The news about this Town Hall (see below) just happens to coincide with an article datelined Oct. 20th by Wellington’s new beat reporter from The Palm Beach Post, Kristina Webb, and is headlined “First home closes in ‘agri-hood’ Arden as new home-builder added”.
That’s right. A new word coming soon for the residents in western Pam Beach County: Agrihood. From the Post reporter:
That connection between nature and home is key to Arden, which touts
itself as an “agri-hood” [emphasis added] with nearly 200 acres of lakes, 20 miles of
trails and a great lawn for events. The development will feature a
working five-acre farm with produce that will be shared by residents.
The message from District 86 State Rep. Matt Willhite:
“On November 1st, PBC Commissioner Melissa McKinlay and I will be hosting an informational Town Hall discussion on the State Road 7 extension project. Join us as we discuss the most up to date information on the project.”
Click on image to enlarge:
“If you have any questions about this event, please call my office at (561) 791-4071.”
Now back to the subject of the “Agrihood” called Arden, this is very important to remember:
Recent news from Mary Lindsey: LFLs were featured at PBC League of Cities Board of Directors and general membership meeting of 39 cities at our Lake Worth Casino.
Please don’t be alarmed Lake Worth Balloon Platoon!
The news below (see “Project Loon Balloons”) is about a very serious topic, “The parent company of Google” using balloons to restore cell phone service in Puerto Rico after being devastated by Hurricane Maria last month. This cutting-edge project will hopefully help our fellow Americans on the island have their cell phone service restored as quickly as possible.
It’s quite possible this new technology will be used in other areas affected by natural disasters in the future . . . by trained professionals and engineers using balloons.
It needs to be noted — when it comes to balloons — as the City of Lake Worth demonstrated just prior to Hurricane Irma, balloons have the potential to cause havoc on the electrical grid if precautionary steps are not taken.
Lake Worth — The City of Lake Worth Electric Utilities had to perform a
planned outage in order to remove mylar balloons
that had become entangled in the main electric line. Please remember that the releasing of balloons is not allowed as it poses a risk to electrical infrastructure.
Never release balloons without proper training!
The engineers at Google, of course, will be very mindful of their balloons vis-à-vis protecting the environment and sea life. However, if you didn’t know, the issue of balloons here in the City of Lake Worth can be a touchy one, especially when it comes to the Balloon Platoon and the Lake Worth Beach:
[T]he recent ban against balloons on County beaches will once again fire
up the Lake Worth Balloon Platoon, calling for deputies to conduct beach
bag searches and subjecting balloon violators to “a fine of up to $500 and up to 60 days in jail” when a simple sign will suffice: “NOTICE: BALLOONS ARE PROHIBITED.”
The parent company of Google received the green light on Friday to provide emergency cellular service to hurricane-ravaged Puerto Rico using balloons. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) announced it had granted Alphabet Inc. permission to use solar powered balloons to bring cellular service to the island, [emphasis added] which has been left largely without power since Hurricane Maria hit last month. “FCC issues experimental license to Google to provide emergency cellular service in Puerto Rico through Project Loon balloons,” Matthew Berry, chief of staff to FCC Chairman Ajit Pai, wrote on Twitter. Pai said on Friday he was launching a Hurricane Recovery Task Force focused on providing aid to Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. “It is critical that we adopt a coordinated and comprehensive approach to support the rebuilding of communications infrastructure and restoration of communications services. The Hurricane Recovery Task Force will allow us to do just that,” Pai said.
Remember: Don’t release balloons! Leave that to trained professionals.
It’s not just about the environment and protecting sea life from balloons, it’s also about protecting our electrical grid as well.
Use this link to see one of the invitations sent out yesterday (from this blog) and below are a few pictures taken at this meeting last night. If you have yet to visit Tacos Al Carbon the link above will give you a good idea of the restaurant layout and more information. In a word, this place is spectacular. And so is the food.
I have a lot to say about this meeting and why there’s so much interest in forming a “Business Alliance”, but am going to wait a little while to talk with others about this meeting and get their ideas about what the next step will be.
Suffice to say, for now, there is a lot of frustration out there. And it’s only getting worse. One example, what we keep hearing from the CRA and some in the City staff is, “Lake Worth is open for business”. But when so many people are complaining about burdensome and time-consuming regulations, that oft-told mantra of being “Open for Business” falls flat too many times for business owners, many of them also residents of this City.
Check back later on, tomorrow or the next day, and will have more about this meeting yesterday.
Wow. Look at this spread!
No one went home hungry last night. Always fresh and spice to your liking.
A view of the room. Click on image to enlarge:
Many Lake Worth business owners and City residents in attendance.
City Manager Michael Bornstein stopped by as well:
“Hola! Bienvenidos a Tacos Al Carbon!” This new restaurant has takeout too, call 61-812-3565. It’s a new stop on the Taste History Culinary Tour!
The vote at the P&Z Board meeting last Wednesday [Oct. 4th] was 3-3 with a member of this volunteer board absent. An even split vote means this project is a no-go for now. The developer has several options going forward so we’ll have to wait and see what will happen. The City of Lake Worth’s Planning & Zoning Dept. can’t be a very happy place to be right now. A lot of staff time went into preparing this and, if you recall, this item was on the P&Z Board agenda last month [Sept. 6th] but was cancelled because of Hurricane Irma.
The project being referred to is:
The proposed Banyan Court multifamily apartment community will be located in Lake Worth at 315 North A Street, 1716 3rd Ave N, 1731 4th Avenue North and 1737 4th Avenue North, just east of Interstate 95 and ¼ mile from the Lake Worth Tri-Rail stop. The current zoning is MF-20 [Multi-family], with a land use designation of MDR [Medium Density residential].
Below is an excerpt from The Lake Worth Herald on page 12 of today’s paper (October 19th edition). How this is even possible — given the short timeline — is anyone’s guess: [T]he Planning & Zoning Board City of Lake Worth, Florida, will hold a public hearing in the City Hall Commission Chambers . . . on November 1. . . A request for a Major Site Plan to allow for the construction of a +/- 85 unit apartment complex The subject site is located at 315 North A Street. . .
Until there’s more information forthcoming from the City there will be a lot of ‘scratching of heads’. This P&Z Board meeting coming up on Nov. 1st will likely be a very interesting one; here’s another item on the agenda.
[Please note: The LTE referenced below appeared in last Tuesday’s print edition. As yet, there is no link for online readers. Check back later for that link — to read the letter in its entirety — when it becomes available.]
A recent Letter to the Editor (LTE) from a City of Lake Worth resident published in The Palm Beach Post needs clarification.
For example, here is the final paragraph:
“Maybe these commissioners* should do further research or visit one
of the many treatment centers around the state before making decisions
against the 71 percent.Ӡ
Who are “these commissioners”? A sweeping generalization, most definitely not Lake Worth elected officials. Which city, town, or village is the letter writer referring to? Not one single elected official — currently in office in our City — has come out publicly against medical marijuana dispensaries.
Is this letter piggybacking on the excellent article by Post business writer Jeff Ostrowski datelined Oct. 16th? If so, this article by Ostrowski needed to be cited by the Post editor (by the way, per Ostrowski, the City of Lake Worth came in 3rd place, at a whopping 79.02% in the list of “most weed-friendly” municipalities in Palm Beach County.
From the LTE writer, “[N]o one wants to have a medical treatment center in their town.” Partially true. A lot of people’s minds were changed in Lake Worth after reading another article by Jeff Ostrowski titled, “Weed is good for home values, real estate economists find”.
Other than the issues noted above, it was a very good LTE with helpful information and encourage everyone to read it; will provide a link when it becomes available.
On the subject of LTEs: Have you ever wanted to write one to the editor? It’s very easy and only takes 5–10 minutes. It doesn’t have to be very long either.
Maybe write a positive one about how well our Lake Worth Electric Utility performed after Hurricane Irma!
*To further clarify: Not all cities, towns, and villages in Palm Beach County have “commissioners” like the City of Lake Worth does. The City of Greenacres has “councilwomen” and “councilmen”. For example, District III “Councilwoman Judith Dugo”.
†“[T]he 71 percent” refers to Florida Amendment 2 (2016) that passed by 71.32% of the electorate.
“Florida’s underfunded public school system will be left to pick up the slack. It’s time to protect taxpayers and children from potentially nefarious forces undermining the quality of our school choices.” —Quote: Published in The Palm Beach Post.
Check back later for the link (not yet available) to read this powerful “Point of View” in its entirety.
Pamela S. Goodman (use this link for bio) is president of the League of Women Voters of Florida:
“She served as president of the League of Women Voters of Palm Beach
County from 2005 to 2009 and has served on the League of Women Voters
Florida Board of Directors from 2007 to the present.”
and. . .
“Goodman has also served on the League of Women Voters of the United
States Nominating Committee and Membership Recruitment Committee.”
and. . .
“Goodman also serves as President of The Homeless Coalition of Palm
Beach County [emphasis added], a nonprofit organization that has more than quadrupled its
revenue under her guidance and now serves as the key fundraising,
education, and advocacy organization in Palm Beach County supporting the
Ten Year Plan to end homelessness.”
To everyone in the press and news media, below is a 24-minute video taken yesterday (Tuesday, Oct. 17th) of this event at the PBC Cultural Council located in Downtown Lake Worth. Please feel free to use this information in your press/media reports: Share this link with press and news media.
On Monday (Oct. 16th) Mr. Ben Kerr,* the City of Lake Worth’s Public Information Officer, issued a press release about this event; excerpts from that press release:
LAKE WORTH, Fla. — CANVAS Outdoor Museum Show, the nation’s largest outdoor museum show, is expanding to the City of Lake Worth this year. Artists from around the globe will assemble in Downtown Lake Worth for one week from November 26 – Dec. 2 to transform the City’s streets into a world-class outdoor museum.
and. . .
“We are very excited to welcome the expansion of CANVAS to the City of Lake Worth”, said City of Lake Worth Mayor Pam Triolo. “Since its inception, Lake Worth has been the place in Palm Beach County where art is created. CANVAS joins our Street Painting Festival and Biblioarte in attracting world renowned artists to our streets and continuing our artistic vision. We couldn’t be more excited and honored.
another excerpt. . .
The City, CRA and Cultural Council are also working on finalizing an Arts & Cultural Master Plan for Downtown Lake Worth, which will be the first of its kind in Palm Beach County when it is released early next year. Adding CANVAS to the city’s lineup of major cultural events supports the strategic plan.
Lastly. . . about this CANVAS Outdoor Museum:
Billed as the nation’s largest outdoor museum show, CANVAS brings together the most innovative contemporary artists, collectors, and art influencers from around the world.
Without further ado. . . the video taken yesterday morning at the Cultural Council:
*For more information contact Mr. Ben Kerr, the City of Lake Worth’s Public Information Officer at 561-586-1631; email: bkerr@lakeworth.org
“Located in central Palm Beach County, Lake Worth is a dynamic, multi-cultural City with an individualistic style. People are drawn to
the City by its acceptance of different cultures and lifestyles,
historic districts, hip downtown and colorful arts district.”
Who is Cheryl Rashkin? She is president of the South Palm Park Neighborhood Assoc. and gave an update last night to the Commission about what has happened in the neighborhood over the past year. One of the standout observations is how happy she is to see so many families with children move into the neighborhood!
South Palm Park is Lake Worth’s oldest incorporated Neighborhood Association in the City of Lake Worth. . . . Our boundaries are from 5th Ave South to the City’s southern border and east of Federal Highway to the Intracoastal Waterway, comprise single family homes, apartments and condominiums.
To watch Rashkin’s presentation yourself use this link.
The meeting only lasted 1 hour, staff promptly uploaded the video to the City’s YouTube channel, and will watch the rest of it later on today.
So. Check back later on today for “Notes, news, and observations”. I was not in attendance last night but did get reports from citizen-reporters on the scene, like this one:
Quote of the night!!!!!! ■■■■■ said “nobody ever talks to me!”
There is no Commission meeting next week but there is a CRA Board meeting next Tuesday, Oct. 24th, stay tuned for items from that agenda later this week.
Maybe a coincidence. Maybe not. Excerpts from the blog post by Jeff Perlman dated October 9th are below. Datelined yesterday, Oct. 17th, is this article by Lulu Ramadan titled, “Delray mayor won’t run for re-election; others vie for vacant seat”:
DELRAY BEACH
— Delray Beach Mayor Cary Glickstein won’t be campaigning to retain his seat at the top of the city, he announced Tuesday. “Whoever takes my place, I’ll be rooting for you,” Glickstein said at a city meeting.
If you don’t have 15–20 minutes to spare right now to read, absorb, and understand the entire blog post dated October 9th by Jeff Perlman, then save this link into your browser and read it all in its entirety later on. It’s a lengthy and fascinating read.
Below are 3 excerpts from Perlman’s post and just this short read will shock many of you.
Briefly, the oft-told narratives in the press are that Delray Beach is a political nirvana and that other cities like our City of Lake Worth are a dysfunctional mess. What you’ll read below will shatter that myth once and for all, especially for residents of our City of Lake Worth, and elsewhere, who’ve come to believe Delray is the “Beacon on the Hill”, a “city on the cutting edge” in County politics.
Also note that the “spin” The Palm Beach Post likes to weave about ‘Good Ole Lake Worth’ using their newspaper monopoly in North and Central Palm Beach County isn’t just one tool in the box. “Spinning”, or trying to “Wag the Dog” is a tool that cuts both ways as you’ll read in the last excerpt below.
One last thing before delving into Perlman’s blog post.
If you ever get the opportunity to attend a talk by Mr. Perlman, make the time and go. I’ve attended several, including one at the “Bourbon Sprawl” in West Palm Beach where Perlman talked about how crucial it is for local governments in the County to collaborate in planning and problem-solving. Maybe it’s just a coincidence — but a lot of things began to change after his “Lake Worth Talk” early in 2016 — and most everyone will agree for the better.
Without further ado. . .
“We [Delray Beach] are about to choose a city manager from what everyone seems to think was a pretty thin list of candidates.”
And, “Delray was the city on the cutting edge. . . . A city of vision, promise and innovation.”
“When government organizations get frightened, they seize up like an
engine without oil. It’s safer to keep your head down than to rock the
boat. The best minds — if situations permit — will leave as soon as they
can. We are losing talent to Lake Worth, Boynton Beach and other cities.
[emphasis added] That hardly ever happened.”
and. . .
“I get the desire of a City Manager to control the flow of
information, but I remember learning an immense amount from listening to
and reading the work of our planning, financial, engineering, parks and
public safety personnel. There is a middle ground which always includes
the manager, but also enables policymakers to glean knowledge from
subject area experts so they can make good decisions. I was a young reporter here in the 1980s when we last suffered from
instability at City Hall caused by strife on the dais. City Hall was a
revolving door in those days. Then we had a landmark election that saw
Tom Lynch, Jay Alperin and David Randolph sweep into office and we
enjoyed a long run of stability, innovation, achievement, civic pride,
community unity and problem solving. They set an example for future
leaders. At the time, staff remarked at how civil the Mayor and commission
were — respectful of their professional acumen while still able to hold
people accountable. I went to every meeting in those days. And I can
tell you the mayor and commissioners questioned staff vigorously, but
always respectfully. Assumptions were challenged and decisions were
made. Not all were correct, but the batting average was really good and
so we had progress. Lots and lots of progress.”
and the final excerpt. . .
“A follow up story in the Post covering Commissioner Shelly Petrolia’s
run for Mayor noted the ‘chaos’ and turnover at City Hall. That’s a
good story — but the Post enabled Commissioner Petrolia too artfully — but
falsely — shift the blame to Mayor Glickstein. People all over town had a
good laugh over that spin. Sorry, but you own your fair share of the chaos after 5 years.
Readers of this blog know I am no fan of Mr. Glickstein. But in
fairness, he can’t be blamed for all of the chaos, dysfunction and lack
of progress on everything ranging from Congress Avenue to the Old School
Parks Plan. It takes three elected officials to tango. Coincidentally, that’s how many seats are up this March.”
Interestingly, the City of Lake Worth also has its fair share of challenging issues to deal with, e.g., the Historic Preservation program and all the issues with the Lake Worth Casino.
And like Delray, “that’s how many seats [three] are up this March” in the City of Lake Worth’s elections on March 13th, 2018, just 153 days away. And as Mr. Perlman noted in the final excerpt above,
“Sorry, but you own your fair share of the chaos after 5 years.”
This meeting introducing the Lake Worth Business Alliance is tonight at 7:00.
Tacos Al Carbon is located at 2200 N. Dixie Hwy. Business owners and business representatives are encouraged to attend.
And by the way, Yours Truly, Wes Blackman, will be in attendance.
For example, do you have a business on N. Dixie Hwy.? Wondering when the long-expected Dixie Hwy. Corridor improvements promised long ago in our City of Lake Worth are finally going to take off, instead of the piecemeal projects here and there thus far?
Or do you have a business on the S. Dixie Hwy. Corridor — or certain parts of the Downtown — and wondering, “Is Lake Worth really ‘open for business’? Is everybody reading from the same script?”
Then you should show up tonight as well.
Been to Tacos Al Carbon yet?
What are you waiting for!
The staff is absolutely dazzling and courteous, smiles all around at Tacos Al Carbon!
The inside of Tacos Al Carbon is impressively spacious with plenty of seating, bright and colorful. The acoustics in the two dining rooms are very pleasant as well.
Did I say “two dining rooms”? Yes!
A view of the recent Grand Opening.
The view is from the back dining room which leads into the kitchen.
When I took a peak beyond the kitchen door one of the cooks said, “Hola! Bienvenidos a Tacos Al Carbon!” The kitchen is also spacious and very bright.
However, stay tuned for the regularly scheduled meeting of P&Z on November 1st (always the first Monday of month) and the HRPB on November 8th (second Wednesday of month).
The RAB hasn’t had a meeting in almost 10 years but there’s talk of “resurrecting” that board. Stay tuned, as they say, but don’t get too excited.
To find out more about the City’s “Volunteers in Public Service” program use this link or call 561-586-1658 and ask for the volunteer coordinator.
By the way, on the City’s calendar for next Wednesday (Oct. 18th) is a scheduled “Joint Workshop” between the Planning & Zoning Board (P&Z) and Historic Resource Preservation Board (HRPB). Notice of this meeting was also published in The Palm Beach Post yesterday (Sunday, Oct. 15th, page B3).
However, after contacting the Chair of the P&Z Board and Chair of HRPB, neither of them knew about an upcoming Workshop this week. Hopefully this will get cleared up soon. Also on Wednesday is a scheduled meeting of the City’s Recreation Advisory Board. Will let everyone know when that agenda is available for the public.
Anyhow. . .
There IS a scheduled City Commission meeting tomorrow (Tuesday, Oct. 17th at 6:00). The two items many of the public are highly interested in and received much media attention as wellARE NOT on this agenda:
The next regular Commission meeting, after tomorrow’s, is coming up on November 7th. It’s possible these items will be on that agenda or to be addressed at a City Workshop or upcoming Work Session. So. Stay tuned as they say.
However, there are some very interesting items on tomorrow’s Commission agenda. Use this link to learn more. Also, check back tomorrow for how to watch this meeting Live Streaming on YouTube.
For Part 1 use this link: Quote by Lake Worth Asst. City Manager Juan Ruiz, “It’s obviously a high point of interest in our community.”
Any future project at the Lake Worth Beach will follow many months of public meetings, charrettes, and much public input.
And it’s important to remember the SNMREC “Ocean Wave Energy Generation” project is still out there (on Finance Advisory Board agenda several months ago), the Neighborhood Road Program is rolling out, a new housing project (actual stand-alone homes!) is set to begin construction soon and, of course, there’s the Blueway Trail project as well and. . . “Distributed Energy: The Lake Worth Solution”.
The future, the past, and our regional Lake Worth Beach.
Meeting in the Commission Chambers on October 12th (also note, the second of five videos is below).
Today, let’s explore some history and the concept of a “regional beach” as opposed to “our Lake Worth Beach”.
Last year Vice Mayor Scott Maxwell brought up this topic and expressed some frustration our City of Lake Worth was spending so much time, effort, and political capital on the Casino complex — principally the now-condemned municipal pool — when so many people who were using the pool didn’t even reside in the City but in other nearby towns like Palm Beach.
In the case of the now-closed pool, one that had to be subsidized by the taxpayers of Lake Worth, Maxwell made a very good point. At just $4 a visit, much less so with a 20-visit pass, was a pretty good deal especially so if you were close enough to walk or ride a bike and not pay another $4 for parking.
Since the inception of the City of Lake Worth, our Beach has been billed and celebrated as a destination. There’s much evidence of very early construction on the west side of the Intracoastal, on the east side the remains of the former Lake Worth Bridge and at the Casino property as well there’s the seawall (which is another whole topic of discussion all by itself).
The Town of Palm Beach’s origins are further north and happened earlier. Its development began in 1894 with the arrival of Henry Flagler’s Florida East Coast (FEC) railroad. A stop on the FEC didn’t come to Lake Worth until 1912, soon after which it became the City of Lake Worth. That meant the development pattern and relationship between the developed Palm Beach and West Palm Beach already had been established.
During the 1920s, the Florida “Boom” period and an increase in automobile travel, the City actively and proudly promoted the Beach, the Casino building at the time, and the pool (then saltwater) as a tourist destination. This drew traffic from US 1 (Dixie Hwy.) through the Downtown area which increased commercial opportunities for Lake Worth.
During the early and middle part of 20th century, Palm Beach had its own pier at the end of Worth Avenue and Gus’ Baths nearby which had its own pool. In the late 1950s and early 1960s, those destinations were eliminated leaving the Lake Worth Beach as the only beach in Central Palm Beach County (CPBC) with ample parking, a pier and other amenities.
In 1971, the City of Lake Worth rebuilt its water facilities in the form of a 50-meter lap swimming pool (not to Olympic pool size standards) and promoted it for diving and other activities to take advantage of other infrastructure developments in the area. One of the more important was the construction of a higher, dual-span drawbridge in 1973. This made it easier to access the barrier island by vehicle from the mainland than other crossings at the time. This in turn increased the popularity of the Lake Worth Beach as THE beach in CPBC along the ocean.
Other destinations like John G’s restaurant, the Casino ballroom and the fishing pier kept our Beach a consistent, steady, year-round destination.
Beginning in the 1970s and into the 1980s, western development in CPBC created new residential areas, one we now call the “Village of Wellington”. Over the years this led to its incorporation as a municipality with an increasing population. The Lake Worth Beach is on the same latitude as Wellington, so besides being a CPBC location, it also became landlocked Wellington’s beach too.
When I moved to South Florida in 1989, I referred to the Lake Worth Beach with its 50s-era feel as Palm Beach County’s urban beach. Even though I lived in the city of West Palm Beach for the first three years after my move from Michigan, our Beach in Lake Worth is the one that I would go to most often.
John D. MacArthur Beach State Park opened about the same time I moved here. It was the place to go if you wanted more of a naturalistic beach experience. Getting there was a longer drive by car and it was a longer walk to the beach from the parking area to the ocean. The Lake Worth Beach was a convenient alternative and my most favorite and still is. Afterwards, I could head Downtown to one of the restaurants or my favorite watering hole at the time called Inn Exile, currently called Propaganda.
For all these reasons, the Lake Worth Beach serves as CPBC’s beach that has a regional draw. It is one of the major reasons that the City gained a portion of the cultural and recreational bond money, to the tune of $5 million, as part of its rehabilitation earlier in this decade.
So, in conclusion. . .
The Lake Worth Beach is “our Beach”. But it’s also CPBC’s beach too. And that’s how we need to approach the future, to make sure the Beach remains a regional draw, providing entertainment, restaurants, and other services many residents in other communities in CPBC do not have in or near their communities, e.g., having dinner, maybe watching an outdoor movie, or scheduling a wedding venue WITH A VIEW OF THE ATLANTIC OCEAN!
Once again, there are 5 videos of this meeting on October 12th. To watch them all at your convenience use this link to my YouTube channel and look for “City of Lake Worth RFQ Evaluation Meeting”.
Below is the 2nd video, which starts off with the second half of the presentation by CPZ Architects (use this link which includes the first half of the presentation). CPZ is the proposer to the RFQ who beat out Kimley-Horn to proceed working with the City on ideas going forward how to improve and fix the defects and other long-standing problems at the Casino and Beach complex:
“Is The Palm Beach Post news blackout about the Blueway Trail project still in place?”
The answer is below.
The two questions to KABAB were simple ones:
“Did the article published in the print edition of the Post on Monday, October 9th provide enough detail or ‘news’ to end the news blackout?”
“Does this regional issue of concern in Central Palm Beach County, the Blueway Trail project on the C-51 Canal, require closer study, background, and perspective since the last in-depth news report published in the Post almost 2 years ago, in December 2015?”
Before we proceed. . .
A special thanks, of course, has to go to NBC5/WPTV reporter Alanna Quillen. It was Quillen, back on August 10th that broke this story wide open after being ignored for so long by the press and news media.
But one thing is for certain:
The article published in the Post did not rise to the standard of reporter Brooke Baitinger’s article in the Sun Sentineldatelined Oct. 6th, three days prior to the Post article. And an observation from this blog on October 9th following that Post article:
What’s being missed here is all the hard work by Commissioner Omari
Hardy paid off. Several times Hardy asked for a resolution of support
for the Blueway Trail project to be placed on the Commission agenda and
he finally had enough of the delays on August 15th.
The next regular meeting was on September 19th, right after Hurricane
Irma, so the resolution Hardy wanted was on the October 3rd Commission
agenda. And besides, “Resolution 50-2017 Supporting the C-51 Boat Lift” passed
unanimously so it’s over and done with. And did you know, on the very
same night the City of Lake Worth passed a resolution of support for the
Blueway Trail, the City of Boynton Beach did so as well, unanimously.
That wasn’t reported in yesterday’s Post article. Boynton Beach became the 16th “Resolution of Support” for this exciting regional project in Central Palm Beach County.
and. . .
Focusing on just one aspect, a testy exchange between Commissioner Omari Hardy and Mayor Pam Triolo
may sell a few more newspapers but doesn’t provide information or the
context the public needs to stay informed like the news reports in the Sun Sentinel and NBC5/WPTV did.
The final result from KABAB:
Is the news blackout at The Palm Beach Post still in place: “Yes”!
And “No”.
KABAB acknowledges in their final report the Post needs to do more. Much more. But newspapers are under tremendous pressure these days to compete with blogs and other news outlets. All these years after deciding to chase after “the online chimera” the Post owners and editors must certainly be looking back and wondering if they made a colossal mistake when they shut down their printing presses 9 years ago.
Thus far, only a few newspapers like “The Gray Lady” (aka The New York Times) and the Tampa Bay Times, for example, have been able to turn a nice profit using social media with an online newspaper presence.
Anyhow. . .
Now that the issue about the “news blackout” is finally settled, hopefully very soon the public here in Central Palm Beach County will get more in-depth coverage about the Blueway Trail project from the “paper of record” in this County, maybe by a Post business writer or real estate reporter.
About KABAB*
The Kômmîttèe Ãvèrmênt Biweekly Advisory Board (KABAB) is a group of American expatriates, now retired on small pensions, that settled near the Balkans and are committed to settling matters fairly. Being outside the United States they have a unique perspective. The board meets in Greece and they skewer the data presented them:
Tradition
has it something very similar to KABAB was created by medieval soldiers who
used their facts provided from feudal officers and commoner witnesses about battlefield tactics. They would gather and “grill the officers over open-field
fires.”
Note: the rulings and determinations by KABAB are dependent on the quality of the facts presented.
Special thanks to the board:
Cağ (President)
Shìsh (KABOB Vice President)
Döner (Treasurer)
Adâna (Founding member)
Têstí (from Central Anatolia, newest KABAB member)
![Dr. W. H. Cotton’s ode: “Oh, My Lake Worth, Florida!” [circa 1920].](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUL75cv6zJQFjX15ojOIIz9AjnbqH4asHJTYSDhnGnYr7rJZRha1NcNTirj2xPcId158vkz5Hw-wXgOfrlztj8Zr8jLFFCfuEN6PyV44ZlpMRmJ68xbtFL9vzxNiG7xDs_HJvm/s1600/LakeWorthPioneers.JPG)
