, including plastic bags, baby shoes, flip-flops, drink bottles, shards of plastic and a tiny glass ampule containing something, possibly perfume.</p>
<p>We left the beach with bags of trash to throw away and with a few natural treasures to take home.</p>
<p>Gumbo Limbo Nature Center offers free Beach Treasures talks and walks twice a month. This month’s schedule is 3 p.m. March 6 and 20. Find more and sign up online at gumbolimbo.org.</p>
<p><strong>FWC approves shore-based shark fishing rules</strong></p>
<p>Anglers fishing for sharks from Florida beaches will be required to take a class and obtain a free shore-based shark fishing permit under rules approved Feb. 20 by the Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission.</p>
<p>The new FWC rules, effective July 1, follow months of public workshops held to address growing concerns that shark fishing from the beach endangers swimmers and harms sharks that are sometimes dragged onto beaches for photos before being released.<br /> Some of the new rules apply to anglers targeting sharks from boats as well as from beaches.</p>
<p>In addition to mandatory education to obtain a shore-based shark fishing permit, the new rules will:</p>
<p>• Prohibit chumming from beaches.</p>
<p>• Require the use of non-offset, non-stainless steel circle hooks when targeting sharks — from land or from a boat.</p>
<p>• Require anglers to cut the leader, line or hook to prevent the delayed release of sharks that are protected from harvest. Twenty-six species of sharks, such as hammerhead, lemon and Caribbean reef sharks, cannot be possessed or harvested in Florida.</p>
<p>• Require anglers to keep protected sharks in the water while releasing them from land or from a boat.</p>
<p>• Require anglers targeting sharks, from land or from a boat, to carry a device that can quickly cut a hook or leader to release a shark.</p>
<p>The shore-based shark fishing permit requirement will apply to anglers younger than 16, unless they are fishing with an adult who holds a permit. Florida anglers older than 65 (who are exempt from the fishing license requirement) also will be required to take a class and obtain the free shore-based shark fishing permit if they plan to fish for sharks from land.</p>
<p>Also on Feb. 20, FWC commissioners banned the harvest of live fish and invertebrates for aquariums from the Blue Heron Bridge dive site near Phil Foster Park, effective April 1.</p>
<p>Jessica McCawley, director of the FWC’s Division of Marine Fisheries Management, said the Blue Heron Bridge dive site north of Peanut Island has become an internationally recognized diving destination.</p>
<p>The ban on live harvest of marine life does not affect hook-and-line fishing, cast netting or the legal harvest of spiny lobster in the Blue Heron Bridge area. Boaters carrying live fish legally taken from other areas will be allowed to transport them through the sanctuary.</p>
<p><strong>Palm Beach boat show set for March 28-31</strong></p>
<p>The 34th annual Palm Beach International Boat show — featuring $1.2 billion worth of boats and accessories on display as well as fishing seminars for adults and children — is set for March 28-31 along Flagler Drive in downtown West Palm Beach.</p>
<p>Hook the Future will present free fishing clinics for kids on March 30 and 31.</p>
<p>Experts with the IGFA School of Sportfishing will offer adult fishing seminars, free with admission, throughout the show.</p>
<p>Admission: $28 for adults and $18 for ages 6-15. There’s no admission charge for children younger than 6.</p>
<p>For information on tickets, parking and transportation maps, visit PBBoatshow.com.</p>
<p><strong>Fishing tournament to benefit Navy SEALs</strong></p>
<p>The Naked Warrior Project and 26 North Yachts will host a fishing tournament March 9 to raise money to memorialize fallen Navy SEALs and to help injured SEALs and their families.</p>
<p>The inaugural Naked Warrior Project Fishing Tournament for kingfish, dolphin, wahoo, tuna and cobia will be based at Sands Harbor Resort and Marina, 125 N. Riverside Drive, Pompano Beach. The captains meeting and kickoff party is scheduled for 6 p.m. March 7 at Sands Harbor Resort and Marina.</p>
<p>The entry fee is $500 per boat. Fishing teams can register and pay online at nakedwarriorproject.org or at 26 North Yachts, 2525 Marina Bay Drive in Fort Lauderdale.</p>
<p>The nonprofit Naked Warrior Project was founded by John Owens, whose brother, Ryan, a Navy SEAL, was killed in action in 2017.</p>
<p>Report encounters with diseased lionfish, FWC asks <br /> Invasive lionfish with ulcers have been found in Florida waters as far south as Fort Pierce, and state researchers are asking anyone who encounters a diseased lionfish to report it.</p>
<p>Lionfish have been found with ulcers that expose muscle tissue. Anyone who finds such a lionfish is being asked to note the number of fish affected and the location. Take photographs if possible.</p>
<p>Reports can be submitted through the FWC Reporter smartphone app or by calling the Fish Kill Hotline at 800-636-0511.</p>
<p><strong>Coming events</strong><br /></p>
<p><strong>March 2:</strong> Basic boating safety class offered by Coast Guard Auxiliary, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. in the headquarters building at Spanish River Park, 3939 N. Ocean Blvd., Boca Raton. Fee $35 ($5 for ages 12-19). Register at the door. Bring lunch. Call 391-3600 and leave a message.</p>
<p><strong>March 5:</strong> Boynton Beach Fishing Club meets, 7 p.m. at classroom building next to the boat ramps, Harvey E. Oyer Jr. Park, 2010 N. Federal Highway, Boynton Beach. Free. bifc.org.</p>
<p><strong>March 23:</strong> Basic boating safety class offered by Coast Guard Auxiliary, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. in the classroom building next to the boat ramps, Harvey E. Oyer Jr. Park, 2010 N. Federal Highway, Boynton Beach. Fee $20. Register at the door. Call 704-7440.</p>
<p><strong>March 29-30:</strong> REEF’s Winter Lionfish Derby. Final registration and captains meeting 5:30 p.m., March 29, at REEF headquarters, 98300 Overseas Highway, Key Largo. Lionfish diving March 30. Lionfish will be taken to the docks at Sharkey’s Pub for scoring. Entry fee $120 per team of two to four divers. Call 305-852-0030 or visit reef.org.</p>
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<p style="text-align:center;"><em><strong>Nearly 100-pound kingfish caught off Fort Lauderdale</strong></em></p>
<p style="text-align:center;"><em>The Happy Day Today crew, including honeymooning couple Mike and Brooke Hayes of Indiana, celebrates the 97.8-pound kingsh that Mike Hayes caught while fishing off Fort Lauderdale Jan. 20. Toasting with the couple are Capt. J.B. Sirgany, in yellow coveralls, and mate Troy McDonald. <strong>Photo provided</strong></em></p>
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<p><strong>Nearly 100-pound kingfish caught off Fort Lauderdale</strong></p>
<p>Mike and Brooke Hayes were visiting Fort Lauderdale during their honeymoon in January when they decided to take a half-day fishing trip aboard the Happy Day Today charter boat.</p>
<p>Fishing with Capt. J.B. Sirgany and mate Troy McDonald, Mike Hayes caught a kingfish so big it could have broken a 20-year-old world record — if it had been caught on different tackle.</p>
<p>Jack Vitek, chief of staff for the International Game Fish Association, which verifies world records, said the IGFA would not consider the kingfish for world-record status because IGFA rules prohibit the use of treble hooks when fishing with live bait.</p>
<p>The owner of the charter boat, Capt. Thomas Zsak, said Mike Hayes caught the kingfish using 30-pound-test tackle after it hit a small, live “bullet” bonito.</p>
<p>The Happy Day Today crew was fishing a drop-off along the coast of Fort Lauderdale. Mike Hayes fought the fish for an hour and 53 minutes.</p>
<p>The kingfish weighed 97.8 pounds. It measured 67 inches to the fork of the tail and had a girth of 31.75 inches.</p>
<p>The all-tackle world record for king mackerel, better known as kingfish, is 93 pounds. Steve Graulau caught that kingfish in April 1999 off San Juan, Puerto Rico. The Florida record kingfish — 90 pounds — was caught in 1976 by Norton Thomton off Key West. <br /> <br /> <strong>Tip of the month</strong></p>
<p>Want to fish spring tournaments for kingfish, dolphin and wahoo? If so, start planning. The KDW tournament season kicks off April 6 with the Boynton Beach Firefighters Fishing Tournament and Firehouse Chili Cookoff. (Visit boyntonbeachfirefighters.com). The Lantana Fishing Derby is set for May 4. (Visit lantanafishingderby.com). Discounts apply for early entry.</p>
<p><em>Willie Howard is a freelance writer and licensed boat captain. Reach him at tiowillie@bellsouth.net.</em></p></div>Boca Raton: Public input scuttles talk of boat launches at Rutherford Parkhttps://thecoastalstar.com/profiles/blogs/boca-raton-public-input-scuttles-talk-of-boat-launches-at-rutherf2018-02-28T17:06:24.000Z2018-02-28T17:06:24.000ZMary Kate Leminghttps://thecoastalstar.com/members/MaryKateLeming769<div><p><span><b>By Steve Plunkett</b></span></p>
<p>Boaters and landlubbers alike appear to have put the kibosh on a proposal to add boat launches at Rutherford Park.</p>
<p>Only one person held up his hand signaling a desire to proceed at the end of a crowded outreach session Feb. 26 at the Downtown Library. </p>
<p>“Who will be accountable for the opinions that you’ve heard here today, which is 99 to 1?” asked the boater who sought the show of hands.</p>
<p>Dan Grippo, the city’s municipal services director, said his department would carefully consider the input.</p>
<p>“Clearly no one here wants boat ramps, so it probably won’t go anywhere,” Grippo said. “Typically, from my experience here in six years, when the public speaks out, you tend to get what you want in the projects we’re in charge of. … If you don’t want them, trust me, they don’t happen.”</p>
<p>The evening started off calmly, with consultant Mike Jenkins of Applied Technology and Management Inc. polling the room to determine that more than half the 150 attendees owned a boat, perhaps a quarter owned a kayak or paddleboard.</p>
<p>Jenkins went through the concept: adding two double boat launches to a centrally located spoil island in the park, along with a bridge to reach the island, converting the parking area to accommodate 67 boat trailers and seven cars without trailers, adding three boat wash-down areas.</p>
<p>Few residents were impressed.</p>
<p>“I don’t want to spend 2 miles of idle speed coming down to get to Palmetto Park Road and then go outside. … That trip would add 20 minutes … each way,” said Bill Trinka, who wanted assurances that the double launch at Silver Palm Park would remain where it is.</p>
<p>Over and over, residents asked about Silver Palm. Jennifer Bistyga, the city’s coastal program manager, tried with little success to keep the discussion on Rutherford Park, the announced topic of the evening. While the session was open to the public at large, at the City Council’s direction Bistyga had made an effort to invite all Boca Raton boaters who held Silver Palm launch permits. </p>
<p>Other residents were concerned about effects on the environment. Michele Peel, president of the Friends of Gumbo Limbo, cautioned that the proposed boat launches would be right across from the nature center.</p>
<p>“This is Gumbo Limbo’s backyard,” she said. “People come to get close to nature … to see animals that are living over in the … area, animals that are not compatible with having an active, motorized boat launch there. Those animals will disappear.” </p>
<p>Still other concerns were raised about how boaters would ignore markings leading to the main Intracoastal Waterway channel 450 feet away and take shortcuts over seagrass, how trailer traffic would clog Northeast 24th Street and Federal Highway, and whether boaters and paddleboarders could coexist close by.</p>
<p>Bistyga passed out a survey for residents to fill out but did not have to go far to advise the City Council about what happened. Mayor Susan Haynie, Deputy Mayor Jeremy Rodgers and council members Scott Singer and Andrea O’Rourke were quietly watching the proceedings.</p>
<p>Overall, the gathering gave a collective thumbs-up to plans to remove exotic plants and restore Rutherford’s boardwalk and canoe trails. Several people complained about homeless people congregating in the park.</p>
<p>Gene Folden, chairman of the marine advisory board, said “it’s hard to say” how representative the session was of the city’s overall boating community, but that attendees had made their point.</p>
<p>“Their message was, they like their Silver Palm Park,” Folden said. </p></div>Boca Raton: Plan launched to add boat, kayak rampshttps://thecoastalstar.com/profiles/blogs/boca-raton-plan-launched-to-add-boat-kayak-ramps2016-11-02T14:08:20.000Z2016-11-02T14:08:20.000ZMary Kate Leminghttps://thecoastalstar.com/members/MaryKateLeming769<div><p><strong><a href="{{#staticFileLink}}7960688290,original{{/staticFileLink}}"><img src="{{#staticFileLink}}7960688290,original{{/staticFileLink}}" class="align-left" width="415" alt="7960688290?profile=original" /></a></strong></p>
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<p><strong>By Steve Plunkett</strong><br /><br /> The city plans to triple its number of boat launches in the Intracoastal Waterway by the end of 2019.<br /> City Council members told Jennifer Bistyga, Boca Raton’s coastal program manager, to pursue building two double boat ramps in central Rutherford Park along with one or two kayak launch areas, a restroom and 38 parking spaces for park visitors and boaters with trailers. <br /> They also said they want an elevated access bridge so kayaks and canoes have room beneath to navigate.<br /> “It’s exciting to see this [plan] finally get off dead-center,” Mayor Susan Haynie said.<br /> Bistyga estimated the four new boat ramps would cost $1.5 million, with Boca Raton and the Florida Inland Navigation District each contributing half. The city will pay perhaps an additional $1 million for the elevated bridge.<br /> Bistyga also will apply for permits to revive a 2011 plan to renovate Rutherford and Lake Wyman parks, but with a difference. Council members liked her idea of creating a coastal hammock habitat instead of a submerged seagrass basin that Golden Harbour neighbors just south of the park opposed. <br /> Lenore Wachtel, who lives in the neighborhood, applauded the plan. <br /> “The more activity we get there, the less homeless there will be,” she said.<br /> The council made its decision at an Oct. 11 workshop. Bistyga also presented an option for four boat ramps at the northern end of Rutherford Park, but that location was close to residents and would allow only 24 parking spots, council members said.<br /> The four new boat ramps would augment the city’s double boat ramp at Silver Palm Park, which quickly fills to capacity on holidays and weekends. Boaters there pay $20 a day or $55 a year to launch vessels and park trailers. <br /> The Rutherford boat ramps will destroy .31 acres of mangroves and .09 acres of seagrass, which can be offset by other parts of the proposal, Bistyga said. <br /> The new plan may be bad news for the owner of 7.4 vacant acres at 3822 S. Ocean Blvd. in Highland Beach, just south of the Toscana condominium towers. Golden City Highland Beach LLC had offered up to $1 million to plant and maintain mangroves where the boat ramps will be to obtain mitigation credits from the state for a construction project. Bistyga said she would update the developer as the plan progresses. <br />At a Nov. 1 meeting of the Federation of Boca Raton Homeowner Associations, Bistyga assured the Golden Harbour neighbors that the area closest to them would become an upland coastal hammock.<br />“We would not be doing any submerging,” she said.</p></div>Boca Raton: Boca inlet’s sand shoal giving boaters fitshttps://thecoastalstar.com/profiles/blogs/boca-raton-boca-inlet-s-sand-shoal-giving-boaters-fits2016-08-31T14:00:00.000Z2016-08-31T14:00:00.000ZThe Coastal Starhttps://thecoastalstar.com/members/TheCoastalStar<div><p style="text-align:center;"><strong><a href="{{#staticFileLink}}7960666494,original{{/staticFileLink}}"><img class="align-center" src="{{#staticFileLink}}7960666494,original{{/staticFileLink}}" width="622" alt="7960666494?profile=original" /></a></strong><em>A boater makes a hard turn after leaving Boca Raton Inlet to avoid the sand shoal on Aug. 22. <strong>Willie Howard/The Coastal Star</strong></em></p>
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<p><strong>By Willie Howard</strong><br /> <br /> A recurring sand shoal off Boca Raton Inlet has gotten shallower and more dangerous over the past six months, causing some boats to bump bottom as they come and go and others to run aground.<br /> Boaters familiar with the inlet have taken note and are doing what it takes to come and go without problems. Most turn south after clearing the south jetty and run south along the beach before heading east into the ocean.<br /> But some boats are going high and dry on the shoal.<br /> The Fort Lauderdale office of TowBoatU.S. has freed four boats in the past few months that were stuck on the shoal outside Boca inlet. <br /> The towing franchise office knows of five others that have run aground there. <br /> Some freed their boats without assistance by waiting for the tide to rise.<br /> Barney Hauf, of TowBoatU.S., said some boaters stop outside the inlet after seeing the shoal and call his office on their VHF radios to ask for advice before attempting to enter.<br /> Hauf said the TowBoatU.S. staff usually advises boaters to enter the inlet from the south. But even that route can be tricky at low tide. A boat that draws 5.5 feet of water bumped bottom using the south passage at low tide recently, he said.<br /> The shoal is most noticeable at low tide, when the white foam of breaking waves seems to barricade the inlet’s entrance like a fence. <br /> Capt. Paul Varian, who operates a 32-foot inboard dive charter boat, said the shoal became shallower after sand was pumped on the beach north of the inlet last winter. He still uses the inlet, but like many other boaters, he runs south after clearing the jetty. <br /> “You can’t go straight out on any boat at any time,” Varian said. “I see people hit [the shoal] all the time.”<br /> Running south from the inlet requires boaters to watch carefully for swimmers at South Inlet Park, immediately south of the inlet.<br /> Swimmers are supposed to stay in the designated area within 150 feet of the beach, and boaters are supposed to steer clear, said Steve Kaes, south district training officer for Palm Beach County Ocean Rescue.<br /> The park’s swimming area is supposed to be marked by a line of buoys, but the marker buoys were missing in August.<br /> Boaters also must watch for snorkelers who frequent rocks in 12 feet of water off South Inlet Park. Palm Beach County placed the 17,000-ton rock pile there in 2003 to create a shallow artificial reef. <br /> Not all snorkelers visiting the shallow reef display red-and-white dive flags on floats as required by law, said Gene Folden, chairman of Boca Raton’s Marine Advisory Board. <br /> A boat hit a snorkeler at the shallow reef off South Inlet Park about four years ago, Kaes said. Lifeguards rescued the badly injured young man. The boat operator never stopped.</p>
<p style="text-align:center;"><a href="{{#staticFileLink}}7960667056,original{{/staticFileLink}}"><img class="align-center" src="{{#staticFileLink}}7960667056,original{{/staticFileLink}}" width="600" alt="7960667056?profile=original" /></a><em>An incoming boater swerves around the sand shoal that has accumulated just outside the mouth of the Boca Raton Inlet. A rock pile sits just north of the inlet. <strong>Photo by Terra Server</strong></em></p>
<p style="text-align:left;"><br /> <strong>Shoals come and go at inlets</strong><br /> Shoaling off the mouth of Boca inlet is nothing new. The city hired a contractor to dredge the shoal at a cost of just under $2 million in 2013.<br /> Folden said the central beach restoration project, which placed sand on the beach north of the inlet, could be adding sand to the shoal, making it shallower for boaters. <br /> Sand from beaches north of the inlet is supposed to move through a hole in the north jetty (called the weir) so it can be collected by the city’s dredge inside the inlet, Folden said. <br /> After hearing complaints from recreational boaters and charter captains, the city is considering options for dredging the shoal, but not until after the sea turtle nesting season ends Oct. 31.<br /> “We are well aware of it,” city spokeswoman Chrissy Gibson said. “We are really in the process of exploring our options.”<br /> A dredging contractor is scheduled to return to the waters north of Boca inlet in December to complete about 1.2 miles of the central beach restoration project left unfinished because of stormy weather in January. Dredging the inlet shoal could be added to the central beach project, Gibson said, but that’s only an option at this point.<br /> “There are many factors, including scheduling, availability and procurement that have not been addressed,” she said.<br /> Shoals come and go at ocean inlets, and most inlet managers in Palm Beach County deal with the shallows outside inlets by warning boaters that they must have “local knowledge” to use the inlets and letting nature handle the sand.<br /> Shoals also exist at Boynton and Jupiter inlets. They tend to be shallowest during the winter months, when waves driven by strong northeast winds push sand across the face of inlets. <br /> The larger Lake Worth Inlet, leading to the Port of Palm Beach, is maintained for ship traffic and is less prone to seasonal shoaling.<br /> Even this summer, the shoal off the mouth of Jupiter Inlet “is as large as I’ve ever seen it,” said Mike Grella, longtime executive director of the Jupiter Inlet District.<br /> But Grella said the district has no plans to dredge the Jupiter Inlet shoal — partly for budget reasons and partly because the shoal is a natural breakwater during hurricanes.<br /> Similarly, Palm Beach County has no plans to dredge the shoal off Boynton Inlet, said Tracy Logue, a coastal geologist with the county. <br /> <br /> <strong>Boaters must be vigilant</strong><br /> For now, boaters seem to be coping with the Boca inlet shoal. <br /> Alex Warner, owner of the Gulfstream Boat Club, tells customers who rent his boats to steer clear of the shoal, but he was allowing them to use Boca inlet in August.<br /> Some boaters have become accustomed to the shoal. Even when waves were breaking on the shoal around low tide on Aug. 15, one boater tilted up his outboard engine and ran across the waves and into the inlet without incident.<br /> But hazards created by the shallow water remain, especially when boats are forced into a narrow channel of water on busy weekends at low tide.<br /> Sean Meadows, manager of the World of Scuba dive shop in Boca Raton, stands on the seat of his 23-foot Mako when heading out Boca inlet. Meadows said he needs the additional height to see over the south jetty to determine whether any other boats are running into the inlet at the same time he’s headed out.<br /> Capt. Nick Cardella, of Nick C Fishing Charters in Boca Raton, said large charter boats are using Boca inlet only at high tide. Cardella said he has bumped a few times on the shoal this summer on smaller center-console fishing boats.<br /> “I genuinely think someone’s going to get hurt,” said Sean Flynn of Boca Raton, who has been running boats through the inlet for 17 years.<br /> “This wasn’t this bad six months ago,” Flynn said. “At low tide, if you’re paying attention, you can see the bottom.”</p></div>Holiday Boat Paradeshttps://thecoastalstar.com/profiles/blogs/holiday-boat-parades2015-12-02T14:30:00.000Z2015-12-02T14:30:00.000ZMary Kate Leminghttps://thecoastalstar.com/members/MaryKateLeming769<div><p><a href="{{#staticFileLink}}7960606668,original{{/staticFileLink}}"><img class="align-center" src="{{#staticFileLink}}7960606668,original{{/staticFileLink}}" width="199" alt="7960606668?profile=original" /></a></p></div>Along the Coast: Law officers on the water navigate various dutieshttps://thecoastalstar.com/profiles/blogs/along-the-coast-law-officers-on-the-water-navigate-various-duties2015-04-29T19:03:09.000Z2015-04-29T19:03:09.000ZMary Kate Leminghttps://thecoastalstar.com/members/MaryKateLeming769<div><p style="text-align:center;"><strong><a href="{{#staticFileLink}}7960579673,original{{/staticFileLink}}"><img class="align-center" src="{{#staticFileLink}}7960579673,original{{/staticFileLink}}" width="360" alt="7960579673?profile=original" /></a></strong><em>Lake Boca was filled with boats, partiers and music on April 26 for Boca Bash, an annual party on the Intracoastal Waterway between the Camino Real and Palmetto Park Road bridges. The Boca Bash takes place each spring. In the foreground is a boat operated by Boca Raton Police officers who patrolled to ensure boater safety. <strong>Tim Stepien/The Coastal Star</strong></em></p>
<p><strong>By Willie Howard</strong><br /><br />Law enforcement in southern Palm Beach County is not always confined to land.<br />When crowds gather on the water — as they did in late April during the annual Boca Bash on Lake Boca — or when crime suspects dive into the water in attempts to avoid arrest, police take to the water in boats.<br />Police departments in Boca Raton, Boynton Beach and Lantana have boats and officers trained to use them for law enforcement — known in police jargon as “marine units.”<br />The Boca Raton City Council in March agreed to spend just over $300,000 for two rigid-hull inflatable police boats and engines to replace two older police boats. The city has four police boats, including two 30-foot Intrepid center consoles, all of which are stored on lifts at Spanish River Park.<br />Lantana police have one boat — a 28-foot Hydrasports they found with bogus hull-identification numbers on it about two years ago. After they were unable to find the lawful owner, the department modified the boat for police use, Sgt. James Eddy said.<br />Delray Beach used to have a volunteer marine unit, but it was disbanded when tight budgets forced the city to sell the boat at auction a few years ago, Officer Jeffrey Messer said. Delray Beach police still use a small Boston Whaler for their dive team — a boat that was seized by the department after it was found abandoned on the beach.<br />In Boynton Beach, the police marine unit includes two trained officers and two boats — including a relatively new 32-foot Contender named Seized Assets that was purchased in 2013 with money from the sale of boats, engines and other property used in crimes, meaning taxpayers didn’t have to pay for it. <br />Boynton Beach marine unit officers Gregg Koch and Darin Hederian demonstrated the need for on-the-water patrols in November 2011. They noticed a boat that had run aground between Boynton Inlet and the boat ramps at Harvey E. Oyer Jr. Park. <br />The Boynton Beach officers pulled up alongside the 31-foot boat to question two men on board. After questioning, the men became nervous and fled. They were arrested, and police found a large stash of marijuana hidden on the boat.<br />Marine officers’ work often consists of more routine matters, such as moving broken-down boats out of the Intracoastal Waterway to clear the navigation channel or stopping boaters to inform them about proper boating laws. <br />Maintaining order during special events is part of the job. Boca Raton’s marine officers were out in force during the annual Boca Bash in late April, when hundreds of people celebrated spring on Lake Boca. <br />At last year’s Boca Bash, Boca Raton police arrested six people for offenses including boating under the influence, domestic battery, trespassing and disorderly conduct.<br />During the past year, Boca Raton’s marine officers have used their boats to nab suspects in more serious crimes.<br />Not long after two men kidnapped a Boca Raton business owner in Delray Beach on the morning of Feb. 24 and forced him at gunpoint to withdraw money from a bank teller machine, they returned to the man’s office in Boca Raton, then took off running when a burglar alarm sounded.<br />After a search with dogs ended, a Boca Raton police officer noticed a young man jumping a fence, headed east. The marine unit was called. One of the suspects, a 15-year-old boy, was found floating in the Intracoastal Waterway on a pool float that resembled a killer whale. <br />On Aug. 26, a man crashed his car into a Delray Beach police cruiser and took off running. The man swam across a canal and ran between houses to elude police. <br />During the chase, the man broke into a house in Boca Raton and told the owners he was a landscaping worker who needed water. <br />When he heard police in the area, he took off running. Officers with Boca Raton’s marine unit pulled the 22-year-old man from the Intracoastal Waterway near Northeast 78th Street. He was charged with burglary of an occupied dwelling.<br />Because there are far fewer law-enforcement boats than police cruisers, waterborne police stray from their home waters to help other departments and agencies when necessary. <br />Boynton Beach police helped control the crowds during the March Floatopia gathering in the shallows around Peanut Island, near the Port of Palm Beach.<br />The Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office, the Coast Guard and U.S. Customs and Border Protection will call marine-unit officers from several coastal cities if they need help on the water, said Eddy of the Lantana Police Department.<br />Lantana’s marine unit officers also catch speeders on the water. The department receives $16,000 annually for manatee speed-zone enforcement to help protect the endangered marine mammals from being hit by speeding boats.<br />“We try to educate people,” Eddy said, referring to boaters who might not be familiar with manatee speed zones. “But if we pull someone over who we’ve issued warnings to before, they’re going to get a ticket.”</p></div>Along the Coast: Boat sales motoring out of recessionhttps://thecoastalstar.com/profiles/blogs/along-the-coast-boat-sales-motoring-out-of-recession2013-04-03T19:00:00.000Z2013-04-03T19:00:00.000ZMary Kate Leminghttps://thecoastalstar.com/members/MaryKateLeming769<div><p style="text-align:center;"><strong><a href="{{#staticFileLink}}7960436061,original{{/staticFileLink}}"><img class="align-center" src="{{#staticFileLink}}7960436061,original{{/staticFileLink}}" width="360" alt="7960436061?profile=original" /></a></strong><em>This year’s Palm Beach International Boat Show brought 600 vessels worth more than $1.2 billion. <strong>Cheryl Blackerby/The Coastal Star</strong></em></p>
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<p><strong>By Cheryl Blackerby</strong><br /> <br /> More than 44,000 boat lovers attended the Palm Beach International Boat Show, one of the top boat shows in the country. The show, held March 21-24, featured more than $1.2 billion worth of boats, yachts and accessories from the world’s leading marine manufacturers.<br /> It was a 10 percent increase in attendance over the previous year and a 30 percent increase in the number of boats in the show — about 600 total, from small fishing boats to super yachts. Space for boats was sold out early, said a boat show official.<br /> The show reflects a rising interest in boat and yacht sales. Florida led the country in boat sales in 2011 with about $1.5 billion. <br /> Sales of new powerboats in 2012 increased 10 percent over the previous year, and early projections indicate the industry will see additional increases in 2013 by as much as 5 to 10 percent, according to the National Marine Manufacturers Association. <br /> The star of the Palm Beach show was the largest boat, Kismet, and at 223 feet it’s aptly described as a super yacht. Built by Lurssen, the yacht is listed for $100 million, and leases for about $700,000 a week plus brokerage fees, which adds up to about $1 million a week. The agency selling the yacht is Moran Yacht and Ship based in Fort Lauderdale. The sleek yacht sleeps 12 in six staterooms.</p>
<p style="text-align:center;"><a href="{{#staticFileLink}}7960435678,original{{/staticFileLink}}"><img class="align-center" src="{{#staticFileLink}}7960435678,original{{/staticFileLink}}" width="360" alt="7960435678?profile=original" /></a><em>The asking price for Diamonds are Forever: $59.5 million. <strong>Photo provided</strong></em></p>
<p><br /> Another show-stopper was the 200-foot Diamonds are Forever, built by Benetti, displayed by Worth Avenue Yachts. The price is $59.5 million. The six-deck super yacht features two panoramic master suites and four guest staterooms. Elevators take guests to all decks, including the full-beam sky lounge. The aft part of the sun deck can be transformed into a helipad.<br /> “A 10 percent boost in retail in 2012 is significant, as this is the first time since the recession we saw healthy growth across the powerboat market, which will create momentum in 2013,” said Thom Dammrich, NMMA president. <br /> An improved economy and resurgence in American’s love for the outdoors fueled the sales boost, he said. <br /> The U.S. boating industry generates about $30 billion in annual revenue, according to Dammrich. <br /> Smaller boats — less than 27 feet — make up 96 percent of the 12.4 million registered boats in the U.S., “and are leading the industry out of the recession,” he said. </p>
<p>But super yachts, bought by billionaires such as Carlos Slim of Mexico, are doing well and sailed through the recession. </p></div>Blaze kills boater; classes aim to lesson boating dangershttps://thecoastalstar.com/profiles/blogs/blaze-kills-boater-classes-aim2011-02-03T16:22:20.000Z2011-02-03T16:22:20.000ZMary Kate Leminghttps://thecoastalstar.com/members/MaryKateLeming769<div><p style="text-align:center;"><a href="{{#staticFileLink}}7960321083,original{{/staticFileLink}}"><img class="align-center" src="{{#staticFileLink}}7960321083,original{{/staticFileLink}}" width="360" alt="7960321083?profile=original" /></a><em>Firefighters extinguish a blaze on a boat at Delray Harbor Club Marina. One man died in the fire. <strong>Photo courtesy of Delray Beach Fire-Rescue</strong></em></p>
<p>By Rich Pollack<br /><br />The 32-foot cabin cruiser, The Quarterdeck, had finished refueling at the Delray Harbor Club Marina on the Monday right after the new year began, but the strong smell of gasoline still lingered in the air.<br />Fuel had apparently spilled into the water, according to state investigators, and a dock attendant quickly put a containment plan into action.<br />Just a few minutes later, all hell broke lose as The Quarterdeck exploded, erupting into flames. <br />Two of three men onboard made it into the water and were later taken to a local hospital. <br />A third person, 67-year-old Robert Romanelli of Orange Park — apparently trapped below deck — never made it out. Investigators later found his body in the boat’s charred debris.<br />The fatal boat fire is still under investigation by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission and the state Fire Marshal’s Office and the exact cause of the explosion is still unknown. What is certain, and what the incident underscores, is that in Florida boat fires are a constant threat. <br />In 2009, the last year in which data is available, the state Fire Marshal reported 229 boat or other water-vehicle fires, responsible for $7.7 million in lost property. Although none of those fires involved a fatality, 14 people did suffer injuries, according to state records. <br />While the leading cause of boat fires is equipment failure, according to the state Fire Marshal’s Office, it is the combination of gasoline fumes and electrical equipment on board a boat that should be a major concern for all who enjoy boating. <br />On boats, it’s possible for gasoline spilled during fueling to find its way to the bilge, the area below the deck that is similar to a crawl space under a house. <br />Because there is little ventilation in the bilge, fumes can build up and become a serious threat to safety.<br />“All it takes is one spark, one little spark, and a boat can go up like a Roman candle,” says Delray Beach Mayor Woodie McDuffie, a veteran boater. <br />According to the state Fire Marshal’s Office, one of the best ways to prevent explosions is to avoid spilling fuel or overfilling a tank. A funnel is often helpful in avoiding a spill should a sudden wave tip the boat. <br />To be on the safe side, fire officials recommend letting your engines cool before fueling and turning off all electrical systems while at the pump. <br />Ventilation is also important and fire officials say it’s imperative for boaters to run blowers to clear out any fumes in the bilge and to also check for any gas fumes before starting engines or electrical systems. <br />Here are some other fire-safety tips for boaters from the state Fire Marshal’s Office: <br />• Keep your boat in good repair and be on the lookout for leaky fuel lines and frayed wires. <br />• Do not use portable electric or propane heaters onboard.<br />• Keep aisles clear and store fuel-powered equipment in a separate storage area that is well-ventilated. <br />• Make sure batteries are properly installed and not damaged. <br />• Be sure to have a fire extinguisher onboard. A multi-purpose ABC fire extinguisher is the preferred option.<br />• Make sure you have a way to communicate in an emergency available at all times. <br />Boaters who want to learn more about fire safety aboard boats can take advantage of safe boating courses offered by the U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary. <br />Classes are offered at the Boynton Beach Boat Club Park on the last Saturday of every month. <br />There is a $36 fee for the classes, which start at 8:15 a.m. and continue until 3:30 p.m. with a break for lunch. <br />To find out more, call Jerry Schnue at (561) 966-2158 or contact him at capthook21@msn.com. </p></div>Delray Beach: Beach boat storage rate likely to increasehttps://thecoastalstar.com/profiles/blogs/delray-beach-beach-boat2010-09-02T15:21:04.000Z2010-09-02T15:21:04.000ZMary Kate Leminghttps://thecoastalstar.com/members/MaryKateLeming769<div><p class="MsoNormal"></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11pt;">Delray Beach has set a course to boost the price of storing a sailboat on the beach.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11pt;">Commissioners passed an ordinance on first reading Aug. 17 to increase the annual fee for
storing a sailboat on the municipal beach to $250 plus sales tax, up from $200.
The rate hasn’t been changed since 1995.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11pt;">Second reading and a public hearing were set for Sept. 7.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:right;" align="right"><span style="font-size:11pt;"><span style="font-style:italic;">— Margie Plunkett</span></span></p></div>Delray Beach: Idyll of boat life a real life for fortunate fewhttps://thecoastalstar.com/profiles/blogs/delray-beach-idyll-of-boat2010-08-05T15:30:00.000Z2010-08-05T15:30:00.000ZMary Kate Leminghttps://thecoastalstar.com/members/MaryKateLeming769<div><p class="MsoNormal"></p>
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<p style="text-align:left;"><img src="{{#staticFileLink}}7960301252,original{{/staticFileLink}}" alt="" /></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11pt;">By Dianna Smith</span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11pt;">As the sun rises each morning, when the water is calm and other people are still sound asleep, Jim and Sande Strong peer across their deck and are reminded why they are some of the luckiest people in Delray Beach.</span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11pt;">Paradise is in their front yard.</span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11pt;">Living on a boat is just a vague dream for many, but for couples like the Strongs, it’s the real deal. They start their days reading the newspaper on their deck, which overlooks the Intracoastal Waterway, and they end their days at the same place, sipping glasses of wine while the sunset paints the sky in pastels.</span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11pt;">They’ve lived at the Delray Beach City Marina for 11 years and, before that, they lived in a three-bedroom villa in Boynton Beach. And though the Strongs have always wanted to live on the water, Sande admits she’s terrified of it because she doesn’t know how to swim.</span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11pt;">So why live on a boat?</span></p>
<p style="text-align:left;"><img src="{{#staticFileLink}}7960301278,original{{/staticFileLink}}" alt="" /></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11pt;">“Look around you,” Sande Strong said while fixing a drink. “We used to come by here all the time and Jim used to say, ‘That’s where we’re going to live someday.’ ”</span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11pt;">There are 24 slips at the marina and 14 house live-aboards. It can take months and sometimes years of waiting for one to become available. The Strongs made it to the top of the list twice before accepting the invitation the third time around.</span></p>
<p style="text-align:left;"><img src="{{#staticFileLink}}7960301291,original{{/staticFileLink}}" alt="" /></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11pt;">The inside of their boat looks more like an apartment, with three flat-screen televisions, a beautiful living room, lots of storage space and a dog named Emma, who greets everyone who comes aboard.</span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11pt;">They’ve made it through four hurricanes (and are normally evacuated before things get too rough) and they’ve traveled in their home to local Florida hot spots like the Florida Keys.</span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11pt;">But they’re often tied to the area because they own Sande’s Restaurant on Federal Highway in Delray Beach — a small mom and pop breakfast and lunch joint where the food tastes like home cooking and waitresses remember the customers’ names.</span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11pt;">“We work hard at the restaurant,” Sande said. “You deal with people 100 percent of your time. So we come home and sit by the water. It’s very calming and peaceful.”</span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11pt;">Jim has retired from the restaurant business and his wife recently cut her hours so they can enjoy more time on their boat at the marina.</span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11pt;">The City Marina is just like any other neighborhood. Neighbors look out for each other and they gather for “block parties” — cocktails and food at sunset —every now and then. The average age here is about 50, but there is a family or two in the mix.</span></p>
<p style="text-align:left;"><img src="{{#staticFileLink}}7960301100,original{{/staticFileLink}}" alt="" /></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11pt;">Across the Intracoastal are families as well, including the Petersen family — Mike, Kim and Stefan. Right now, their 65-foot boat is anchored nearby at the Yacht Club of Delray Beach, but it hasn’t always been there.</span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11pt;">The Petersens have traveled in their boat across the Atlantic Ocean into the Mediterranean, and their stops have included Morocco, Israel and Egypt. When they reached the halfway point across the Atlantic — about 900 miles from land — each family member jumped into the water and swam around the boat to mark the occasion and then celebrated with a cake baked by Kim.</span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11pt;">They called themselves the “mid-Atlantic swim team.”</span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11pt;">The Petersens lived in Canada before selling their home and most of their belongings to move to Palm Beach County in 2005. Stefan and their daughter Lauren — who is now in college — became home-schooled so the family could take part in building the boat themselves, starting with only a catamaran shell purchased in New Zealand.</span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11pt;">“We had done the whole being busy, sports, suburbs thing,” Kim said. “We were pretty well established. But we always had this dream.”</span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11pt;">And it became their children’s dreams too.</span></p>
<p style="text-align:left;"><img src="{{#staticFileLink}}7960300671,original{{/staticFileLink}}" alt="" /></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11pt;">Stefan, 16, said he got to be Christopher Columbus and discover new worlds and now he would like to one day work for the U.S. Coast Guard because he feels at home on the water. Kim recently wrote a book about their adventure called <i>Charting the Unknown</i> and she’s working on a second book about their journey through the Mediterranean.</span></p>
<p style="text-align:left;"><img src="{{#staticFileLink}}7960300684,original{{/staticFileLink}}" alt="" /></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11pt;">But for now, their journey has landed them right here in Delray Beach.</span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11pt;">They’ve been in Delray Beach for eight months off and on now and they picked the city after learning they could walk to town from their boat but still be close to the ocean. The family recently bought their first car here in five years and Mike, who hadn’t worn a suit since 2005, finally bought his first tie since moving to Florida.</span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11pt;">The Petersens are considering staying in Delray Beach. And sometimes Mike and Kim even think of selling their boat and living on land, though their children beg them not to because this boat is now their home.</span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11pt;">So the family plans to keep living the life so many envy.</span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11pt;">And when people ask them — as many do — where do you live?</span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11pt;">They can continue to answer with a smile, “On the water.”</span></p></div>Lantana: Two docks planned for Sportsman's Parkhttps://thecoastalstar.com/profiles/blogs/lantana-two-docks-planned-for2010-03-04T20:47:57.000Z2010-03-04T20:47:57.000ZMary Kate Leminghttps://thecoastalstar.com/members/MaryKateLeming769<div><br />By Margie Plunkett<br /><br /> Lantana’s plan to build two docks to provide staging for the boat launch at Sportsman’s Park will cost about $224,000, part of $300,000 county funds earmarked for the project.<br /> Council approved the design presented by Kimley-Horn & Associates Feb. 22, which consists of a two-dock structure built with timber decking and concrete piles.<br /> “The goal of the project is to provide slips to reduce the congestion and to provide day slips to let boaters come and enjoy the shops and restaurants,” said Kevin Schanen of Kimley-Horn.<br /> The eastern pier is primarily for staging, and a breakwater underneath it is designed to quell waves, he said. The other provides four slips for boats to dock for the day.<br /> The timber decking raised concern from Councilmember Elizabeth Tennyson, who pointed out the hazards of splinters and maintenance costs – and well as replacement costs if the materials are washed away in the storm. <br /> A more expensive material is available that would extend the life of the docks, Town Manager Mike Bornstein pointed out. Mayor David Stewart noted that Council’s approval was only for the initial design, that Kimberly Horn would return many times as the project progresses and Council would have the opportunity to change materials used. <br /> Public comment on the dock noted the project could benefit from making the space for the entrance ramp wider to facilitate navigation into and out of the ramp. Environmental concerns raised included whether the pressure treated wood would leach into the Intracoastal Waterway.<br /> The county granted Lantana the funds for Sportsman’s Park from $300,000 that was unused from another project. The cost of the staging docks also includes a 24 percent contingency, according to Kimley-Horn.<br /><br /></div>