COUNTY HONORS MICHELLE MCGOVERN SEE STORY, PAGE 3
ITID GRANTS EQUESTRIAN SHOW PERMIT SEE STORY, PAGE 4
THE
TOWN-CRIER WELLINGTON • ROYAL PALM BEACH • LOXAHATCHEE • THE ACREAGE
Your Community Newspaper
INSIDE
RPB’s Winterfest Party Lights Up Commons Park This Saturday
Volume 39, Number 46 November 30 - December 6, 2018
Serving Palms West Since 1980
NEW GARDEN CENTER OPENS
With Halloween a distant memory and turkey leftovers finally gone, the holiday season shifts into full gear as the Village of Royal Palm Beach hosts its annual Winterfest celebration at Royal Palm Beach Commons Park on Saturday, Dec. 1. The free event runs from 1 to 9 p.m., with the Santas on the Run 5K starting the day at 7:30 a.m. Page 3
Wellington Art Society Hosts Reception For ‘Instincts’ Exhibition
A reception was held Tuesday, Nov. 27 at the Wellington Community Center for the Wellington Art Society’s “Instincts” exhibition currently on display. Artwork from 14 artists is included in the exhibition. There were artist demos, a raffle and refreshments. Page 7
GVI Sod opened the doors to its new garden center on Monday, Nov. 26. Welcoming both businesses and individual homeowners, GVI Sod is located at 13415 Southern Blvd. Shown above are Melissa McCarroll, Vicky Cadena and Tara O’Neal with colorful pentas flowers available at the garden center. STORY & MORE PHOTOS, PAGE 7 PHOTO BY CALLIE SHARKEY/TOWN-CRIER
Local Spots Are There To Help When Searching For The Perfect Christmas Tree
By Denis Eirikis Town-Crier Staff Report While a national Christmas tree shortage is tending to drive prices slightly up this year, there is no shortage of places that residents of the western communities can buy trees, including many run by non-
profit organizations in Wellington and Royal Palm Beach. For more than 20 years, Boy Scout Troop 125 of Wellington has sold trees at St. Peter’s United Methodist Church on Forest Hill Blvd. Another longstanding tree location is the site run by the stu-
National Field Hockey Festival Returns To IPC In Wellington
While most spent the Thanksgiving weekend with families in a homestyle atmosphere, field hockey players and fans traveled across the country to spend the holiday in Wellington to compete in the world’s largest field hockey tournament. Page 11
Sasha Colal (right) with daughter Alexa and son Everett selecting their tree at St. Peter’s United Methodist Church.
PHOTO BY DENIS EIRIKIS/TOWN-CRIER
Palm Beach Central Falls In Regional Final To Deerfield Beach
The Palm Beach Central High School varsity football team traveled to Deerfield Beach High School on Friday, Nov. 23 to face the number one seed in the Class 8A, Region 3 final, falling to the Bucks 21-6. The loss ended the Broncos’ run toward their goal of winning the team’s first state championship. Page 19 DEPARTMENT INDEX NEWS...............................3 - 18 NEWS BRIEFS......................... 7 PEOPLE................................... 8 SCHOOLS................................ 9 COLUMNS............................. 16 BUSINESS............................. 17 CALENDAR............................ 18 SPORTS......................... 19 - 20 CLASSIFIEDS................ 21 - 22 Visit Us On The Web At WWW.GOTOWNCRIER.COM
dent council at Royal Palm Beach High School in the parking lot of the school’s Okeechobee Blvd. campus. Both places have their loyal fans. Sasha Colal took her 10-yearold son Everett and 12-year-old daughter Alexa to select the family tree at St. Peter’s this year. “One of my favorite parts of the holiday is selecting our family Christmas tree,” the Wellington mother said. She was not happy with the tree she got last year from a big box retailer. “This year, I am so happy to help the scouts and do business where they are giving me great customer service and a nice selection of fresh trees,” Colal said. Everett and Alexa also enjoyed picking out their 10-foot tree. Everett said his favorite part of the process is decorating the tree, while Alexa looks forward to her traditional task of placing an angel on top of the tree. Assistant Scoutmaster Neil Derryberry said that with the exception of using the chain saw, the See TREE SALES, page 18
Wellington Winterfest With Vanilla Ice Returns Dec. 7
By Callie Sharkey Town-Crier Staff Report Finding free family fun during the holidays is not always easy, but the Wellington Chamber of Commerce is bringing back its popular Winterfest event ready to entertain all ages on Friday, Dec. 7 from 6 to 10 p.m. This free holiday event will take place at the Palm Beach International Equestrian Center, located at 3400 Equestrian Club Road in Wellington. While there are a variety of activities and entertainers throughout the evening, the lead role goes to a Wellington resident with nationwide fame. “The highlight of the event is definitely our headline performer and local superstar Vanilla Ice,” said Michela Green, executive director of the Wellington Chamber.
Rob Van Winkle, aka “Vanilla Ice,” is more than just an icon in the music industry. Van Winkle is also a philanthropist and stars in the TV show The Vanilla Ice Project on the DIY Network, now in its eighth season. The Vanilla Ice Block Party has become a part of the festivities over the past several years. This season, Vanilla Ice is joined by master of ceremonies Wes Kain and a variety of musical and dance performances. “In addition, we have assembled an amazing cast of performers, food for all tastes and ages, as well as a lineup of exceptional vendors,” Green said. Another popular musical performer is local talent Michaela Paige, who finished in the top 12 in season three of The Voice. Paige is among a group of young
artists performing this year. Others include Alex Shaw, Alyssa Marie Coon, Catherine Boynton, Livia Jahan, Michael O’Leary, Rachel Robinson and Joshua Houchins. For those who love gospelthemed music, performers G.L. Hodges and Vell P. have joined the lineup. Hodges is a vocalist often featured singing the national anthem at professional sporting events. Vell P. is a South Florida Gospel Music Awards nominee and has worked with Grammynominated and award-winning artists. Additional performers include Nicky Greed, Tom Blake and Violet Rose to round out a variety of musical genres during the festivities. The live entertainment is not limited to musical talent. Artists See WINTERFEST, page 4
McKinlay Reflects On Accomplishments During Term As Mayor
By Ron Bukley Town-Crier Staff Report The Palm Beach County Commission held its annual reorganization meeting on Tuesday, Nov. 20 as Melissa McKinlay stepped down from her one-year term as mayor and was sworn in to a second term as District 6 commissioner after securing re-election without opposition. Commissioner Mack Bernard (District 7) was chosen to serve as mayor, while Commissioner Dave Kerner (District 3) was tapped to be vice mayor. Also sworn in were new commissioners Gregg Weiss (District 2) and Robert Weinroth (District 4). The commissioners recognized and thanked outgoing commissioners Paulette Burdick and Steven Abrams, and honored McKinlay for her year of service as mayor. “I just wanted to thank my colleagues,” McKinlay said. “It has been a tough year. We had a lot of difficult conversations that needed to be had. It has been an honor to represent Palm Beach County across our county.” Bernard thanked McKinlay for her work over the past year. “I want to thank this whole board for going through what we’ve gone through this year,” he said. “The key, ultimately, to our success here in Palm Beach County, and we’ve heard it throughout the morning here, has been our ability to work together on a cooperative, bipartisan basis.” County Administrator Verdenia Baker praised McKinlay for her successful year as mayor. “You continue to address the opioid issue,” Baker said. “That is a very close and personal passion of yours. In addition to that, you not only addressed it at our local level, but at the state and federal level. You piloted a nursing room for mothers at the South County Courthouse.” Baker said McKinlay carried the banner in Tallahassee to protest the sweeping of trust fund money to be used for affordable housing into the overall budget.
“You reordered the regular meeting schedule to account for commissioner and staff comments at the beginning of the meeting,” she said. “You continue to ‘green’ the county’s operations. You reinstituted the Commission on the Status of Women. We were busy.” Baker added that the county and the Orange Bowl Committee collaborated to perform a complete overhaul of the Pioneer Park football field and other amenities in Belle Glade. “The extra effort continued through improving the economic engine for the Glades community,” Baker said. “You kept in focus the fact that Palm Beach County is ranked fifth in the nation for our agricultural production, and you made sure Palm Beach County was well represented overall at the state and federal level… Thank you for an awesome year.” County Attorney Denise Nieman told McKinlay that her thoughtful compassion and intelligent leadership has changed the entire county. “You have a rare, graceful strength in you that is a role model for all of us,” she said. “When you talk about empowering women, you actually really do empower women.” McKinlay reviewed her last four years as a commissioner, highlighting her work to improve conditions in the Glades region. “We’re inching closer each day to actually making the inland logistics center a reality,” she said. “A lot of that had to do with the FEMA flood maps and getting the dike fully repaired so that those communities were no longer flood threats.” McKinlay noted that there are proclamations or letters from the Treasure Coast Regional Planning Council in support of the Florida Department of Transportation’s proposal to extend rail service from Miami International Airport to the City of South Bay in order to get freight off Interstate 95 and Florida’s Turnpike and be able See McKINLAY, page 4
PETS VISIT WITH SANTA AT THE MALL
Santa Paws Pet Photo Night was held Sunday, Nov. 25 at the Mall at Wellington Green. Pets had the opportunity to visit Santa at the Ice Palace and have their photos taken. Another Santa Paws Pet Photo Night is scheduled for Sunday, Dec. 2 at 630 p.m. Shown above are Santa with Shadow, Michonne and Wendy Rossi. MORE PHOTOS, PAGE 5 PHOTO BY DENISE FLEISCHMAN/TOWN-CRIER
Enjoy A ‘Holiday In Paradise’ At 35th Annual Parade
Santa and Mrs. Claus, courtesy of the Wellington Rotary Club, during last year’s Wellington Holiday Parade.
PHOTO BY DENISE FLEISCHMAN/TOWN-CRIER
By M. Dennis Taylor Town-Crier Staff Report Called one of the best holiday events in the county, the 35th annual edition of the ever-popular Wellington Holiday Parade will be taking to the street on Sunday, Dec. 9 at 1:30 p.m. Hosted by the Central Palm Beach County Chamber of Commerce and the Village of Wellington, the theme for this year, “Holiday in Paradise,” will feature participants riding and walking the route starting at the corner of Wellington Trace and Forest Hill Blvd. It will continue along Forest Hill Blvd. to Ken Adams Way. This year’s parade is special because not only is it the 35th year, but the longtime organizer of the parade, Dennis Witkowski,
will serve as grand marshal as well. “It was his brainchild to organize the parade in our communities,” Central Palm Beach County Chamber CEO Mary Lou Bedford said. “He has never missed a parade.” Bedford thanked the many volunteers who make the parade go off like clockwork each year. “All the people we work with have been with the parade for 10 or 20 years and more,” Bedford said. “They are real seasoned veterans and a great pleasure to work with.” The parade is among the largest events in the western communities. “It’s great because we encompass so many dignitaries from throughout the county,” Bedford said.
Bedford added that all parts of the community are represented. “We try to get as many of the youth of the community involved as possible,” she said. “Every year, more school bands participate. This year, we have nine marching bands, including Park Vista High School, which is the best in the state.” Bedford said that the history of the parade as a Wellington event is a nice aspect. “Wellington Village Manager Paul Schofield told me that his son was in the first parade when he was six years old,” she said. “That was 35 years ago, and now his grandson, who is six, will be in this parade. That’s a nice continuity.” To ensure a safe path for the See PARADE, page 18