Thursday, June 7, 2007

We have us a Traffic Jam! Tenemos un Lio de Transito!

And not the kind that we see on I-95. This one is in my mind. There is getting to be a real log jam of things to write about. I should have some time over the weekend to address these. Here is a quick list of some up-coming posts. I am doing this partly so that I can keep them straight in my mind and so none slip through the cracks, but mostly to inform you of up-coming attractions
  • Retrospective on the Gulfstream Hotel approval process. If you listened to my Truth Matters show on Lake Worth Talk last Sunday you learned about how the project evolved over time and I provided examples of what the project looked like in January of 2006. If you want to check out the graphics and renderings, you can go to my TalkBlog on Lake Worth Talk.com. You can access that by clicking on the link on the right side of this page.
  • Pictures, story and commentary from the Master Pump Station ribbon cutting ceremony and facility tour. I know, not quite CNN material, but interesting as it applies to our relationships with other municipalities and that pesky Mock Roo$, our engineering firm that's been with us since the Eisenhower administration. I do have a link to their website that is pretty exhaustive in describing the facility. Wonder who paid for that?
  • Tuesday night's City Commission meeting and discussion of the Beach and Casino land use designation and zoning district. Commissioner Jennings was kind enough to e-mail me her PowerPoint presentation and other background materials that she used during her discussion. I'll include some of the graphics from that presentation. So if you were unable to attend the meeting, you'll be able to get the gist of where she was coming from. The good news - they all passed - but where was our attorney Alan Ciklin and where was anyone from Greater Bay?
  • Tuesday night's City Commission and Commissioner Golden's item regarding reconsideration of the Compass lease. I'll talk about public comments and we'll reacquaint ourselves with the Golden Rule.
  • Grand opening of the Lake Worth Promenade. I stayed long enough at the event to grab some promotional materials, see some folks and talk with the leasing agent, Ryan Dinsdale, until I was called away on a business matter. I'd like to go back there tomorrow with my camera and get a walk through with him. This is a pioneer Class A office building in Lake Worth and has great significance to our position in the Palm Beach County real estate marketplace.
  • News about a national conference coming to South Florida in late October and early November which will feature a day trip to our fair city. We are identified in their conference literature as the "City of Lake Worth... a progressive community in central Palm Beach County". You won't want to miss this one. And, no, I am not telling you what it's about here - you'll have to wait for the entire post.
  • Status of our Master Plan process. The Planning and Zoning Board met last night and went over a draft set of revisions to our Comprehensive Plan. This will be work-shopped on June 27. We will also start getting our draft land development regulations (zoning code) and I'll have some information on that too.
  • And, finally, we missed the first anniversary of this blog - so I will talk about some of the highlights and the lowlights of this past year.
So, you can see there is no lack of topics to cover. I will talk about a lot of these topics on my Truth Matters show Sunday from 8 to 9 p.m. Lake Worth Talk.com

Also, the two previous posts were quickies - one from the Palm Beach County ERM website regarding the sediment management project for the C-51 canal and one from the Palm Beach County government website regarding the courthouse restoration project on-going in West Palm Beach. Hope you find them informative.

Now, it's off to karaoke at the Mad Hatter! See you later.

C- 51 Sediment Management Project - Lake Worth Lagoon

Storm water collected in the C-51 Canal (Canal) discharges through the S-155 control structure to the Lake Worth Lagoon (Lagoon). Pollutants contained in the storm water are believed to be a major contributing source of the organically enriched muck located in both the Canal and the Lagoon. The muck creates an unnatural, anaerobic substrate devoid of invertebrate life and marine grasses and contributes to both the loss of fisheries habitat and the decline of commercial and recreational fish species found within the Lagoon. The muck also reduces water flow within the Canal, restricting its capacity to control flooding.

A three-way interlocal agreement for a sediment management project will result in cleaner water entering the Lake Worth Lagoon and in turn, enhanced habitat for fish, wildlife and aquatic vegetation. County Commissioners Warren Newell and Jeff Koons spearheaded the effort to set up the dredging operation along the Canal. The initial aim is to remove approximately 125,000 cubic yards of organic sediment that have built up on the Canal bed. Then, a deep hole will be dug to act as a trap for silt and other contaminants that otherwise would flow into the Lagoon.

Palm Beach County is putting up $2 million to set up the operation and will manage it for two years. It will then be turned over to the South Florida Water Management District (SFWMD), which owns the C-51 Canal, also known as the West Palm Beach Canal. The SFWMD will reimburse the County up to $1 million toward the cost of the project. The third party to the agreement, the City of West Palm Beach, is donating the use of land it owns along the Canal on the south side of the City’s municipal golf course for use as a staging area.
“This is cutting-edge technology that will significantly improve the water quality,” said Commissioner Newell. “We’ve been doing something like this in Lake Osborne for the past two years with great results. The grasses are coming back, the sandy bottom is there, and the fish are being re-established.”

The agreement includes a $1.7-million contract with the firm J.F. Brennan Co., Inc. to hydraulically dredge and dewater the muck taken from the Canal. The work is scheduled to begin in April 2006 and continue through 2008.

Original Cornerstones and Reconstructed Eagle Installed

Commissioners

Palm Beach County Commissioners gather at the Court House for a “tap in” ceremony, marking the installation of the two original cornerstones on the building’s northwest side. Pictured above (l to r): Commissioners Jeff Koons, Warren H. Newell, Burt Aaronson, Addie L. Greene, Karen T. Marcus and Jess R. Santamaria.

Marble Cornerstones Mounted on Northwest Corner

On the northwest corner of the Court House there are two marble cornerstones affixed with wires and pins. Each square weighs approximately 400 pounds and measures three feet long by three feet wide and about three inches thick. When the original courthouse building was enclosed by a wraparound facade in 1970, the cornerstones were removed and remounted in the brick stairwell leading to the main lobby. When the wraparound was removed, the cornerstones were saved, and on May 15, 2007 finally installed back in the same exact location they occupied on the original building.

Northstone of Historic Court House
The cornerstone facing north is engraved with the names of the 1915 Board of County Commissioners as well as the contractor and architect of the original courthouse.
Flagler Stone
The square facing west recognizes Henry M. Flagler who donated the land.
Court House Hoist
Prior to the “tap in” ceremony, four workers did the real work
using a crane to hoist the cornerstones into place.

Reconstructed Eagle Perches Atop Main Entrance

Above the west entrance of the Court House sits an eagle crest carved from Indiana limestone. The five-month process of constructing the eagle was challenging as the original carving was lost during construction of the 1970 wraparound facade. Detailed drawings were created based on an archival photograph of the Court House from the 1940s and images of similar eagles from the same time period in North America.

A small clay maquette was made and then a full-sized clay model. A rubber mold was fabricated to create a negative for the plaster mold. Then it took three months for three stone carving experts to recreate the eagle in limestone with a tedious 800-year-old technique used by Italian sculptors such as Michelangelo and Bernini.

Traditional Cut Stone, Ltd., of Ontario, Canada used Indiana limestone to carve the eagle and all the new stone for the restored courthouse. Delivery to the site required 36 tractor-trailer loads of material. The new limestone is from the same quarry that provided the limestone for the original construction. This same limestone was also used to build the Empire State Building. Other projects by the Ontario company include stone carving for the exterior of Graff Diamonds on Worth Avenue in Palm Beach and restoration carving for the U.S. Capitol Building in Washington, D.C.

Eagle Clay Model
This full-sized clay model was used to create the limestone carving.

Eagle Close-up

The 11-foot-wide, 6-foot-tall and 2-foot-thick carving weighing six tons depicts an eagle with a wreath wrapped around its body and ribbon beneath its claws.

Tuesday, June 5, 2007

Hey everyone...

I am backing up with topics for up-coming posts. Just need to find time to do them. FYI - the City Commission adopted the land use and zoning changes for the beach last night. I am waiting on itemized (minor) changes to the zoning district. Also, I will have pictures and a write up on the Master Pump Station ribbon cutting - in the meantime check out this link. It is a site prepared by Mock Roos regarding the facility. And today I'll head on down to the ribbon cutting for the Promenade and will have pictures from that.

So, stand-by, more stuff on the way.

Friday, June 1, 2007

Well I love a rainy night ...

Well I love a rainy night
I love to hear the thunder
Watch the lightning
When it lights up the sky
You know it makes me feel good
Well I love a rainy night
It's such a beautiful sight
I love to feel the rain
On my face
To taste the rain on my lips
In the moonlight shadow

Wish I was washed
All my cares away
I'd wake up to a sunny day
'Cause I love a rainy night
Yes I love a rainy night
Well I love a rainy night
Well I love a rainy night

Well I love a rainy night
Well I love a rainy night
I love to hear the thunder
Watch the lightning
When it lights up the sky
You know it makes me feel good
Well I love a rainy night
It's such a beautiful sight
I love to feel the rain
On my face
To taste the rain on my lips
In the moonlight shadow

Puts a song
In this heart of mine
Puts a smile on my face every time

'Cause I love a rainy night
Yes I love a rainy night
Ooh I love a rainy night
Yeah I love a rainy night

Wish I was washed
All my cares away
I'd wake up to a sunny day
'Cause I love a rainy night
Yes I love a rainy night
Well I love a rainy night
Well I love a rainy night

I just got back from a walk with the dogs and am just about soaked to the skin. Ditto Mars and Venus. Nice to hear the rain on the roof.