GROUNDBREAKING AT THE CAPSTONE SEE STORY, PAGE 7
WRMC HOSTS ‘CALL OF THE QUARTER’ SEE PHOTOS, PAGE 11
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TOWN-CRIER WELLINGTON • ROYAL PALM BEACH • LOXAHATCHEE • THE ACREAGE
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Lox Council Gives Final OK To Groves Town Center Retail Project
Volume 39, Number 44 November 16 - November 22, 2018
Serving Palms West Since 1980
VILLAGES OBSERVE VETERANS DAY
The Loxahatchee Groves Town Council granted final approval last week to development plan amendments for the Wawa convenience store, Chase bank and Aldi grocery store at the Groves Town Center, as well as a horse trail, at the northeast corner of Southern Blvd. and B Road. Page 4
Visions Salon In Wellington Celebrates Its 30th Anniversary
(Above) Royal Palm Beach hosted a Veterans Day Evening Service on Sunday, Nov. 11. Shown above laying a wreath are (L-R) Councilman Jeff Hmara, Councilman Richard Valuntas, Mayor Fred Pinto, Michael Coleman, John Castro, Councilwoman Jan Rodusky, Palm Beach County Mayor Melissa McKinlay, State Rep. Matt Willhite, Pastor Sheldon John and Vice Mayor Selena Smith. MORE PHOTOS, PAGE 3
Longtime Wellington hair studio Visions Salon celebrated its milestone 30th anniversary on Sunday, Nov. 11. The evening included cocktails, music, a raffle to support St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital and a fashion show highlighting many of the salon’s talented stylists. Page 7
PHOTO BY DENISE FLEISCHMAN/TOWN-CRIER
(Left) Wellington held its annual Veterans Day Parade & Ceremony on Sunday, Nov. 11 in partnership with the American Legion Chris Reyka Memorial Wellington Post 390. Shown here are Dennis Masch and Bill Bartels with the U.S. Coast Guard wreath. MORE PHOTOS, PAGE 5
Lady Artisans Host Artfest In The Acreage
The Lady Artisans of Loxahatchee and The Acreage put on their first LALA Artfest on Saturday, Nov. 10 in The Acreage. The event was such a success that organizers Tina Evans and Melanie Scott are planning a second show in March. Page 17
District Champ Broncos Advance With Big Win Over Wellington
The district champion Palm Beach Central High School varsity football team weathered an early storm Friday, Nov. 9 in a Class 8A regional quarterfinal matchup to defeat crosstown rival Wellington High School by a score of 44-14. The victory was the second against the Wolverines this season for the host Broncos. Page 23 DEPARTMENT INDEX NEWS...............................3 - 20 SCHOOLS................................ 8 PEOPLE................................... 9 NEWS BRIEFS....................... 10 COLUMNS............................. 18 CALENDAR............................ 20 BUSINESS............................. 21 SPORTS..........................23 - 24 CLASSIFIEDS................ 25 - 26 Visit Us On The Web At WWW.GOTOWNCRIER.COM
Equestrian Village Complex Granted Seasonal Permit
By M. Dennis Taylor Town-Crier Staff Report The Wellington Village Council approved a seasonal use permit Tuesday, Nov. 13 for Equestrian Village, site of the Adequan Global Dressage Festival, which will allow the dressage show grounds to operate over the winter season despite a years-long delay in implementing several of its original conditions of approval. A primary concern was regarding access to the site, located at 13466 South Shore Blvd. at the northeast corner of South Shore Blvd. and Pierson Road. A promised turn lane and additional access point to relieve congestion remains incomplete, a year after show officials said they hoped to have it completed soon. The public hearing was held as part of the council’s regular meeting Tuesday, which featured a light agenda. The only other item up for discussion was a technical item regarding a water main project along South Shore Blvd. It was an authorization to pay for engineering services that had previously been discussed, planned and budgeted. It was only pulled from the consent agenda because Mayor Anne Gerwig had to recuse herself from the largely procedural vote. No members of the public showed up for the public hearing, and there was no public comment. Aside from village staff and the council, the only speaker was at-
torney Dan Rosenbaum representing Wellington Equestrian Partners and Equestrian Sport Productions, the owners and operators of the dressage facility. The seasonal use permit for the successful event has been approved year-after-year despite the same perennial issue with the conditions. In fact, if the conditions do get fully met, the seasonal use permit will become unnecessary and the facility will be able to operate without special council approval. Rosenbaum cited numerous reasons for the delay, including the still-unresolved lawsuits regarding the original approvals of the Equestrian Village facility, which is now going through an appeal process. “There are a lot of moving parts that we have right now,” Rosenbaum said. “One involves an appeal of the trial we had last year with regard to some neighbors who had some objections to Equestrian Village and sought to raze the structures.” As expected, the seasonal use permit passed unanimously, allowing the 2019 dressage festival to go on as planned. While it is unthinkable that the council would not approve the permit for the 2019 show series at this late date, council members expressed frustration at being backed into a box. They essentially brainstormed for nearly an hour over ways to compel the applicant See PERMIT, page 20
Leaders Seek Alternatives To SALUTE TO OUR HEROES Double Deck On Southern Blvd.
By Ron Bukley Town-Crier Staff Report Community leaders have been discussing long-range plans for the future of the Southern Blvd. corridor, with some expressing concerns about ideas floated by the Florida Department of Transportation. The issue came up at a transportation forum hosted by the Central Palm Beach County Chamber of Commerce on Thursday, Nov. 8 at the South Florida Fairgrounds, as well as at the Westlake City Council meeting on Tuesday, Nov. 13. At the Westlake meeting, Minto Vice President John Carter noted that he attended the recent transportation forum, where a double-
decker highway along Southern Blvd. from Forest Hill Blvd. to Interstate 95 and other alternatives were discussed in the long-term development plans. “If you go down Southern Blvd. now, they’re actually widening the lanes,” Carter said. “At least 10 years out, FDOT… has done a study and come out with a recommendation where, essentially, it would be a double-decker highway. So, going down Southern, you would have a cantilevered road… with more roads beneath it.” Looking at it as a stakeholder in the business industry, with considerations to residents and government, Carter said that type
of solution would destroy business opportunities because it creates a bypass. “You get traffic above it, so the opportunity to get off it into your community or to shop in the neighborhood retail areas goes away,” Carter said. Those attending the chamber luncheon included Loxahatchee Groves Mayor Dave Browning; Palm Beach County Mayor Melissa McKinlay with county engineers; Royal Palm Beach Village Manager Ray Liggins, Mayor Fred Pinto and Councilman Jeff Hmara; Wellington Village Manager Paul Schofield with some of his staff; and members of the Palm Beach See SOUTHERN, page 4
Indian Trail Board Agrees To Revise Policy On Contracts
By Ron Bukley Town-Crier Staff Report The Indian Trail Improvement District Board of Supervisors decided Wednesday, Nov. 14 not to extend existing goods and services contracts after finding that it could save money by putting out competitive bids. Director of Operations & Maintenance Jason Lester explained that the general services contracts have been in place for nearly 10 years. Former administrators brought the program in and modified it from other special districts in South Florida. The format gave
exclusivity to contractors and left no negotiation for materials and services, according to the staff report. “This format works well with minimal staffing without the ability to do the tasks in-house,” Lester said. “We do have the ability to perform tasks in-house.” Reading from the staff report, Lester said the original contracts were for three years with the ability to extend for an additional two years. The current fiscal year will be the last year for these extensions. Extensions were sent out at the end of September and the
beginning of October, and only one responded wanting to extend. “With the implementation of the culvert replacement program, we identified a need to shop for a better program for goods and services,” Lester said. “This also expanded when a tree-clearing contractor was needed for clearing a quarter-mile of canal bank.” Under the current general services contract, clearing that section of canal bank would have cost more than $100,000. The cost is calculated by tree size and quantity. The current general services See ITID, page 4
The Wellington Community Foundation held its annual Red, White & Blue Jeans “Salute To Our Heroes” benefit on Friday, Nov. 9 at the Wellington National Golf Club. The evening raised money for the foundation’s programs and also saluted local veterans and first responders. Shown above, eight-year-old Alexander Benjamin salutes veteran Ken Adams. Adams was one of the heroes honored at the event. MORE PHOTOS, PAGE 13 PHOTO BY MICHELLE SANTAMARIA
Happy Crowd On Hand For RPB School Presentation
By Denis Eirikis Town-Crier Staff Report The Royal Palm Beach Education Advisory Board learned Tuesday, Nov. 13 that Royal Palm Beach Elementary School is “the happiest place on earth” — at least according to Principal Tracy Gaugler, Assistant Principal Cristina Fong, and about 60 cheering and singing students, family members and teachers. Gaugler backed up her claim by providing the board with statistics. “Of our staff who have children, and most of them do, about 75 percent have children who are students or were past students at Royal Palm Beach Elementary,” she said. “I track this statistic because it’s important to me to know my staff trusts our school, teachers,
programs and facilities with their own children.” Besides boasting 16 years of straight A state grades for the school, Gaugler pointed to exceptionally strong parental involvement, ongoing schoolwide events and dedicated volunteers who logged an impressive 5,500 hours of volunteer time. The Florida Department of Education recently named Royal Palm Elementary School as a “School of Excellence.” Gaugler briefed the board on school strengths, such as its robust PTO, the 80 fathers who help with school safety and security as part of the Watch DOGS program, and outside partners like Jet’s Pizza, which donates up to 50 pies a month. The school currently educates 696 students, with 58
percent of children on the free or reduced-price lunch program and 16 percent with disabilities. The school spirit of Royal Palm Beach Elementary was on full display as 12 kindergarten students entertained the board with a song, while parents, family and friends looked on. Stasia Robinson and her young son Eric came out to watch daughter Stasia perform for the advisory board. “This is a really big deal for us,” she said. “The school feels like a community, almost like a family, and watching my daughter perform to such a welcoming crowd, and on community television, makes me very proud.” Gaugler gave credit as well to Fong. They have worked together See SCHOOL, page 4
Kindergarten students from Royal Palm Beach Elementary School sing for the village’s Education Advisory Board.
PHOTO BY DENIS EIRIKIS/TOWN-CRIER