Town-Crier Newspaper March 13, 2015

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RPB OFFICIALS LOBBY IN TALLAHASSEE SEE STORY, PAGE 3

ILLNESSES AT WELLINGTON ELEMENTARY SEE STORY, PAGE 4

THE

TOWN-CRIER WELLINGTON • ROYAL PALM BEACH • LOXAHATCHEE • THE ACREAGE

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INSIDE

Wellington Council Approves Bridle Trail Map For Comp Plan

Volume 36, Number 11 March 13 - March 19, 2015

Serving Palms West Since 1980

WEST FEST IN ROYAL PALM BEACH

The Wellington Village Council gave final approval Tuesday to the adoption of an amended bridle trail map to the village’s comprehensive plan that shows not only existing trails but future trails that the village would like to develop. Page 3

Spring Family Festival At St. Rita Church

St. Rita Catholic Church held its Spring Family Festival from Thursday, March 5 through Sunday, March 8. There were rides, food, a bake sale, a silent auction, kids activities, live music and more. Page 5

LGWCD Agrees To Be Co-Applicant For College Road Permit

The Loxahatchee Groves Water Control District Board of Supervisors agreed Monday to be a co-applicant for a permit from the South Florida Water Management District to make improvements to South B Road from Southern Blvd. to the Palm Beach State College entrance. Page 7

Dodgeball Tournament At PBCHS Fights Cancer

Students from Palm Beach Central High School gathered Friday, March 6 to play dodgeball at the Cody’s Angels Dodging Cancer Tournament, a project of the school’s Interact Club that raised money to fight Ewing’s sarcoma, in honor of former PBCHS student Cody Meiers, who died from the cancer in 2012. Page 19

OPINION

A Need Exists, But Is There The Will To Act?

Senior housing issues are not an easy nut to crack. With a sizable portion of the population in need of such a facility, it’s not a matter of need, but rather one of finances and political will. It’s time for both Wellington and Royal Palm Beach to get a move on the idea. If not alone, then perhaps a joint venture might make sense. Page 4

DEPARTMENT INDEX NEWS................................. 3 - 9 OPINION.................................. 4 CRIME NEWS.......................... 6 NEWS BRIEFS......................... 8 PEOPLE................................. 13 SCHOOLS.......................14 - 15 COLUMNS...................... 16, 25 BUSINESS......................26 - 27 SPORTS......................... 33 - 35 CALENDAR............................ 38 CLASSIFIEDS................ 40 - 43 Visit Us On The Web At WWW.GOTOWNCRIER.COM

The Village of Royal Palm Beach presented West Fest last weekend at Royal Palm Beach Commons Park. West Fest was a three-day western themed event with carnival rides, food trucks, kids activities, a chili cook-off and lots of live music. Kids liked the petting zoo and the mechanical bull. Shown here, Annabelle Byers enjoys a wagon ride. MORE PHOTOS, PAGE 9

PHOTO BY DENISE FLEISCHMAN/TOWN-CRIER

Lox Incumbents Finish Ahead, But Absentee Votes Contested

By Ron Bukley Town-Crier Staff Report Loxahatchee Groves Town Council incumbents Ron Jarriel and Ryan Liang were the apparent winners in Tuesday’s municipal election, but concerns over absentee ballot irregularities has led challenger Keith Harris not to concede the race pending an investigation. Jarriel was the election’s top vote-getter. According to unofficial returns from the Palm Beach County Supervisor of Elections Office, Jarriel took 307 votes (57.2 percent), while challenger Virginia Standish claimed 230 votes (42.8 percent) in the race for Seat 1. Liang’s victory was much closer. He received 275 votes (50.8 percent), only nine more than challenger Harris, who received 266 votes (49.2 percent), also according to unofficial returns. However, the results are clouded by allegations that Liang’s supporters requested absentee ballots for Loxahatchee Groves voters and then approached them seeking their votes. Harris told the Town-Crier on

Wednesday that he is challenging the results. “This election that was held yesterday is still ongoing,” said Harris, who has been a vocal dissident to current council policies. “It has been indicated to me that the supervisor of elections has turned this over to the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, and it is my understanding that the Palm Beach County State Attorney’s Office has taken interest in this. I am conceding nothing.” Harris said he has hired an attorney to pursue the issue further, and felt that his drawing almost half the votes indicate that many people are unhappy with council activities. “I have been a critical activist for the past six to eight months, and 49 percent of the town’s population agrees with me,” he said. “The results are currently showing that Loxahatchee Groves has now become the capital of ‘Corruption County.’” Harris’ attorney, Richard Jarolem, said Supervisor of Elections Susan Bucher received a complaint from Loxahatchee Groves resident Bill Ford that he and his

wife had received absentee ballots that they did not authorize. “There was one individual and his wife who both received absentee ballots that they did not request,” Jarolem said. “It is my understanding that they had already gone to the supervisor of elections prior to the election and advised Ms. Bucher of the situation, and it’s my understanding that Ms. Bucher’s office is looking into it.” Jarolem said that he did not believe that the situation was isolated to one instance. “What we’re understanding is that those two individuals who received absentee ballots were not alone,” he said, “and that there were many other absentee ballots that appeared without request. If that is substantiated, that someone else made the request without authorization, that violates Florida law [and] constitutes a felony for each and every ballot.” Jarolem noted that the election pivoted on the results of the absentee ballots. “Keith won at the polls, the See LOX VOTE, page 18

Dave Swift Wins Three-Way Race For RPB Council Seat By Julie Unger Town-Crier Staff Report Incumbent Royal Palm Beach Vice Mayor David Swift handily claimed another two-year term in office Tuesday, March 10, winning a three-way race. There were 1,406 votes cast in the race for Seat 2, the only item on the village ballot. Swift took 726 votes (51.6 percent), while former Councilwoman Martha Webster took 430 votes (30.6 percent) and former Planning & Zoning Commissioner Darrell Lange took 250 votes (17.8 percent), according to unofficial results from the Palm Beach County Supervisor of Elections Office. Swift met with supporters after the polls closed Tuesday evening at the Village Golf Club. Once all the Royal Palm Beach precincts were in, he addressed the crowd. “That was a great win, and I appreciate everything you do,” he said. “I have got volunteers who have worked with me, some of them more than 20 years, and they always come out and give us a hand when it’s needed. Without them, this could never happen. In this particular campaign, I think I was the most prepared I’ve ever been in 20 years.” While Swift has been winning elections in Royal Palm Beach since the 1980s, he thanked people who helped modernize his campaign style. “We brought some new folks

on. Our campaign manager, Jody Young, did a great job. It was my first jump into social media, and I think it was fairly successful,” he said. “I learned all of that in the last four weeks. Anyways, thanks so much. Each year, you guys come out and spend the whole day and help, and I really do appreciate it.” After the results were in, Swift spoke to the Town-Crier about his campaign and his plans for the future. “I didn’t even have an iPhone until four weeks ago,” he said with a chuckle. “Talk about a steep learning curve.” Learning how to use Facebook and a smartphone was new to Swift, but something that proved to be advantageous. “I was happy to come into the 21st century regarding campaigning,” he said. His approach had always been knocking on doors and talking to people. His last campaign, he noted, included a static web site. Adding Facebook allowed for more interactivity, and allowed him to reconnect with South Florida Water Management District colleagues and friends. “I’m pleased that we won,” Swift said. “I’d like to thank the residents who came out to vote, and those people who filed absentee ballots in my favor — I appreciate that very much. My platform was putting Royal Palm Beach first and politics second, and See SWIFT, page 4

Royal Palm Beach Vice Mayor Dave Swift celebrates his re-election victory at the Village Golf Club Tuesday night.

PHOTO BY DENISE FLEISCHMAN/TOWN-CRIER

WHS DANCE MARATHON

ITID Board Gives Manager Good Grades, But No Raise

By Ron Bukley Town-Crier Staff Report The Indian Trail Improvement District Board of Supervisors gave District Manager Jim Shallman a satisfactory rating on Wednesday, but no raise. Human relations attorney Lara Donlon said that if Shallman’s performance was deemed to be at least satisfactory based on an average score of evaluations submitted by board members, they may consider an increase in his base salary and benefits, subject to the budget. “Additionally, for this year only, the contract provides that in the 2015 evaluation, if he receives a score of 4.0 or exceeds expectations, then the board shall increase his salary by $3,000,” Donlon said. “Based on the evaluations submit-

ted tonight, the score is 3.18, which is satisfactory.” She explained that the board has the option of giving Shallman a raise but is not required to. Supervisor Michelle Damone said that there are other options in his contract for him to receive additional compensation, including completing a management course, which he had not. Shallman was promoted from accountant to manager in October 2013 after former District Administrator Tanya Quickel left. “I will discuss my evaluation with Mr. Shallman one-on-one personally; however, the action of the board based on that score needs to be decided,” Damone said. “I know this is a sensitive topic. It’s hard to do it in public.”

Supervisor Gary Dunkley said he had spoken with Shallman. “We had a beautiful morning,” Dunkley said. “We went around to different projects. I’m very pleased for the way that Jim came into this position with only accounting experience. He’s gotten on-the-job training. He has more to go, but he’s going in the right direction.” ITID President Carol Jacobs agreed with Dunkley. “We basically lost all our staff, and everybody quit,” Jacobs said. “He was without office help. He has been without HR for a while, and he had only basically one year. I think the district has been moving along quite well. There’s always room for improvement, but this is a hard district, this is a hard board, See ITID, page 18

Wellington High School hosted its Dance Marathon event Friday, March 6 to raise money for the Shands Children’s Hospital and the Children’s Miracle Network hospitals. Students danced, played and enjoyed the night as they worked together to help others while raising $14,648.25. Shown here are Jessica Dudman, Abby Kaufman and Mckenna Decastro. MORE PHOTOS, PAGE 21

PHOTO BY JULIE UNGER/TOWN-CRIER

Wellington Council Discusses Senior Housing Needs By Ron Bukley Town-Crier Staff Report Wellington Village Council members conducted a workshop on senior housing Monday to evaluate what kinds of programs and facilities are in place in Wellington for seniors and to look at what may or may not be needed. Growth Management Director Robert Basehart said the discussion was initiated by members of the Wellington Senior Advisory Committee. “I believe the concept is of a below-market residential senior, age-restricted community of residential units, with the village po-

tentially participating by providing a site,” Basehart said. He said the village has a wide range of senior accommodations, but council members and Senior Advisory Committee Chair Tony Fransetta agree that it lacks a place where seniors can sell their homes and downsize in the village. “Senior housing is a very broad topic,” Basehart said. “It includes a lot of things.” Components include intensive care facilities, of which Wellington has one, the NuVista facility, which also provides outpatient treatment as well as short-term stays.

“You’re all familiar with the issues of congregate living facilities,” he said. “What they are is assisted-living facilities that don’t provide a full range of medical care, but they do assist in preparation and distribution of meals and linen service, and helping people get dressed and taking medications.” Basehart said that there are four types of congregate living facilities under state law, the first being those that allow up to six residents. Wellington has 17 of that type of facility, and under state law, they can go anywhere a single-family home can go, he said.

Type 2A facilities allow up to 14 residents, which can only go in multifamily neighborhoods and commercial zoning areas. Wellington has one Type 2A facility. Type 2B facilities allow up to 21 residents, he said. Type 3 facilities are what people think of as institutionalized living, he said. Wellington has three such facilities approved, including NuVista, which has 600 beds, and one on the Wellington Regional Medical Center campus that has been approved for 100 beds. None of those have been built yet, he said. The fourth type is what is called “aging in place.”

“We’ve got quite a bit of that in the village,” Basehart said, explaining that in the 2000 Census, about 8 percent of the population was seniors 65 or older. In the 2010 Census, it was 10.5 percent. Basehart said the village has a number of programs designed for seniors who are aging in place, based on a survey done by the village. Mayor Bob Margolis said he knows a number of seniors in Wellington who have sold their homes and moved to senior communities outside the village. “They call them young retireSee SENIORS, page 7


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