Lake Worth city manager Susan Stanton fired in a 3-2 vote

The story as seen from Press Release Willie...click title for link.

SUSAN STANTON FIRED!

Pics from the meeting tonight...videos coming...busy night for me...on bike between City Hall and Parrot Cove meeting.  MORE LATER!

Mango Groves and Lake Worth Holiday Parade 2011

Good afternoon neighbors.

The Lake Worth Holiday Parade is scheduled for this Saturday, 12/10/11, through downtown Lake Worth. If you would like to participate with the Mango Groves Neighborhood Association please email us so that we have an estimate of the number of participants. To participate simply meet us no later than 5:15pm on Saturday at the 200 block of North Federal Highway. Also, please wear peach, orange, or yellow clothing so that we blend in. Anybody that has a Mango Groves Neighborhood Association shirt is encouraged to wear that too. Please email us with any questions.

Finally, the December Mango Groves Neighborhood Association Meeting will be held on 12/15/11, 7pm, at the Compass Center on North Dixie Hwy. We will be holding our annual election and if you wish to be a Director on the Board please attend the meeting. PBSO will be on hand again and we are in the process of obtaining a special guest speaker for the even! Stay posted for more details about this exciting meeting and please bring your neighbors!

Have a great day, MGNA Board of Directors

mangogroves.org

[CPNA] Year End Campus Life Newsletter and Meeting Reminder

It's that time Neighbors and the latest edition of the College Park Neighborhood Association Newsletter "Campus Life" is hot off the press. If you can help distribute copies (it's only one sheet of paper) to your block and maybe one more, please reply to this email and I'll get them to you in a big hurry.

Also a reminder (the first of many you will receive this week) that we are holding our 4th quarter meeting next Monday at 6:30 at our usual meeting place, the First Congregational Church at 1415 North K Street.

Steve Haughn from the City Recreation Dept. will be our guest speaker and will share with us all the new and exciting recreational programs and opportunities we can look forward to next year.

We will also be holding our election for our Association Board of Directors for 2012. All of our Officers and one of our 3 Directors have offered their names in nomination to continue their service next year and we will be taking nominations from the membership for the two open Director spots as well any nominations for all the Board positions.

Please Please Please carefully consider this opportunity to step up and help make a positive difference in our Community. Serving on the CP Board of Directors does takes time and commitment but the satisfaction of seeing the difference we can make by working together is simply priceless. We have so many talented and generous people in College Park and I hope to see many hands go up when nominations are called for Monday night.

As always, everyone is welcome at all College Park meetings, but you must be a resident of College Park and a member in good standing (dues paid) to vote. If you haven't paid your dues yet for 2011, you can do that very easily by visiting our website www.collegeparklakeworth.com and clicking on the PayPal link.

See you Monday and do let me know asap if you can help distribute Newsletters.

How would this work as a Lake Worth management philosophy?

Simon Sinek: How great leaders inspire action

Come Walk in the Holiday Parade with Us! | TRNA

Happy Holidays TRNA,

 

There will be a full day of holiday fun in downtown Lake Worth this Saturday the 10th.  If anyone in our neighborhood is interested in walking in the parade please come and do so and wear youe TRNA shirts! You may bring your kids too!  Please let me know as soon as posisble if you can join.  All neighborhood assocsiations of Lake Worth are walking together.  We'll be meeting at 5pm at 2nd Avenue North and Federal on Saturday December 10th.

 

AFTERNOON ACTIVITIES:

Bring your family and friends to downtown Lake Worth for the Holiday Wonderland Festival presented by the City of Lake Worth and Lake Worth Kiwanis Club.

Saturday, December 10

Noon until 6 PM

Downtown Lake Worth in the Cultural Plaza, Lake Ave and M Street

 

FREE TO THE PUBLIC

- Live Music Performances

- Games & Prizes

- Arts & Crafts

- Santa's Workshop

- Street Full of Bounce Houses

- Bike Raffle (The first 300 kids will receive a free raffle ticket and entered into a bike giveaway!)

 

Also, food and holiday gift craft vendors

 

EVENING ACTIVITIES:

The 46th Annual Holiday Parade will be held immediately following the festival with floats, marching bands, dance troops, holiday lights and the "real" Santa.   The parade will occur between 6-8pm.

From our "Everglades Scientist"...

He, who of all people would be the one most likely to know, has not responded to my question regarding water restrictions.  On another matter soon after he was elected, I sent him an e-mail that contained a question.  When I asked him why he didn't respond, he said that he knew that I would put his response on the blog.  I told him that is part of being a public official - your utterances are public information.  He smirked in response.

Anyone else bothered by this?

On tomorrow night's regular City Commission meeting agenda, there are two items - 9F and 9G related to not implementing the fire pension assessment and the street light assessment.  Back on August 23rd of this year, staff had the following to say about the fire assessment from the staff report that accompanied the item:

Now, mind you, I am for NOT going ahead with these special assessments, but what do we have a city staff for anyway?  Isn't their primary purpose to be objective and make the recommendation to the City Commission - ANY City Commission - that is based upon the best option given their educational background, accreditations and experience.  My point here, and it goes back to my post about the role of staff and appointed boards - along with the City Commission - is that a professional staff has to stand for something.  We were meant to assume, even though most did not agree with the idea of the assessments, that the staff thought it was the BEST option given the budget situation that the city is facing.

In tomorrow night's meeting packet, we are treated to the following professional analysis and opinion by Mr. Fry and all the heavy-hitters on City staff:

Fire 

Streetlights

You know, I really don't care that "Based upon the consensus of the City Commission", staff is now recommending the City not proceed with the assessments.  DON'T WE PAY THEM FOR THEIR PROFESSIONAL OPINION?  This is what breeds and perpetuates myths that the Casino building is a "rehabilitation" and not new construction.  I do not care that staff does not want to appear wrong.  I want them to make a recommendation based upon their training.  What professional epiphany did they have between August and December - other than the election?  At least provide some sort of analysis of the impact of this change in policy - that would help the City Commission make future decisions related to the budget.  It makes me call into question all of their recommendations.

In short:   GET A SPINE AND STAND FOR SOMETHING - EVEN IF IT IS WRONG FOR THE COMMUNITY!  LET THE CITY COMMISSION MAKE THE ULTIMATE DECISION ON WHAT IS RIGHT FOR THE COMMUNITY.
Are we to expect that just because ANY City Commission thinks that it is a good idea to order one of these for each city resident, that staff is going to recommend that we do it?  Think about it.

Rules changes could alter look and feel of Lake Worth's neighborhoods

It has been seven years and why are they still talking to Ms. Jennings? The article (click title) also makes it seem like we are eliminating historic districts - we are not. If anything, we are talking about making them larger. I do not understand how a de facto moratorium on development, due to crazy height restrictions citywide, does anything to protect someone's investment in the city. The reason we have to rely on assessments over and beyond our millage on property values is that we have a small commercial tax base. You cannot expect single family residents to shoulder the bulk of the tax burden of the city. We need reasonable height limits in certain areas, based upon sound standards and require certain public benefits that would allow commercial redevelopment. The existing regulations are UNWORKABLE - except if you live at 822 North C Street.

Lost and Found:

As I walked Mars this morning, I noticed this very tiny black buckled shoe placed neatly on top of the curb beside my house.  Its mate was no where to be seen.  Searching for its meaning...A Cinderella story?  Do I have small shoes to fill?  A "Footloose" prequel? Any other guesses?

Tropical Ridge Meeting Tonight!

Good Morning Friends & Neighbors!

Just a reminder that tonight is the regularly scheduled meeting of the Tropical Ridge Neighborhood Association. Our guest speaker will be Jaime Brown, Assistant Public Works Director. Mr. Brown will be telling us about some of the things the Public Works Department has planned for the year, in addition to taking your questions.

Also on tonight's agenda: next weeks Christmas Parade and nominations for the TRNA elections. We look forward to see you!

Who: Tropical Ridge Neighborhood Association

What: Monthly meeting

Where: Compass Community Center

When: Monday, December 5th @ 7pm!

Some good old-fashioned self-promotion!

PARROT COVE NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION GENERAL MEETING

TUESDAY, DECEMBER 6 at 7:00pm

ST. ANDREWS CHURCH at LUCERNE AND PALMWAY

GUEST SPEAKER - WES BLACKMAN ON THE HISTORY OF LAKE WORTH

We are closing out the year with Wes Blackman, who has researched South Florida and created a presentation that has been made to many groups.  Wonder about anything from the "Lake" in Lake Worth to the Casino to just about anything else?  Wes is the person to ask.  

Below is some information provided by Wes tied to the above images. 

The first image is of the old golf course club house, appearing as it did in the middle part of the 20th Century.  Also included is  one that shows the type of destruction that happened in Lake Worth after the 1928 hurricane - nearly all wood frame structures, which include the original St. Andrews church building, met similar fates.  The other is a before/after hurricane picture of the old band shell that was in Bryant Park.  There is also a post card from c. 1940s of Lake Avenue.  (see below)

The gist of the talk will be how the modern history of Florida really begins in the 20th Century, even though it is also home to St. Augustine which was founded in 1565 and is the oldest continuously occupied European-established city and port in the continental United States.  It wasn't until Flagler's railroad and then construction of US 1 in the early 20th Century that southeast Florida became populated to a significant extent.  Lake Worth and south Florida would not exist as we know the without the advent of the train and automobile. 
  

The meeting will open with an update from PBSO and community events.  Everyone is welcome at these meetings - you don't have to be a Parrot Cove Neighborhood Association member or resident.

Slightly over-dramatic, but a peak back into NYC of the 1920s...