Saturday, June 15, 2019

Lake Worth Beach press release:


Books and Bubbles: Literacy in the Laundromat


Healthier Lake Worth Funds Unique Project Developed by the Lake Worth Beach Public Library


Lake Worth Beach, Fl — The Lake Worth Beach Public Library is pleased to announce that Healthier Lake Worth has chosen to fund its groundbreaking Books and Bubbles program. This project seeks to encourage literacy in the City of Lake Worth Beach by bringing Storytime events and books to families who are not currently library users while they wait for their clothes to wash and dry in local laundromats.

“These funds will enable us to purchase start up materials and books to give to the families who attend the programs – thank you, Healthier Lake Worth!” said Children’s Librarian Cindy Ansell as she accepted the $3500.00 check.

The impact of this program is 2-fold. The families who attend the programs will be encouraged to develop early literacy behaviors and the volunteers who attend the training session will be provided with a way to positively change their community for the better.

In August, the Lake Worth Beach Library will begin training volunteers on how to present a Books and Bubbles Storytime program. The program will consist of reading simple books and singing songs to familiar tunes. Each volunteer will wear an apron which will identify them as a Books and Bubbles volunteer. Volunteers will begin visiting laundromats in September.

For more information about this project contact Cindy Ansell at 561-533-7354.

Tuesday, June 11, 2019

“A love letter to Lake Worth” by Rena Blades.


This was a letter from the Cultural Council of Palm Beach County published in March 2017 by The Palm Beach Post in a first-of-its-kind “Special Keepsake Series”.

The Cultural Council is located in the downtown in Lake Worth Beach.

Featured in this Special Insert two years ago were Mayor Pam Triolo, “[T]his City is on the road to recovery and renaissance”, a feature story on City Manager Michael Bornstein, a full-page story on the historic cottages in Lake Worth, local artist AnnaMaria is quoted, “True [local] artists need to create. True [local] artists have a passion that must be expressed.”

There was a feature story about the Lake Worth Beach and Casino Complex, “The crown jewel of city amenities, home to a beach, a pier, restaurants, a casino building, and an award-winning wedding facility.” But there was no mention of a municipal pool at the beach in Lake Worth and hopefully that community eyesore will be removed in short order.

That Special Insert published in the Post was an incredible piece of work led by editor Jan Tuckwood and photojournalist Bruce R. Bennett.

And also in that Special Insert was another feature story. One by Rena Blades herself, the past president and CEO of the Cultural Council of Palm Beach County.


Click on newspaper clipping
from the Special Insert to enlarge:

Rena Blades left the Cultural Council in January 2018 to start Delos Consulting. To meet the current administration at the Cultural Council use this link.

Just for kicks: Neil Young & Crazy Horse, “Don’t Spook the Horse”.


From the 1990 vinyl album Ragged Glory included in the “1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die”. Los Angeles Times music critic John D’Agostino called the record “impressive primitivism coming from a 45-year-old rock icon”:





From Wikipedia: “Crazy Horse is an American rock band best known for their association with Neil Young. Beginning in 1969 and continuing to the present day, they have been co-credited on a number of Young’s albums, with 11 studio albums and numerous live albums being billed as by Neil Young and Crazy Horse. They have also released six studio albums of their own, issued between 1971 and 2009.”

Monday, June 10, 2019

A work in progress.


The officially new website for Lake Worth Beach was unveiled over the weekend. To look it over for yourself click on this link.

On March 12th of this year the electorate approved renaming this City to Lake Worth Beach and then later that month the City’s website was taken down for well over two months. Part of the new website is dedicated to the “Strategic Plan 2020–2025”; worth noting, however, there are still six months left in 2019. About the new website:

This is evolving for format and to best coordinate with new name and new marketing and branding. Concept captures individual feedback meetings with each commissioner and the similarities they have.

Here is how to contact your elected leaders in Lake Worth Beach with your feedback on the new website:

  • Mayor Pam Triolo: 561-586-1735; email, ptriolo@lakeworth.org
  • Vice Mayor Andy Amoroso (District 3): 561-586-1733; aamoroso@lakeworth.org
  • Vice Mayor Pro Tem Scott Maxwell (District 1): 561-586-1731; smaxwell@lakeworth.org
  • Commissioner Omari Hardy (District 2): 561-586-1732; ohardy@lakeworth.org
  • Commissioner Herman C. Robinson (District 4): 561-586-1734; hrobinson@lakeworth.org


There are several public meetings at City Hall this week. This will be a good test going forward how well the City gets the word out and posts the agendas for the public.

Stay tuned. 

2020 Elections in Palm Beach County: A rematch, Caruso vs. Bonfiglio?


Before long the 2020 Election Season in PBC will be a very big topic. For an early look at the field and candidates thus far according to the Supervisor of Elections click on this link. It’s hard to believe but it was just six months ago that Susan Bucher was suspended by Gov. Ron DeSantis. DeSantis then appointed Wendy Sartory Link to become the Supervisor of Elections and Link promptly announced she would not become a candidate for the office in 2020. But that was then.

Another Caruso/Bonfiglio race for District 89 will most certainly focus on what happened in 2018 but it remains to be seen if that issue alone will drive the voters to the polls. It may have the opposite and negative effect and depress voter turnout or drive up undervotes especially in a highly partisan election year.

Many of you will recall in November 2018 when Jim Bonfiglio lost the House District 89 race to now-State Rep. Mike Caruso; it was a very close and contentious election. Already Bonfiglio has filed to run against Caruso once again even though the five-day qualifying period does not begin until June 15th, 2020, just about a year from now. How does one get ones name on the District 89 ballot? That information is a little later in this blog post.

Is another Caruso/Bonfiglio all but certain? Of course not. A lot will happen between now and June 2020 and most certainly others will enter the fray.

In 2018 both Caruso and Bonfiglio were vying to replace Rep. Bill Hager who was term-limited but the 2020 race will pose a much different dynamic: Mike Caruso is now the incumbent which is a huge advantage.

Caruso defeated Matt Spritz in the August 2018 Republican Primary and Bonfiglio won over Ryan A. Rossi in the Democrat Primary; interestingly, both Caruso and Bonfiglio got 56% of the primary vote heading into the November General Election. Thus far no one else has joined the 2020 race for District 89 but if a primary election is held it will occur on August 25th, 2020 with the General Election the first Tuesday in November. Terms in the Florida House are for two years and term-limited to four terms.

In the 2018 Democrat Primary for District 89 Ryan Rossi had just recently graduated from FAU and was only thirty-two years old at the time which may have been a disadvantage but two years later Mr. Rossi could be a formidable challenger in the 2020 race. For more about Rossi read an article by feature editor Thomas Chiles in FAU’s University Press from November 2017 by clicking on this link. It is very likely Caruso will also have a primary challenge as well.

The State of Florida has yet to complete the 2020 Election Year Handbook with all the details and requirements to become a candidate, e.g., the candidate petition process, but in the meantime here is the address for more information to become a candidate:


Department of State, Division of Elections
Bureau of Election Records
Room 316, R.A. Gray Building
500 South Bronough Street
Tallahassee, Florida 32399-0250


District 89 covers coastal Palm Beach County along Highland Beach to the south to Riviera Beach in the north with Lake Worth Beach roughly in the center of the district. Here are two excerpts from journalist Ryan Nicol at Florida Politics, news datelined June 6th:


Former Ocean Ridge Mayor Jim Bonfiglio is pushing for a rematch against GOP state Rep. Mike Caruso in House District 89.

Bonfiglio has filed to enter the 2020 contest as a Democrat, according to the Florida Division of Elections website. The two competed in 2018 to replace outgoing GOP Rep. Bill Hager, who was term-limited.

That 2018 contest was one of six throughout the state to head to a mandatory machine recount. After all votes were cast, Caruso edged Bonfiglio by just 32 votes out of more than 78,000.

and. . .


Bonfiglio gave Caruso some stiff competition both in the vote tally and in the fundraising game, with Bonfiglio willing to put in his own money. Still, Caruso largely led in outside donations.

The district has been competitive for several cycles, though not nearly as close as the 2018 contest.


The news from Ryan Nicol ends with this short paragraph, “So far, no other candidates have filed to run on either the Democratic or Republican side.”

But once again, it’s still very early.

Palm Beach County expected to open shooting park later this year.


Below is news from journalist Lois K. Solomon at the Sun Sentinel about a new shooting park scheduled to open in Palm Beach County and it will be one of the largest in Florida. For those of you in the environmental community this new park is southwest of what used to be called the Briger Forest and was the former “Biotechnology Research Park” concept that ended up being located in Jupiter.

According to the Sun Sentinel this new park is,


Being paid for with funds from national excise taxes on weapons and ammunition, as well as money from Palm Beach County, the National Rifle Association, Fish & Wildlife Foundation of Florida, and the South Florida Water Management District.


This shooting park is west of Palm Beach Gardens and north of Westlake. To go and see the location of this new park for yourself go west on Northlake Blvd. all the way to the end and then head north on Seminole Pratt Whitney Rd. After about three miles the shooting park will be on the right side of the road opposite the JW Corbett Management Area and Everglades Youth Conservation Camp. The address of the shooting park is 11730 Seminole Pratt Whitney Rd. in unincorporated PBC.

Here is the news in the Sun Sentinel datelined June 3rd:


The opening of the Palm Beach County Shooting Sports Park would be three years after construction started and a year later than a target date announced last year. Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission officials have blamed delays on problems with contractors. The most recent holdup involves completion of the potable water plant.

and. . .


Palm Beach County’s park is close to completion, according to the update. The administrative buildings and restaurants are finished, while landscaping is set to be installed this month.

When the water plant is done, the Wildlife Commission will open the 100-yard rifle and handgun ranges on the weekends. Contractors will keep working on the 200- and 300-yard shooting lines and trap and skeet fields, according to the update.

When these projects are completed, the park will be open from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays and 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday, Thursday and Friday.


To read the entire article in the Sun Sentinel click on this link.