William Kelly reports: "Taxable values up 7.6 percent in Palm Beach, early estimate show"

Of course, we all know by now that the City of Lake Worth which sits across the Intracoastal from Palm Beach (33480), far outpaced the Town of Palm Beach this year (9.5%) when it comes to an increase in taxable property value. We in Lake Worth are very proud of that. But I digress, here is an excerpt from William Kelly's story in the Palm Beach Daily News (aka, The Shiny Sheet):

     The tax roll for all residential and commercial real estate in town is listed at $14.4 billion, up from $13.4 billion a year earlier, according to the estimate.
     Countywide, values leaped by 8.7 percent over last year — the largest one-year increase in a decade.
     John Thomas, director of residential appraisal services for the property appraiser’s office, said this is the fourth consecutive year for countywide growth, and the second straight year for growth in all 38 municipalities. 

Save the Date: Community Clean-Up on Saturday, May 30th

CBS12/WPEC's Jonathan Beaton: South Florida National Cemetery on Memorial Day

Here is Jonathan Beaton's story on the incredible effort honoring the fallen at the South Florida National Cemetery.

Here is an excerpt from the story:

SUBURBAN LAKE WORTH (CBS12)--For the first time in history the 17,000 plus stones at the South Florida National Cemetery have Old Glory proudly displayed for Memorial Day.
     CBS 12 learned more than 450 volunteers came out, who showing their love of country and it’s veterans during this beautiful, holiday tribute.
     “What better way to pay your respects than to do this, especially for Memorial Day tomorrow,” said Benito Avendano.
     Benito Avendano with Flags for Fallen Vets helped to spur the tribute, rallying local residents, raising $18,000 to ensure a sea of red, white and blue for Memorial Day.
     With a smile on his face, the 11 year Air Force veteran says the holiday weekend is an extra special time of remembering with friends and family.

NBC5/WPTV's Jacqulyn Powell was there also and here is her video of the event at the cemetery. Here is an excerpt from her report:

A new Memorial Day tradition begins in Lake Worth Sunday morning.
     Miniature American flags are being placed on every grave in the South Florida National Cemetery.
     It's one of the few national cemeteries in the country where flags haven't been placed on the graves every year for Memorial Day.
     But this year, a national organization raised enough money to start up the program in south Florida.

Of course this is a great story about Memorial Day here in south Florida. However, the one glaring error is Jacqulyn Powell misreported the location of the cemetery and at least one person commented on the WPTV site and is none to happy about this:

It's time for another class for the folks at NBC5/WPTV on "what is Lake Worth" and "what is NOT Lake Worth". If you have any questions please feel free to email me and I'll answer whatever questions you have. You can also contact Jonathan Beaton and he can help you out also. 

For the curious among you the South Florida National Cemetery is west of the Florida Turnpike. 

The Other Blogger accuses me of powers I do not possess...

Kevin D. Thompson is the new beat reporter here in Lake Worth for The Palm Beach Post. He's being warned, apparently, about me and my supposed history of kicking the Post's reporters out of town. I really should be honored having so much power! This goes back to the hand-wringing and hysteria when I pointed out again and again the errors in Chris Persaud's news reports. Chris Persaud was the last reporter, prior to Kevin Thompson, the Post assigned to Lake Worth. There was a time when we had no coverage by our local paper of record, and they found a way to endorse the wrong candidates in this past election. Editorial board member Stacy Singer admitted that she was hesitant about that endorse since they had no one on the ground here in Lake Worth

Ultimately what sealed the fate of Mr. Persaud was when he borrowed (there is a "P" word I am trying to remember; you know, when you use someone else's words and don't give them credit) a news story from the Associated Press. You can read about that here.

Before I continue, here are the other Post reporters we had in the City in recent memory that I "ran out of town":

• Lona O'Connor (she took the Post buyout and retired; she wasn't here long prior to retirement but while reporting on the City did excellent work [maybe we'll review some of her past articles soon])
• Eliot Kleinberg (he attended, I think, one City Commission meeting; I'm not a mind-reader but think he concluded rightfully it was unfair to both him and the City to continue. Really now, he is the West Palm beat reporter, writes a history column, writes books, and has a blog too. How much can you ask of one person?)
• Willy Howard (you could fairly say Willy Howard, who I referred to as "Press Release Willy") and I had some issues. Chiefly being the lapdog of then Commissioner Mulvehill and former City Manager Stanton. However, whenever we ran into each other we were cordial and respectful. I think Willy Howard would be greatly offended at the notion I "ran him out of town". He, like Lona O'Connor, took the Post buyout and retired. And I'm happy to report he now contributes on occasion for The Coastal Star.

A little history is in order now: The Post buyout several years ago, of which many employees took advantage of (if recall correctly) was a one-time offer over a short period of time. It was take it or leave it. The papers editor at the time, Randy Schultz, eventually took the buyout also.

As you can see, the notion I ran any Post reporters "out of town" is absurd.

Now back to Chris Persaud.

He had a number of corrections printed in the Post due to his mis-reporting. And he's known as probably one of the few reporters in U.S. history to have a correction and then a correction to the correction. He called me one day asking for Herman Robinson's phone number. He had mistakenly referred to Mr. Robinson as a "developer" in one of his reports which is absurd. (Mr. Robinson is retired and does work as a contractor, the "Mr. Fix-It" variety; not exactly what you would call a 'developer'.)

The obvious question comes to mind: why would a 'reporter' do a news report about a man and not talk to him in person first? I gave Mr. Persaud the phone number and a correction was made. Note that any reporter can call half the people in Lake Worth and get Herman Robinson's phone number in about two minutes. Or less.

Obviously there are some in this City who still harbor hard feelings about Mr. Persaud's exit from the Lake Worth scene. All I did was correct the errors he made; nothing more and nothing less. Which begs another question: was I supposed to just ignore factual errors in The Palm Beach Post, the areas paper of record? Or any other paper for that matter. And it turns out that he was an intern and was there temporarily anyway.

President Obama's Weekly Address: Honoring Our Fallen Heroes—A Message About Memorial Day

Andrew Marra: Blanca Diaz graduates High School despite near insurmountable challenges

This story by Andrew Marra appeared on-line early last week. Don't recall seeing this story in the print edition but may have missed it. This is an incredible story and an equally interesting read. Here is a short excerpt:

     There were times last fall – after her mother’s capture, after the flights to and from Mexico, after the bleary-eyed mornings rousing her 6-year-old sister from bed – when Blanca Diaz thought she would never manage school again.
     Both of her parents were in Mexico, her mother deported after being caught sneaking across the border to reunite with her in Jupiter. Parentless and living with an uncle, 18-year-old Blanca cared for her little sister alone.
     Each morning she woke her sister, dressed her, arranged her hair in a ponytail and walked her to Jupiter Elementary School. She prepared meals for her uncle and cousin and kept their small home clean.
She was far from certain about her own future when she re-enrolled at Jupiter High School in November, months behind her classmates and newly weighted by motherly concerns.
     But today, when Jupiter High’s seniors walk for graduation, Blanca will be among them, a tassel in the crowd that, if not for her mother’s urging and her school staff’s concern, might not have made it to graduation day.

Here is a picture taken by Bill Ingram that appeared in the story:

Congratulations!

Vox: New Yorker, one of country's most liberal magazines, "Women and minorities are way under-represented" in iconic cartoons

From Vox: "Someone did a statistical analysis of New Yorker cartoons and it's actually pretty depressing"; an excerpt from the article:

     Recently, in a series of articles, the semi-satirical journal Proceedings of the Natural Institute of Science conducted a thorough statistical analysis of a very important topic: New Yorker cartoons. [emphasis added]
     Okay, so the basic idea of analyzing these alternately beloved and mocked cartoons is admittedly a little tongue-in-cheek in the first place.
     But Matt J. Michel and the series' other authors actually looked at real data — they coded every cartoon the magazine published in 2014 — and they came to some pretty depressing findings about the portrayal of non-white dudes in one of the country's most liberal magazines.

Women and minorities are way under-represented in these cartoons

I'm not a fan of editorial cartoons but maybe I should start paying more attention to what appears in The Palm Beach Post.

[UPDATE] Do you live in City of Lake Worth? Ignore NBC5/WPTV & Palm Beach Daily News story about shooting on Sunday, 5/24

From the Society of Professional Journalists Code of Ethics: "Remember that neither speed nor format excuses inaccuracy."

[UPDATE: CBS12/WPEC got it wrong too. Aren't the good citizens of the City of Lake Worth deserving of fair and accurate news stories? Apparently not. 

If any of these news outlets were this sloppy in West Palm Beach, Delray, or Wellington they would get corrected immediately. Is it time for Lake Worth to assign a Public Information Officer (PIO) to monitor the TV news and print media? An official seal on an email might get more attention than some blogger concerned that his city is being poorly represented.]

This incident occurred outside the City, in suburban Lake Worth. And Palm Beach Daily News reporter also got it wrong.

• Being west of Congress Ave. is a clue the incident did not occur in Lake Worth 
• And being north of Atlantis is a clue
• And being southwest of Palm Beach State College is a clue
• And being northwest of Palm Beach County/Lantana Airport is another clue

Landmarks board likes design of new Southern Boulevard Bridge

Click title for link about the new replacement for the Southern Boulevard bridge. It is quite an improvement, both aesthetically and functionally. David Rogers wrote the piece in the Palm Beach Daily News. From the article:

     To add visual interest, architect Enrique Woodroffe of Tampa plans to place a dome-shaped pergola on the north side of the main pier east of the Intracoastal Waterway. Commissioner Page Lee Hufty encouraged the team to allow plants to grow atop the pergola to provide more shade for pedestrians.
     The bridge tender house will move from the bridge’s south side to its north side. Windows on all sides will give bridge tenders a better view of the channel, Woodroffe said.
     Other improvements will include 10-foot-wide shoulders — to accommodate car break-downs and bicycle traffic — and sidewalks to 
double in width to 6 feet, according to Costa [engineer Luis Costa of Boca Raton-based USR Corp.].

Cool idea! Part of a Kickstarter campaign, almost doubled their goal.

I wonder when these will be available?

Ft. Lauderdale Mayor Jack Seiler on C-SPAN

Mayor Jack Seiler talked about the history of Fort Lauderdale, Florida, as scenes of the city were shown. Says that the biggest problem is getting around the city due to its success and people wanting to be there.

He was interviewed at the New River Inn before the kickoff event for C-SPAN’s visit to Fort Lauderdale.

Quick video, lasts 1:40.

Comment left under: "Why all the pulling of hair? Vice Mayor Scott Maxwell's comments from Lake Worth ITN Beach Workshop Meeting (5/19/15)"

This comment was left last night at 8:19 p.m. on this blog:

The only re-writing of history is right here on this blog and out of the mouth of Maxwell. Mcvoy was not even a commissioner then. In fact, he formed a Pac AGAINST the city for what they did for contracting with Greater Bay. To tell you the truth, the gals above did some great things in Lake Worth. 

My response this morning:

To Anon at 8:19. Fact: McVoy was first elected Commissioner in 2010 in November. Stanton started as City Manager in April of 2009. Demolition of the existing Casino building happened during 2011. There were a lot of decisions regarding the design of the beach project from 2009 on, while Commissioner Jennings was still in office and then after Commissioner McVoy was elected. Commissioner Golden was on the Commission until November 2011. Commissioner Mulvehill was there until 2012. During the Stanton period, we had Varela, Waterman and very late in this period Triolo. It was late in 2011, after the election of Mayor Triolo and Amoroso, that Stanton was led to the door.

Prior to all this, Christopher McVoy led the "We Love Lake Worth" petition drive to rescind the zoning and land use designation on the beach property to Beach and Casino. That is the same zoning classification we have on the property today that was later amended to include a .1 floor area ratio (FAR) which allowed a commercial square footage on what is an 19 acre property, approximately. Doing the math, that means we could ultimately have 82,764 square feet of floor area at the beach, less what is already there in the way of the Casino building and the pool.

McVoy's petition led to him being sued by the city spawned from the rezoning and land use challenge's effect on the Greater Bay agreement and halting progress there. 

As I type this, I can understand the confusion that is out there as this creates a lot of smoke and more than a few mirrors to hide behind.

Many of the major construction decisions were made from 2008 onward by a Commission that included Jennings, Mulvehill and Golden, and then one that replaced Jennings with McVoy.

Hence this picture:

Here it is! First article by a real beat reporter in Lake Worth since Lona O'Connor (it's been a long time folks)

Lake Worth mentioned WAY ABOVE THE FOLD in today's Sunday paper (5/24)

The story by Lake Worth beat reporter Kevin Thompson appears in the print edition on the front page of the 'B' section. Here is the on-line article.

It was Stacey Singer of the Post editorial board who told me in March of this year, and I'm paraphrasing here, that she had no idea what was going on in Lake Worth because they didn't have a reporter covering the City. Well now we do.

If there is good stuff happening in your neighborhood or a good story about your City of Lake Worth if you don't contact Mr. Thompson then that's your fault it doesn't get reported. I think we have a good, accurate report here; balanced and representing both sides of this very complex issue facing our City.

The 'other side', if you will, those opposed to any change, those afflicted with paralysis by analysis, and the many who oppose any discussion at all on how to fix the failed Casino complex business model will be spinning their story to Mr. Thompson: most likely daily phone calls, emails, whatever means they have to get his attention. Remember, these people are pros at spinning the media; been doing it a long time. The excuse that "we work and they don't" doesn't hold water any more. The future direction of the City in on the line.

Here is "Kevin's" contact information:

Here are the last reporters tasked with covering Lake Worth from most recent:

• Chris Persaud, who was actually an intern and not a beat reporter
• Eliot Kleinberg, the beat reporter for West Palm Beach worked briefly as a reporter in Lake Worth but was stretched too thin and went back to the West Palm beat
• Lona O'Connor did the Lake Worth beat until she was part of the last Post buyout and retired
• Willy Howard worked the beat for many years prior to him also taking the Post buyout and retiring

Did I miss anyone?

[RE-POST] The Facts: Pastor Mike Olive & Common Ground (no 's') Church—What You Need to Know

[This is a re-post. Note that until February 20th, 2015, no one had ever heard of pastor Mike Olive or the Common Ground (no 's') Church. Mike Olive and his church were first introduced to the public in Vol. 1/Issue 6 of Margaret Menge's ALWAYS FREE newspaper. The original post follows:]

An on-line magazine with 2.5 million monthly readers picked up the story about Pastor Mike Olive and the Common Ground (no 's') Church. This is an investigative story by The Raw Story. Here is how The Raw Story is described in Wikipedia:

The Raw Story is an American online tabloid publication founded in 2004 by John Byrne. It covers current national and international political and economic news and publishes its own editorials and investigative pieces.

Here is the title of the story by investigative reporter Travis Gettys:

Right-wing Christians screech about ‘KGB’ spies after city simply checks church’s zoning permit

The title sums up the nonsense being put out there Pastor Mike Olive and the self-described 'editor/reporter', Margaret Menge. Excerpts from the article in The Raw Story:

     The city does not require churches or nonprofit organizations to pay a business license tax, but they are required to obtain a use and occupancy certificate [emphasis added] – which officials use to ensure they don’t pose public safety hazards or break any local, state, or federal laws.
     Olive became alarmed last month, when a code officer stopped by the church and recorded video evidence on his cell phone.
     “We had one gentleman come in from the city wearing a hoodie, and he was hiding the camera in the pockets of his hoodie,” Olive said.
News accounts of the incident compared the code officer to KGB spies and suggested city officials were waging war on religion.
     The code officer, Gerald Coscia, found the church may have been overcrowded and possibly lacked a sufficient emergency exit, and he said the building likely failed to comply with the Americans With Disabilities Act.
     He determined that Olive’s landlord, Mission Education International, had a valid business license for the coffee shop with an exemption for charitable organizations, but the church lacked a use and occupancy certificate.

[and...]

     The conservative Liberty Counsel sent a letter to the city on his behalf, demanding they stop requiring churches to pay for the business licenses.
     The city manager, Mike Bornstein, said the dispute is apparently based on some misunderstanding, because churches are not obligated to pay those fees.
     They are, however, required to submit to inspections to obtain the use and occupancy certificate to ensure they’re safe for public use.
     Liberty Counsel claims in its news release that the city threatened the landlord with foreclosure and daily $500 fines, but the letter sent by officials makes no mention of those penalties.

[and...]

“Please be assured that the City has the best interests of the public in mind and wants to ensure there are no life safety issues with regard to the operations,” the letter adds.

[The letter referenced is by William Waters, the City of Lake Worth Director for Department of Community Sustainability.]

Thank you Mr. Travis Gettys for getting the truth our there. Pastor Mike Olive and Margaret Menge have done a tremendous amount of damage to our city that we don't deserve. If you're ever in Florida make your way to the little City of Lake Worth and we'll show you how wonderful our City really is.

More fallout from Margaret Menge and 'pastor' Mike Olive:

Kathleen Walter at CBS12/WPEC did a 'news segment' on Mike Olive.

Christians persecuted in Lake Worth?

The "End Times"?

Are you sick to your stomach yet? Want to see more?

From Vox: "How suburban sprawl hurts the poor"

Joseph Stromberg has this information about suburban sprawl. When you read this information think about all those western communities popping up in Palm Beach County. Eventually the jobs are going to follow, very far from the cities that have people with less means looking for jobs (many without their own motor vehicle):

     One of the basic problems here is called spatial mismatch: the fact that millions of low-income urban households are located far from the suburban places where jobs are often available. [emphasis added] Danielle Kurtzleben'sVox article on spatial mismatch is a great primer on the issue.
     Part of the root cause of this mismatch is historical. Starting in the 1950s, extensive highway systems were built through almost every major US city, linking them with budding suburbs. Along with other factors, this led many wealthy, white residents to flee cities, initially commuting in for work on the highways.
     Employers eventually followed them, bringing workplaces to the suburbs and leaving fewer jobs in the cities. Since at least the 1990s, the majority of suburbanites commute to the suburbs for work. "The dominant pattern today," says Alan Pisarski, a commuting researcher, "is suburb to suburb."
     As a result of this job sprawl, another recent Brookings report found, the number of jobs available within a typical commute distance for the average US metro area resident fell by 7 percent between 2000 and 2012. But it declined more than twice as much — by 14.3 percent — for people living in high-poverty urban areas.
     For the disproportionately low-income people left behind in the cities, this poses a huge problem. "We've ended up with a lot of people in cities who look at job listings and see openings in places they can't easily get to," Norton says.