Tomorrow morning is the Palm Beaches Marathon which includes no beaches in Palm Beach County.

A portion of this full 26.2 mile marathon includes the City of Lake Worth with a spectacular Beach.

But the runners will not get a chance to see our Beach in this City. Or any beaches for that matter. Because West Palm Beach does not have a beach. West Palm wishes they had a beach. They always did. But they don’t.

And if you happen to see any protesters along the race route in the City of Lake Worth this year do not be alarmed. They are all very nice people just making the point. Our Lake Worth Beach needs to be part of next year’s marathon race. And the racers deserve to see a real ocean beach too.

Please Note: Later in this blog post is a press release from the City of Lake Worth.

Have you seen any press, news media reports, or promotional material about the City of Lake Worth being part of this marathon?

No. Of course not. The star on Sunday is West Palm Beach sans an actual beach. On the Discover The Palm Beaches website promoting this race the City of Lake Worth is not even mentioned.

Our City is not worthy of mention? Not even our many wonderful neighborhoods?

And guess where the Cultural Council of Palm Beach County is located? Right here in the City of Lake Worth. Ironic, is it not?

Below is a map of this year’s race route. The race route is absolutely unspectacular and needs to be improved in 2019. It needs to include the Lake Worth Beach.

For visiting athletes this will be an unusual marathon coming up tomorrow morning. Over twenty-six miles and not a single beach for the runners to see. What are all those athletes going to tell their friends when they get home, “I saw a lagoon in West Palm Beach. That place without a beach that everyone thinks has a beach.”

And that particular lagoon is called the Lake Worth Lagoon. They don’t call it the ‘West Palm Lagoon’ for a reason. And unlike in West Palm the City of Lake Worth works hard to stop balloons from polluting our precious waterways. Click on this link to read more about that terrible situation in West Palm.

Why did this happen, no beaches in this year’s race?

The Town of Palm Beach rejected the Palm Beaches Marathon this year. They said it wasn’t “town-serving”. That’s right. Rejected. Get out of Palm Beach. Go run your race somewhere else.

So what the organizers of the Palm ‘Beaches’ Marathon did was add a little bit of distance to the race in this City of Lake Worth. Does the race include the Lake Worth Beach? No. If you are unhappy with that then you need to start making some noise.

Start contacting the Cultural Council of Palm Beach County, your elected leaders here in the City of Lake Worth, and the good folks at LULA Lake Worth Arts and tell them you want the 2019 Palm Beaches Marathon to be more “town-serving” for our City.

Plan the 2019 Palm Beaches Marathon to include the spectacular Lake Worth Beach!

Part of the Palm Beaches Marathon full marathon which more accurately should be called the “Palm Marathon” — because there are no beaches — and that’s why as has been noted on this blog the Palm Marathon has yet to reach its true potential.

We need to have very nice and polite protesters along the route this year in the City of Lake Worth holding signs and chanting:

Take Marathon to Lake Worth Beach in 2019!

A Palm Beaches Marathon with no Beach?

But please remember if you do go and peacefully protest tomorrow be nice and polite! Smile a whole lot and follow the instructions of race organizers and PBSO deputies.

Now to the press release from the City of Lake Worth* about the Palm Marathon tomorrow.

Press release issued by Mr. Ben Kerr, the City’s public information officer. For more information from Mr. Kerr call 561-586-1631 or send an email to: BKerr@lakeworth.org


Lake Worth residents:

On Sunday, December 2, the Palm Beaches Marathon [with no Beaches] will be taking place through the City of Lake Worth.

For the safety of the participants there will be minor travel delays between 6:00 a.m. and noon on Federal Hwy., North Golfview Rd. and North Lakeside Drive between 3rd Ave. North and Duke Dr. Please see map (see below) for time estimates of when marathon participants are expected to be passing each intersection.

Intersections will be closed as the marathon passes and will reopen immediately following. PBSO and event staff will work to limit travel delays while ensuring safety during the event.

The map of race through the City of Lake Worth.

West Palm is to the north. Note number “19”.

The east-west waterway (above “15”) is the C-51 Canal, the northern border of City of Lake Worth. Click on image to enlarge:

The runners on Sunday will never get a glimpse of the Atlantic Ocean. At 3rd Ave. North the runners will have to turn around and go back. How very sad.

Here are the approximate times the racers
will be at locations along the route:

The “TIME ESTIMATES” in 2019 for the Palm Beaches Marathon need to include the Lake Worth Beach and Casino Complex.

Make your voice heard. And remember, West Palm Beach does not have a beach!

*About the City of Lake Worth:

“Located in Central Palm Beach County, Lake Worth is a dynamic, multicultural 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.” 

PUBLIC NOTICE: Excerpts published in this week’s Lake Worth Herald.

Support your LOCAL small town newspaper.

To see this week’s front page headlines
click on this link.

Pick up the print edition (still ¢50!) at the City’s Downtown newsstand at 205 N. Federal Hwy.
To contact the editor at the Herald call 561-585-9387 or email: Editor@lwherald.com

PLEASE TAKE NOTICE that the City Commission of the City of Lake Worth, Florida, will hold public hearings in the City Commission Chamber, in said City at or after 6:00 PM on December 13, 2018, on the following ordinances:

ORDINANCE NO. 2018-18 OF THE CITY OF LAKE WORTH, FLORIDA, CALLING FOR A REFERENDUM OF THE QUALIFIED ELECTORS OF THE CITY OF LAKE WORTH TO BE HELD ON MARCH 12, 2019, AS TO WHETHER ARTICLE I, SECTION 1 OF THE CITY OF LAKE WORTH CHARTER SHALL BE AMENDED TO CHANGE THE NAME OF THE CITY FROM THE “CITY OF LAKE WORTH” TO THE “CITY OF LAKE WORTH BEACH”

and. . .

ORDINANCE NO. 2018-19 OF THE CITY OF LAKE WORTH, FLORIDA, CALLING FOR A REFERENDUM OF THE QUALIFIED ELECTORS OF THE CITY OF LAKE WORTH TO BE HELD ON MARCH 12, 2019, AS TO WHETHER THE CITY SHALL BE AUTHORIZED TO SELL CITY PROPERTY LOCATED AT 501 LAKE AVENUE IN DOWNTOWN LAKE WORTH WITH ALL PROCEEDS USED EXCLUSIVELY WITHIN DOWNTOWN LAKE WORTH

in conclusion. . .

At said meeting interested persons may appear and be heard with respect to the proposed ordinances.The proposed ordinances may be inspected by the public Monday–Friday from 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM at the City Clerk’s Office, 7 North Dixie Highway, Lake Worth, Florida.

Is our City of Lake Worth one of the “Most Dangerous Places in Florida”?

Drum roll, please!

No. It’s not. Completely false. Bogus.
Not even close to the truth.

[Please Note: At the end of this blog post is PBSO Cpt. Todd Baer’s response to the nonsense from an inaptly named website called ‘Financial Hub’, just another data aggregation site using Garbage In Garbage Out (GIGO), just like NeighborhoodScout, NerdWallet, and OnlyInYourState, the latest nonsense about ‘crime’ in our City and ‘data’, hard to believe but true, a beat reporter from The Palm Beach Post actually relied on for ‘facts’ about crime.]


Yes. There is crime in the City of Lake Worth. And if you’ve been paying any attention to the news in Palm Beach County there is crime in other cities as well. However, the public is not served when the media misrepresents, misreports, and distorts important issues such as crime like a reporter from the Post did.

Despite all the facts to the contrary, the myth persists about our City of Lake Worth being one of the most dangerous municipalities in Florida. And why does this myth persist? It’s because of ‘news’, for example, published in The Palm Beach Post and other irresponsible news outlets as you’ll read about below.

That’s why after all these years the City is considering changing its name to “Lake Worth Beach”. It’s the one certain way, over time, we’ll reclaim our image after all these years of being bashed and maligned. Stay tuned. Because it’s a very real possibility renaming this City to become Lake Worth Beach could be put before the voters by referendum on March 12th, 2019.

Not long after Kevin Thompson became the Post beat reporter for the City of Lake Worth he fell for this nonsense from the websites NeighborhoodScout and Nerd Wallet: both data aggregation sites using just Zip Codes and not municipal borders.

An excerpt from Thompson’s original article
three years ago:

NeighborhoodScout recently listed the 10 most dangerous cities in the state, with Lake Worth coming in at — drum roll, please! — No. 4. . . .

Complete utter nonsense in the Post. Here’s
another one from Thompson:

In a recent Nerd Wallet survey, the city was ranked as one of the best in Florida for young families. Well, according to another survey, those families may want to stay inside and lock their doors.

So very charming, isn’t it, from the beat
reporter at the Post?

Now back to NeighborhoodScout. This a perfect example of data collection and the principle of Garbage In Garbage Out (GIGO). Lake Worth is only 6 square miles but look at what they include: vast areas of unincorporated PBC:

Below this image/caption see the
Palm Beach County Zip Code map. 

The City of Lake Worth is 6 square miles (shaded light blue, center-right side in image). NeighborhoodScout included all the other shaded areas inaccurately as “Lake Worth”.

 Map courtesy of Palm Beach County government.
A helpful tool for the media and press.

The area in white between the cities of Greenacres and Lake Worth is unincorporated PBC and the “Lake Worth Corridor”.

Andrew Schiller, the CEO of NeighborhoodScout in 2015, wrote this interesting item:


Developing a reliable measure of a city’s safety, especially if you’re comparing them, requires a full count of the total number and types of violent crimes in each city, and getting the cities on a level playing field for comparison.

Good point!

Since the data was proven flawed, inaccurate, and misleading then why does the Post, a “newspaper of record”, still have this story on their website? Here’s an excerpt:

 
LAKE WORTH — The numbers aren’t pretty.
     With a crime rate of 71 per one thousand residents, Lake Worth (the city and its suburban surroundings) has one of the highest crime rates in America compared to communities of all sizes, according to the real estate website, NeighborhoodScout.com.

Once again, completely false.

Then Victoria Winkler, using the data from NeighborhoodScout in the blog OnlyInYourState, used the flawed data to rank Lake Worth as the 4th most dangerous city in Florida. Just ahead of Miami!

Miami, with a population of 400,000 came in
at #5. The City of Lake Worth’s population
is less than 40,000.

Lake Worth at #4? Totally bogus. 

“[E]ven more upsetting” is a newspaper not verifying the accuracy of data on crime.

And since when are websites like NeighborhoodScout, Nerd Wallet, and OnlyInYourState considered legitimate sources in The Palm Beach Post, a “newspaper of record”?

Here’s another map of Central Palm Beach County.

A reminder: the areas in white are unincorporated, not municipalities. Just trying to help.

From District 14 PBSO Cpt. Baer, responding to the so-called ‘news’ from another in a long string of data-aggregation sites using GIGO, incomplete and misleading data, and more likely that not, relying on zip codes as well:


No, it is not very accurate. The most telling issue is that they are using Wikipedia as their source.

and. . .

     Not sure what they mean by “attacks”. They mention residents having a 1 in 76 chance of being robbed. I can tell you from reading the reports every day, our population of illegals [undocumented aliens] are our robbery victims the overwhelming majority of the time.
     The second most victims have been those involved in drugs and/or prostitution. It is rare for anyone else to be robbed. Thanks for bringing this one to my attention.

     Regards, Captain Todd Baer, Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office, Commander – District 14 – City of Lake Worth.

From Facebook: “Palm Beaches Remembered”.

Click on image to enlarge:

Does this lot look familiar? This is now the Gonz Auto Collision Center at 1401 N. Dixie Hwy.
in the City of Lake Worth Beach.

Draw your own conclusions: Why does Lierre Keith draw so much attention on this blog?

Warning: Free Speech is not just for people you agree with. There is content below which will truly disturb some people. You’ve been warned.

Learn more about Lierre Keith below, but first
just a little bit about western sprawl here in
Central Palm Beach County.

Once upon a time this City of Lake Worth according to the Palm Beach New Times had not one but two of the “19 Best Environmentalists in South Florida”. However neither of those two “Best Environmentalists” has ever responded to a blog post from November 2016 about “Eastward Ho!”:


We need to have an open conversation about development in Lake Worth. But that’s a difficult task when so many in the environmental community just say “No” over and over again to development along the I-95 corridor and east towards the coast. Cities like Lake Worth are being severely hurt by urban sprawl out west, taking much-needed tax dollars needed to fix our crumbling infrastructure, ergo the $40 million that Lake Worth voters agreed was needed last November 8th [2016].


Have those two celebrated environmentalists checked out the “New Homes” real estate section in The Palm Beach Post lately? And Palm Beach County has thirty-nine cities now and another is looming on the horizon.

However, who came under almost constant withering attack and brutal criticism from the environmentalist and ‘red enviros’ several years ago and maybe still does? That would be none other than Lierre Keith, a radical environmentalist herself. Could it be a strong, outspoken woman with controversial ideas threatens a lot of people and institutions? Should she just shut up and go away?

And consider this: Consistently, blog traffic about Lierre Keith draws a tremendous amount of traffic on this blog. Why would that be?


It could be her organization, Deep Green Resistance, is one filling the void in the radical environmental community left by groups like EarthFirst! and others. Whether you agree with her or not she does have big ideas and thoughts, something that’s lacking for many who are looking for debates in the radical space.

Lierre Keith is a radical environmentalist, author, feminist, member of Deep Green Resistance, and an ex-vegan recovering from years of not consuming animal protein. In the video below she explains why she chose to be a vegan in the first place and the terrible health consequences that lifestyle had on her health.

She wrote a wildly popular book titled The Vegetarian Myth: Food, Justice, and Sustainability in 2009. Ms. Keith makes a compelling case against vegetarianism and why animal protein is essential to a healthy lifestyle.

Lierre Keith has “stirred the pot” if you will in other ways as well. She was in the forefront of a vociferous and acrimonious debate about transgenderism. Suffice to say she’s not a big fan. Here is an article in The New Yorker subtitled, “The dispute between radical feminism and transgenderism”. She is a very interesting woman with strong beliefs and is not shy about sharing them with the world.

Enjoy the video and remember, Free Speech isn’t just for people you agree with:

On predicting what the voters will decide next year. . .

Should the City of Lake Worth become the “City of Lake Worth Beach”?

Or is the better question, “Are the voters in this City of Lake Worth ready to rename this City”?

We’ll find out the answer to that question on March 12th, 2019 when the voters march to the polls. That would be one hundred and three days from today.

In the meantime everyone will have plenty of time to make their case. Today this news finally made The Palm Beach Post print edition. That means in a day or two Frank Cerabino will chime in with something snarky about “Lake Worth Beach” and Harry’s Banana Farm will put up a new sign. And then a couple days after that the editorial board will most likely chime in. The worst thing that could happen is the editor(s) like the idea of “Lake Worth Beach”. That would be the kiss of death.

When it comes to referendums remember in 2017 the public mood seemed to be a toss-up when it came to increasing terms for elected leaders from two to three years. But that referendum passed by a very comfortable margin. Most people thought the 2016 Neighborhood Road Bond would pass but be a squeaker. Wrong. It passed by a landslide.

Five years ago this City by referendum moved our municipal elections from November back to March. The conspiracy theorists went nuts. But it passed anyway.

The point is predictions about what will happen on March 12th, 2019 are moot. The public debate has barely begun.

The interesting thing is everyone on both sides of the issue seem very comfortable letting this question go to ballot in March of next year. Expect a very lively, informative and interesting debate.

However, when it comes to the press and news media, please note it was reporter Andrew Lofholm at WPTV/NBC5 who first broke this story about the Lake Worth City Commission considering renaming this City. Lofholm reported this news last Monday.

The news from Lofholm was very fair and accurate. And today in the print edition (Thursday, Nov. 29th) the beat reporter from The Palm Beach Post has finally gotten around to reporting this major story which actually became a story on October 30th, nearly a month ago.

But unlike the news on WPTV the Post relied on Facebook for public opinion.

Yes, it’s true, Facebook:

[M]ore than 300 voted against the name change [to “Lake Worth Beach”] and over 100 people were in favor of it.

Since when is a ‘vote’ on Facebook a reliable indicator of public opinion?

As you will learn later in this blog post, a poll taken by a professional firm showed a statistical tie at 50% against renaming this City, 45% for the name change with 5% undecided. And how many people on Facebook ‘voted’ multiple times?


To learn more about this topic for yourself,
instead of relying on Facebook. . .

At last Tuesday’s City Commission Work Session on the topic of renaming this City to “Lake Worth Beach” Mr. Steven Vancore of Vancore Jones Communications had some very interesting observations. That YouTube video is at the end of this blog post.

Also on the agenda last Tuesday was the discussion about the proposed ballot items to allow the sale of public property at 501 Lake Ave. by referendum on March 12th, 2019 and the proposed referendum to sell a 12-acre parcel of public property in the northwestern area of the City.

The next public meeting to discuss these topics will be at the regularly scheduled City Commission meeting next Tuesday, Dec. 4th, at 6:00 for First Reading. Then on Dec. 13th will be a Special Commission meeting (Second Reading) to decide whether or not to send these questions to the Supervisor of Elections to be placed on the ballot next year.

What needs to happen in the meantime.

For the ballot question about renaming this City to pass the younger generations and the Millennials need to get involved. Why? There are still way too many older voters in this City that are fond of a “Lake Worth” that existed 40–50 years ago and that is borne out from the polling results.

No doubt the polling results would be much different in 2028 and beyond.

The political support to put this question on the ballot is very strong. But it remains to be seen if that political support will translate into public support, especially so among the younger voters.

Next week a lot of young people need to show up at the City Commission. And a lot of young people and Millennials need to contact the elected leaders on the City Commission and tell them you support renaming this City to “Lake Worth Beach” and pledge your support to help get this ballot question passed by a wide margin to send a strong message.

The older generations apparently are not disturbed by things like this, ‘news’ published in The Palm Beach Post about our City.

But the younger voters and the Millennials can send a very strong message as well:

“Enough is enough: We are not the old Lake Worth”.

Mr. Vancore is introduced at the eleven minute
and thirty second mark in this video:

City of Boynton Beach has a new beat reporter from The Palm Beach Post.

Time for new beat reporter
in City of Lake Worth too,
a female perspective?

FYI. December 1st will mark six months since Gatehouse Media took over at the Post.

It’s not unusual for the Post to switch out reporters to keep things interesting. Reporter Chelsea Todaro took over the Boynton Beach beat from Alexandra Seltzer who is covering very important developments in suburban Palm Beach County. Who knows, maybe Red Denty is in the wings to take over the Lake Worth beat for the Post. Denty was the beat reporter for a brief period of time in Boynton as well.

And then there are the always interesting reads from Hannah Morse who took over for the now-retired Bill DiPaolo in the Town of Jupiter. And you may recall Kevin Thompson used to cover the beat in the Village of Royal Palm Beach and the City of Greenacres too.

Our hopes were dashed here in the City of Lake Worth when McKenna Ross’ internship was over and then she left Palm Beach County. The hope was Ross would become our new beat reporter in this City. The last female beat reporter covering the Lake Worth beat was Lona O’Connor way back in 2009–2010.

Wouldn’t a female perspective be something new in Lake Worth City Hall? For the history of beat reporters here in this City and instructions how to write a Letter to the Editor too click on this link.

“Call to Artists and Vendors” from the City of Lake Worth and LULA.

Just a reminder. . .

Come and be part of the annual Christmas and Holiday Market this Saturday (Dec. 1st) in the Downtown Cultural Plaza from noon to 8:00.

It will be a huge crowd! The City’s annual Christmas Tree Lighting Ceremony is at 7:00.

The Christmas Tree Lighting Ceremony is the highlight of LULA Lake Worth Arts’ “FOCUS” week. For the entire lineup of events this week click on this link.

FOCUS week is:


A full week of multidisciplinary art throughout the City of Lake Worth. Watch as murals transform Downtown through West Village, listen to live music at multiple venues, marvel at the architectural design competition, experience select art exhibits, gallery openings and lectures.

Children of all ages can delight in the kids events and, of course, the annual Christmas and Holiday Tree Lighting on Saturday!

Below is more information “Worth Noting”.

The upcoming Christmas and Holiday Market
in the Cultural Plaza on Saturday.

Application due date is Friday, Nov. 30th. Vendor fee is $45. For more information contact the City’s Dept. of Leisure Services or stop by the office at 501 Lake Ave. on Monday–Friday from 9:00 a.m.–4:00 p.m.

More information about the market next Saturday.

Vendor and artist set up is from 10:00–11:30 a.m. for the City’s annual Christmas and Holiday Market. Breakdown is at 8:00 p.m. Electric hook up will be available.

The market will feature local and out-of-town artists, live music, activities for kids, art demos, booth chats, food trucks, and fun for all ages that make this festival a perfect experience for all.

Tents will be located outdoors in the beautiful Cultural Plaza located in the heart of Downtown Lake Worth.

As night falls Lake Worth Mayor Pam Triolo will officially light the City’s Christmas Tree to the music of a Victorian Carol Choir.


Also of note: Friday, December 7th is the monthly Lake Ave. Block Party and Saturday, December 15th is the 53rd annual Christmas and Holiday Parade in Downtown Lake Worth!

City of Lake Worth is named in honor of a highly decorated U.S. Army officer.

And that decorated military officer has an interesting connection to the 18th President of the United States: General Ulysses S. Grant. Learn more about that below.

Are you interested in City of Lake Worth history? What are you doing today?


The newly renovated Lake Worth Historical Museum is located on the second floor of the City Hall Annex located at 414 Lake Ave. (in the Cultural Plaza) and is open Wednesday and Friday from 1:00–4:00. Tours are also provided by appointment. Call 561-533-7354.


Earlier this year the Lake Worth Historical Museum was one of the destinations on a Downtown walking tour taken by the Florida chapter of the American Planning Assoc.; a few days later this event was front page news in The Lake Worth Herald.

Click on newspaper clipping to enlarge.

Helen Greene, docent of the Lake Worth Historical Museum, penned this front page news in the Herald. Other things you’ll discover at the museum, about a military officer named. . .

General William Jenkins Worth (1794–1849):

“United States officer during the War of 1812, Second Seminole War, and Mexican-American War.”

Image from Wikipedia:

Mathew Brady (1822–1896), “was one of the earliest photographers in American history, best known for his scenes of the Civil War.”

Interesting fact:

There are only two historical monuments in Manhattan, New York City, that serve as mausoleums: one is called “Grant’s Tomb”, the final resting place of General Ulysses S. Grant (1822–1885), the 18th President of the United States. And the other is an obelisk in honor of General William Jenkins Worth.

The obelisk in honor of General Worth has a dado that reads in part:

“DUCIT AMOR PATRIAE” [The Love Of Country Leads Me].

This monument was designed by James Goodwin Batterson and dedicated on November 25, 1857:

“The obelisk contains four sets of bands with the names of 16 places of importance in the life of Major General Worth. On the south facing front of the pedestal is a bronze tablet with a high relief of General Worth on horseback, with dress military uniform holding his sword in his right hand while pointing it forward. Above this figure is a complex trophy depicting cannons, swords, flags and eagles.”

Here is the first paragraph about General Worth from Wikipedia:

Worth was born in 1794 in Hudson, New York, to Thomas Worth and Abigail Jenkins. Both of his parents were Quakers, but he rejected the pacifism of their faith. He received common schooling as a child and moved to Albany where he was working as a merchant when the War of 1812 began.

You can learn more about General Worth using this link, the Texas State Historical Association:

He became an instructor of tactics at West Point in 1820 and in 1825 was made commandant of cadets. By the time of his transfer to field duty in 1828, Worth had instilled high standards of conduct and discipline still evident today in the West Point Cadet Corps.
     He was promoted to major, ordnance bureau, on May 30, 1832. During the 1830s Worth served under Scott in the Illinois campaign against the Black Hawks and participated in the removal of Cherokee Indians from the southeastern United States.

and. . .

     The city of Fort Worth and a large lake [now the Lake Worth Lagoon] in Florida are named in Worth’s honor. Worth was a member of the Church of Christ (Congregational), a Democrat, and a Mason.

Legacy, places named in honor of General Worth:

• Fort Worth, Texas
• Lake Worth, Texas
• Village of Worth, Illinois
• Worth County, Georgia
• Worthville, Kentucky
• Worth County, Missouri
• Worth County, Iowa. . .

“[A]nd the Lake Worth Lagoon in Florida, and consequently, the City of Lake Worth, Florida on its shores, are named in his honor.”

Do you remember when The Palm Beach Post used to oppose Brightline? Recall all those negative letters that got published?

Briefly, a question: Do you know what a
flute without holes is called?

Find out a little later in this blog post.

To the topic at hand.


Back in 2014 the editor(s) at the Post supported the concept of All Aboard Florida and high speed passenger rail in South Florida. But then in 2015 the Post went decidedly negative. And then earlier this year the Post went positively positive again about passenger rail, Brightline and the soon-to-be Virgin Trains USA.

What happened?

Note the Post was put up For-Sale in November 2017 and GateHouse Media bought that newspaper in May of this year. What happened that the Post went from negatively negative about Brightline to now being positively positive?

Well. The clue can be found in this news report by business reporter Jeff Ostrowski at the Post:


All Aboard Florida, which operates Brightline, is owned by an affiliate of Fortress Investment Group LLC, a global investment management firm. Fortress Investment Group LLC is contracted to manage and advise New Media Investments Inc., which owns GateHouse Media, the parent company of The Palm Beach Post. [emphasis added]


Anyhow. Now about that flute. . .



“A flute without holes is not a flute.
A donut without a hole is a Danish.”

—Quote. Chevy Chase in the classic movie Caddyshack.

So. You may be wondering, why is this quote by Chevy Chase significant to Brightline? Find out further down below in this blog post.

Hint: Recall that “donut hole” in downtown WPB as reported by Brian Entin, formerly of WPTV?

Well. Without getting into the weeds so to speak, the editor(s) at the Post saw the light — or rather the very bright and illuminating light coming from a train one could say — on May 1st this year when they were taken over by GateHouse Media.

And ever since May 1st the editor(s) at The Palm Beach Post just absolutely adore Brightline!

Which is soon to be renamed Virgin Trains USA.

You see, once upon a time the editor(s) at the Post had more in common with their fellow travelers in Martin County than they did with the public here in Palm Beach County. And maybe that is partly the reason why they were put up For-Sale by Cox Media last year.

For example, back in 2015 the rumors, mis- and disinformation about All Aboard Florida (later called Brightline) was at a fever pitch portending doom and gloom and the fall of Western Civilization. This all culminated in December 2015 when the editor at the Post published a letter (see below) that had some people laughing silly, others just incredulous, but mostly readers just wondering how something so ridiculous could make it through the editorial process.

Can you see the V in the photo below? Are you disturbed by that? Is it affecting your “calmness” in any detectable way?

The Brightline train station in late 2015–early 2016 under construction in West Palm Beach.

Enjoy this letter that got published in December 2015.

Click on image to enlarge:

Do you think the letter V is “disturbing” and “disrupting the calmness of our state?”

Or did the letter writer portend the future? The V as in Virgin Trains USA maybe?

Remember when I saw that letter to the editor three years ago. Had a mouthful of coffee which went spewing all over the table. My first thought was how happy the letter wasn’t written by a Lake Worth resident.

Second thing that came to mind is, “Hey, is that an image of Jesus on my toast?”

The letter V is not a logo for Brightline. The image that is “disturbing” to the letter writer is a replica of one of the architectural structure supports that will hold up the train station. 

Image from 2015 of the proposed Brightline station in West Palm Beach.

Maybe to quell any public anxiety the architects should have turned the supports upside down to form an A?

The image inverted. What do you think? Does the A look better or do you prefer the V? Would letter Q have worked? Or J?

Anyhow. Without further ado.

Explained, the quote by Chevy Chase and the link (pardon the pun) to Brightline.

“A flute without holes is not a flute. A donut without a hole is a Danish.”

The editor(s) and business reporters at the Post need to recall that just about 3 years ago West Palm Beach had a big “donut hole” — an entire vacant city block in their downtown — until an entity called “All Aboard Florida” came along and turned that hole into a Danish.

All Aboard Florida, later to become Brightline, was and remains a significant “flute” welcoming the future revitalization of transportation and passenger rail not only in West Palm Beach but in all South Florida and beyond to Orlando, then Tampa, and then. . .

But 4½ years ago, prior to going negative, at least one of the editors at the Post understood the significance of the Florida East Coast (FEC) railway and how crucial this project was for passenger transportation. On the future profitability of passenger rail along the FEC here’s what that editor wrote in May 2014 on the “Paranoia about All Aboard Florida”:


     So what to make of the All Aboard push? And why should Floridians care?
     It is very possible that All Aboard Florida, which will include stations in West Palm Beach and Fort Lauderdale, will not be profitable for years or even decades. Even so, it still may be a wise investment for FEC because the service will vastly boost the value of the property it owns around the service’s planned stops, including 9 acres in downtown Miami and land near Clematis Street in downtown West Palm Beach. [emphasis added] “I don’t know that they have to make a profit (on the rail service) for the project to be successful overall,” said Charles Banks, an Arlington, Va.-based railroad consultant.


But seems the editor(s) at the Post shortly thereafter came to discover they had more in common with their ‘fellow travelers’ in Martin County than they did with their own readership right here in Palm Beach County. Enter GateHouse Media to pick up the pieces.

GateHouse Media has taken over at the Post effective May 1st. Now that newspaper once again has the potential to become a Danish and a flute too in West Palm Beach.

Hope not to draw any more attention
than it deserves. . .

But just prior to being sold to GateHouse Media a truly ridiculous story appeared on the front page of the Post last April and nothing sums it up better than this comment that was posted by “Peter529” in the online edition:


A dozen reporters rode the train for 29 hours and that’s all you have for your article. Honestly? I would expect more from a high school writing class assignment. I don’t mean to be condescending but when you started off with “a dozen reporters” I was really looking forward to an in-depth article. Are they meeting their ridership goals? When does it get busy and when does it slow down? Were they on time? How were the prices on food and drink and quality. Sigh. . .

More information about Brightline. . .

The information below is from July 2017, nearly 1½ years ago, my tour of the Brightline train station in WPB prior to its Grand Opening. This tour was sponsored by the Palm Beach County Planning Congress in collaboration with the West Palm Beach Downtown Neighborhood Assoc. For parts 1–3 on this blog about that tour click on this link.

TV news reporter Brian Entin works for WSVN in Miami now but back prior to that he was a reporter for NBC5/WPTV. In November 2015 Entin had a news segment that featured the “Donut hole in downtown West Palm Beach” (unfortunately, WPTV no longer has a link to that story).

Following Entin’s “donut hole” report a lot of people had a lot of fun at first. For example, somebody came across the quote from Chevy Chase making fun of Entin and his news segment:

“A flute without holes is not a flute.
A donut without a hole is a Danish.”

But not long after the news from Brian Entin we all learned that “donut hole” the political elites in West Palm Beach made so much fun of initially was soon to become the “Danish” that city so desperately needed. And then later “all of a sudden”, the public started paying very close attention too.

Here are excerpts from the text of
Entin’s news back in 2015:

There is record development in Downtown West Palm Beach. But some people who live downtown still complain about what is known as the “donut hole” between Clematis and City Place. It’s darker than other, more popular areas downtown and there are some abandoned buildings and parking lots.

and. . .

Entrepreneur Tony Solo bought property in the donut hole years ago. “When I purchased the property back in 2005, that is what I was calling it. There is a donut in the city of West Palm Beach” and Solo continued, “As West Palm goes through this renaissance, this area holds the key to growth.”

Two years after Brian Entin’s news segment here are some photos of the Brightline Station, “the Danish”:

A view across the facility. Brightline courteously provided an array of food and a wine/beer bar.

The tour was sponsored by the PBC Planning Congress in collaboration with the WPB Downtown Neighborhood Assoc.

 The children’s play area.
Playing and waiting for the train.

Isn’t this view remarkable? On the 2nd floor is a 360° view of the entire downtown.

Closer look of the play area.

 “Quick. Convenient. Connected.”

“Getting to your destination has never been easier”

Hope you enjoyed this stroll back in time to when that “donut” became a “Danish” in West Palm Beach.

News from Andrew Lofholm at WPTV: Showing how proper news reporting should be done in Palm Beach County.

The news report on the 11:00 news last night on WPTV/NBC5 was about the City of Lake Worth considering a name change to the “City of Lake Worth Beach”. The link to that news report with the video is below with the text as well from that news segment.

The news segment by Andrew Lofholm was top-notch professional. The standard by which all TV news reports should be done.

And as reported by Lofholm, the City Commission Work Session to discuss this topic will begin tonight at 6:00 in City Hall.

The critics of renaming this City to “Lake Worth Beach” have been very quiet thus far, not saying much at all after the straw poll at the City Commission on October 30th was unanimous (5-0) to move forward with putting the topic of renaming this City to referendum on March 12th, 2019.

But yesterday when Lofholm tweeted out that this news would be on TV last night the critics gave up their hand.

Their strategy is to just say changing the name of this City, “[I]s a silly idea” and saying nonsense like this:

“What would we then call the actual Lake Worth beach? The Lake Worth Beach beach?”

Pretty much the critics are out of ideas. They have no alternatives to address the big problem as pointed out by Andrew Lofholm. If the critics did have any alternatives they’ve had a decade or two to come up with one. But instead they’ve just sat on their hands and did nothing.

And to one of those critics I tweeted back, “Are you saying it’s silly to let the voters decide this question?” There was no response to that question. It was complete silence.

And besides the Lake Worth City Commission already voted unanimously to send this question to the voters next year. The way this question should be decided, “Should this City be renamed Lake Worth Beach”?

Let the voters decide!

Because as Lofholm reports (see text of news report below) the Lake Worth City Commission is not making the decision to rename this City. The City Commission wants the electorate to decide. It’s as simple as that. And on top of that there are two more public meetings coming up to discuss the topic. At a regularly scheduled Commission meeting on December 4th and at a Special Commission meeting on December 13th.

But if perchance the City Hall chambers is packed tonight with critics saying, “No”, then just calmly explain to them you can make your voice heard next year on March 12th, 2019.

But suspect a lot more people will be saying, “Yes!”

Andrew Lofholm is no stranger to Lake Worth City Hall. He’s done several news reports about this City and all very good and very accurate. To learn more about Lofholm and his background before arriving at WPTV nearly two years ago in December 2016 click on this link.

To watch the video from last night that aired on WPTV click on this link.

And here are two excerpts from the text of the news segment:


LAKE WORTH, Fla. — After more than 100 years, the city of Lake Worth is considering changing its name to the city of Lake Worth Beach. Ultimately, voters will have the final say. [emphasis added]

The city commission wants to do this for two reasons: to compete for tourists and to distinguish itself-particularly when it comes to crime from unincorporated Lake Worth.

“I think Lake Worth Beach would be more sufficient considering that, you know, most of the city is close to the beach and they have a beautiful pier that most people don’t know about,” said Lake Worth resident Demetrius Harper.

and. . .

The city limit runs from Lake Worth Beach to just east of John Prince Park, but the border is often blurred in news reports and crime stats, says [District 2 Commissioner Omari] Hardy. There are two zip codes that make up the city but the name Lake Worth is attached to seven.* 

“A lot of the crimes that happen outside of Lake Worth, just because they’re along the Lake Worth corridor, people say oh that happened in Lake Worth when it didn’t happen in Lake Worth,” Hardy said.

The city will vote on this twice in December. If it passes, it has no opposition on the commission currently, it’ll be up to Lake Worth voters if they want to become Lake Worth Beach once and for all on March 12.

A workshop open to the public will be held Tuesday [TONIGHT] at City Hall at 6 p.m. Officials will discuss ballot language ahead of the December meetings.

Please Note: The City Commission will decide tonight whether or not to allow public comment.

But if public comment is permitted and if you plan on showing up tonight and give public comment please remain civil, behave yourself, and respect the Chair: Mayor Pam Triolo. Do not go on rambling or repeating yourself or make Commissioner Scott Maxwell say, “Is there a doctor in the house?”

And remember, this is very important. You are NOT REQUIRED to use all the time allotted you. If you’ve made your point it’s perfectly OK to smile, say “Thank You” to the Chair, then return to your seat giving way to the next person waiting in line.


*The actual City of Lake Worth uses zip code 33460 and a portion of 33461. There are seven (7) additional ‘Lake Worth’ zip codes in suburban Lake Worth, with one far west on the edge of the Florida Everglades and south of Wellington. To learn more click on this link.

We are officially in the Christmas and Holiday Season in this little six square mile City of Lake Worth.

Save the dates:

Next Saturday, December 1st is the annual Christmas Tree lighting ceremony in the Cultural Plaza located in Downtown Lake Worth and on December 15th is the 53rd annual Christmas and Holiday Parade.

But please keep in mind all you revelers
in Downtown Lake Worth:

“Keep that noise down, I’m trying to get
some sleep over here on ‘M’ Street!”

There will be no merriment!

Former Lake Worth blogger-extraordinaire Mr. Tom McGow did this classic photoshop of a former commissioner back in 2009. For those of you who remember those heady days when crime wasn’t the issue so much, but the noise levels from certain areas in the Downtown and restaurants most certainly was.

And also part of all the excitement nine years ago was former Mayor Jeff Clemens and former Palm Beach Post reporter Willie Howard too! 

Sound advice (pardon the pun): If you’re considering moving to this City of Lake Worth and noise is a big issue for you then suggest not choosing a location in or near the Downtown.

A neighbor might do the unthinkable like have a party. 

In the Downtown you’ll be in close proximity to other humans and if you don’t get along with other humans, well, there might be issues. A better option would be a condo or home along Lake Osborne Drive or, if you can afford it, somewhere in the Great Walled City of Atlantis — it’s very quiet behind those walls.

The latest on plague of Lygodium in Palm Beach County’s Loxahatchee Wildlife Refuge.

There is very good news to report.

The Loxahatchee Sierra Club has been monitoring this particular plague in the Arthur R. Marshall Loxahatchee National Wildlife Refuge west of Boynton Beach for many years now. Now that the idea of constructing another reservoir in Palm Beach County is mostly just a distraction now the focus has returned to much more pressing problems, e.g., eliminating plagues of invasive plants, a problem that had spiraled out of control.

Below is news from SFWMD headlined, “Governing Board Approves Budget Amendment to Use Funding to Save Loxahatchee Refuge from Lygodium”. First some background.

Make no mistake: The news below from SFWMD is very big news not just for Palm Beach County but for all of South Florida as well.

Invasive Lygodium in the treasured Arthur R. Marshall Loxahatchee National Wildlife Refuge (also known as Water Conservation Area 1) has been a vexing plague and major policy issue for the Loxahatchee Sierra Club (LSC) for many years, maybe even decades. LSC encourages everyone to:

Visit the refuge! The more visitors the refuge receives, the stronger the case for maintaining its status as a National Wildlife Refuge.

Where is this refuge in Palm Beach County?

This wildlife refuge is “right in the backyard of our busy urban area. Located off US-441 west of Boynton Beach, the 142,392-acre refuge has been in existence for 66 years providing habitat for native flora and fauna as well as educational and wildlife-viewing activities for residents, tourists, and our youth.” Click on this link for directions and contact information.

The news below from SFWMD must be one of great relief for LSC now that efforts to unplague the refuge have begun. Before long there should be an announcement from LSC acknowledging all the hard work by SFWMD to finally save the Loxahatchee Refuge from almost certain devastation by Lygodium vines plaguing the refuge.

• The media contact at LSC is Mr. Drew Martin, the Conservation Chair. Send an email to: loxahatchee@florida.sierraclub.org
• The media contact at SFWMD is Mr. Randall Smith. He can be reached at the office (561-682-2800), by cell (561-389-3386) or by email as well: rrsmith@sfwmd.gov
• For the SFWMD official newsroom and “ways you can get updated information about the District” click on this link.

Without further ado, the press release
from SFWMD follows:

West Palm Beach, FL — The South Florida Water Management District (SFWMD) Governing Board today approved a budget amendment that will clear the way for up to $2 million per year in federal funding to help fight the spread of invasive Lygodium [plague], also known as the Old World Climbing Fern, in the Arthur R. Marshall Loxahatchee National Wildlife Refuge in western Palm Beach County.

The funding will come from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), which manages the refuge. USFWS leases the refuge land from the state of Florida under an agreement that includes numerous performance measures, including controlling the spread of invasive plants.

“We must control the spread of invasive plants such as Lygodium to protect the investment of billions of Florida taxpayer dollars to restore the Everglades. SFWMD has shown it is committed to fight this invasive fern and this money offers assistance with the federal government’s obligation,” said SFWMD Governing Board Member Jim Moran, who spearheaded efforts to forge an agreement with USFWS to ensure more federal funding to fight Lygodium in the refuge.

Lygodium has overrun countless tree islands and its spread has increased by about 600 percent in the refuge over the past two decades. The invasive fern can cause the collapse of tree islands, a crucial part of the habitat in the ridge and slough ecosystem of the Everglades. It also increases the risk of wildfires spreading.

The budget amendment passed today accepts $1.25 million to $2 million in funding from USFWS into SFWMD's land management budget this budget year. SFWMD has already spent about $2 million in state funding from the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission this budget year but those funds have now been exhausted. The USFWS funds will allow the District’s contractors to continue eradicating Lygodium from tree islands in the refuge.

Under the agreement, USFWS must also give SFWMD up to $2 million in funding each year for the next several years to keep fighting the spread of Lygodium in the refuge. USFWS is also required to develop a new public use plan that potentially expands recreational uses in the refuge such as hunting. USFWS has already held several public meetings and a draft of that new plan is expected to be released soon.


*The South Florida Water Management District is a regional governmental agency that manages the water resources in the southern part of the state. It is the oldest and largest of the state’s five water management districts.
     “Our mission is to protect South Florida’s water resources by balancing and improving flood control, water supply, water quality and natural systems.”

Excerpt from public notice published in The Palm Beach Post.

Have you ever visited the West Delray Regional Park in suburban Delray Beach? This phenomenal public park is located just east of the Arthur R. Marshall National Wildlife Refuge (learn more at the end of this blog post).

But first, let’s get to this very relevant and topical public notice in the Post:

Public Notice of Everglades Restoration Project

Notice is hereby given that the South Florida Water Management District (SFWMD), in cooperation with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) has prepared a draft Environmental Assessment (EA) based on the proposed removal of specific grant-funded restrictions on SFWMD Tract W9100-179 [see map below], totaling 97.01 acres [in Palm Beach County], known as the Palm Beach Downs property.* If approved, the grant funding would be exchanged for the placement of specific grant-funded restrictions on five Biscayne Bay Coastal Wetlands (BBCW) properties totaling 921.06 acres [in Miami-Dade County]. The Palm Beach Downs property was acquired using federal grant funding and later slated for surplus or exchange during the review and it was determined that the Palm Beach Downs properties is not a component of current or future restoration project plans. [emphasis added] The Palm Beach Downs sites is currently operated as an equestrian boarding (stables) and training facility.

The BBCW project’s objective is to improve the ecological health of Biscayne Bay by increasing the overland freshwater flow to compensate for the reduction of regional groundwater seepage. The transfer of the USFWS encumbrance to the BBCW properties provides additional grant funding for critical conservation lands within the BBCW project area.


The draft environmental assessment is available for public review. To download the PDF click on this link.

For SFWMD’s Real Estate website, “Doing Business With Us”, click on this link.


*For additional information contact Mr. Ray Palmer, the Real Estate Section Administrator at SFWMD. Call 561-682-2246 or send an email to: rpalmer@sfwmd.gov

Map orientation:

Up is north. Loxahatchee National Wildlife Refuge is to the left (west; undeveloped area). The City of Delray Beach is to east on State Rd. 806 (W. Atlantic Ave.).

Click on map to enlarge Tract W9100-179.

More information from “SFWMD Land Assessment” about Tract W9100-179 and nearby tracts:

Palm Beach County

East Coast Buffer – Palm Beach County Ag. Reserve Reservoir

• W9100-170 (~2.6 acres)
• W9100-176 (~570.77 acres)
• W9100-177 (~10.47 acres)
• W9100-178 (~313.37 acres)
• W9100-179 (~97.01 acres)

There are three leases on this site: (W9100-176) a pepper farm operation, (W9100-179) an equestrian training facility, and (W9100-178) a lease to Palm Beach County for the operation of the West Delray Regional Park. Due to proximity to the Loxahatchee Wildlife Refuge, staff recognizes that there may be an interest by either the County or USFWS to acquire the property from the District. . . . [A]nd if not, staff will consider the exchange or surplus of the District’s fee-simple interest in the sites.


FYI: ‘West Delray’ is an unincorporated area in Palm Beach County; not to be confused with the municipality of Delray Beach.

The West Delray Regional Park is a public park in the PBC Park System and is located at 10875 W. Atlantic Ave. in suburban Delray on the eastern edge of the Arthur R. Marshall (ARM) Loxahatchee National Wildlife Refuge.

Hope you found this information helpful today and in conclusion:

The ARM Loxahatchee Wildlife Refuge and Riverbend Park on the Loxahatchee River in the Town of Jupiter often get confused by the public. They are both very different and very unique public parks in Palm Beach County.

And interestingly, both of these public parks were recently in the news: Click on this link to learn more about promoting ecotourism in PBC, boosting park visits by families, young adults and children and also more about a very controversial and fascinating theory called “Nature-Deficit Disorder”.