Editorial from the Palm Beach Post: Can John G's be saved?

Click title for link. This is a picture of what was left of the Casino building after hurricanes in the late 1940s. You can see that the entire second floor is essentially gone. The building as it is now was grafted on to the remains of the original building.

Below is a section of the letter included in the back up material related to the item to be discussed on the City Commission agenda MONDAY night.

Straticon proposes to do structural evaluation services at no cost to the city. They will be using a structural engineer. My question is how many structural studies do we need of this building in order to determine its condition? And, let's say that this report somehow finds the building in better condition than previous reports have documented. What will we have when we are done? Will we have a building that fits the city's and tenants' needs - or if rebuilt (essentially a "new" building) will we have a boutique Palm Beach-like building that might be nice to look at but not be functional in 21st Century terms? And would it make sense to reconstruct on a $ per square foot basis and use public money to do that?

We also have to realize that "Straticon" is a company that makes money by repairing concrete buildings. "Straticon" is not a disinterested party here - it would like to get the work and determining that the building can be repaired would be beneficial and profitable for them. This company does not offer a magic wand. How would we be sure that their numbers are realistic?

I ask again, what would we have when we are done? And, is the building in the best place that it can be on the property? I happen to think that it isn't. And how does this jive with the contract the City has as a public partner in a private/public partnership to re-do the entire beach property and relocate the casino building? Answer: It doesn't. Would the city be in breach of the contract by pursuing this effort? Has anyone from Greater Bay even been involved with this discussion?

As for John Gs, I have little sympathy for their "plight." They have enjoyed below market rent in a city owned building on the beach for 20 plus years. It's an all cash business serving $10 breakfasts. They should be given first right of refusal for any "new" building built there, as a tenant, but little else.

Here is a slide show which shows the different alterations of the building over time in somewhat of a chronological order:

Click here for all beach related posts spanning the past 2 years.

And we can be sure that this was placed on the agenda through a push by Commissioner Cara Jennings to help her adopted commission candidate get press for her "cause" prior to the run-off election.