Former District #2 Commissioner - Mac McKinnon

 From Carol Webster, Lake Worth High School Alum, passed this word on to me today:

"I’m sorry to share with you that I got word this morning that former LWHS coach and former LW Vice-Mayor Mac McKinnon lost his fight with Covid last night.  He was truly a kind and caring man.  He played an important role in the lives of many in Lake Worth and the surrounding area.  He was a teacher, coach and public servant.  He will be missed."

A note to my friends, supporters and residents of the City of Lake Worth Beach:

After being contacted by, and reaching out to, fellow Lake Worth Beach residents this past October, it was clear that they wanted a new direction for the city and were not satisfied with those who indicated a desire to run for the position. Most of the people I talked with suggested that such a candidate was me and running for Mayor would fill that need.

After much reflection and consideration, I’m announcing that I will not be continuing my campaign for Mayor. After consulting with family members, trusted friends, colleagues and key supporters, I realized that the most important factor was relatively easy to recognize: The relatively recent decision to run for office did not provide enough time and resources to be able to win in March of 2021. 

A further realization was to be an effective Mayor in a sizable, diverse city like Lake Worth Beach, one must be prepared to dedicate more time to campaign than my current and projected business volume was going to allow me to do.  Suddenly we were engaged in a full-time effort for the campaign to raise enough financial resources to compete in a potential 5-way race. We also quickly discovered that raising money to compete during a pandemic, when so many of our neighbors are suffering badly from the impacts of Covid-19, proved especially challenging. 

I wish the best of luck to the remaining competitors for the job. I pledge to stay involved as a vocal participant in our local government. I urge the next Mayor and Commission to move forward on what would have been the foundations of my campaign. 

These were to improve the quality and increase the volume of communication coming from City Hall to our residents and businesses. We must vastly improve customer service and look at the quality of the experience residents and businesses have when doing business with the City. I fully support the City conducting a comprehensive Charter review and will continue my efforts in helping make the Lake Worth Beach dais be more representative of our diverse population in that regard.. Finally, we must go forward with improvements to the oceanfront park, the disposition of a city swimming pool and the Blueway Paddling Trail project. Successful execution of these opportunities will increase the quality of life for all City of Lake Worth residents.

I thank everyone  for their support and encouragement. I hope everyone stays safe, wears their masks and enjoys the best holiday season possible under different and challenging circumstances.

With continued love for Lake Worth Beach, I remain...

Wes Blackman

Resident of Lake Worth Beach

The public in this City of Lake Worth is screaming, “We can’t hear you!” From May 16, 2018 - Over two years ago.

Below is a post about the importance of reaching out to Neighborhood Associations prior to making big decisions at the City Commission level. This is above and beyond statutory requirements. It would be more than the standard effort required. This is something I've always supported: more communication from the City prior to considering items that will have a profound effect on residents and property owners.

Click on image to enlarge:

William Waters is the Dir. of Community Sustainability. On March 7th he said, “Neighborhood associations could be noticed.” And the board attorney said at this same meeting, “[W]e are meeting the statutory requirements.”

Our residents in this City deserve better than just the minimum effort when it comes to communication.

Below is the video of last night’s City Commission meeting, “First Reading, Amending Chapter 23, Land Development Regulations”. It was hard to watch. The public, however, needs to commended for being so respectful and coming forth with their well-thought and researched observations and complaints.

A Tweet from last night (please pause to load):

Chamber packed in @LakeWorthPBC & City Commission meeting hasn't even started yet. Stay Tuned for Live Streaming of this meeting momentarily: https://t.co/MK1oL9mVhu #LakeWorth pic.twitter.com/hw6G03AvdA

— Wes Blackman (@WesBlackman) May 15, 2018

The public was calm and reasonable. And so was the City Commission. But to the staff it was like the public was talking to a bunch of people so completely out of touch and disconnected, hoping and praying that they’ll finally get it this time.

The public gets it. The City staff doesn’t. And there are too many people between the staff level and the Commission that don’t get it either.

Did you know this City has a “Neighborhood Planner”? What exactly does that person do?

This City of Lake Worth needs to learn how to communicate with all our neighborhoods. Why it’s taking so long to learn that bypassing the Neighborhood Assoc. Presidents’s Council (NAPC) is a really bad idea is beyond comprehension. Waiting for Commission meetings to hear from the public is way too late as evidenced by a packed house last night.

Having this many people show up at a

Commission meeting is not a good thing. 

This is a sign the City has a communication problem.

Check back to this blog later on today and tomorrow for more about this meeting. Briefly, several items from this agenda item will come back to the City Commission for another First Reading on June 5th. For the rest of everything from “Ordinance 2018-07” it’s back to the drawing board. Again. Is anyone surprised?

The public is saying, “We can’t hear you!” And the reason is there are too many people working for this City who are not listening, or worse yet, don’t care.

This “New Business” item on the agenda took up 2½ hours last night at the City Commission. Would encourage everyone to watch this video in short segments over the next day or two. Commissioners Omari Hardy and Herman Robinson were out of town attending an Urban Land Institute conference in Savannah.

Public Comment begins at
the 1 hour and 10 second mark.

Saturday Food Give-Away Church by the Glades 127 S M St, Lake Worth Beach - 12/5/20

 Each Saturday morning Restoration Bridge distributes free food to anyone in need in the parking lot at Church By The Glades. Individuals and families will receive boxes of fresh produce, dairy, meat, and more. All are welcome! Please visit www.restorationbridge.com if you are interested in volunteering. #feedthehungry #localfood #volunteer

Click here for Facebook event link.

INTERVIEWS WITH LOCAL PHYSICIANS WHO ARE EXPERTS ON COVID-19

I highly recommend watching this informative video. It is timely information provided by experts in the field of public health and members of the medical community.

In conjunction with the Town of Palm Beach, the Palm Beach Civic Association dedicated its December 3rd episode of “Your Town, Your Safety, Your Well-Being” to giving the community an update on the Covid-19 pandemic.

Three local doctors, who are experts on COVID-19, were featured in this episode. They included Dr. Alina Alonso, who is the Palm Beach County Health Department Director, Dr. Kenneth Scheppke, who is an emergency medicine physician and the State EMS Medical Director, and Dr. David Dodson, who is double board certified in Internal Medicine and Infectious Diseases.

To view this very informative and important episode, please click on the link below. https://vimeo.com/486966696

Loyal Readers: Working for Change in Lake Worth Beach this March!

I'm excited to announce my campaign for Mayor of Lake Worth Beach for the upcoming election on March 9th.

We'll have a website up soon, meanwhile you can visit, like and follow our campaign Facebook page at https://lnkd.in/eh2DC7i and please share the page with your family, friends and neighbors who care about the future of our wonderful city.

Your financial support is also most appreciated, running election campaigns can get expensive these days! You can use this safe and secure link ( https://lnkd.in/eGfYEEp ) to our contribution form or mail checks to the Wes Blackman Campaign, 241 Columbia Dr., Lake Worth Beach, FL 33460

Thank you for your support!

Thanksgiving For Food-Challenged Lake Worth Beach Families

Arms of Hope Community, Inc. and the Kiwanis Club of Lake Worth Beach are teaming up to provide a total of $1,000 in Thanksgiving food gift cards to ten Lake Worth families. Patrick Livingston, who runs Above the Sea community restaurant on Wingfield Street, serves as project coordinator. Want to join us in making a difference? Any donation will help make an impact.

Food-challenged families are always in need of help. Patrick is there for them, day in and day out. Yet, the need is so much keener NOW. Thanks in advance for your support.

Donations needed on or before Thursday, November 19 so that families may receive their gifts in time to purchase food for Thanksgiving. For further information about Arms of Hope click.

Click here for GoFundMe link.

PBSO Lake Worth Beach - November 9th Weekly Update

Crime – Overall crime has come down from the rough start to the beginning of the year. This past week we had a shots fired call in the 200 block of South Lakeside Drive where no one was hit. We had three robberies to persons with no particular patterns. Lastly, we had 10 vehicle burglaries. All ten were unlocked vehicles and another gun was taken out of one of them. We are following up on some good leads. It appears the same suspects committed most if not all ten burglaries.

Covid 19 – The numbers are rising again. We have several deputies out in our region who either have it or are awaiting testing results after being exposed. Please continue to follow all CDC guidelines.

Traffic – We have had a few special operations lately to curtail speeding and other violations. Several Commercial Motor Vehicle units (CMV) worked a special detail in the areas near 6th Ave South, 10th Ave North and LW Road to enforce the commercial vehicles traveling through residential areas . Our motor units are also out in regards to speeding and failing to stop for stop signs.

Commission Presentation – My next quarterly presentation to the commission is Tuesday, 11/17/2020 at 6 pm. You can attend virtually by clicking on the link on the city web page. I will be presenting the crime data and talking about what PBSO is doing in the city, particularly with community policing.

Stay safe !

Captain Todd Baer

Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office

Commander – District 14 – City of Lake Worth Beach

Power Outage City of Lake Worth Beach Electric Utility 11/9/20 at 8:20 a.m.

 

Announcements from the City of Lake Worth Beach regarding Tropical Storm Eta

All Lake Worth Beach City Offices will be closed Tomorrow (Monday the 9th) Due to Hurricane Eta

In an abundance of caution the Lake Worth Beach Casino Park, Beach and Property will be closed Monday, November 9th. The Casino Complex will reopen as soon as it is safe to do so.

Lake Worth Beach Residents due to storm Eta there will be no refuse collection of any type in any Zone Monday November 9. Do not Push trash, vegetation or recycling on the curb.

BREAKING NEWS: WES BLACKMAN FILED HIS INTENT TO RUN FOR MAYOR OF LAKE WORTH BEACH!

Today I filed paperwork with the City Clerk that indicates my intent to run for the Mayor's seat during the March 9, 2021 municipal election. The qualifying period for officially putting one's name on the ballot begins at noon on November 24th and ends noon on December 8th. 

Standby for news and announcement as the campaign gears up. Contributions can be made with checks made out to "Wes Blackman Campaign" Contact me at the phone number in the righthand column for my address or where you would like me to pick up your campaign contribution. Donations are limited to $1,000 per person or business entity. Any amount, no matter how small, is greatly appreciated.

Thank you and stay tuned! Truly excited about all the support I've received since the announcement.

Lake Worth Beach: This Van is Here in our Town for Mail Ballot Drop-Off

Drop-off your mail in ballot for the Presidential Election at this convenient location. Others available throughout Palm Beach County.

Census Self Response Is Open Until 11:59PM on Thursday, October 15th

It is time to sprint to the finish line. The self-response site will be open for online census responses until 11:59PM on Thursday, October 15th-giving us 2 working days. We can do it! We know there are MANY people that have not been counted because just yesterday at the events in Lake Worth Beach many households were added to count.

Please explain how important the decennial census is to every person you see and ask them to respond NOW. It is important to collect the names and ages of every person at that address to ensure that the next decade has the best data for planning and funding.

Click here now! 

Palm Beach County Early Voting and Vote-by-Mail Ballot Drop Off Locations...

 Click for image for larger version.

Good news for students in these difficult times...

Lake Worth Beach Electric Utility in conjunction with the Palm Beach County School District have collaborated to provide Wi-Fi service to students and their families who might not otherwise be able to afford the requisite level of connectivity for learning from home. The project will provide for the attachment of 225 WiFi radios to City’s Electric Utility Poles with an estimated in like kind value of $292,500 annually, based on $1300 year per pole attachment. 

The placement of the radios will be identified with a focus based on density of students on free/reduced lunch and parent survey results (indicating no internet access at home). Additionally, Wi-Fi radios will be installed on School District buildings and provide electricity for the radios. 

This project was important prior to COVID but has become vital due to the high number of local children who are now learning from home. The project will ensure that no child falls behind due to a lack of internet access.