Ancient Chinese Proverb:

Gov. Scott to sign hurricane sales-tax holiday bill today - SaintPetersBlog

Worthwhile idea contained in new legislative about the state's various "sales-tax holidays", including a new one on hurricane related supplies. Here is what is covered:

 "During the holiday, to be held from Saturday May 31 to Sunday, June 8, a list of items are exempt from both state sales tax and county discretionary sales surtaxes:

Portable generator priced $750 or less
Reusable ice priced $10 or less.
Portable self-powered light sources priced $20 or less
Portable self-powered radio, two-way radio, or weather band radio selling for $50 or less
Tarps or other flexible waterproof sheeting selling for $50 or less
Self-contained first-aid kits priced under $30
Ground anchor systems or tie-down kits selling for $50 or less, gas or diesel fuel tanks selling for $25 or less
Packages of AA-cell, C-cell, D-cell, 6-volt, or 9-volt batteries, not including automobile and boat batteries, selling for $30 or less
Non-electric food storage coolers priced $30 or less"

Point of View: Spring-training deal would have helped Gardens | www.mypalmbeachpost.com

One Palm Beach Gardens' resident (who probably lives in a residence there) comes out swinging on how the baseball stadium was handled, or bungled, in that community. He points to an outside PR brought in by people in moneyed neighborhoods to stir up trouble so they could still meet their tee times without excess traffic. Maybe so. But it is a lesson not to be swayed by those that veer from the truth and refuse to see the longer term economic benefit a stadium such as this would have. Click title for link.

"Shame on Palm Beach Gardens councilors for being so tragically shortsighted. Losing a chance to bring a clean business to town that would have created financial ripple effects through the community.

With the new All Aboard Florida train starting, and proposed enhancements to the Tri-Rail system, many more visitors will have access to the area’s stadiums — bringing in yet more dollars.

I wonder which state legislators, especially gubernatorial hopefuls, will weigh in on saving Florida East Coast spring training come election time.

If the new stadium deal dies, there should be signs prominently listing the legislators and town officials who voted to kill the deal, and erect the signs on the site of the proposed stadiums!"

Editorial: Lake Worth can’t wait any longer to rebuild itself | www.mypalmbeachpost.com

Well, it seems that the Palm Beach Post is firmly on the side of the infrastructure investment plan known as Lake Worth 2020. This editorial is worth reading at least three times. And, after that, head to one of the district meetings that will be taking place on the project over the next few weeks. Click title for link.

"The stakes are these: Lake Worth, despite its considerable amenities and rising reputation, is mired in poverty. Among Palm Beach County’s 38 cities, only Belle Glade’s residents are poorer. Years of neglect and mismanagement have left this city of 35,000 behind as its neighbors prospered.

The city is so underdeveloped that miles of streets in its poorest neighborhoods have never been paved. Children grow up in houses several blocks from the nearest fire hydrants or sidewalks. The city’s industrial zone, the Lake Worth Park of Commerce, has too few roads and utilities and, consequently, virtually no industry. Even streets around the city’s downtown center are so corrupted by potholes and cracks that they present hazards to cars and pedestrians evocative of the Third World."

[CPNA] Town Hall Meetings Schedule for the LW 2020 Infrastructure Plan

Friends and Neighbors in Lake Worth who may be curious about how the 2020 Infrastructure Plan may affect them personally are urged to attend any one of the following Town Hall Meetings. A funding proposal for the plan may come before Lake Worth voters in August. If it does, it's important that residents have as much information as possible. Each presentation will be facilitated by the Commissioner from that district and City Staff members. Questions, comments and concerns from the public are welcome at all these presentations. Anyone from any District may attend any (or all) of these meetings. (map attached)

Wednesday, May 14th at 6 PM:
District 2, Commissioner Chris McVoy
Scottish Rites Masonic Center
2000 North D Street

Monday, May 19th at 7 PM
District 4, Commissioner John Szerdi
"The Glass House"
1st Avenue South & Golfview Rd.

Wednesday, May 21st at 6 PM
District 3, Commissioner Andy Amoroso
First Congregational Church
1415 North K Street

Thursday, May 22nd at 6 PM
District 1, Vice Mayor/Commissioner Scott Maxwell
Osborne Community Center
1699 Wingfield Street

Questions may be directed to the City Clerk's office at 586-1662 Monday thru Friday 8 AM to 5 PM

Please share this information with our friends and neighbors who may not be on the College Park email distribution list.

New Pool Information - Summer passes coming up on the 27th of May

The cost is going to be $125.00 for Lake Worth city residents and $175.00 for non-residents. If you would like to add a family member or loved one, it is an additional $5.00. The pass will be valid from May 27th until September 1st 2014.  It can be used on any day in which the pool is open to the public (Thursday-Monday 8am-12pm on the week days and 9am-4pm on the weekends) The baby pool will be open for the summer season, starting memorial day weekend. Passes will be available to the pool check-in area.

Lake Osborne - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Click title for link. From Wikipedia:

Lake Osborne is a 378-acre lake that is part of a system of once natural freshwater lakes lying along the western slope of the coastal ridge in Palm Beach County just west of the Florida Intracoastal Waterway and Atlantic Ocean. This lake system has been greatly impacted from human activities. It has been extensively modified and reduced in size by dredge and fill activities from urban/residential development; several lakes were completely filled and built upon. The lakes were probably dredged contemporaneous with canal construction in the 1920s or earlier. It is likely that filling of the adjacent wetlands for residential construction occurred at the same time or later. Square Lake and its oxbow were dredged for fill in the 1960s and additional dredging occurred in the north lobe of Lake Osborne in the 1970s.

Some South Florida homeless risk everything to live in storage units - Sun Sentinel

Very sad reality for some and all too many in our community. Click title for link to article. Make sure to watch the video.

After two years of homelessness, of spending most of his time hiding out in the dense woods of nearby John Prince Park, the rainy, cold nights got the better of him.
So a little more than a year ago, he started sleeping in his indoor, climate-controlled unit a short walk away. He stayed only when temperatures dropped to uncomfortably cold degrees, he said, and he knew how to melt into the background.
"I watched for the manager to leave," said Tortorella, 58, an unemployed machinist. "I knew to shut the light, keep the door closed, not to peek out, to stay out of the view of the cameras. I'd go in late and leave early."
Though hardly ideal, sharing space with his Harley, his radio and family mementos was oddly comforting.
"In desperation, you want to [be close to] your possessions," he said.
His jacket sufficed as a pillow. His sleeping bag kept out the chill of the air conditioning, and he was able to make a bed out of an old futon cushion someone had discarded.
"All the guys only stay on cold nights," said another homeless man at John Prince Park who asked to remain anonymous. "I slept in the hallway because my unit wasn't big enough to sleep in."

More on the "World Class Diversity" claim by the Residents of the Residences of Lake Osborne...

I'm still drilling down on the 2010 Census data from the area in question. But there are certain conclusions that we can make about the demographics of this area in general and how it relates to the overall characteristics of the entire city of Lake Worth.

The above map shows census tract 50 in Palm Beach County which includes the area bounded by Lantana Road on the south, Congress Avenue on the west, Lake Worth Road to the north and I-95 to the east. The shaded area in the upper right hand part of the map are those properties within the incorporated area of the city of Lake Worth. The area also includes most of Lake Osborne (the water body), John Prince Park, Palm Beach State College and the Lantana Airport. All of those areas are unpopulated. The area shown in white on the map is unincorporated Palm Beach County, which accounts for a little less than half of the populated area. There is a small portion of the Town of Lantana in the lower right hand corner of the tract.

This is the racial breakdown for the entire City of Lake Worth:
Population 2010: 34,190
Percent breakdown by race and ethnicity:
White: 60% (Florida 75%)
Black or African/American: 19.8% (Florida 16%)
Hispanic or Latino: 39.6% (Florida 22.5%)

This the racial breakdown for census tract 50 is:
Population: 4,894
Percent breakdown by race and ethnicity:
White: 75.3%
Black or African/American: 9.1%
Hispanic or Latino: 29.4%

Conclusion: This area is less diverse than the city of Lake Worth as a whole.

More to come. (Source: 2010 U.S. Census)

"Now, here's Lynn Anderson!"

Residual Revisionism re the representations of the Residents of the Residences of Lake Osborne Heights.

What follows is the actual spoken words by Residences of Lake Osborne President Robert Waples on Tuesday, 5/6/14, before the Lake Worth City Commission in their neighborhood association update. Mr. Waples actual words will be in bold below and Ms. Anderson's interpretation will be highlighted thus. Differences are further highlighted in bold red. Where Ms. Anderson deletes what was actually said, that appears in bold red in Mr. Waples' remarks.

Mr. Waples: “My name is Robert Waples, President of the Residences of Lake Osborne, a little name change. I am also joined by our Vice President Katie Mcgiveron, Secretary Ricardo Rojas, and a few of our neighbors here in the audience tonight.”

Ms. Anderson: "My name is Robert Waples, President of the Residences of Lake Osborne. I’m also joined by our Vice President Katie McGiveron, Secretary Ricardo Rojas, along with many of our neighbors and friends of Rolo."

Mr. Waples: “We represent a stable, single family neighborhood that has been so for over fifty years. And here we are before the City Commission giving our neighborhood update. Less just get the negatives out of the way first. Because of the political interests that district lines for our county, state, and even federal levels were shifted a few years ago. And we no longer share a voice with our sister neighborhoods which is the rest of the City of Lake Worth. We're divided. And we'd like to see that changed whenever we can. Our issues should be your issues. Let's talk about the issues:”

Ms. Anderson “We represent a stable, single family neighborhood that has been so for over 50 years. Now here we are before the City of Lake Worth Commission giving our neighborhood update. Let's get the negative out of the way first: Because of political interests, the district lines for our county, state and even federal levels where [sic] shifted and we no longer share a voice with our sister neighborhoods which IS (emphasis hers) the rest of the City of Lake Worth. OUR ISSUES SHOULD BE YOUR ISSUES! (emphasis hers) Let’s talk about the issues:

The rest is about the same. By the way, some people make better friends than enemies.

Crime doesn't rest in Greenfield, California

Has Wonder Woman lost her super powers?

Assault with Deadly Weapon
05/08/2014
200 Block RENFRO PL & 12TH ST

Theft
05/09/2014
200 Block LARSON LN

Theft of Vehicle
05/09/2014
400 Block 12TH ST & GAVILAN DR

Assault with Deadly Weapon
05/09/2014
1000 Block CHALONE DR & 12TH ST

Assault with Deadly Weapon
05/10/2014
700 Block APPLE AV

Twin towers planned for West Palm Beach | www.mypalmbeachpost.com

Palm Beach real estate investor Jeff Greene has more plans for downtown West Palm Beach. This time it is north of the courthouse and will include 2, thirty story highrises. To think that we argued about the difference between 45 and 65 feet. Really. Anyway, here are more details from the article. Click title for link.

For Greene, height is important for his West Palm Beach project: “At that height, you still get some (water) views.”
Plus, Greene thinks building a taller but skinner building will be less objectionable than a shorter complex that blocks the vistas.
Greene acknowledged the West Palm Beach complex is a a huge project, but he said he’s already working to obtain financing. He knows he has to have a certain amount of office space pre-leased to tenants to obtain a construction loan and start building.But he’s excited about the amenities he plans for the complex. Not only will the office tower be a “state of the art architectural office building,” Greene said, but the second tower will consist of a five-story hotel downstairs, condos upstairs, a health club, a restaurant, and outdoor and indoor tennis courts.

Businesses prepare for bridge closure | www.palmbeachdailynews.com

Palm Beach prepares for the closing of the Flagler Memorial or north bridge to the island. Of course this bridge is just one of a system that gets people on and off the barrier island. As we saw with the closure of the Lantana Bridge for an extensive rebuild, we may see an increase in traffic through downtown Lake Worth again. Click title for link. From the article:

“FedEx has been requested to reschedule their daily pickup times so they can depart prior to the afternoon peak of traffic.”
Saks, which has more than 100 employees at its island branch, is encouraging staff members to car pool and to use the Lantana and Lake Worth bridges if they live south of the Southern Boulevard Bridge. Sales associates, whose work hours are 9:30 a.m. to 6:10 p.m., generally arrive and depart the island after the morning and evening rush hours, Schuette said.
Just across Worth Avenue, Neiman Marcus expects few changes during the bridge closure.
“We already observe non-peak hours for deliveries, along with the scheduling of our associates arriving and departing work,” said Beth Pine, vice president and general manager of the island’s Neiman Marcus branch, which employs about 75 people. “We plan to monitor and be sensitive to the situation now through the completion of the Flagler Bridge.”

How to make downtown retail work? Lessons from Robert Gibbs | Walkable West Palm Beach

Nice write-up from WalkableWPB on Robert Gibbs who is a real estate planning guru. Mr. Gibbs gave the last talk as part of Delray Beach's Town Hall speaker series. I attended the last one with Donald Shoup and have that on video if you are interested. You need to read all of the review, click title for link. It turns out that Mr. Gibbs is not a fan of the parking kiosk (the kind Lake Worth defaults to) and prefers the standard parking meter. He is also not a fan of parking tickets. Here is the comment left at the end of WalkableWPB's post about my experiences with Mr. Gibbs.

Thanks. We really do have to meet up sometime. I took one of those executive short courses at Harvard about 10 years ago and Gibbs taught the course. I remember asking him about the threat of on line retail to brick-and-mortar stores. His answer then was that people will always want to see, sample, try on the goods they are buying. Now some stores are merely showrooms for on-line buyers. I am sorry I missed this talk and wonder how he would answer the same question today. He was also brought in by Treasure Coast (TCRPC) for a visioning exercise here in Lake Worth a few years ago and had an opportunity to talk to him then as well. He liked Lake Worth’s potential (I sometimes say we kill ourselves with our potential) but pointed to an area between the two RR tracks. He thought that with Palm Beach County’s strong demographics and the fact that area will be sandwiched between two transit stations eventually made that the place smart money should be put in Lake Worth. Looking at that area today still makes that difficult to envision.
And, as far as downtown Lake Worth is concerned, for better or worse we have become an entertainment district more than a shopping area. I hope his other predictions about areas of that type do not come to fruition.
Nice write-up.