Town-Crier Newspaper August 9, 2013

Page 1

GOLDEN GROVE GETS A NEW PRINCIPAL SEE STORY, PAGE 3

WELLINGTON ROOM OPEN FOR BUSINESS SEE STORY, PAGE 7

THE

TOWN - CR IER WELLINGTON • ROYAL PALM BEACH • LOXAHATCHEE • THE ACREAGE

Your Community Newspaper

INSIDE Wellington Grant Helps Montauk Village

Volume 34, Number 32 August 9 - August 15, 2013

WELLINGTON ART SOCIETY RECEPTION

Montauk Village, a townhome complex off Forest Hill Blvd., is the first community to receive a Defensive Measures Grant from the Village of Wellington. Wellington communities could be eligible for up to $15,000 as part of the Defensive Measures Grant program, if they meet program guidelines. Page 3

Lox Groves Council OKs Transfer Of Paved Roads

The Loxahatchee Groves Town Council approved a resolution Tuesday for a quit-claim deed with the Loxahatchee Groves Water Control District. The deed would transfer ownership of paved portions of the lettered roads to the town. Page 4

The Village of Wellington and the Wellington Art Society hosted a “Meet the Artist” reception Tuesday, Aug. 6 at the Wellington Municipal Complex. A total of 14 Wellington Art Society members have 34 original works of art on display there until Aug. 31. Shown here are Donna Donelan, Wellington Art Society President Leslie Pfeiffer, Sandy Axelrod, Bobbin Salisbury and liaison Kristin Ciuterger. MORE PHOTOS, PAGE 10

Central Chamber Hosts Mixer At On The Border

The Central Palm Beach County Chamber of Commerce hosted a networking mixer at On The Border Mexican Grill & Cantina in Royal Palm Beach on Tuesday, Aug 6. Page 14

CAFCI Hosts Fish Fry To Raise Funds For ‘Home Of Our Own’

Caribbean Americans for Community Involvement (CAFCI) held a fish fry Saturday, Aug. 3 at Loxahatchee Groves Park to benefit its “A Home of Our Own” program. Guests enjoyed spirited games of dominoes, fried snapper, beans, rice and cornbread. Page 17

OPINION Consultant’s Report A Key Step In Moving Wellington Forward

Earlier this summer, members of the Wellington Village Council delayed a decision on whether to fire Village Manager Paul Schofield, opting instead to hire a consultant to evaluate issues within the village. What emerged in the consultant’s preliminary findings paints a picture of what we all already knew: communication and trust must be restored before Wellington can move forward. Page 4 DEPARTMENT INDEX NEWS ............................. 3 - 10 OPINION .................................4 CRIME NEWS .........................6 PEOPLE ............................... 13 NEWS BRIEFS..................... 15 COLUMNS .................... 21 - 22 BUSINESS .................... 23 - 25 ENTERTAINMENT ................ 26 CALENDAR ................... 30 - 31 SPORTS ........................ 33 - 35 CLASSIFIEDS ................ 32 - 37 Visit Us On The Web At WWW.GOTOWNCRIER.COM

PHOTO BY DENISE FLEISCHMAN/TOWN-CRIER

Berm At Corbett Area To Start Construction In Spring 2014 By Ron Bukley Town-Crier Staff Report Planning for a new berm separating the J.W. Corbett Wildlife Management Area is well underway, and construction is scheduled to begin in March or April 2014, according to a South Florida Water Management District representative who gave a presentation at the Indian Trail Improvement District Board of Supervisors meeting Wednesday. During heavy rains from Tropical Storm Isaac, water experts became concerned that the Corbett berm might breach, causing prolonged flooding in The Acreage. This led to $4 million in financing from the state to correct the situation. SFWMD Division Director Jeff Kivett said he appreciated the help that has been provided by ITID staff to come up with a solution to the Corbett berm. “I think we’re making great progress out there rebuilding the berm,” Kivett said, explaining that conceptual design alternatives have already been completed. “We got a survey out there, and we got geotechnical information, engineering calculations and modeling, and we’ve come up with two basic conceptual designs. We’ve

pretty much honed in on a single one.” Kivett said he still needs to sit down with ITID’s engineer to discuss the proposal. “We want to get a buy-in from both sides, and at that point we will move into a final design,” he said. “We’re putting designs and specifications together for the contractor so the contractor can actually go out and construct it the way we want it. Engineering is the challenging part, but we’re very comfortable that we have procedures for that.” Kivett said the existing berm has a steep design and sits right on the M-O Canal, which necessitates frequent maintenance and makes it vulnerable during storms. “The stability that we’re looking for is to pull that bank quite a ways back so it becomes a very stable surface,” he said. “It will stay that way, we won’t have to go out there and it won’t be a big maintenance cost. Currently we’re looking at about an 80-foot swath of land that will be used to put the embankment in. There was a lot of discussion about environmental impacts, so we had our biologists out there looking at it.” The other alternative was a sheet wall with an embankment on

one side of it. “The cost seems to be a little bit prohibitive, and we’re worried a little bit about [the lack of] seepage during the dry season that we don’t cut off the water supply to the canal system [in The Acreage],” he said. Kivett said his team is 95 percent sure the first option would be the one they go with. The original estimate was that the environmental impact would be about 150 acres of wetland effects on the 30,000-acre Corbett area. “It was very disturbing to everybody,” he said, especially to environmentalists. “Our first cut got it down to about 100 [acres]. We are now down to 17.4 acres of actual wetland impact. I think the mission we’re trying to accomplish here is something that is a reasonable amount of mitigation for residents.” The planned berm will stop northward at the Mecca Farms site, where the SFWMD anticipates it will finalize its deal with Palm Beach County on the purchase of the land. “We will integrate that site into the movement of the Corbett water,” Kivett said. “It’s similar to today, where we still have the weir out there.” During Tropical Storm Isaac, the See CORBETT, page 16

Latest Equestrian Village Plan Heads To Boards, Council In Fall By Lauren Miró Town-Crier Staff Report Though the 2014 Global Dressage Festival is set, it will be October before permanent plans for the future of the controversial Equestrian Village site are in place. The property owners, Wellington Equestrian Partners, agreed earlier this year to resubmit a master plan amendment and compatibility determination that could allow the site to operate as a commercial equestrian arena yearround. Approval of the items also could cease litigation between Wellington and WEP, which agreed to restart the application process for approvals on the property that

were revoked two years ago. If the two sides cannot agree on the applications, however, the lawsuits could continue. “Right now, we’re working with the applicant on refining the conditions for the master plan and compatibility determination,” Planning & Development Services Director Tim Stillings said. Stillings said the master plan amendment deals mostly with access to the site, while the compatibility determination, if approved, would allow the site to operate as a commercial equestrian arena. If Equestrian Village is given a commercial equestrian arena designation, show promoters will not have to return each year before the

Wellington Village Council for a special use permit for the shows, as they have the past several years. “They would need a special use permit if they were doing nonequestrian-related events,” Stillings said. “But for what they want to do now, they won’t need to keep coming back.” First, the items must face the scrutiny of Wellington’s advisory boards, which will suggest changes and make recommendations to the council. “It’s tentatively scheduled to go before the Equestrian Preserve Committee in September and the Planning, Zoning & Adjustment See NEW EV PLAN, page 16

Serving Palms West Since 1980

Expert: Wellington Needs More Trust And Communication By Lauren Miró Town-Crier Staff Report A consultant hired by the Wellington Village Council to evaluate issues in the village reported this week that although Wellington has a strong reputation, lack of trust and communication among village officials has contributed to division. Council members agreed in June to hire Chris McLean, a consultant from the Center for Leadership Studies, at $3,800 a day to evaluate issues that led some council members to call for the firing of Village Manager Paul Schofield. Mayor Bob Margolis, who would have been the deciding vote on a divided council, asked to have an independent view of the issues before making a decision. In a preliminary overview released by McLean this week, he outlines some of the issues in the village, including “unresolved animosity from [the] election,” a “fractured council with no consen-

sus” and “broken trust between staff and council.” Margolis said he agrees with the findings. “People are not over the election, and I’m not sure there’s a remedy for that,” he told the TownCrier Wednesday. “At the end of the day, everyone on the council cares about the Village of Wellington, even if they have differing opinions.” Councilwoman Anne Gerwig agreed. “We have such a low level of trust, we can’t communicate and we can’t work together,” she said. “What makes this whole process difficult is that we are all very passionate about Wellington. We all feel there’s something important at stake.” The report did not directly address concerns from staff or council members about Schofield’s performance. Councilman Matt Willhite said See CONSULTANT, page 16

WHS DANCE BENEFIT

The Wellington High School Dance Team and Kelly Dennis hosted “Make a Move Benefit: Remembering Neda” on Thursday, Aug. 1 in the Wellington High School auditorium to honor Dennis’ late mother Neda Kucich, a victim of cancer. Member s of the 2013-14 WHS dance team, dance team alums and dance students performed. Shown here, Charlotte Cagiano dances for the audience. MORE PHOTOS, PAGE 5 PHOTO BY DENISE FLEISCHMAN/TOWN-CRIER

New Fire Academy Enrolls First Students At WHS This Year By Anne Checkosky Town-Crier Staff Report Students who’ve dreamed about becoming firefighters or paramedics will get an opportunity to take their first steps in realizing that goal at Wellington High School this year. The Wellington High School Fire Science Academy was created with the goal of preparing students to sit for state industry certification as Level 1 firefighters. This level of certification is required for students to work as volunteer firefighters. The long-term goal of the program is to prepare students to enter a state college and complete firefighter/paramedic training to earn an associate’s degree, said WHS Academy Coordinator James Marshall, a science teacher at the school. Students successfully completing the program are likely to be highly qualified to enter collegelevel programs, representatives

from Palm Beach State College told Marshall. The academy accepted applicants for the first year of the program, Firefighting 1, beginning this school year. So far, 40 students — 35 freshmen and five sophomores — have enrolled, said Marshall, who will also teach the first-year fire academy course. “We’ll offer a good foundation for what a firefighter does,” he said. That will include visiting area fire-rescue stations and having fire-rescue personnel come on campus and speak to the students. Students will also meet a battalion chief, Marshall added. Students of all abilities are welcome to enroll in the class. If they decide after trying it out that it’s not for them, that’s OK, too. “We’re testing the waters. There’s nothing binding,” Marshall said. Students will learn the basics in the first-year course, including inSee FIRE ACADEMY, page 16

Dr. Patricia Lucas New Principal At RPB’s H.L. Johnson By Ron Bukley Town-Crier Staff Report Dr. Patricia Lucas has replaced Sharon Hench as principal at H.L. Johnson Elementary School in Royal Palm Beach. Hench, who served 11 years as principal at H.L. Johnson, was reassigned to South Olive Elementary School in West Palm Beach. Lucas comes from Greenacres Elementary School after seven years there as principal. She also lives in Greenacres. She said H.L. Johnson will be a new challenge. “I’m looking forward to it,” she told the Town-Crier on Tuesday. “I was at Lighthouse and Beacon

Cove up in Jupiter as a teacher for many years, and then I was an assistant principal at Jupiter Middle School for four years before I became principal at Greenacres, so it’s good to have a wide variety of experiences.” What she has seen thus far at H.L. Johnson has left a great impression. “The staff at H.L. Johnson is just fabulous,” Lucas said. “I’m really looking forward to that. It’s hard to leave someplace where you worked with a great staff, but change is good.” Her goal for H.L. Johnson is to move the school into the Common

Core curriculum being implemented statewide, which will involve many changes. “I think that’s going to be a huge challenge for all of us,” Lucas said. “H.L. Johnson has been a leader in student achievement, and I would like to see them continue that into adopting Common Core, embracing that and helping students continue to succeed at a different level.” She said all principals have had extensive training in Common Core for the past couple of years. She attended a four-day Common Core workshop this summer. “I’m not an expert, but I feel like

I have a very good grasp of what that’s going to entail,” Lucas said. “It’s a big change. It’s a different way of teaching and a different way of thinking. We’re really asking kids to think more creatively, to really analyze problems. It’s not like a black-and-white, true-false answer now. You have to explain your thinking. It will be a challenge, but I know the teachers are embracing that, and they’re ready to go.” Lucas, who has been with the school district for 22 years, graduated from high school in Venezuela and received her bachelor’s deSee LUCAS, page 16

Dr. Patricia Lucas


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