LIPP TAKES SEAT ON COUNTY BOARD SEE STORY, PAGE 3
MASERATI TITLE SPONSOR OF U.S. OPEN SEE STORY, PAGE 22
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TOWN - CR IER WELLINGTON • ROYAL PALM BEACH • LOXAHATCHEE • THE ACREAGE
Your Community Newspaper
INSIDE Wellington Enacts Tougher New Rules On Manure Control
Volume 34, Number 13 March 29 - April 4, 2013
GRAND OPENING OF COMMONS PARK
Horse owners will have to follow new regulations in managing manure after the Wellington Village Council gave final approval Tuesday to an ordinance that will help the village meet environmental standards. Page 3
Planner Discusses PBSC Campus At LGLA Meeting
Grace Joyce, a professional planner and member of the Loxahatchee Groves Planning & Zoning Board, explained to Loxahatchee Groves Landowners’ Association members at their meeting March 21 what would happen if the Loxahatchee Groves Town Council revoked approval of the planned Palm Beach State College campus. Page 7
Royal Palm Beach hosted a weekend-long grand opening celebration for the new Royal Palm Beach Commons Park from Friday through Sunday, March 22 to 24. Guests enjoyed food trucks, kayak rentals, a kids zone with carnival rides, live performances, fireworks and more. Shown here, the Ni Ma Lion Dance Team performed at the celebration. MORE PHOTOS, PAGE 5 PHOTOS BY DENISE FLEISCHMAN/TOWN-CRIER
SR 7 Corridor Continues To Dominate Crime In Royal Palm ‘Flavors’ Founder John Mercer Proud Of How Event Has Grown
Flavors of Wellington will celebrate 10 years showcasing some of Wellington’s best restaurants and chefs on Frida y, April 5 at the Palm Beach International Equestrian Center. The event has a rich history in the community, and it all started with local businessman and longtime Wellington leader John Mercer. Page 11
Hindus Celebrate Holi Mela In RPB
The Palm Beach Hindu Mandir held its annual Holi Mela celebration Saturday, March 23 at the Royal Palm Beach Cultural Center. The event included traditional Indian food, music and entertainment. Page 15
OPINION Sign Up To Donate Life
Each April, the federal government recognizes National Donate Life Month, reminding us all of the importance of organ donation. Each year, right about this time, the Town-Crier writes on this topic, and each year the number of people on the transplant list grows by the thousands. Do your part and sign up to donate life. Page 4
DEPARTMENT INDEX NEWS ............................. 3 - 15 OPINION .................................4 CRIME NEWS ......................... 6 NEWS BRIEFS........................ 8 SCHOOLS ..................... 16 - 17 PEOPLE ............................... 18 COLUMNS .................... 27 - 28 BUSINESS .................... 29 - 31 ENTERTAINMENT ................ 36 SPORTS ........................ 39 - 41 CALENDAR ...................42 - 43 CLASSIFIEDS ................ 44 - 47 Visit Us On The Web At WWW.GOTOWNCRIER.COM
By Ron Bukley Town-Crier Staff Report The State Road 7 corridor continues to dominate Royal Palm Beach crime reports, while traffic remains a top complaint. Capt. Paul Miles, commander of the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office District 9 substation in Royal Palm Beach, gave his annual report at the Royal Palm Beach Village Council meeting Thursday, March 21. The Computer Activated Dispatch System (CADS) recorded 73,395 incidents last year, including 20,672 police calls. “Of those, only 3,400 were criminal in nature,” Miles said. The Shoma Homes community and the businesses near Victoria Grove continue to be one of the more troublesome areas in the village, Miles noted. “It has been a challenge,” he said. “We have been fortunate in the past year that we initiated a program where we put a deputy in there 24/7. It has taken one of our deputies, but we knocked down the violent crime. We had a homicide in there, we had armed robberies in there, and we’ve kind of knocked that back, as well as knocking back the property crimes that we were having.” Another time-consuming chal-
lenge has been the Walmart Supercenter, a mile up SR 7 from Shoma Homes, Miles said, adding that construction theft at Royal Palm Beach Commons Park has also been an issue. He reported that the biggest complaint is traffic. “That’s not just the village,” Miles said. “It’s throughout the county. Traffic seems to be the number-one issue that folks in the communities have.” The substation has 56 sworn deputies, 55 of whom are assigned directly to District 9. There is one captain, one lieutenant, six sergeants, two detectives, a lobby deputy, a Police Athletic League deputy, a motorcycle deputy, four street team deputies and 36 road patrol officers working in four shifts with nine deputies on each shift. In the Unified Crime Report, larcenies and thefts increased by 30 incidents, from 731 to 761. Robberies increased by 16 from 14 to 30, with revised coding adding sudden snatchings and resisting a merchant while shoplifting to that number. Motor vehicle theft dropped from 69 to 26. Shoplifting increased 18 percent from 222 to 264, of which 160 (61 percent) were at Walmart. Shoplifting accounted for 24 percent of
all crime in the village, Miles said, adding that he is trying to persuade Walmart management to hire a deputy full-time. “That has not happened as of yet,” he said. As for the increase in robberies, Miles said the 30 incidents break down as follows: seven had victims who cooperated with the deputy, five had victims who did not cooperate with the deputy, seven were shoplifting that led to resisting a merchant, 10 were by sudden snatching, and one where the victim could not be located for follow-up. Over 10,000 traffic citations were issued, which was an increase of more than 2,000. DUI arrests went down from 127 to 108. Crashes increased by 75, from 1,397 to 1,472. The substation has been working the top crash locations — Southern Blvd. and SR 7 with 101 crashes, Okeechobee Blvd. and SR 7 with 55, and Okeechobee Blvd. and Royal Palm Beach Blvd. with 51. Most of the crashes are caused by red light violations, Miles said. Financial crime is at an all-time high, he said, pointing out that at a recent FBI conference, it was reported that cybercrime and other white-collar crimes are the secondbiggest threat in the United States See RPB CRIME, page 21
County Water Utility Puts Focus On Energy-Saving Initiatives By Ron Bukley Town-Crier Staff Report Palm Beach County Utilities Director Bevin Beaudet reported on his department’s energy-saving initiatives at Tuesday’s meeting of the Palm Beach County Commission. Beaudet noted that his department is the third-largest water and wastewater utility in Florida. “We serve 520,000 residents with 558 employees,” he said, adding that the department’s operating budget is $115 million a year, with about a $50 million capital budget. The county utility is recognized
nationally as an industry leader. “We’re a big water utility,” Beaudet said. “We operate four water treatment plants with a capacity of 103 million gallons a day, two wastewater treatment plants with a capacity of 59 mgd. We reclaim 22 million gallons a day of our water. We also put 4 million gallons a day into our wetlands, Green Cay and Wakodahatchee. If you were to stack all of our pipes endto-end, it would go from Miami to Seattle. Half of the value of our water utility infrastructure is pipelines under the ground.” But the department is also the
largest energy user in the county. “We have 800 meters that are read every month,” he said. “We use 90 million-plus kilowatt hours per year. That’s almost $10 million a year, and that’s 8.5 percent of our operating budget. That’s our largest expense except for labor, so it’s a pretty good candidate for cutting if we want to save money for our customers.” In 2010, the department set a goal in its strategic plan to reduce energy use by 10 percent on a kilowatt hour per dwelling unit basis. “Since we are growing and since See UTILITY, page 4
Serving Palms West Since 1980
Wellington Council Gives First OK To New Business Hour Rules By Lauren Miró Town-Crier Staff Report In an effort to level the playing field for local businesses, the Wellington Village Council gave preliminary approval Tuesday to an ordinance extending the hours of operation for businesses located near residences. But the ordinance will still have to get yet another approval from the Planning, Zoning & Adjustment Board before coming back for final council approval. As proposed, the rules would extend hours for all businesses within 300 feet of homes by one hour in each direction — from 5 a.m. to 12 a.m. instead of 6 a.m. to 11 p.m. But it would also allow businesses to apply for an even greater extension of hours, including having a 24-hour business, Long Range Planning Director Tim Stillings said. “Council directed staff to bring back an alternative to the current process for a business to receive extended hours of operation,” Stillings said. “The current process is rather lengthy and cumbersome. The base application deposit is $3,000, which doesn’t include cost
for professional services.” In addition, Stillings said, businesses must go through a sixmonth process, which includes going before the PZA Board. “This special permit simplifies the application,” Stillings said. “It reduces the fee to $500.” Existing businesses within 300 feet of homes would have 60 days to apply for the permit to bring their extended hours within code, but the fee would be waived, Stillings said. Vice Mayor Howard Coates asked whether Wellington could grandfather in many of the businesses that have been operating under extended hours without approval since long before Wellington was incorporated. “I have some trepidation exposing some of these businesses to a new risk,” he said. “Some have been operating for years without enforcement.” But Village Manager Paul Schofield noted that just because Wellington didn’t enforce its hours doesn’t mean it can’t. “They are exposed to risk now,” he said. Schofield noted that most of the issues caused by extended hours See BIZ HOURS, page 21
RPB QUARTER AUCTION
A Quarter Auction was held Wednesday, March 20 at the Royal Palm Beach Cultural Center. All proceeds benefited the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. Shown here are Julie Bryant and Stacey Mikel. MORE PHOTOS, PAGE 9 PHOTO BY DENISE FLEISCHMAN/TOWN-CRIER
More Multi-Family On SR 7 Concerns RPB Zoning Board By Ron Bukley Town-Crier Staff Report The Royal Palm Beach Planning & Zoning Commission on Tuesday postponed a request for a land use change for a 24-acre parcel on State Road 7 until the applicant can meet with residents who objected to the change. Property owner Pebb Enterprises TDBA of Boca Raton seeks two large-scale future land use amendments to change the designation on about 13 acres from single-family residential to low-density multifamily residential for up to nine units per acre, and to change about 11 acres from single-family residential to commercial. The property is located on SR 7 near Pioneer Road.
Agent Jan Polson of the land planning firm Cotleur & Hearing said the multifamily units would serve as a buffer between the single-family homes and the commercial areas, providing housing for people who work in the commercial areas along SR 7. However, Elyce Werner of the Westwood Property Owners’ Association, representing residents to the north of the subject property, said she didn’t think there was a necessity for another density increase allowing multifamily units, since another development just across SR 7, the Enclave, is under construction with 268 new units. Werner also disagreed with the See RPB ZONERS, page 21
Hockey Team Launches Billet Program To House Players
Future Hockey Stars — Palm Beach Junior Hawks coach Tim Kyrkostas with players Vincent Cook, Stephen Sundberg and Dennis Allingmon. PHOTO BY JESSICA GREGOIRE/TOWN-CRIER
By Jessica Gregoire Town-Crier Staff Report Florida is not often thought of as a popular region for ice hockey, yet the sport is steadily growing in popularity. Florida teams such as the Palm Beach Junior Hawks, based at Palm Beach Skate Zone in suburban Lake Worth, are beginning to become recognized in the tightly knit hockey community. The Hawks, founded in 2009, are supported by a strong and growing network of hockey families. The players’ ages range from 16 to 20, and they come from around the world for a chance to play hockey at the junior level. While junior competition gives players exposure and a chance for universities and higher-tier divi-
sions to notice them, it comes with a tough financial burden for many players who have to leave home during the hockey season from August through March. The costs of staying at a hotel or renting can get pricey for many of these young men, many still in high school or college-bound. To assist players in their dreams of playing hockey at the professional level, the Palm Beach Junior Hawks implemented a billeting program in which players are placed with host families in the community they are visiting to play hockey, attend school and/ or work. For many junior hockey players around the world, billeting is the best option when joining a team. The Junior Hawks’ billet program
coordinators, Jill Schimming and Sam Berkman, work diligently to match players with the right families. “We have some families who say they only want goalies,” Schimming said. “They feel that guys who play certain positions have qualities that they like.” The coordinators also give the players questionnaires to fill out. “I came up with it because we want to know what their interests are,” Berkman said. “This really helps us with placing students with the right families.” Player Dennis Allingmon from Sweden remembers filling out the questionnaire. “I was as honest as possible and really wrote as much as I could,” he said. Being in the billet program keeps See JUNIOR HAWKS, page 7