On City Manager Bornstein: Has his "stamina" been tested? Oh, and a little about critics of the City's CRA

[This is a re-post updating the tenure of Michael Bornstein which thankfully continues. If you've been following recent developments in Lake Worth please also read the blog post that follows this one. And Thank You for visiting.] 

"Michael Bornstein seems to be a happy soul and seems to be happy with the job," [Barbara Jean] Weber said. "I suspect his stamina has not yet been tested."

—Ms. Weber quoted by former City beat reporter Willy Howard in a Palm Beach Post article titled, New City Manager Michael Bornstein makes welcome changes in Lake Worth, 6/3/2012

Today (5/12/16) marks 1,487 days since City Manager Michael Bornstein was hired on April 16, 2012. There is nothing significant about 4 years and 26 days except as a matter of perspective. The previous city manager, Susan Stanton, was fired on December 6, 2011 after just 953 days on the job.

There remain the sycophants in this City who continue to lionize Stanton, attempting to resurrect her tenure with delusional logic, misinformation, and outright disinformation. Below are some initiatives by Stanton her supporters will not tell you about or wish you would forget:

• The "Day Labor" Center (succeeded)
• Gutted the Code Enforcement Department (succeeded)
• The "Street Light" Assessment (failed)
• Pay to Park in Downtown (failed)
• Red Light Cameras (failed)
• Eliminate PBSO and restore the LWPD (failed)
• The Regional Sewer billing fiasco (super fail)
• Casino complex fiasco (another super fail)

A local blog at the time, referencing the coming holiday season and the firing of Stanton earlier in the month (December 2012), wrote:

     "In this joyous season, I am celebrating the potential for renewal in Lake Worth which began with a bold move to clean out city management from the top down.
     From Paul Boyer, Bob Baldwin to Susan Stanton… inept, corrupt, wasteful and often cruel leadership disregarded the public and common sense honesty and openness.
     Yes, I know there are those who are disappointed to see Stanton fired but dwelling on one side of her performance while ignoring the other side of the story… is delusional."

Under Stanton, the relationship between the business community and the City was strained, to nonexistent. Under direction of then-sitting commissioners (Cara Jennings, Jo-Ann Golden, and Suzanne Mulvehill), Stanton gutted code enforcement and sent neighborhoods already on the brink on a downward spiral for almost three years. What was undoubtedly one of the worst decisions was playing the role of obstructionist and trying to thwart the CRA's acquisition of NSP2 funds.

Stanton, along with Commissioners Golden, Mulvehill and Jennings, DID NOT want the CRA to acquire the $23 million dollars available to rehabilitate the City. It was only action by the CRA to apply for the funds that allowed many blighted areas of our city to be home to new residents and families. Subsequently, due to the NSP2 funding, the CRA led by Joan Oliva has received national recognition for their outstanding efforts.

So, the next time you hear the critics of the CRA go on and on how they coulda woulda have done a better job understand this is all just delusional revisionism created to alter the past.

Remember what the Post editorial board said about the majority City Commission recently all re-elected by landslides. . .

. . . and all the 'satire' in the world can't change that fact, Jack. Or, errrrrr, I mean Frank:

"Lake Worth's current leadership has kept its eyes on the right goals", wrote the editor at the Post.

What a Lake Worth commissioner left out when he sounded the alarm about "Climate Refugees"

You can read about the 'Climate Refugees' that aren't refugees at all by reading this article in "The Gray Lady". Below are two excerpts:

     But even a plan like this — which would move only about 60 people [emphasis added] — has been hard to pull off. Three previous resettlement efforts dating back to 2002 failed after they became mired in logistical and political complications. The current plan faces all the same challenges, illustrating the limitations of resettlement on any larger scale.

[and. . .]

     “Ain’t nobody I talk to that wants to move,” said Edison Dardar, 66, a lifelong resident who has erected handwritten signs at the entrance to the island declaring his refusal to leave. “I don’t know who’s in charge of all this.”

And for more from Commissioner Chris McVoy, PhD, from the file, "Would you believe me if I told you. . ."

Also note the seawall 'protecting' the Casino was never properly inspected prior to construction of the 'renovated' structure.

A Look Back: JoAnn Golden at the Lake Worth City Commission employs Rule #8 from the "Rules for Radicals"

Here is Saul Alinsky's Rule #8:

"Keep trying new things to keep the opposition off balance. As the opposition masters one approach, hit them from the flank with something new."

After all the political wedge tactics, staged protests, and divisiveness created by JoAnn Golden (using her family's enormous wealth), she said the following at the City Commission meeting on Tuesday, 3/22:

"It's been a very divisive time and I hope we can get back to being a city that we're all proud of."

Can you believe it? To read all about this use this link.

As the little City of Lake Worth moves forward with crucial infrastructure projects and other initiatives it's very important not to be distracted by the media who have, for the most part, little or no idea what is happening in this City. For example, read the following blog post.

Latest YIMBY news: "Boulder Will Host the First National 'YIMBY' Conference"

The subtitle for this article sums it up nicely, "More local-level policy wonks are saying 'yes in my back yard' to density, transit, and change."

Here in Palm Beach County, if you've heard the term YIMBY, it's likely because of former Delray Beach mayor and author, Jeff Perlman. Read about that using this link. Here is an excerpt from the article about the upcoming YIMBY conference:

     "Last November, voters in Boulder, Colorado, narrowly rejected a ballot measure that would have given neighborhoods the ultimate say over zoning changes. The measure would have essentially transferred the city’s zoning authority to 66 different neighborhood-level associations. It was a disaster in the making.
     Ballot issue #300 and #301—a separate effort to require every development in Boulder to pay for upgrades in infrastructure and amenities—would have stifled growth in Boulder. That was the whole point for the homeowners who already reside there."

[and. . .]

     "Those measures lost at the ballot, but they galvanized Better Boulder, a coalition made up of the groups who mobilized against the November ballot measures."

The big issue in south Florida is housing as well. Here more housing is being built but it's western sprawl bypassing the coastal cities. Stay tuned to this: How long before the YIMBY's rise up and demand more housing opportunity in the coastal cities and along the I-95 corridor in central Palm Beach County?

Read the following blog post or use this link to see how those in the "environmental community" have contributed to this problem that will not go away any time soon.

Hmmm. Media is all over Boynton Beach Mayor Grant but turns a blind eye to a Lake Worth elected's false claim about serving on a City board?

Read below about Lake Worth Commissioner Ryan Maier's false claim about serving on the Sister City Board. He used this 'credential' to get elected to the City Commission and it was completely untrue. The press completely ignored it then and still does now. However, some elected's aren't so fortunate. Boynton Beach Mayor Steven Grant is getting the special treatment from the Post; here is an excerpt:

     Two weeks after making his first public speech as the new mayor of Boynton Beach, Steven Grant said Tuesday that he used John F. Kennedy’s famous inaugural address as a guide, got all ideas from him, changed some words around, but failed to tell anybody he did so — until he was asked by The Palm Beach Post.
     The 33-year-old mayor is defending himself saying, “I don’t think that the whole having a speech at a legislative session requires me to cite my sources.”
     When asked if he misled the public to believe that the words he recited at the April 19 commission meeting were his, he responded, “It doesn’t matter. It’s a speech to let people know what I want to accomplish."

Now let's compare what Mayor Grant did, or didn't do, with what Maier actually did, or didn't do. Below is from Maier's campaign website when he was a candidate back in 2014/2015:

"[I was] a member of the Sister City board in Lake Worth. I have the energy, enthusiasm and experience needed to represent our multi-faceted city."

His enthusiasm for being on the Sister City Board was low: he was removed from the board due to lack of attendance and not participating in mandatory ethics training. Why would Maier refuse to take his mandatory ethics training? It only takes 20 minutes. From the office of the City Clerk:

"Mr. Maier was removed from the Sister City Board for not participating in the mandatory ethics training and his membership was declared vacant due to excessive absenteeism on March 19, 2012."

Demonstrating more lack of enthusiasm, from the Minutes of the City's Special Meeting on 8/29/2012, page 2 at the top of the page:

Note the line, "Ryan Maier was absent for his interview." Watch the video below and pay special attention to what Maier says starting at the 1:00 mark: By the way, Monday, May 9th, was the first meeting of the Sister City Board in quite some time. Read about that using this link. Also note that Commissioner Maier is up for re-election in March of next year. Go to right-hand column of this blog and look for "Deadline fast approaching to get your name on March 2017 ballot" to read all about that too.

Palm Beach Post wins high honors with journalism awards from the Society of Professional Journalism

For those of us in Lake Worth and surrounding areas these awards are nothing new. Most of you will recall those joyous days, honking of horns, and back-slapping after our previous beat reporter, Chris Persaud, won his two awards. He then took his new-found fame and went to to bigger and better things.

There was that one bump in the road though when he had to publish a correction, and then a correction to the correction, which is likely a first in the history of newspaper publishing.

On this recent award news is an article by Andrew Marra on "investigative reporting for newspapers with daily circulations between 50,000 and 100,000". You can see this for yourself at the Society of Professional Journalism website.

Congratulations!

It will be interesting to see if and when the Post pivots to their next investigation. Go to the next blog post below or use this link to see an idea for a series with information to be found on the Post's very own website.

"Hmmm, I wonder what it's like to be a volunteer on a City board? Is there one coming up soon?"

The answer is Yes! Later today (Monday, May 9th), the Sister City Board meets at the City Hall Conference Room at 5:30. The room is next to the City Commission chambers at 7 North Dixie Hwy. This board would be a great way to "get your feet wet" so to speak and possibly inspire you to become a volunteer. Here is what the board is tasked with doing:

"Board initiates, plans, sponsors, organizes and promotes cultural exchanges for the City of Lake Worth. Members also act as the City’s official hosts for international guests. Members serve for two years."

Some boards have liaison from the City Commission. For instance, the liaison for the City's Community Redevelopment Agency (CRA) is Commissioner Andy Amoroso. The liaison for the Sister City Board is Commissioner Chris McVoy, according to the City's website.

Here is agenda for the Sister City Board:

• Roll call
• New board members
• Sunshine Law
• Goals and objectives
• Adjournment

This meeting will be a very short one. Come out, see what it's like, and hopefully you'll be inspired to consider other volunteer boards in the City as well.

The "March to Support Cara Jennings" and what do you call a viral video that isn't viral any more? Just another video?

It can't be long now before the puppet strings get played and the next 'news' item takes center stage like a "curfew" or a push for the Urban Chicken once again. Whatever it is won't be anything like Cara Jennings' "a--h---" video. That video is quickly fading from the collective conscience and Michael Auslen at the Herald/Times Tallahassee Bureau recently had something about that:

     "The plan was for people fed up with Gov. Rick Scott and inspired by the coffee-fueled viral spectacle at Starbucks last week to rally at the Capitol and let the governor know how they feel.
     But only two people showed up. [emphasis added]
     Frank Day, who owns a home repair business and lives in Point Washington, up in the Florida Panhandle, tried to gather supporters on Facebook for a 'March to Support Cara Jennings,' the woman featured in a viral video from a Gainesville Starbucks where she called Scott an 'a------.' Fred Williams of Jefferson County, a 31-year state worker who retired from the Florida Department of Health about 10 years ago came, as did six reporters."

Good thing all those reporters showed up, huh? To read what the editor at The Palm Beach Post had to say about all this use this link.

If you're interested in my take on all this use this link. Hint: you might be very surprised.

Zika news: "Genetically modified mosquitoes could join Zika virus fight"

This is news from the News Service of Florida republished in the Post:

TALLAHASSEE — U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson, D-Fla., said Thursday he'd support the use of genetically modified mosquitoes in the Florida Keys to help stop the spread of the Zika virus.
     "I think this is going to be such a crisis that we've got to move ahead with it, certainly the pilot study," Nelson told reporters during a stop at Tallahassee International Airport.

[and. . .]

     Oxitec, a British company, wants to release about 3 million genetically modified mosquitoes in the Keys as part of the first-ever trial in the U.S. of such engineering. The genetic change is intended to produce offspring that die young and can't reproduce.
     "It's not like taking a gene out of something and replacing it in the genetic makeup of something else," Nelson said. "This is altering a gene in the genetic makeup of the (Aedes) aegypti mosquito to turn off that mosquito's ability to reproduce. You have to meet a crisis head-on. And if this is what it takes to eliminate that strain of mosquito, then that is what we're going to have to do." [emphasis added]

Just a reminder: Are you considering a run for a City Commission seat?

Districts 2 and 4 are on the ballot next March in Lake Worth. Would you like some training on what is required of a candidate and answers to other FAQ's?

Coming up on March 12th, March 24th, and June 1st is training held by the Palm Beach County Supervisor of Elections. Use this link to sign up.

For more on election day in March of 2017 and the deadlines to be met, look for "Deadline fast approaching to get your name on March 2017 ballot" in the right-hand column of this blog.

Good Luck!

Editorial in The Lake Worth Herald: Sober homes, the ADA, and the cities are working hard to get back control

To read the entire editorial on sober homes, see ads for local business, notice of City meetings, utility news, looks back at City history, events, upcoming hurricane seminar, and so much more, the Herald has it covered. If you don't get the Herald you can subscribe using this link or go to the City's downtown news stand across the street from Paws on the Avenue to pick up the print edition. Walk in and a nice man named Andy will assist you. Below are two excerpts from this week's editorial:

     "In the past couple of years, sober homes have sprung up throughout the sunbelt states and Palm Beach County an abundance of them.
     Insurance companies pay big money to sober homes or half-way houses and there isn't a very good system in place to regulate them. Many addicts are sent here to rehab and find it too easy to access their drug of choice.
     They get booted from the program and are left to fend for themselves on the streets with no money and no place to stay. They return to their old ways to get their next fix and the local municipalities are plagued with prostitution, robberies, burglaries and aggressive panhandling.
     Homeless addicts move into our parks and public spaces, leaving their syringes on the ground for our children to step on as they enjoy the park. They use restrooms in local businesses to make their deals and expose everyone else to the dangers of dirty needles. [emphasis added]
     To some, any effort to make public spaces uncomfortable for addicts is an attack on all homeless. This is not the case. Many organizations work hard to help the truly homeless and provide for them. It is the homeless addicts who cause the problem.
     The majority of the homeless addicts are here because they were sent to rehab in sunny South Florida by family members up north who are trying to help them rehabilitate but don't want them anywhere near their home until they are rehabilitated."

[and. . .]

     "Local government attempts to stem the problem of sober homes has run afoul of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and their attempts have been futile.
     Fortunately, municipalities aren't giving up and are looking for chinks in the ADA armor with the assistance of State and Federal government bodies.
     Keep the fingers crossed this abomination of a disability can be exposed for what it is and the ADA protections can be removed."

Florida Governor Napoleon Bonaparte Broward, a "champion of Everglades drainage"

Did you know Broward County is 101 years old? It is. Western sprawl in south Florida began many years ago with the drainage of the Everglades. Below are two excerpts from this article in The Palm Beach Post from last year:

     "On April 30, 1915, Broward County was formed from parts of Palm Beach and Dade counties. Palm Beach had itself been carved out just eight years earlier from Dade. [emphasis added]
     Bill McGoun, a now-retired longtime Post writer and editor and a frequent contributor to Post Time, wrote a short history of Broward for the Broward County Historical Commission. Here are excerpts:
     Broward’s first non-Indian settlers arrived in the late 1700s, settling in what’s now downtown Fort Lauderdale on the south side of the New River."

[and later . . .]

     "Its [Broward County's] namesake was one of those people history scholars either love or hate. Napoleon Bonaparte Broward, the state’s 19th governor, had been elected in 1904 as a champion of Everglades drainage, and during his four-year tenure, dredges worked day and night to turn wetlands into farmlands.
     Broward County wasn’t immune to the 1920s real estate boom and bust, and the population explosion that followed World War II. The county’s population went from 5,135 in 1920 to 620,100 a half century later."

Below is a picture of Florida Governor Napoleon Bonaparte Broward on a tour of the Everglades drainage in 1906. In the Post article you'll learn about "Major William Lauderdale", the Second Seminole War, and a man named Henry Flagler who had a little part in all this history of what's called south Florida.

Florida Gov. Broward standing on the right in this picture. Photo credit: State Archives of Florida, Florida Memory.

Final Notice, Time Running Out: All elected leaders who would like to speak at ROLO's meeting this Tuesday

The Residences (not the "Residents") of Lake Osborne (ROLO), aka the "Hermit Kingdom", will be holding their bi-monthly meeting on Tuesday, May 10th. If you've been misrepresented, maligned, or otherwise disrespected and would like to set the record straight here is what you do:

• Send an email to rolohlakeworth@gmail.com
• ROLO will then hold a meeting to decide if you will be allowed to speak
• Then you will be contacted by ROLO with their decision, hopefully with a reason if you're denied the opportunity to speak to their membership

Prior to the meeting if you see puffs of smoke, either white or black, that's a sign to check your email inbox to see if you'll be granted permission. This is an example of what to look for*:
To learn more about ROLO use this link. Some information that might be helpful:

Membership: Open to all residents within our borders. NO DUES
Board of Directors:
Katie McGiveron, President 
Robert Waples, Vice President

[and. . .]

Boundaries: The Residences of Lake Osborne (ROLO) Boundaries start at the north side of Lake Osborne on the East side of Detroit Street and the South side of Lake Worth Road, West of I-95 and the east side of Lake Osborne Drive South to Lake Geneva Drive and part of Nanette Court on the East Side of High Ridge Road. Our boundaries Include Lakeside Point and Parkview Villa’s, however does not include the trailer/mobile home areas or Murry Hills. [emphasis added]
Meetings: Our meetings start at 7:00 PM hosted by the Lake Osborne Presbyterian Church located at 2102 6th Avenue South in the education building.

Don't waste any time if you're a City or County Commissioner! There's a lot to be done if you want to speak to the membership of ROLO.

*The reference to smoke signals is, of course, satirical.

Happy Mother's Day: Free admission at the pool for all adult women starting at noon (facility closes at 4:00)

Today is a great day to try out the City's municipal pool if you haven't done so already. You don't have to swim laps if you don't want to. Just wade around and enjoy the day!

Been to the pool lately? Use this link to learn more. It's open 9:00–4:00 today.

Sally Welsh is now the official pool manager employed by the City. She started on April 18th. Sally was a lifeguard at the beach, has taught swim lessons and leads the water aerobic class too.

So. . . the pool is still there. So is the beach. Now back to the question: Been to the pool lately?