Below is news from Mr. Richard Pinsky about the Blueway Trail, a message to:

“All Blueway Trail Coalition partners, trail friends and supporters.”

Take Note! There is an important meeting coming up next Friday (April 27th), from 10:00 a.m.–noon.

Details are below.

The lead reporter about the Blueway Trail project is Skyler Swisher at the Sun Sentinel. For the latest news click on this link. No surprise, the Post is dragging their feet again, not reporting anything of substance about this very exciting project.

Here’s the message from Mr. Pinsky*:

It’s not quite “getting the band back together”, but we are having our first “formal” Blueway Trail meeting since last August, when we received the final engineering report and draft permit documents for a potential small boat lift apparatus and rebuilt fishing pier.
     We will meeting on Friday, April 27th, from 10:00 a.m.–12:00 p.m. at a new location. The South Florida Science Museum has graciously and generously offered their meeting facilities at the Stiles-Nicholson STEM Education Center, located directly across from the main Science Museum, at 4800 Dreher Trail N. in West Palm Beach.
     When entering from Summit Blvd., continue past the Zoo, following the road to the Science Museum. As you arrive, the Stiles-Nicholson Education Center will be on your right.
     I do want to take this opportunity to thank the South Florida Water Management District, and their star, Laura Corry, for allowing us to use their conference room for the last 18 months. Thank you!
     The Blueway Trail initiative has not been idle by any means, and a great deal of progress has been made towards our long term goals. Much of our effort since August has centered on the creation of a long term organizational structure. Blueway Trail, Inc. has been created and established as a registered Florida not for profit corporation which will be seeking IRS 501 (c) (3) status as a charitable educational organization.
     Now that we have a formal organization, we are now able to seek state designation as a blueway trail; promote the eco-tourism features of the trail; and move forward towards restoring a fishing venue at the C-51 Canal Flood Control Structure.
     Hopefully, we will be circulating the agenda for the April 27th meeting to everyone by next Monday. In the meantime, please place Friday, April 27th, from 10:00 a.m.–12:00 p.m. on your calendar and make every effort to attend, get caught-up and participate!
     Thank you!

To everyone in the City of
Lake Worth interested in the
Blueway Trail project:

The message above from Mr. Pinsky includes all the Blueway Trail Coalition partners in this City of Lake Worth, those from the public interested in learning more, and the City’s C-51 Advisory Committee as well:

Click on image to enlarge:

The City’s staff liaison to the C-51 Canal Advisory Committee is Mr. Brian Shields, P.E., director of Lake Worth Water Utilities.

*“Richard [Pinsky] serves his clients from Akerman’s West Palm Beach and Tallahassee offices. His client focus at the state and federal level is in the policy areas of bio technology, renewable energy, transportation, port and rail infrastructure, regulatory oversight, community living, education, healthcare and insurance.”

Much of Lake Worth’s early tourist trade came for the fishing. Looking toward our future: The Blueway Trail.

Have you heard about the Blueway Trail? If not, learn more about this exciting project below.

Boats full of fishermen were a common sight in the Lake Worth Lagoon and freshwater lakes during the first half of the 20th century. Competition for tourist dollars was just as fierce then as it is now. Dixie Hwy. back then was lined with motels and restaurants for as far as the eye could see.

Here’s an advertisement from that era touting fishing in a tongue-in-cheek manner, this one coming from Fort Pierce. Fishing was an important economic driver to southeast Florida’s economy.

An ad like this wouldn’t go over very well in the modern era.

Here’s our own Chamber of Commerce sign in front of what is now City Hall from the mid-century period which emphasized Lake Worth’s access to water.

“Turn left” for saltwater or “TURN HERE” for freshwater.

It’s no accident that Tuppen’s occupies a prime corner on Dixie Hwy. This picture is from the 1950’s:

Learn more about Tuppen’s using this link.

“Tuppen’s Marine & Tackle is celebrating our 60th year serving South Florida! We have been in Lake Worth, Florida since 1956. Tuppen’s is one of the oldest and largest marine and tackle stores in Palm Beach County and maybe even South Florida. When you walk into Tuppen’s for the first time it is like going back to the 1960’s. But remember that you’re only a stranger once. After that your part of our Tuppen’s family.”

Now about the Blueway Trail, “Linking our waterways. Creating Access FOR ALL”. The project has not yet begun but you can go and see for yourself the location:

• From West Palm Beach: Take Olive Ave. heading south (Olive Ave. is called Federal Hwy. in Lake Worth), take a right turn on the very first street after crossing the C-51 Canal (Maryland Drive). Go to the end of the street and make a right turn into Spillway Park.
• From Lake Worth: Take Federal Hwy. heading north and make a left turn onto Maryland Drive, the last street in Lake Worth before you cross the C-51 Canal into West Palm Beach.

Since the 1950s the S-155 Spillway structure on the C-51 Canal has blocked public access between the Intracoastal and the inland “Chain of Lakes”. The Blueway Trail is going to change that.

More benefits of the Blueway Trail. Want to learn more about this exciting project? Use this link.

PINNED POST TODAY: Time to pivot and re-focus on the City of Lake Worth’s priorities and looming challenges.

And just one of those priorities is coming up TOMORROW, a charrette about the future of the Lake Worth Casino and Beach Complex. Learn more about this public meeting below.


A “Pinned Post” is one kept near the top of the blog for a specific period of time, in this case for the entire day today.

As was pointed out by Vice Mayor Pro Tem Scott Maxwell at the City Commission meeting last Tuesday (March 17th) there are a lot of distractions (aka “shiny objects”) of late that are taking the focus off the stated priorities in this City and it’s time to refocus. So if we’re going to have a public discussion about banning anything it should be about a ban on ‘shiny objects’.

Remember. . .

Back in November 2016 the editor at The Palm Beach Post, Rick Christie, warned about the importance of staying focused on the City’s stated goals and listening to the will of the public vis-à-vis the Neighborhood Road Bond and fixing our City’s infrastructure.

And the public spoke once again on March 13th
this year expressing their confidence in the
direction the City is moving in.

And keep in mind what Lake Worth City Manager Michael Bornstein said at the City Commission
on March 20th. . .

“Just going back six years ago when I first got here it’s been a tremendous, tremendous turnaround. Still have a lot to do but your political footing is solid.”

So in the spirit of getting everything back on track. . .

The City of Lake Worth is having a charrette this Saturday. You may be wondering, what exactly
is a “charrette”?

A charrette, or “charette” is a public meeting to resolve problems and find solutions.

The address/location for this upcoming charrette on Saturday is: 1121 Lucerne Ave., the structure now referred to as “The HATCH”. Doors open for this charrette at 9:00 a.m. and doors close at 5:00 p.m.

What is next Saturday’s charrette about?

It’s about settling a matter that’s been going on

for far too long in this City.

Question: Does the City of Lake Worth
need a pool at the Beach?

And how many pools does the Town of Palm Beach need nearby for their residents, visitors, and tourists?

An observation from eight years ago by the inimitable Mr. Tom McGow: “[N]ow is the time to cast aside the sentimental clamor to patch up our city’s biggest white elephant and plan for a water park that will provide families with what they want and attract enough users to make it self-sustaining.”

Below, following the bullet list, is a short Q&A, about the public purpose of charrettes and why it’s so important to show up next Saturday even if it’s just for a brief period of time. Once you’ve finished reading the blog post below, if you wish, scroll back up and click on the links in the bullet list below for more information:

• To learn more about why constructing a new lap swimming pool (a “white elephant”) at the Beach is just a terrible idea, the historical context (including a timeline), information about the architect (CPZ Architects), and a City press release as well click on this link.
• Does the Town of Palm Beach need another large pool nearby? Do kids need a pool at the Beach to learn how to swim? And use this link to learn more about, “When did shuffleboard — that bastion of geriatric time-killing  become cool?”
• Also very important, at the charrette next Saturday, keep in mind the City’s “Green” and environmentally-conscious water cistern at the Beach as well, an idea to help save the planet courtesy of a prior City administration.

Without further ado, the Q&A and
more about charrettes:

Q: “What time do I have to be at this charrette next Saturday?”

A: You can show up any time between 9:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m.

Q: “How much time will this take?”

A: That’s entirely up to you. You can stay five minutes, two hours, or stay all day if you want. You can even show up for a bit, leave, and come back later on if you want.

Q: “What do I need to bring with me?”

A: Just your input, your ideas, and an open mind about the future of this City of Lake Worth.


It’s very important to note that a charrette is much different than a Commission meeting or a workshop at City Hall — for example, here in this City of Lake Worth — in that charrettes are typically held in a community hall or another public venue in the City. Two venues used here are The HATCH at 1121 Lucerne Ave. and the Casino Ballroom at the Beach.

Just like at City Hall when typically the loudest voices and best-organized will pack a meeting promoting their position, e.g., like what happened in February 2017, the vast majority of the public will stay home and not show up to make their voices heard. Here’s what happened last year:


LAKE WORTH — One by one, they filed into Lake Worth’s City Hall on Tuesday night, ardent supporters of the [now condemned] municipal pool, most carrying colorful flotation noodles, [emphasis added] all with a purpose and the same steely message for city commissioners: don’t let the city’s prized amenity die.


The message today is thus:

 
IF YOU THINK CONSTRUCTING ANOTHER POOL, ANOTHER “WHITE ELEPHANT” AT THE LAKE WORTH BEACH IS A BAD IDEA. . .

YOU NEED TO SHOW UP
NEXT SATURDAY!

Why do you need to show up?

From Wikipedia, “Charrettes tend to involve small groups, however the residents participating may not represent all the residents nor have the moral authority to represent them.”

If you think constructing another large pool at the Lake Worth Beach is a bad idea, you need to show up and express yourself and stand up for families with children that need a pool for children to learn how to swim and for water safety classes. For many families in this City, a pool at the Lake Worth Beach might as well be twenty miles away and the $4 to park each time is a financial burden as well.

“Back in the day”, prior to I-95, a pool at the Beach lured visitors and tourists off US-1 and A1A. But that part of our City’s history is long gone.

High diving boards at the Lake Worth Beach.
This was likely prior to the concept of municipal
liability insurance.

Thank You for visiting once again today and strongly encourage everyone to attend this charrette at The HATCH.

“Worth Noting” once again.

In The Palm Beach Post — in just eleven (11) days — the City of Lake Worth went from ‘inching forward’ to LEAPING FORWARD!

How did this happen?

It all started less than 2 weeks before the municipal elections held on Tuesday, March 13th.

On March 1st the beat reporter from the Post, Kevin Thompson, wrote that the City of Lake Worth was “inching forward” right after the byline in the print edition,

LAKE WORTH — Lake Worth, still a city inching forward. . .

Then on Monday, March 12th, the very day prior to Election Day, just eleven days after the beat reporter wrote that that City was ‘inching forward’ there were 4 stories in the print edition demonstrating this City was actually LEAPING FORWARD!

• News the City is beefing up Code Enforcement hiring two more officers, another staff employee, and everything they need to do the job (vehicles, office space, additional training, etc.).
• Another major contributing Downtown building is being rehabilitated on Lake Ave.
• Big news about the long-awaited Boutwell Rd. improvements in the Park of Commerce.
• And there was very good news about a new bakery and other wonderful news too in the print edition . . . all this happening just 11 days since being reported the City was ‘inching forward’. 

How did we get from ‘inching forward’ to making great leaps in just 1½ weeks?

The answer is this: The City of Lake Worth was never ‘inching’ along in the first place.

This City has been making great strides for well over 4 years now following all the many little strides that began in 2011–2014 and when City Manager Michael Bornstein was hired in 2012.

The editor at the Post acknowledged all that hard work two years ago in the endorsements for re-election of Mayor Pam Triolo, District 1 Commissioner Scott Maxwell, and District 3 Commissioner Andy Amoroso.

Here are the Post endorsements from March 2016.

District 3 Commissioner Andy Amoroso was unopposed this year. Mayor Pam Triolo and District 1 Commissioner Scott Maxwell were both re-elected to the City Commission.

So. In conclusion. . .

Our City hasn’t been ‘inching’ along for a long time. We’ve been LEAPING FORWARD all along. It just took a while for the editors at the Post to notice.

Just in case you may have missed this blog post yesterday. . .

Following the drama at the Lake Worth City Commission last
Tuesday night. . .

It was a very interesting and informative City Commission meeting on Tuesday, April 17th, starting off with a legislative update from State Senator Lori Berman, several proclamations and updates, and then the proverbial ‘train went off the tracks’ about an hour into this Commission meeting (see video below).

One of the special highlights at the

City Commission last night:

Leading off this meeting was a legislative update from State Senator Lori Berman, who along with County Commissioner Dave Kerner and School Board member Erica Whitfield, are the three most frequent visitors to the City Commission.

So “the train went off the tracks” at the 1 hour 10 minute mark at the City Commission and then at the 2 hour 17 minute mark everything got back on track again when Electric Utility Director Ed Liberty approached the podium to explain the power outage that occurred last week on Monday evening, April 9th, until the following morning at approximately 6:30 when all power was restored.

By the way, Lake Worth Mayor Pam Triolo took a well-deserved absence Tuesday night and left the City Commission in the very competent hands of Vice Mayor Andy Amoroso. Two items pulled from the Consent Agenda for public hearing — which could have easily tied this meeting up in knots all night long, referred to as an “all-nighter” — were dispensed with in about one hour and seven minutes. An excellent job by the City’s Vice Mayor.

The video below is from last night’s Commission meeting when Electric Utility Dir. Liberty explains step-by-step why the power outage happened last week and the steps taken to restore power. 
 
A special treat! Listen to what Vice Mayor Amoroso says at the 2 hour 41 minute mark, Dir. Liberty responds to the Vice Mayor, and then Amoroso says a few moments later, “Are you listening, Kevin Thompson? That’s a quote!” referring to the beat reporter from the Post and the comments made by Mr. Ed Liberty.

To learn more about the “praise” for PBSO during last week’s power outage and the ever-present “misery” at The Palm Beach Post click on this link.

Enjoy this video, one of the very special highlights from the City Commission meeting last Tuesday night.

Stabbing on Sunday, April 8th in downtown West Palm Beach: Suspect is still on the loose.

UPDATE: The most recent news about this knife attack in broad daylight is below. The Palm Beach Post is relying now on multimedia specialist Andrew Lofholm at NBC5/WPTV to keep the public informed about this crime that remains unsolved for eleven days now.

To follow Andrew Lofholm on Twitter click on this link. Here are two short excerpts in the Post online edition today (4/18):


WEST PALM BEACH — WPTV NewsChannel 5, The Post’s news partner, spoke this week to the victim in the April 8 stabbing at the Royal Park Bridge.
     The victim, a 60-year-old woman whom WPTV did not identify by name, told the TV station that man’s face was expressionless before he attacked her.

and. . . 

     The victim told WPTV that she was stabbed in the chest and that the knife “reached” her heart. She was released from St. Mary’s Medical Center on Saturday [April 14th].

Do you have a tip?

Find out who to contact below.

From Palm Beach Post reporter Julius Whigham is this news datelined Tuesday, April 10th: 


WEST PALM BEACH — City police released a video Tuesday of a man they want to speak to regarding a stabbing that occurred Sunday morning under the Royal Park Bridge in West Palm Beach.
     A woman riding a bicycle on the bridge underpass was injured in the stabbing, which took place at about 11 a.m. Sunday [April 8th].

and. . .

     The man is described as being in his 20s to 30s, 5 feet 9 to 5 feet 10 inches with a thin build. The man has facial hair and a small twist in his hair.


If you have any information regarding this crime call the West Palm Beach Police Department at 561-822-1900 or Palm Beach County Crime Stoppers, 800-458-8477.

Just one small tip can solve this crime.

To learn more about CrimeStoppers click on this link.

Stay anonymous. Collect a reward.
No fear of retribution.

On sale now: Lake Worth Beach parking decals for permanent and seasonal residents.

The City of Lake Worth is selling “Beach Decals for Permanent and Seasonal Residents” for the upcoming year. Decals are good from May 1st, 2017–April 30th, 2018.

Decals are only available for Lake Worth residents: Zip codes 33460 and a limited area in 33461.* You may have a Lake Worth mailing address (as assigned by a U.S. Post Office) — but if your home is not located within the municipal borders of the City of Lake Worth — you are not eligible for a Beach decal(s).

The Beach Parking Decal Program was created for residents, both permanent & seasonal, of the City of Lake Worth.

For the application and documentation needed, use this link to download that information.

There are 50 designated parking spaces at the Lake Worth Beach for decal holders. Cost is $42.80 for year-round residents and $64.20 for Snowbirds. Purchase decals at:

• Cashier’s office, located at City Utilities’ Customer Service Department, 414 Lake Avenue, Lake Worth, FL 33460.
• Business hours: 8:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m.
• Exception: On Thursday when office opens at 9:00.

Remember! Use the parking spaces designated for resident parking ONLY with your Beach decal to prevent being issued a parking citation.


*To better understand the issue of municipal boundaries use this link for a recent blog post by Yours Truly. After reading this post you’ll better understand our City borders more than most reporters in the press and media do.

The Blueway Trail and the City of Lake Worth’s all-volunteer C-51 Canal Advisory Committee.

Would you like to learn more about the status of the C-51 Canal and the Blueway Trail project?

One way is to ask your elected leaders to schedule a meeting of the City’s C-51 Canal Advisory Committee (CAC) some time in the near future. Click on this link to contact the mayor and commissioners for Districts 1–4.

The lead reporter covering this project in Palm Beach County is Skyler Swisher* at the Sun Sentinel. Recently Swisher published this article titled, “Nonprofit forms to link Palm Beach County’s lakes to the ocean”. Occasionally there is news about the Blueway Trail project in the Post but the reporting is spotty at best.

District 2 Commissioner Omari Hardy is a big supporter of the Blueway Trail. Hardy’s district is west of Dixie Hwy. along the south side of the C-51 Canal within sight of the West Palm Beach golf course and Winn-Dixie plaza.

For more background click on this link to learn more about the Blueway Trail and a CAC meeting held on August 9th last year.

Click on image to enlarge:

At the August 2017 meeting Lake Clarke Shores Mayor Hal Shalhoub was present along with Kim DeLaney, PhD, from the Treasure Coast Regional Planning Council, as well as other experts, engineers, and electeds in Central PBC.

Below is the City of Lake Worth’s: “Resolution 50-2017 supporting the C-51 boat lift”.

“Linking Our Waterways Creating Access For All”

Would you like more information about the Blueway Trail? To contact the Dir. of Strategic Development and Policy at the Treasure Coast Regional Planning Council click on this link.

Many of you have heard this project referred to as the “Blueway Trail project” on the C-51 Canal that separates the cities of Lake Worth and West Palm Beach. This is very significant for several reasons:

• Most importantly, it shows a willingness to work together with our neighboring cities, towns, and villages here in Central Palm Beach County.
• The County and many other municipalities have already passed “Resolutions in Support”.
• Although by most estimates this project’s start is 2–4 years away, it gives the City of Lake Worth a place at the table going forward. As one City commissioner is fond of saying, “If you’re not at the table, you’re on the menu.”
• Taking into account current and future budgetary headwinds, e.g., this year’s State referendum on another housing deduction (likely to pass; disproportionately affecting budgets of small cities such as the City of Lake Worth), taking advantage of a previously underutilized asset — the C-51 Canal — will help fill gaps in future City budgets.

Please note that “Resolution 50-2017 supporting the C-51 boat lift” passed unanimously at the Lake Worth City Commission, 5-0. So without further ado. . .

Agenda Date: October 3rd, 2017.
Department: City Manager.

Summary:

The Palm Beach County League of Cities in partnership with the Treasure Coast Regional Planning Council (TCRPC) Palm Beach County desires to develop recreational opportunities, encourage economic development, and create new jobs within our regional area while enhancing the environmental attributes of the C-51 canal.

Background and Justification:

• Direct, two-way connectivity between the Chain of Lakes, Lake Worth Lagoon, Intracoastal Waterway and the Atlantic Ocean.
• Restoration and preservation of wildlife habitats.
• Improvements to existing fishing piers.
• Economic driver for the entire region. [emphasis added]
• Increased property values.
• Increased commerce and job opportunities.
• Potential for additional forms of ecotourism by linking our Greenways and Blueways.
• More people enjoying our waterways.
• Better quality of life.

Florida Interlocal Cooperation Act of 1969, "authorizes local governments to make the most efficient use of their powers by enabling them to cooperate with other localities on a basis of mutual advantage and thereby to provide services and facilities that will harmonize geographic, economic, population and other factors influencing the needs and development of local communities.” TCRPC created The Intracoastal Waterway Plan for Palm Beach County: Charting a Course for the Future (’09 Charrette) for the Palm Beach County Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) published in January 2009; and the '09 Charrette participants identified six core public themes including increasing public access to the Intracoastal Waterway (ICW), protecting natural resources, expanding all forms of water based transportation, and promoting sustainable economics.

Motion:

I move to approve/not approve Resolution 50-2017 supporting the C-51 boat lift.

Resolution No. 50-2017 of the City of Lake Worth, Florida. . .

Providing for supporting and encouraging efforts by the Palm Beach County League of Cities, Inc. and neighboring municipalities to proceed with improvement to the Chain of Lakes, the Ocean to Lake Trails Initiative and development of a boat lift at the C51 Canal S155 Control Structure providing for severability; providing for the repeal of conflicting resolutions or parts of resolutions; and providing an effective date.

WHEREAS, Section 163.01, Florida Statutes, known as the “Florida Interlocal Cooperation Act of 1969,” authorizes local governments to make the most efficient use of their powers by enabling them to cooperate with other localities on a basis of mutual advantage and thereby to provide services and facilities that will harmonize geographic, economic, population and other factors influencing the needs and development of local communities; and
WHEREAS, the City of Lake Worth desires to develop recreational opportunities, encourage economic development, and create new jobs within our regional area while enhancing the environmental attributes of the City of Lake Worth; and
WHEREAS, the Treasure Coast Regional Planning Council (TCRPC) created The Intracoastal Waterway Plan for Palm Beach County: Charting a Course for the Future (2009 Charrette) for the Palm Beach County Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) published in January 2009.
WHEREAS, the 2009 Charrette participants identified six core public themes including increasing public access to the Intracoastal Waterway (ICW), protecting natural resources, expanding all forms of water based transportation, and promoting sustainable economics; and
WHEREAS, the MPO requested the ’09 Charrette be updated by TCRPC and their report was published in January 2015 which documented that a connection to the ICW at the S155 Control Structure on the C51 Canal would have significant economic and recreational benefit; and
WHEREAS, the C51 Canal is connected to a 26 mile chain of freshwater lakes (Pine Lake, Lake Clarke, Lake Osborne, Lake Eden and Lake Ida) and navigable canals within our regional area; and
WHEREAS, the City of Lake Worth supports improvements to the C51 Canal that would enhance the recreational uses of the ICW, C51 Canal, and the Chain of Lakes and provides for new economic opportunities and job creation; and
WHEREAS, a connection between the ICW and the C51 Canal at the S155 Control Structure would provide for economic development, job creation and recreational enhancement. The connection has been referred to as the “Boat Lift” and is estimated to provide significant economic benefit to the regional area; and
WHEREAS, the City of Lake Worth recognizes a significant environmental resource in the canals and lakes that must be protected and improved; and
WHEREAS, the Boat Lift provides for environmental enhancement to the waterways, safe and effective portage opportunities for non-motorized recreational watercraft, and small motorized boats to access the ICW; and
WHEREAS, the Ocean to Lake Trails Committee of the PBC League of Cities has identified the Boat Lift and the associated improvements to the ICW and the C-51 as vital to that Ocean to Lake Trails initiative; and
WHEREAS, in recognizing these facts, the City of Lake Worth desires to join with our regional area neighboring municipalities in their joint efforts to create a regional focus on the Eastern C- 51 Canal

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE CITY COMMISSION OF THE CITY OF LAKE WORTH, FLORIDA, that:

SECTION 1:

The City of Lake Worth fully acknowledges and supports the following:

A. Recreational opportunities, economic development and environmental enhancement which occur within the regional area are beneficial to the City of Lake Worth and, therefore, are supported by the City of Lake Worth; and
B. The City of Lake Worth will independently encourage the development of the Chain of Lakes, the Ocean to Lake Trails initiative, and the Boat Lift consistent with the recitals above; and
C. Regular communications shall be maintained between the regional area municipalities to ensure cooperation and support for one another in any and all efforts to advance the Chain of Lakes, the Ocean to Lake Trails initiative, and the Boat Lift.

SECTION 2:

The City of Lake Worth agrees that this resolution may be used to market the Chain of Lakes, the Ocean to Lake Trails initiative, and to solicit funds from other sources for the planning, design, permitting and construction of the Chain of Lakes and the Boat Lift, and discuss this project with others as a single regional voice.

The passage of this resolution was moved by __________, seconded by __________, and upon being put to a vote, the vote was as follows [the vote, remember, was unanimous]:

Mayor Pam Triolo
Vice Mayor Scott Maxwell
Commissioner Omari Hardy
Commissioner Andy Amoroso
Commissioner Herman Robinson

The Mayor thereupon declared this resolution duly passed and adopted this 3rd day of October, 2017.

Enjoy the video:

*To “Connect with the reporter” click on this link.
     “Skyler Swisher is a reporter covering Palm Beach County government. Before joining the Sun Sentinel, he wrote about health care for The Daytona Beach News-Journal. A native of Memphis, he is a graduate of the University of Tennessee.”

“Journalists are easily bored . . . Especially by good news.”

And. . .

. . . [T]his is the No. 1 issue — anonymous sources. Readers believe that anonymous sources are one of two things — it’s either something that’s been made up or someone that’s manipulating the reporter. [emphasis added] And certainly the latter is often the case.”
—Daniel Okrent, former public editor of The New York Times.


Continue reading about the ‘Fourth Estate’ and why it’s “pretty damn low — humiliatingly low”.


“I think one of the greatest casualties of the high metabolism of the news business is complexity. That’s a big loss.”
—Quote by Bill Keller, journalist and former editor at The New York Times.

“We see it all the time. That is why most of the time, when local media does something on someone on food stamps, it’s a black woman, and she’s got a bunch of kids, and she’s obese. That is not accidental. You’re just living out your own stereotypes. This is the bias that reporters bring to their job.”
—Soledad O’Brien, journalist, former CNN anchor.


Below are more quotes and excerpts from a very long article published in New York magazine. The view these reporters and editors have — many former, having left the profession of the ‘news business’ — is not a pretty one. Another quote from the article . . . editors, reporters and journalists need to:

“[C]onfront, out in the open, the possibility that their work might not be any of the things they imagined it was — objective, rigorous, informative. Instead, we found we often looked partisan, mendacious, lazy, sloppy, and shrill.”


From the lead-in to the article published in New York, a sobering view of journalism and news reporting:

“For decades, the pollsters at Gallup have been asking Americans if they trust their media. In 1974, the year Woodward and Bernstein brought an end to Richard Nixon’s presidency, 69 percent of them did. In a poll released last year, that number was at a historic low. Today, the only institutions Americans have less faith in than television news (21 percent) and newspapers (20 percent) are Congress and ‘big business.’ That’s pretty damn low — humiliatingly low, especially for a group of people who fancy themselves members of ‘the Fourth Estate.’ ”


Below are just 10 of the 53 points made in the New York article about “the Fourth Estate”:

Is desperate to be respected, which produces blindness.

Journalists are easily bored …

. . . Especially by good news.

Unfortunately, so are readers, who are hard-wired for panic.

Which editors, producers, and publishers know.

Journalists are deluded …

More cynical than their readers …

Rush their work …

Believe popular opinion is all that matters …

. . . And are completely comfortable cutting deals.

Yesterday’s seminar “Automation in Transportation” with Dr. Tim Schwanen, University of Oxford.

This fascinating seminar was held on the 6th floor boardroom at the Port of Palm Beach.

Check back later on today and tomorrow for more about this seminar held yesterday and there are YouTube videos as well.

One of the things that stood out yesterday was Dr. Schwanen discuss the “Heightened Disappointment Cycle” related to the introduction of innovations, e.g., autonomous vehicles for people and freight. This seminar was: 


Presented by FAU’s Center for Urban and Environmental Solutions in cooperation with the Palm Beach County Planning Congress with generous support from FAU’s Freight Mobility Research Institute.


I was graciously allowed by officials at the port and seminar organizers to bring my camera to take photos and some video as well which are ‘cooking’ on YouTube right now and will be ready later on today.

Meet Dr. Tim Schwanen:

From the program: “Tim Schwanen is Director of the Transport Studies Unit and Associate Professor of Transport Studies at the University of Oxford. . . . [R]esearch concentrates on the geographical and social dimensions of the everyday mobilities of people, goods, and information.”

A view from the 6th floor:

Looking at the top deck of a cruise ship from the Bahamas Paradise Cruise Line.

A Tweet from yesterday:

At @PortofPalmBeach today for seminar "Automation in Transportation" by @TimSchwanen and @fau_cues in cooperation with Palm Beach County Planning Congress.

Was generously allowed to take video of presentation. Check my YouTube channel tomorrow: https://t.co/8vVbXE1XEG pic.twitter.com/oUSEYTLurQ

— Wes Blackman (@WesBlackman) April 16, 2018

A view inside the boardroom:

Learned yesterday that the Port of Palm Beach is a “taxing district” but has not levied taxes in 39 years. Why? Because it hasn’t needed to.

Another view:

And yes. The many benefits of Brightline were
also discussed as well.

Once again, stay tuned for more
information to come.

The aftermath: 1928 Hurricane from the Historical Society of Palm Beach County.

Below is rare footage that will give everyone an idea how much damage a direct strike by a powerful hurricane can do (more historical background is below):



The video begins as the storm diminished in strength enough for the cameraman to walk around and take this film footage. You will see a lot of the Breakers Hotel which was only three years old at the time. Its Circle Dining Room was under construction. You will see the initial recovery efforts and then the film jumps to four days, then a month, and then a year after the storm.

Also prominently featured is the former Royal Poinciana Hotel which was Henry Flagler’s grand wooden hotel. You get the sense of its enormity. Unfortunately, it was torn down in the 1930s, but you can get glimpses of it here in all its past glory.

The storm itself is referred to as the Okeechobee Hurricane due in large part to the death toll it caused around the southern part of Lake Okeechobee. This hurricane was prior to them being given names. It remains the second deadliest hurricane to hit the United States.