Dozens of Highland Beach residents and elected officials board buses headed to the County Commission chambers in West Palm Beach on May 7 in hopes of stopping or altering the building of Milani Park at the south end of Highland Beach. Tim Stepien/The Coastal Star
Rich Pollack
Palm Beach County commissioners have slammed the door on efforts by Highland Beach residents to stop the controversial Milani Park from being built, saying they will stick largely to development plans the town agreed to in 2010.
The decision came after dozens of residents, who arrived at a May 7 County Commission meeting on buses provided by the town, reiterated one by one their fears the beachfront park would create dangerous traffic and swimming conditions, as well as be detrimental to nesting sea turtles.
County Commissioner Marci Woodward, whose district includes the 5.6-acre park site straddling State Road A1A, said she had initially sought a compromise that would reduce the number of parking spaces by more than half and at least initially eliminate bathrooms and a lifeguard station.
She said she withdrew her willingness to compromise after Highland Beach town commissioners passed a resolution saying they wanted the county to sell the park property to developers and then refused to rescind that resolution.
Fellow Commissioner Sara Baxter, who said the resolution was seen as “a line in the sand,” asked if Woodward would be willing to come back to the table if the town rescinded the resolution. Woodward balked.
“If we open this up, we’ll be met with a wall of resistance,” she said.
Residents, many of whom suggested that the property be turned into a walking park, left knowing their plans to stop the park’s development were dashed. But Woodward said she is still willing to work with residents as plans are rolled out.
The west side of the park will still have 100 parking spaces, she said, but the property will be fully landscaped and the parking lot could be mulch, for example, instead of asphalt.
Woodward said she would create a committee of residents to help with the “look and feel” of Milani Park.
“There’s a lot of creative license outside of the approved site plan,” she said. “The community can be part of the layout.”
As the county moves forward with development of the park, it will be required to meet 43 conditions of the settlement agreement that followed a court battle. Those include having an archeologist involved in planning and development of the park, which is believed to be a Native American burial ground, and a requirement that the county develop a plan for protecting sea turtle nests from recreational beach users.
Whether those 43 conditions, which were established 24 years ago, are negotiable is unlikely, although Woodward in a May 24 interview with The Coastal Star left a little room for a possible discussion.
“If the town is interested in negotiating with us they should put together a proposal in writing listing the conditions they want to negotiate,” she said, adding that there are no promises and that the number of parking spots remains non-negotiable.
Highland Beach Mayor Natasha Moore said she had not heard from the county but is open to having a conversation.
“I hope all of our actions would show that we want to work with them,” she said.
During the May 7 meeting with county commissioners, several residents voiced concerns about the safety of those who use the beach, which includes the Yamato Rock outcropping.
Fred Rosen, who lives in Boca Highland Beach Club and Marina adjacent to the park property, pointed out that the beach is small, especially at high tide, and that the area could be dangerous to beachgoers.
“We could lose a life,” he said.
Town Manager Marshall Labadie said he too is concerned that the beach is too small to accommodate the number of people who could use it if there are 100 parking spots on the west side of the road.
“Just from a resource standpoint, there’s no room on the beach,” he said. “The design is too intense.”
Labadie and Moore said the town is still looking at what its next steps, if any, will be as the park planning continues.
Following comments May 7 by more than two dozen residents opposing the park, as well as by Sierra Club members who supported development, Cam Milani said it was time the 36-year-old fight between the county and residents came to an end. The Milani family sold the property to the county for $4 million in 1987.
“At some point you have to do something,” he said.
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