WOW - Technology coming down the pike!

Pics from Beach Lawsuit "Press Conference" on Steps of City Hall

Members of the Cabal behind the Beach Lawsuit and Petition Drive:

Atlantis Resident - Dennis Dorsey$$

Atlantis Resident - Chad Drake $$

Jim McCauley - aka "Caesar"

Annabeth Karson

Dee McNamara

Bill Maroney

John "Jump" Jordan - JJJ

Larry McNamara

Lynn Anderson

Pals: Dee, Jim and Annabeth

Three Musketeers

Dee and Jim


Atlantean Dennis and Golfviewian JimEx-Mayor Ron Exline and Loser in 2007 District #1 race

Denni$ Dor$sey (Atlantis Resident) has a laugh at the expense of Lake Worth taxpayers.

Definition of Cabal: A cabal is a number of persons united in some close design, usually to promote their private views and interests in a church, state, or other community by intrigue. Cabals are sometimes secret organizations composed of a few designing persons, and at other times are manifestations of Emergence or emergent behavior in society or governance on the part of a community of persons who have well established public affiliation or kinship. The term can also be used to refer to the designs of such persons or to the practical consequences of their emergent behavior, and also holds a general meaning of intrigue and conspiracy. Its usage carries strong connotations of shadowy corners and insidious influence; a cabal is more evil and selective than, say, a faction, which is simply selfish. Because of this negative connotation, few organizations use the term to refer to themselves or their internal subdivisions. Among the exceptions is Discordianism, in which the term is used to refer to an identifiable group within the Discordian tradition.

Main Entry: ¹ca·bal
Pronunciation: k&-'bäl, -'bal
Function: noun
Etymology: French cabale cabala, intrigue, cabal, from Medieval Latin cabbala cabala, from Late Hebrew qabbAlAh, literally, received (lore)
1 : the artifices and intrigues of a group of persons secretly united in a plot (as to overturn a government); also : a group engaged in such artifices and intrigues
2 : CLUB, GROUP cabal of artists>
synonym see PLOT

Above: Artist's interpretation of a Cabal

Lawsuit filed by James McCauley and Laurence McNamara

THIS INFORMATION IS PROVIDED IN THE PUBLIC INTEREST. IT IS NOT AN ENDORSEMENT OF THE CAUSE.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
JUNE 14, 2007
CONTACT: JANE WEST (561)748-8478

LAKE WORTH CITIZENS DEPRIVED OF VOTE ON BEACH REDEVELOPMENT

Lake Worth, FL – Two citizens of Lake Worth filed suit today against
the City for violating their due process rights. The citizens, James
McCauley and Laurence McNamara, assert that the City of Lake Worth
deprived them of their right to vote on the beach redevelopment
project as required by the referendum that was overwhelmingly approved
by Lake Worth voters in 2004.

“Our problem is not with the development so much as is it is with
the process” remarked McCauley, a long time Lake Worth resident.
“We have a strong interest in how our City is developed, that is why
the beach referendum was approved in the first place. Now the City
has by-passed the requirements of that referendum by entering into
this agreement with the developer and that is wrong.”

The referendum requires that the “City owned property east of the
A1A roadway shall not be ….leased, except for a lease of less than
20 years, without the affirmative vote of a majority of the electors
of the City of Lake Worth at a properly noticed and scheduled
referendum.”

“The overriding purpose and intent of this amendment was to give the
residents of Lake Worth a clear and unequivocal voice in how their
valuable publicly owned beach asset would be developed for generations
to come,” observed McNamara. “But then the City entered into a
lease for the unusual term of 19 years, 11 months and 29 days in an
attempt to circumvent the referendum, except when you examine it
closely, it just doesn’t pass muster.”

That failure to pass muster is the crux of the litigation filed with
Palm Beach County. The complaint seeks declaratory and injunctive
relief. The Plaintiffs have hired the law firms of Collins & West,
P.A. and Lewis, Longman & Walker, P.A.

Pass Muster Etymology: based on the military use of the phrase pass muster (= to gather soldiers in a group to show officers they are acceptably dressed and equipped)

Jane West, Esq.
Collins & West, P.A.

Jupiter Office:
10152 W. Indiantown Road, Suite 157
Jupiter, FL 33478
(561)748-8478

Tampa Office:
500 E. Kennedy Blvd. Suite 100
Tampa, FL 33602
(813) 273-9166

www.collins-west.com

NOTICE! Announcement regarding the Master Plan and Comprehensive Plan

THE CITY OF LAKE WORTH PLANNING & ZONING BOARD HAS ANNOUNCED THE FIRST OF A SERIES OF MONTHLY SPECIAL WORKSHOP MEETINGS AT WHICH THE BOARD WILL REVIEW THE PROPOSED NEW COMPREHENSIVE PLAN FOR THE CITY OF LAKE WORTH. THE PROPOSED NEW COMP PLAN IMPLEMENTS THE RECOMMENDATIONS OF THE STRATEGIC MASTER PLAN, ON WHICH THE CITY HAS BEEN WORKING FOR NEARLY TWO YEARS.

TO REVIEW THE STRATEGIC MASTER PLAN, PLEASE CLICK THE FOLLOWING LINK:

CLICK HERE

TO REVIEW THE PROPOSED NEW COMPREHENSIVE PLAN PLEASE CLICK THE FOLLOWING:

CLICK HERE

THE FIRST OF MONTHLY SPECIAL WORKSHOP MEETING OF THE PLANNING AND ZONING BOARD WILL BE HELD BEGINNING AT 6 PM ON WEDNESDAY, JUNE 27, 2007 AT THE LW GOLF COURSE CLUBHOUSE. NO PUBLIC COMMENT WILL BE TAKEN AT THAT TIME. YOU MAY OBSERVE THE PROCEEDINGS. THE P&Z BOARD HAS, HOWEVER, INVITED WRITTEN COMMENTS TO BE SUBMITTED IN ADVANCE OF THE MEETING. YOUR WRITTEN COMMENTS WILL BE INCLUDED IN THE BOARD PACKAGE FOR THE INITIAL WORKSHOP IF THEY ARE RECEIVED BY CITY STAFF NO LATER THAN 12 NOON ON FRIDAY, JUNE 22, 2007. E-MAIL YOUR COMMENTS TO P&Z DIRECTOR SHARON JACKSON AT sjackson@LakeWorth.org WITH E-MAIL COPY TO BOARD SECRETARY SANDI DUBOSE AT sdubose@LakeWorth.org. YOU MAY ALSO FAX COMMENTS TO MS. JACKSON AT 561-586-1786.

PLEASE ALSO NOTE THAT CONSULTANTS FOR THE CITY ARE NOW PREPARING A COMPLETELY NEW ZONING CODE ("LAND DEVELOPMENT REGULATIONS" OR "LDRs") THAT WILL IMPLEMENT THESE CHANGES IN THE COMP PLAN. THE DRAFT LDRs ARE NOT YET AVAILABLE, BUT A DRAFT WILL ALSO BE ADDED TO THIS REVIEW PROCESS IN THE COMING WEEKS.

YOU ARE STRONGLY URGED TO PARTICIPATE IN THIS PROCESS. THE NEW COMP PLAN WILL ESTABLISH THE FRAMEWORK FOR DEVELOPMENT IN THE CITY FOR AT LEAST THE NEXT DECADE. THERE ARE BOTH GOOD AND PROBLEMATIC ELEMENTS TO THE DRAFT. IF YOU OWN LAND WITHIN THE CITY, YOU ARE STRONGLY URGED TO LOOK AT THE PROPOSED NEW FUTURE LAND USE MAP. LARGE AREAS OF THE CITY ARE BEING REDESIGNATED AND WILL EVENTUALLY BE REZONED. THE PROPOSED NEW FUTURE LAND USE MAP IS INCLUDED IN THE "E.A.R. BASED AMENDMENTS", CITED ABOVE. THERE ARE ALSO MANY LIMITS BEING PLACED ON BUILDING HEIGHT, THE NUMBER OF RESIDENTIAL UNITS PERMITTED ON A PARCEL OF LAND AND MANY OTHER INCENTIVES/DISINCENTIVES FOR DEVELOPMENT. ONLY YOU CAN DETERMINE HOW THESE CHANGES MAY AFFECT YOU, IF AT ALL.

THE NEW COMP PLAN WILL HAVE A MUCH WIDER AFFECT ON COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT. NOW IS YOUR OPPORTUNITY TO AFFECT THE OUTCOME OF THIS PROCESS.

WE RECOGNIZE THAT A GREAT DEAL OF EFFORT IS NEEDED TO READ, DIGEST AND COMMENT ON THESE IMPORTANT DOCUMENTS. THIS IS A ONCE-IN-A-DECADE ACTIVITY! WHILE TIME IS OF THE ESSENCE, PLEASE DO NOT PASS UP THE OPPORTUNITY TO PARTICIPATE.

WE EXPECT THE P&Z BOARD'S REVIEW PROCESS TO EXTEND OVER THE NEXT 5-6 MONTHS, AFTER WHICH OUR ATTENTION WILL SHIFT TO ADOPTION OF NEW LAWS BY THE CITY COMMISSION. WE EXPECT THAT THIS NEW FRAMEWORK FOR DEVELOPMENT WILL BE IN PLACE BY THE END OF THE YEAR.

PLEASE CONTACT ME AT WESBLACKMAN@GMAIL.COM WITH QUESTIONS OR MORE INFORMATION

Property Tax Reform: View from the Florida Association of Counties

The following letter to Gov. Crist from the Florida Association of Counties provides a good understanding of the challenges facing the legislature which is currently in special session discussing tax reform.

Dear Governor Crist, President Pruitt and Speaker Rubio:

The Florida Association of Counties shares your concern regarding inequities in Florida's current property tax system. While homesteaders receive major tax savings under Save Our Homes, non-homestead properties and businesses that don't benefit from SOH bear the brunt of the tax shift.

Unfortunately, the proposed constitutional amendment released June 8 does not fix these inequities, but actually exacerbates them. Homestead property owners will receive an initial savings that will decrease over time and non-homestead and business property owners are still left paying the tab.

While the proposed statutory cuts will be painful for most counties - and devastating for others - your inclusion of an override option allows local governments to make the decision that is best for their community. We appreciate your nod to home rule and thenotion that local tax and spending decisions should be made by local elected officials, not by Tallahassee.

However, the proposed constitutional changes perpetuate the inequities in Florida's property tax system and will come at great expense to the Florida that our citizens have come to know and love.

We have heard and read the oft-repeated accusation that local governments are using "scare tactics" by warning citizens about the true impacts of dramatic cuts. Please know that your analysis shows the statewide average cut to each county as a result of the proposed rollback and constitutional amendment will be 22.4%.

Of course, Florida's counties will try to hold public safety harmless while imposing revenue reductions this large. But understand the legislation will force many counties to make drastic cuts to quality of life programs - on average at least 60% - or to spread these drastic cuts across all county departments, affecting essential services and public safety.

Perhaps a 60% cut in quality of life programs is acceptable to state leadership but we can assure you that it is not to the communities and people these programs serve.

These cuts impact more than "dog parks", but to many parks around the state. Parks are the fabric of our communities for playgrounds, birthday parties, church picnics and little league.

• For example, Leon County's national award winning park service would be decimated.
• Enterprise Florida, Florida's economic development engine, would lose county partners high salaried companies to come to Florida.
• Public transit systems would be virtually eliminated, crippling our working class and the hospitality industry. Critical roadways - vital to quality of life and better economic development - will likely be delayed or eliminated.
• Some Health and Human Services are 'non-essential' as well and so the many children, women and elderly helped through preventive programs and social services would be left to fend for themselves or find aid elsewhere. And,
• Libraries would curtail their hours or close and their literacy programs be eradicated.

Yes, it is conceivable a county could make all of these cuts, but is this what our citizens had in mind when they urged tax relief? We don't think so, and recent polls support our view that Florida residents want property taxes lowered, but not by taking away programs and services they use.

Will the state then shoulder the burden - historically passed onto local governments - and help those who no longer can count on local programs?

Some counties have special districts for fire services, emergency medical personnel and many other things. These districts are funded entirely through ad valorum taxes. With more than 80% of their expenses going to personnel costs, it would be impossible for these special districts to absorb the impacts from this plan without cutting critical emergency personnel.

In addition, if the state promises to hold public schools harmless, how then will the state make up the $1.6 billion loss to school funding? This year alone, the Legislature voted to raise local property taxes for public schools, by $550 million, increasing the Required Local Effort. Will the Legislature address this possible $1.6 billion problem by shifting costs to local governments? Local governments cannot and should not be forced to continue to take on the state's responsibilities.

To put these proposed cuts in perspective, it would be interesting to apply similar cuts to the state. A 22.4 percent cut on the state level would equate to a reduction of $6 billion from the state general revenue fund. Can the state of Florida and the essential services it must provide take this big a hit? We dare say the answer is no, otherwise the state would not continually look to local governments to pick up the state's tab, while bearing the brunt of the state's tax plan.

This plan will create a new Florida, not one for the better but one that erodes our quality of life and public safety while passing on larger savings to property taxpayers who have benefited for years while property values rose. Meanwhile, the property taxpayers paying the most - those who came out to town hall meetings to make impassioned pleas - will continue to bear the brunt of the tax shift.

While we appreciate and agree with the need for comprehensive tax reform, this plan will erode our quality of life, cut essential services and strain public safety - clouding Florida's future economic and social prosperity.

Sincerely,

Commissioner Susan Latvala, President
Commissioner Teresa Jacobs, President-Elect

Some comparisons...

Here's something interesting, I think. Check out this link to the City of Fort Pierce website. I had a project up there last year and got to know the community. It has its share of political intrigue recently. But I thought you would be impressed by the 360 degree automated panorama of their major projects. Click around on the page and check out the cool way the "searchlight" shows you where the camera is pointing in plan view. (You will have to use Internet Explorer as the functions don't seem to work in Firefox or other browsers)

Also of note is that they are initiating a new trolley service and the vehicles look exactly like the ones we had. The same ones that Mike Frey said should be painted yellow since they were such lemons.

There is also a letter from their City Manager, Dennis Beach (ironic). It is written to correct what he and the City considered misinformation as reported in the local media regarding the restoration of the Sunrise Theater and the involvement of their Redevelopment Agency, grant monies and a local foundation. It is also gives an assessment of what other community assets represent in investment of public tax dollars and the revenue generated by them.








So, what can we learn from this. One thing is I find it all too easy to do a search and replace - Sunrise Theater for (our) beach. The following is a list of what I think are some salient comparisons that are highlighted in the letter:

• That we can learn from other municipalities. Fort Pierce is about the size of the City of Lake Worth, is a coastal municipality and has its own electric utility.
• That it is an important function of City government to "get the word" out and defend itself in the media. There is interpretation and then there are facts. I haven't had the opportunity to read the article that spawned the letter but I would like to see a letter from time to time sent out by the City of Lake Worth in response to some articles in the press.
• That there are public and cultural assets within communities that need care and attention over time in order for them to continue to be contributing community assets. There are various means that cities use in order to make that re-investment and the sources outlined in the letter make up a representative summary of some of the forms they can take.
• That there are other communities that have to do battle in order to make those re-investments in community assets.

Another set of comparisons come from Decatur, Georgia - click here for their website. I have some friends that are planning on moving there in the near future and they've done some research. It turns out that Decatur is one of those first ring suburbs immediately east of the City of Atlanta. According to Wikipedia, it has the largest proportion of gay couples within the State of Georgia of any community.

First of all, their website is First Class. I encourage you to travel around their site and see what interests you. A couple neat things that I found is that they have a Flexcar system. That's where a company provides fuel-efficient vehicles around town in certain parking spaces and that's where you pick up the car you want to use for an hour or a day, whatever! Then you just return back to the same parking spot that you found it. Kind of cool and a nice way to have flexibility in transportation choices and compliments a mass transit system well. They say that for each Flexcar they put into service takes 15 privately owned vehicles off of the roadways. Hmmmm. They also have special parking spaces within the downtown that are only for scooters - a traditionally sized space can accommodate 8 scooters. I see some scooters down here (besides my dogs - HA!), but not too many. They must be more prevalent there.

You know, it comes to mind that a "community bike" program might be a good idea for our City to implement. This is where we get impounded or unclaimed bikes, paint them white and saftey orange (so they're easily identifiable as part of the program). These could be left around town in certain places - the downtown would have a concentration, along with shopping centers, the beach etc. People could use them and return them to where they found them - and this would be free for the user. Think about that!

That's all. Enjoy!

Theodore Roosevelt

"Let us speak courteously, deal fairly, and keep ourselves armed and ready."

San Francisco, CA, May 13, 1903

"It is not the critic who counts: not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles or where the doer of deeds could have done better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood, who strives valiantly, who errs and comes up short again and again, because there is no effort without error or shortcoming, but who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions, who spends himself for a worthy cause; who, at the best, knows, in the end, the triumph of high achievement, and who, at the worst, if he fails, at least he fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who knew neither victory nor defeat."


"Citizenship in a Republic,"
Speech at the Sorbonne, Paris, April 23, 1910


"The President is merely the most important among a large number of public servants. He should be supported or opposed exactly to the degree which is warranted by his good conduct or bad conduct, his efficiency or inefficiency in rendering loyal, able, and disinterested service to the Nation as a whole. Therefore it is absolutely necessary that there should be full liberty to tell the truth about his acts, and this means that it is exactly necessary to blame him when he does wrong as to praise him when he does right. Any other attitude in an American citizen is both base and servile. To announce that there must be no criticism of the President, or that we are to stand by the President, right or wrong, is not only unpatriotic and servile, but is morally treasonable to the American public. Nothing but the truth should be spoken about him or any one else. But it is even more important to tell the truth, pleasant or unpleasant, about him than about any one else."

"Roosevelt in the Kansas City Star", 149
May 7, 1918

"We of an older generation can get along with what we have, though with growing hardship; but in your full manhood and womanhood you will want what nature once so bountifully supplied and man so thoughtlessly destroyed; and because of that want you will reproach us, not for what we have used, but for what we have wasted...So any nation which in its youth lives only for the day, reaps without sowing, and consumes without husbanding, must expect the penalty of the prodigal whose labor could with difficulty find him the bare means of life."

"Arbor Day - A Message to the School-Children of the United States" April 15, 1907

"There are two things that I want you to make up your minds to: first, that you are going to have a good time as long as you live - I have no use for the sour-faced man - and next, that you are going to do something worthwhile, that you are going to work hard and do the things you set out to do."

Talk to schoolchildren in Oyster Bay, Christmastime 1898

We have us a Traffic Jam! Tenemos un Lio de Transito!

And not the kind that we see on I-95. This one is in my mind. There is getting to be a real log jam of things to write about. I should have some time over the weekend to address these. Here is a quick list of some up-coming posts. I am doing this partly so that I can keep them straight in my mind and so none slip through the cracks, but mostly to inform you of up-coming attractions

• Retrospective on the Gulfstream Hotel approval process. If you listened to my Truth Matters show on Lake Worth Talk last Sunday you learned about how the project evolved over time and I provided examples of what the project looked like in January of 2006. If you want to check out the graphics and renderings, you can go to my TalkBlog on Lake Worth Talk.com. You can access that by clicking on the link on the right side of this page.
• Pictures, story and commentary from the Master Pump Station ribbon cutting ceremony and facility tour. I know, not quite CNN material, but interesting as it applies to our relationships with other municipalities and that pesky Mock Roo$, our engineering firm that's been with us since the Eisenhower administration. I do have a link to their website that is pretty exhaustive in describing the facility. Wonder who paid for that?
  
• Tuesday night's City Commission meeting and discussion of the Beach and Casino land use designation and zoning district. Commissioner Jennings was kind enough to e-mail me her PowerPoint presentation and other background materials that she used during her discussion. I'll include some of the graphics from that presentation. So if you were unable to attend the meeting, you'll be able to get the gist of where she was coming from. The good news - they all passed - but where was our attorney Alan Ciklin and where was anyone from Greater Bay?
  
• Tuesday night's City Commission and Commissioner Golden's item regarding reconsideration of the Compass lease. I'll talk about public comments and we'll reacquaint ourselves with the Golden Rule.
• Grand opening of the Lake Worth Promenade. I stayed long enough at the event to grab some promotional materials, see some folks and talk with the leasing agent, Ryan Dinsdale, until I was called away on a business matter. I'd like to go back there tomorrow with my camera and get a walk through with him. This is a pioneer Class A office building in Lake Worth and has great significance to our position in the Palm Beach County real estate marketplace.
• News about a national conference coming to South Florida in late October and early November which will feature a day trip to our fair city. We are identified in their conference literature as the "City of Lake Worth... a progressive community in central Palm Beach County". You won't want to miss this one. And, no, I am not telling you what it's about here - you'll have to wait for the entire post.
• Status of our Master Plan process. The Planning and Zoning Board met last night and went over a draft set of revisions to our Comprehensive Plan. This will be work-shopped on June 27. We will also start getting our draft land development regulations (zoning code) and I'll have some information on that too.
• And, finally, we missed the first anniversary of this blog - so I will talk about some of the highlights and the lowlights of this past year.
  

So, you can see there is no lack of topics to cover. I will talk about a lot of these topics on my Truth Matters show Sunday from 8 to 9 p.m. Lake Worth Talk.com

Also, the two previous posts were quickies - one from the Palm Beach County ERM website regarding the sediment management project for the C-51 canal and one from the Palm Beach County government website regarding the courthouse restoration project on-going in West Palm Beach. Hope you find them informative.

Now, it's off to karaoke at the Mad Hatter! See you later.

C- 51 Sediment Management Project - Lake Worth Lagoon

Storm water collected in the C-51 Canal (Canal) discharges through the S-155 control structure to the Lake Worth Lagoon (Lagoon). Pollutants contained in the storm water are believed to be a major contributing source of the organically enriched muck located in both the Canal and the Lagoon. The muck creates an unnatural, anaerobic substrate devoid of invertebrate life and marine grasses and contributes to both the loss of fisheries habitat and the decline of commercial and recreational fish species found within the Lagoon. The muck also reduces water flow within the Canal, restricting its capacity to control flooding.

A three-way interlocal agreement for a sediment management project will result in cleaner water entering the Lake Worth Lagoon and in turn, enhanced habitat for fish, wildlife and aquatic vegetation. County Commissioners Warren Newell and Jeff Koons spearheaded the effort to set up the dredging operation along the Canal. The initial aim is to remove approximately 125,000 cubic yards of organic sediment that have built up on the Canal bed. Then, a deep hole will be dug to act as a trap for silt and other contaminants that otherwise would flow into the Lagoon.

Palm Beach County is putting up $2 million to set up the operation and will manage it for two years. It will then be turned over to the South Florida Water Management District (SFWMD), which owns the C-51 Canal, also known as the West Palm Beach Canal. The SFWMD will reimburse the County up to $1 million toward the cost of the project. The third party to the agreement, the City of West Palm Beach, is donating the use of land it owns along the Canal on the south side of the City’s municipal golf course for use as a staging area.

	“This is cutting-edge technology that will significantly improve the water quality,” said Commissioner Newell. “We’ve been doing something like this in Lake Osborne for the past two years with great results. The grasses are coming back, the sandy bottom is there, and the fish are being re-established.” The agreement includes a $1.7-million contract with the firm J.F. Brennan Co., Inc. to hydraulically dredge and dewater the muck taken from the Canal. The work is scheduled to begin in April 2006 and continue through 2008.

Original Cornerstones and Reconstructed Eagle Installed

Palm Beach County Commissioners gather at the Court House for a “tap in” ceremony, marking the installation of the two original cornerstones on the building’s northwest side. Pictured above (l to r): Commissioners Jeff Koons, Warren H. Newell, Burt Aaronson, Addie L. Greene, Karen T. Marcus and Jess R. Santamaria.

Marble Cornerstones Mounted on Northwest Corner

On the northwest corner of the Court House there are two marble cornerstones affixed with wires and pins. Each square weighs approximately 400 pounds and measures three feet long by three feet wide and about three inches thick. When the original courthouse building was enclosed by a wraparound facade in 1970, the cornerstones were removed and remounted in the brick stairwell leading to the main lobby. When the wraparound was removed, the cornerstones were saved, and on May 15, 2007 finally installed back in the same exact location they occupied on the original building.

The cornerstone facing north is engraved with the names of the 1915 Board of County Commissioners as well as the contractor and architect of the original courthouse.	The square facing west recognizes Henry M. Flagler who donated the land.
Prior to the “tap in” ceremony, four workers did the real work using a crane to hoist the cornerstones into place.

Reconstructed Eagle Perches Atop Main Entrance

Above the west entrance of the Court House sits an eagle crest carved from Indiana limestone. The five-month process of constructing the eagle was challenging as the original carving was lost during construction of the 1970 wraparound facade. Detailed drawings were created based on an archival photograph of the Court House from the 1940s and images of similar eagles from the same time period in North America.

A small clay maquette was made and then a full-sized clay model. A rubber mold was fabricated to create a negative for the plaster mold. Then it took three months for three stone carving experts to recreate the eagle in limestone with a tedious 800-year-old technique used by Italian sculptors such as Michelangelo and Bernini.

Traditional Cut Stone, Ltd., of Ontario, Canada used Indiana limestone to carve the eagle and all the new stone for the restored courthouse. Delivery to the site required 36 tractor-trailer loads of material. The new limestone is from the same quarry that provided the limestone for the original construction. This same limestone was also used to build the Empire State Building. Other projects by the Ontario company include stone carving for the exterior of Graff Diamonds on Worth Avenue in Palm Beach and restoration carving for the U.S. Capitol Building in Washington, D.C.

This full-sized clay model was used to create the limestone carving.

The 11-foot-wide, 6-foot-tall and 2-foot-thick carving weighing six tons depicts an eagle with a wreath wrapped around its body and ribbon beneath its claws.

Hey everyone...

I am backing up with topics for up-coming posts. Just need to find time to do them. FYI - the City Commission adopted the land use and zoning changes for the beach last night. I am waiting on itemized (minor) changes to the zoning district. Also, I will have pictures and a write up on the Master Pump Station ribbon cutting - in the meantime check out this link. It is a site prepared by Mock Roos regarding the facility. And today I'll head on down to the ribbon cutting for the Promenade and will have pictures from that.

So, stand-by, more stuff on the way.

Well I love a rainy night ...

Well I love a rainy night
I love to hear the thunder
Watch the lightning
When it lights up the sky
You know it makes me feel good
Well I love a rainy night
It's such a beautiful sight
I love to feel the rain
On my face
To taste the rain on my lips
In the moonlight shadow

Wish I was washed
All my cares away
I'd wake up to a sunny day
'Cause I love a rainy night
Yes I love a rainy night
Well I love a rainy night
Well I love a rainy night

Well I love a rainy night
Well I love a rainy night
I love to hear the thunder
Watch the lightning
When it lights up the sky
You know it makes me feel good
Well I love a rainy night
It's such a beautiful sight
I love to feel the rain
On my face
To taste the rain on my lips
In the moonlight shadow

Puts a song
In this heart of mine
Puts a smile on my face every time

'Cause I love a rainy night
Yes I love a rainy night
Ooh I love a rainy night
Yeah I love a rainy night

Wish I was washed
All my cares away
I'd wake up to a sunny day
'Cause I love a rainy night
Yes I love a rainy night
Well I love a rainy night
Well I love a rainy night

I just got back from a walk with the dogs and am just about soaked to the skin. Ditto Mars and Venus. Nice to hear the rain on the roof.

Reason to Celebrate!

This invitation was sent out by the Greater Lake Worth Chamber of Commerce announcing the ribbon-cutting ceremony for the new mixed use building at the southeast corner of Federal Hwy. and 2nd Avenue North. It will take place next Wednesday at 5:30 p.m.

I consider this one of the best projects that we reviewed and approved while on the Planning and Zoning Board. Think about what was there (wish I had a picture, the image is burned into my mind however). The derelict gas station/car "fix it" place on the corner and the empty building in the middle of the property - right in the midst of our downtown.

In its place we have a nicely designed (thank you architect David Lawrence!) building with soon to be lush (pray for rain) tropical landscaping. Retail will be on the first floor, with office on the upper two floors. A new population will be introduced into our downtown environment - invigorating our already buoyant restaurant economy and helping nurture new retail establishments.

This building also represents the restraint that the City has shown in approving projects with a lower scale overall height than our neighboring coastal municipalities. This will be the only "Class A" office building that I know of in the City of Lake Worth - for now. More are on the way...

It really is O.K. to feel good about this building.

Some Blog Stats...

You might be interested in knowing that there were a total of 649 visitors to this blog in the month of May 2007. About 310 unique visitors (accessing from one specific PC) visit the site every other day. There were also 274 unique visitors that wandered here for the first time. The third highest category are those that visit here every two to three days (45).

Thanks for coming by!! I hope that you are able to pick up bits of information that help you understand a little more about the City of Lake Worth and the political, social and physical environment in which we find ourselves.

Remember too that you can reply or submit a question to any post on the blog by clicking on the "quote balloon" at the bottom of the entry. You can also contact me by email at wesblackman@gmail.com.

Quick up-date on the Gulfstream

I am waiting on the official vote/motion tally, but I am pleased to report that all of the Gulfstream requests were approved with conditions. I hope to post them and all the conditions (22 of them) here soon.

Thanks to all who attended and expressed their support of the project. It will contribute to our re-emergence as a tourist destination.

Be looking here in the future for a review of the project's evolution. I have some earlier versions of their proposal and you'll be able to see how much the project changed over time.