WELLINGTON SEEKS TEEN VOLUNTEERS SEE STORY, PAGE 3
LOX COUNCIL LISTS LEGISLATIVE GOALS SEE STORY, PAGE 4
THE
TOWN-CRIER WELLINGTON • ROYAL PALM BEACH • LOXAHATCHEE • THE ACREAGE
Your Community Newspaper
INSIDE CAFCI, RPB Invite Community To Dr. King Celebration Jan. 18
Volume 37, Number 2 January 8 - January 14, 2016
Serving Palms West Since 1980
OPENING DAY AT THE POLO CLUB
Caribbean-Americans for Community Involvement (CAFCI) and the Village of Royal Palm Beach are gearing up to present their 14th annual Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Celebration, taking place Monday, Jan. 18 at the Royal Palm Beach Cultural Center. The free celebration starts at 10 a.m. and ends around noon, with a light breakfast provided from 8:30 to 9:30 a.m. Page 3
Hair Fashion Show At Visions Salon To Feature Nick Arrojo
Visions Salon in Wellington will be presenting a Hair Fashion Show on Sunday, Jan. 24 from 5 to 7 p.m. featuring celebrity stylist Nick Arrojo as the guest of honor. The event will take place at the salon, located in the Wellington Plaza at 12793 W. Forest Hill Blvd. Page 7
The International Polo Club Palm Beach opened its 2016 season on Sunday, Jan. 3 with the final match of the Herbie Pennell Cup tournament. On the sidelines, SuperCar Week stopped at IPC with exotic cars such as Lamborghinis, Bentleys and more. Project 425 brought military vehicles and its Huey helicopter. On the field, Coca-Cola edged past Villa del Lago 15-14 to claim victory. Shown here are Nadia Leyva, Charlotte Stribling, Ashley Durst and Brandy Senn from Excell Auto Group with a Lamborghini Aventador. MORE PHOTOS, PAGE 5 • POLO ACTION, PAGE 13 PHOTO BY DENISE FLEISCHMAN/TOWN-CRIER
RaceTrac Gas Station Issue Headed Back To RPB Council
‘Breakfast On The Green’ Event Marks Wellington Milestone
The Village of Wellington hosted a free “Breakfast on the Green” to kick off its celebration of the 20th anniversary of the village’s incorporation on Thursday, Dec. 31 at the Wellington Amphitheater. On Dec. 31, 1995 — 20 years ago — Wellington formally became an incorporated community. In celebration, the village is planning a series of special events. Page 21
OPINION Be Sure To Visit Wellington’s Amazing Equestrian Venues
If it’s January, it means that the equestrian season has returned to Wellington, bringing with it the world’s best show jumping, polo and dressage competition. While most people know that Wellington is famous around the world as the winter capital of equestrian sports, far too many residents and visitors alike have never set foot in the village’s world-class sporting venues to see what it is all about. Still others know virtually nothing about what is offered between now and April right in their own back yard. Feeling uneducated? Don’t be alarmed. Each of the venues go out of their way to make newcomers feel welcome. Page 4 DEPARTMENT INDEX NEWS...............................3 - 13 OPINION.................................. 4 CRIME NEWS.......................... 6 NEWS BRIEFS......................... 8 PEOPLE................................. 14 SCHOOLS.............................. 15 COLUMNS...................... 16, 25 BUSINESS......................26 - 27 SPORTS..........................31 - 33 CALENDAR............................ 34 CLASSIFIEDS................ 35 - 38 Visit Us On The Web At WWW.GOTOWNCRIER.COM
By Ron Bukley Town-Crier Staff Report Representatives from the Wantman Group conducted a meeting Monday to provide more information about a proposed RaceTrac gas station at the northwest corner of Royal Palm Beach and Southern boulevards. About 20 people attended the meeting at the Royal Palm Beach Cultural Center, which was in advance of a public hearing before the Royal Palm Beach Village Council set for Thursday, Jan. 14 at 7 p.m., also at the Cultural Center due to a large anticipated attendance. A decision on the proposed gas station has been postponed several times, first at a regular council meeting on Oct. 15 where a large number of residents overflowed from the Village Meeting Hall, leading an attorney for residents opposed to the project to call for postponement because all the
attendees could not hear the proceedings. The discussion was postponed to Oct. 29 at the Cultural Center, where council members further delayed a decision in order to get answers to questions raised during the proceedings. The requested information included a market analysis by the applicant, a traffic letter from Palm Beach County regarding the number of gas pumps and a traffic study of the area. The council also requested an analysis of projected crime anticipated as a result of the RaceTrac project. Village Manager Ray Liggins, who was among village staff at the meeting, said Brian Terry and three consultants with the Wantman Group, a land planning firm, were prepared to make a presentation, but due to the small number of people there, they simply answered questions from residents and explained drawings
of the proposed gas station, which is planned for 20 pumps and to operate 24 hours a day, seven days a week. As with all other RaceTrac locations, it will feature a convenience store with a selection of prepared foods and beverages and sundries geared for travelers, but with design concessions recommended by village staff in order to avoid variances. “Because there was only about 20 people, they kind of just dealt with everybody one-on-one for as long as they wanted to and answered everybody’s questions,” Liggins said. Liggins explained that the gas station would replace one that had to be torn down when Southern Blvd. was widened 10 years ago, but that it is still a special exception use. “It does have its appropriate land use, it does have its appropriSee RACETRAC, page 18
Animal Expert: Slaughterhouses Still A Big Problem
By Ron Bukley Town-Crier Staff Report Richard Couto, founder of the nonprofit Animal Recovery Mission (ARM), spoke to the Loxahatchee Groves Town Council on Tuesday about ARM’s investigations into illegal animal slaughter operations in Loxahatchee Groves. ARM was involved in the October bust of three slaughterhouses in Loxahatchee Groves, in cooperation with the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office. The operation was reported to have been one of the biggest animal cruelty cases in U.S. history. Couto said ARM was invited to speak at a meeting shortly after the raids took place at the slaughterhouses, but it was too soon to give a complete report. “It was so quick after our raid, we had about 350 animals and I was undercover,” he said. “We are an international investigative group, so I wasn’t able to be at that meeting. I’m glad I’m here now.” He said that there are several other ongoing cases. “I think three of the cases have been pleaded out, unfortunately,” Couto said. “We still have five to six active cases, so there is only so much that I can talk about today.” Couto said that ARM is still in court proceedings with the Rancho Garcia case, where the owners are charged with the illegal slaughter and sale of horse meat. “What I want everyone to understand is, ARM didn’t come upon this issue in Palm Beach County by accident,” he said. “We were called anonymously, by e-mail, and asked to come investigate this slaughter facility for some time. It’s just that we are a very small nonprofit organization, and we didn’t have the financial resources or the manpower to get into your county and start investigating. We did that roughly eight months ago. Once we got here, we started to make friends and make relationships as we always do
with our undercover investigative operations. Very quickly we saw a serious issue in your county.” Couto noted that ARM is investigating illegal slaughterhouses throughout the state. “Right now, we are guesstimating that there are at least 500 of these farms,” Couto said. “We just closed and struck an operation with our strike force in Miami two weeks ago. We have shut down about 137 of these operations within the state, but they are literally from the Keys to Ocala. That’s how far north we are going.” Palm Beach County has other illegal slaughterhouses under ongoing investigations in or near Loxahatchee Groves. “It is not a town or county issue,” Couto said. “It is a state enforcement issue. The State of Florida really just bypasses this issue, which is why a large illegal slaughter industry has sprung up, and the primary commodity in these farms always, every single farm we investigate, is horsemeat.” ARM investigators are currently monitoring horsemeat in five different counties, and prices range between $7 and $40 per pound for foals taken from a live pregnant mare, he said. “We’re looking at some really extreme issues here,” Couto said, explaining that ARM investigates animal cruelty issues throughout the world that no one else will, whether it be because of danger to the investigator, the illegal nature of the issue, the violent nature of the people torturing the animals or the expense. “The issues we found in 2015 in Palm Beach County for sure were some of the worst crimes toward animals in the United States,” he said. “I know a lot of other organizations. I know just about every undercover investigator with those organizations and law enforcement, and no one has come close See ARM, page 7
NEW YEAR’S EVE GALA
Wellington PZA Board Praises Bicycle And Pathway Updates
By Ron Bukley Town-Crier Staff Report The Wellington Planning, Zoning & Adjustment Board recommended approval of a Bicycle & Pedestrian Circulation Plan on Wednesday to be included in an update to the village’s comprehensive plan. The board also recommended approval of a resolution to implement the plan. Wellington Projects Manager Mike O’Dell said the approval will be part of the village’s zoning text amendments to the overall comprehensive plan. “It’s an update of a plan that was prepared in 2010, and a plan that we as a village have been working on since then,” O’Dell said.
The goal of the plan is to make Wellington a more pedestrianfriendly and bicycle-friendly community, he said. “We’d like to improve upon the bicycle and pedestrian pathways that we have,” O’Dell said. “We took a look at the bicycle lanes that we have on our roadway systems, and we also looked at ways of creating and funding those improvements, getting them done over a period of time.” O’Dell said that village staff members sought input from residents, as well as from bicycle groups, looking at the inventory that it has and key destinations in the village, such as commercial centers, schools, parks, government facilities and places of wor-
ship, studying how people get to those locations. They also ran a survey online from March to May of last year. “We want to increase our connectivity to various areas of the village where residents reside, so we looked at those missing links,” he said. Some of this can be accomplished by repurposing some existing rights of way. “We have Greenview Shores Blvd. and Big Blue Trace, where we have right-of-way areas, and we looked at how we might be able to improve upon utilizing those green spaces, knowing that some of our traffic reports have indicated that we will not be widening those See PZA BOARD, page 7
Caribbean-Americans for Community Involvement (CAFCI) held its 26th annual New Year’s Eve Gala on Thursday, Dec. 31 at the Royal Palm Beach Cultural Center. The semi-formal affair featured a bountiful buffet from Chef G, door prizes, dancing and a 50/50 raffle. The evening culminated with a midnight champagne toast to ring in 2016. Shown here, CAFCI members celebrate the start of 2016. MORE PHOTOS, PAGE 5 PHOTO BY DENISE FLEISCHMAN/TOWN-CRIER
Reunion Planned For Lox Groves Schoolhouse Alumni
Alumni of the historic Loxahatchee Groves Schoolhouse at last year’s reunion. Organizers are trying to find more participants this year.
PHOTO BY DENISE FLEISCHMAN/TOWN-CRIER
By Julie Unger Town-Crier Staff Report Yesteryear Village at the South Florida Fairgrounds is once again going to be the home of a reunion for former students of the historic Loxahatchee Groves Schoolhouse, originally located on Tangerine Drive before being moved to the fairgrounds. The second annual reunion will take place Tuesday, Jan. 26, starting at 6 p.m., with a meeting at the schoolhouse for a group photograph, a meet-and-greet and refreshments at the nearby Bink Glisson Historical Museum. Prior to becoming an official reunion, relatives and friends of Loxahatchee Groves Vice Mayor Ron Jarriel would meet during the fair. Last year, approximately 25 former students joined in for the reunion fun to reminisce and chat about old times.
“This year, we’re hoping for a bigger turnout,” said Sharon Jarriel, Ron’s wife. “It’s a group of former students getting together and trying to reconnect with ones who went to the school years ago.” The school, tiny by modern standards, closed in 1965. The students were moved to schools in West Palm Beach. “I’ve lived here for 54 years. I moved here when I was 10, but my cousins went to school there way before I got here,” Ron Jarriel recalled. “Finally, when they were going to tear it down, they decided to take it to Yesteryear Village because it is a big part of the history of Loxahatchee Groves.” Times were simpler back then, when Jarriel was a student in the building. “I went there for the fifth through the sixth grade. It was totally different. We didn’t have computers, See REUNION, page 4