If you plan on going to the City Commission meeting tomorrow night (4/3)...

Make sure to bring your hip waders for the last item, 11F under new business.

Not satisfied with Sopot, Poland or Northend-on-Sea, Great Britain, we now have our globe-trotting Commissioner Mulvehill asking for the rest of the City Commission's "consent" in attending the International Council for Local Environmental Initiatives' Global Forum on Urban Resilience and Adaptation Conference in Bonn, Germany, May 12-15.  She is asking for about $2,600 in registration at the conference and for travel/accommodations.

The title of the session she is to be presenting at is as follows:

"Achieving Integrated Adaptation Approaches to Sustainable Economic Development”

This is what she has submitted to be included in the conference program related to Lake Worth:

Lake Worth, Florida is focused on community attractiveness, inclusiveness and sustainability. To that end and despite the recession, the city attracted major new investment, won significant grants to stabilize neighborhoods, improved the community's walkability, installed a bicycle network, built a reverse osmosis water treatment plant securing the city's water source well into the future and is in the process of reconstructing an historic landmark to LEED certification. The community's confidence is rising as residents work together and volunteer to clean up neighborhoods, create gardens, and invest their time and money improving the community. Most importantly, by integrating the social, environmental, economic and cultural aspects of sustainability into the community, the city and the residents have taken a hands-on approach to invest in the city's future. The solutions that are being applied by Lake Worth illustrate that social and economic concerns go hand in hand with environmental goals. To that end, economic and sustainable development initiatives are being achieved simultaneously.


Major new investment?  Record decreases in property tax valuation and the largest percentage decrease of any Palm Beach County municipality during this Commissioner's time in office.  Significant grants?  CRA  Walkability and bicycle network?  CRA  Reverse osmosis plant?  Relies on deep well injection for its waste water (condensate) and is a demonstrated hog of electric power.   In the process of reconstructing an historic landmark to LEED certification?  Surely refers to the Casino Building - if it does get the certification, it will be due to substantial requirements placed upon the tenants - and even then it would be the lowest required level of certification.  We can go on analyzing Commissioner Mulvehill's contributions to neighborhoods "working together, but would fail in finding many.

Can we just collectively call this "BS" and move past it - quickly.  Check out the organization's website.  Nothing we are doing is proving that we are a city that is resilient to climate change.

And if we do "consent" to send her, imagine the dynamic presentation attendees will enjoy!