Large Crowd Today (3/23) at Celebration of Love Event

Mayor Pam Triolo reading the proclamation.

This was a rally for marriage equality in the state of Florida. Couples who had gotten married in other places where gay marriage is legal were asked to bring a sign saying where and how much money you spent on your wedding elsewhere. This sends a message that there is a definite economic cost to continue discriminatory practices. Video up soon.

This week's (3/22) Seaview Radio interview with Mayor Muoio of West Palm Beach

Here she talks about the Boat Show this weekend, the on-going investigation of water testing by the city, the golf course clubhouse demolition, the retirement of their police chief (they are looking at doing an internal hire), the shuttle service planned between the new Palm Beach Outlets and the downtown and the "naysayers" who wrongly claimed that the outlet mall would not be a success and be ridden with crime.

You can think of this as the .1%...

These two properties represent one-tenth of one percent of the vacant properties here in Lake Worth. We are told that there are around 2,000. The city is making a start, courtesy of the new ordinances now in place that will protect the city from legal claims from the owners. These two legal notices for these structures appeared in last Thursday's edition of the Lake Worth Herald.

 Click either notices for a more readable image.

We rode by them on Friday and it was obvious these have not been inhabited in a while. I was already familiar with the one on Ocean Breeze, but had never seen the one on South F Street. That one is not too far away from the FEC freight depot that will be the new home of the Benzaiten Center. Follow the link on their website for more information. This is what is eventually envisioned for the entire area around the center.

The Surrounding Neighborhood, which is zoned ‘Art Light-Industrial’ is surely to blossom into a location for all types of various artist studios and live-work artist housing. This ‘Art Zone’ will become an exciting hub of creative activity that will attract visitors from all over South Florida and benefit all three-dimensional artists living in the community. Bringing artists of different disciplines together will foster an atmosphere of joint collaboration and a synergy of creativity unparalleled in the world of art.

Here are pictures of the structure and yard. The structure will likely be demolished soon.

The following pictures are of the property on Ocean Breeze. This is within a historic district. Once a structure has been found unsafe by the building official, the Historic Resource Preservation Board gets notice at our monthly meeting (2nd Wednesday in the Commission Chambers). There is nothing that we can do at that time to prevent the structure's demolition. It is shown to us for informational purposes only.

So the notices and legals ads are the precursor to progress. If you look around the city, you will see other similar notices placed on dilapidated structures. Costs for the demolition, if performed by the city, become an item on the property tax bill. This was one of the key changes brought forth by the new ordinances.

Vote ‘yes’ Tuesday | www.palmbeachdailynews.com

The Shiny Sheet comes out in favor of the PUD-5 in its editorial today. If there is a Palm Beach establishment way to vote, this is it. I see the measure passing this coming Tuesday at a special election. The paper has ads from both sides, but the "pro" side includes a list of names of those that support it. Former Mayor and respected member of the community Lesly Smith endorses the PUD-5 concept in a letter to the editor, along with others both "pro" and "con." This issue has consumed a lot of time and one senses that the Town just needs to move on, and according to the wishes of many, do so in a civil manner. Click title for link.

For more than six years, the town has wrestled with redevelopment controversies simmering along its northern entranceway. However vocal they have been, opponents of the amendment have offered no real alternative, except to trumpet the efficacy of the existing zoning. Yet that zoning is largely responsible for the downward slide of what should be one of the town’s jewels.

Change is inevitable in any commercial district — either change for the better or for the worse.

A “yes” vote on Tuesday clearly represents a change for the better, and voters should cast their ballots accordingly.

Hagiography to demonization in 6 months...

 This is a post that was written by the other blogger in September of last year. Later on, as a comment to the original post, she suggests that something in the city be named for Mary Lindsey.

We have many choices Lindsey Park, in place of Bryant Park. Lindsey Way instead of Lake Osborne Drive. Or, you could go real big and rename the entire city Mary Lindsey Beach.

Katie Mcgiveron agrees with the other blogger. Remember, this was six months ago.

Layer on the praise Katie. What could have been your motive? Something like hoping Mary's ego would get stroked enough so that she would run against either the Mayor or Commissioner Amoroso? My bet is on this reason.

And...

Suddenly, it's six months later and the bowels of hell have opened. Here's a recent sample. Funny how leopards don't change their spots.

And then this...

What if we had named something after her? I doubt that this keeps the other blogger awake at night. Quite a contrast after just six months.

Dustin Zacks, RELEASE THE CATS FROM HELL. Oops, they're already released.

Larry the Lenz does it again!

Larry the Lenz is worth every cent that we pay him. Here he is doing what he does best as our roving photographer. He found an abandoned car, parked on South J Street by Publix. You can  clearly see there is no license plate and the side windows are either left down, or they blew out. Gosh, Larry. I know how you got your name.

Keep up the good work! I hear that he is hot on another story.

Marcellus Shale EF!ers Held at $57,000 Bail | Earth First! Newswire

Look at the total amount of bail for the five protesters. Click title for link to article. Didn't they have a fundraising effort at the end of last year to publish their EF! Journal in print? I hear now that they are going all digital, so I wonder what the money they raised is being used for?

The 5 arrestees from this morning’s blockade of an Anadarko fracking site face misdemeanor charges and a total bail of $57,500 for defending the wild what is wild. Visit their WePay account to contribute to the liberation of these brave ecodefenders!

All Aboard Florida draws opposition from Treasure Coast, Palm... | www.mypalmbeachpost.com

This is part of the review of the project and how the Environmental Impact Statement is prepared. A draft should be out later in the Spring. But this article by Emily Roach of the Palm Beach Post, click title for link, gives us an idea of what the document will contain. There are some good points made here. It is hard to point out the benefit of the train, if you don't have a station nearby, but still have to deal with the impact of 32 trains a day running through your backyard at 110 miles per hour. Here's a bit from the article.

Rail opposition in the Treasure Coast is growing as effects of the project become common knowledge. The passenger service has no stops north of West Palm Beach until Orlando, and the train is expected to be traveling 110 mph through that area.

During slightly more than an hour of public comment from 26 people, only one person spoke in favor of the project. Most were Treasure Coast residents.

Here is a quick list of facts about All Aboard Florida:

All Aboard Florida has plans to start construction on stations and the tracks this year. The  goal is to start hourly service by early 2016.

All Aboard Florida

Miami to Orlando express passenger rail

Operating hours: 6 a.m.-9 p.m.

16 round-trip trains daily, for 32 passes through crossings

Stations in Miami, Fort Lauderdale, West Palm Beach, Orlando

Construction begins 2014

Service estimated to begin 2016

Environmental Impact Statement notice filed April 15, 2013

Environmental Impact Statement

Prepared by Federal Railroad Administration

Process required for railroad to qualify for federally supported loan

Draft EIS publication expected in late spring 2014

> Spurs public comment period of 45 days

Final EIS publication unknown

> Spurs public comment period of 30 days

Record of decision finalizes EIS process

Environmental Impact Statement

Prepared by Federal Railroad Administration

Process required for railroad to qualify for federally supported loan

Draft EIS publication expected in late spring 2014

Spurs public comment period of 45 days

Final EIS publication unknown

> Spurs public comment period of 30 days

Record of decision finalizes EIS process

President Obama Greeted by Animal Costume-Wearing Keystone XL Pipeline Protesters

And as long as we are on the subject of hysteria, here is a report about the protest during President Obama's visit to Miami for a fundraiser. Be sure to check out the pictures. I am not seeing any familiar faces. They did wear costumes, and some of them were quite creative. Click title for link. Here is a picture that is from another source.

To me, it looks like a furry convention. I have never actually seen one, but if I did, I bet it would look something like this.

Residents of Lake Osborne Heights (ROLOH) reaches new levels of hysteria...

Larry the Lenz called me this morning to point out this post on the neighborhood association's blog. Click title for link.

 You'll find this post right below the title of the blog. It was put up sometime last evening.

The blog post links to this article which talks about the days after 9/11 and how there were terrorists that lived among us and even used the Lantana Airport to train for the attacks. Larry points out the article says they also used the Boca Raton library as an Internet portal. Using this logic, we shouldn't allow the public to access the Internet from public libraries?

Somehow Mr. Neighbors Helping Neighbors, who Larry says is actually Robert Waples, is making a link between terrorists, 9//11 and the proposed John Prince Park location for a spring training facility. That somehow this was missed and the "Lake Worth City Commission jumped on this before they knew all of the facts."

This is what amounts to facts? Read on...

Larry and I scarcely can believe that this was actually put to print, but here it is. My advice: Step away from the keyboard if you are nipping at the cooking sherry.

Click here for today's archived version of High Noon in Lake Worth with Commissioner Amoroso

George Orwell

"Journalism is printing what someone else does not want printed. Everything else is public relations."

Parking and Lane Closure at Palm Beach Town Hall

The Town will be closing the parking spaces on the west side of Town Hall at 360 South County Road from today, March 21st, at 4:30 p.m. until 1:00 p.m. on March 22nd. One southbound lane of South County Road will be closed from 7:30 a.m. until 1:00 p.m. on March 22nd. The parking and lane closures are to perform removal and replacement of a roof top air conditioning unit at Town Hall. All lanes will reopen on March 22nd at 1:00 p.m. Pedestrian crossings will be open and maintained during the closure.

Please obey all barricades and avoid entering the work areas.

If you have any questions regarding this project, please call Brett Madison at the Public Works Department, 561-838-5440.

Palm Beach County faces big decision, big costs ahead on...

This would change the face of Palm Beach County. It will be expensive to construct just one of these interchanges at major intersections. The MPO is talking about the potential of six of these throughout the county. The cost estimates also do not include right-of-way acquisition, which would be substantial. Ultimately, the County Commission could make a policy that they are not going to pursue this option, but what are you going to do about car travel in the future?

Have you been out to State Road 7 and Forest Hill Boulevard? Scary. Click title for link to Joe Capozzi's article.

For example, the intersection of Okeechobee Boulevard and Military Trail would have 132,800 daily vehicle trips in 2035, according to MPO projections. Today, there are 100,232 daily trips through that intersection.

Forest Hill Boulevard and State Road 7 is the largest “at-grade” intersection in the county, with 31 total lanes (including turning lanes) approaching from all four directions. There are 94,177 daily trips through that intersection today, and the 2035 projections call for 105,000 trips.

“It needs to not be a do-nothing approach,” Uhren [Nick Uhren, Palm Beach Metropolitan Planning Organization’s executive director] said after the meeting when asked about resistance to urban interchanges.

“But at the same time, when you’ve got bottlenecks for cars, there’s not an alternative. Unless you can convince people to get out of their cars, you cannot provide the capacity of an urban interchange in another fashion to move that many cars.”

President Obama to Be Met by Keystone XL Pipeline Protesters Dressed as Sea Creatures

This would have happened yesterday. I will check to see if there is any news coverage or video of the protest.

A couple of questions I have about the emphasis on stopping the Keystone Pipeline are these. One is that there are other pipelines being constructed that are going to do about the same thing as this particular pipeline, so why single out this one in particular? If this pipeline wasn't there, couldn't the oil get to other refineries by train? And, if that is true, isn't transporting this oil more hazardous by rail than by pipeline? One protester is quoted that it wouldn't create any long term jobs. But, isn't this being done to help North America be more energy independent to help with our strategic security and economic development goals? I don't know. Just asking these questions. Click title for link.