Town-Crier Newspaper October 10, 2008

VINCEREMOS HARVEST FEST

The Vinceremos Therapeutic Riding Center hosted its Second Annual Harvest Fest on Saturday, Oct. 4 at the Jim Brandon Equestrian Center on Forest Hill Blvd. This event helped fund scholarships for kids who need help with the cost of horse therapy and featured a horse and rider costume contest, a Breyer model horse-decorating contest, kids games, lunch from Outback Steak House and more. Shown here, Gabriella Galvagni and Megan Barber decorate a Breyer model horse for the contest. MORE PHOTOS, PAGE 23

Zoning Board OKs Change For Sunrise Project On SR 7

By Carol Porter Town-Crier Staff Report

Wellington’s Planning, Zoning & Adjustment Board approved a proposal last week to create a new category of congregate living facilities in the village’s land development regulations on behalf of Sunrise Senior Living, which is planning on building an assisted-living facility for seniors near the Mall at Wellington Green. Sunrise has contracted to buy 5.3 acres of the village’s “KPark” site at the southwest corner of State Road 7 and Pierson Road to build a four-story assisted-living facility and two twostory special-needs facilities of 16 units each. The company requested the new classification because none of the three existing congregate living facility classifications includes a definition of a special needs use.

Sunrise also wanted a category that would include a “density bonus” allowing 25 percent more density than zoning would normally allow.

The request, reviewed at the PZA Board’s Oct. 2 meeting, was accompanied by another for a change in land-use designation for the property from Community Commercial to Residential “F” with a maximum ten dwell-

ing units per acre. Due to a conversion formula in the land development regulations, the 150 anticipated residents, divided into households of 2.97 residents each, would amount to just shy of ten units per acre on the site.

While PZA Board members voted to recommend approval of the land-use change unanimously, they raised issues with various aspects of the new congregate living facility category.

PZA Board Chairman Steve Delai said he had reservations about more developers seeking density bonuses under the new classification. “This would assume we would want to proliferate these in other places in the village,” he said. “Is that what we are trying to accomplish? This was not my understanding of this, and of where we were going with Sunrise.”

Community Development Director Marty Hodgkins said the new classification would allow others to apply for it, but that did not mean the village would have to grant it.

PZA Board Member Alan Medoff took issue with a requirement in the classification that requires the presence of a full-service fire-rescue station within a mile.

Hodgkins said the reason to locate near a fire station was that there likely would be more calls for services because of the elderly population within the building.

“There are prudent reasons to put some limits on where you put these so you don’t have facilities like this that are located in single-family, lower-density residential neighborhoods,” Hodgkins said.

PZA Board Alternate Alan Johnson suggested the village make an effort to keep such facilities located along State Road 7 and other arterial roadways rather than within older parts of Wellington with single- and multiple-family homes. Hodgkins said wording could be adopted, and those issues had also been raised during the discussion of a medical planned development district along SR 7.

Medoff said he could not support the application with the one-mile fire station requirement because it would stifle the placement of other such facilities. He also said he thought 37 parking spaces for 150 residents was on the low end.

Johnson said he had some other issues related to environ-

See PZA BOARD, page 2

Wellington Sends Draft Lease To PBCC For Review

By Ron Bukley Town-Crier Staff Report

The Village of Wellington submitted a draft lease agreement to Palm Beach Community College last week for review by the college’s legal staff and approval by its board of trustees, according to former Wellington mayor Kathy Foster. Foster is leading the effort to build a new PBCC campus in Wellington.

“I’m hoping that the college lease will come back for a vote in early November sometime, and then the college will be able to begin the process,” Foster told the Town-Crier on Thursday.

Foster and the college approached the village earlier this year with a proposal to develop a campus on its “K-Park” property on State Road 7 at Pierson Road. The village had been planning to develop a “signature park” on the 60-acre parcel, but a tightening budget and shrinking revenues have deferred development of the property. The village purchased the land for $8.5 million in 2003, and it is said to now be worth $20 million or more. The lease would be for a nominal annual fee.

Although village officials have been in talks with college representatives since April, the council gave approval for formal negotiations to begin in August.

Foster said that if approved, it would be at least a year and a half before the site has a functioning building completed.

“That’s dependent upon a speeded-up process of approvals through the Village of Wellington, as far as planning and zoning and approvals and things like that,” she said, “but it would be a minimum of 18 to 24 months to get a functioning facility.”

While the college was hoping for a target date of late January 2010 to be ready to start offering classes, Foster said the project has so far been delayed about six months past that mark.

“We’re looking at fall of 2010,” she said.

Athletic fields stipulated in the lease would be ready sooner, Foster said. Plans call for three lighted college-size soccer fields on which six youth-size soccer, football or lacrosse fields could be fitted.

Mayor Darell Bowen, another proponent of the campus, said plans also call for a cultural arts theater at some phase, which would be on a similar scale to PBCC’s Eissey Campus Theatre in Jupiter, the Duncan Theatre at its Lake Worth campus and the Dolly Hand Cultural Arts Center in Belle Glade.

Bowen, who expects the lease to be on the council agenda at its first meeting in November, said he anticipates that remaining details will be ironed out by attorneys on both sides before the lease gets to the council for approval.

“I haven’t seen the draft, but I don’t see any reason to get into the nitty-gritty until the attorneys get done with it,” Bowen told the Town-Crier Thursday. “They’re going to massage it no matter what we do.”

Bowen said he received a call from Richard Becker, PBCC’s vice president of administration and business services, asking about the duration of the lease because a certain amount of time is required in order for the college to win bond approval.

“I said just change it,” Bowen said of the draft lease agreement. “I said if there is anything there that doesn’t match, we all know it has to be that way or you can’t do it. I told him, ‘let’s not go back and forth on one item or two items. Let your attorney go through the whole thing, change whatever needs to be changed, then bring it back to our attorney, and then we’ll get a final document in a couple of weeks, hopefully.’ I think they are going to move fairly quickly about getting it back to us. I think maybe we’ll have it back as early as next week.”

Bowen said the lease agreement puts down in black and white the details that many observers want clarified. “What we said we wanted to do was to get everything down on paper in a form so we can look at it,” he said. “We have people questioning this and questioning that. What we need to do is get it into writing so we can see what it is that the college needs, and what it is that we need, and then see if we can come to an agreement.” Bowen said the delay in completing the draft was partly due to Life Covenant Church, which owns property contiguous to the K-Park site. While the church initially wanted to swap its parcel for another piece of the site, it recently backed out because of wishes to get on with its own building project. “That delayed us three or four weeks,” Bowen said. “Now that that’s resolved, it’s just a matter of working out the details with the college.”

Two of Wellington’s five council members have expressed reservations about the campus, but Bowen said he is confident the council will muster the majority required to approve the project. In August, Councilman Bob

Education Committee Offers College Campus Feedback

By Ron Bukley Town-Crier Staff Report

Wellington Education Committee members shared largely enthusiastic views with Wellington Village Council members Tuesday in a roundtable discussion on a proposal to build a new Palm Beach Community College campus on State Road 7.

Vice Mayor Dr. Carmine Priore invited feedback from committee members about the campus, proposed by PBCC for the village’s 64-acre K-Park site on the west side of State Road 7 north of Pierson Road, which was originally intended as the site of a “signature” village park with athletic fields.

“I would love to hear your comments regarding us moving forward with the process of providing a place for a community college; not only a community college but an opportunity for higher institutions to participate,” Priore said, adding that the campus would also provide recreational and cultural amenities.

“I would love to hear from your friends or neighbors, or teachers or parents and find out what is the true sense of what is

going on,” Priore added.

“You’re members of the Education Committee. What better group to hear it from?”

Councilwoman Lizbeth Benacquisto suggested committee members do research on the Internet on schools such as the University of Central Florida for new ideas that are emerging in higher education.

“There are a multitude of opportunities in this state for collaborative partnerships between community colleges and upperlevel institutions,” Benacquisto said, such as a community college providing a venue for course offerings from upper-level university programs. “That would bring forth the truly vibrant educational community that we are seeking, and that is what needs to come across.”

Priore said the state legislature has granted community colleges in Florida the ability to become four-year institutions. “It’s up to the community college in each county to do that,” he said. “Indian River Community College has already done that. A number of them are, particularly the ones that don’t have access to the traditional institutions.”

Priore noted that a proposed constitutional amendment on the November ballot would allow counties to charge a halfcent sales tax to raise money for their community colleges to build new campuses or expand existing facilities.

Priore said the legislature became aware that existing colleges, including the University of Central Florida, Florida State, the University of Florida and the University of Miami are at capacity and cannot accommodate the number of students graduating from high school.

“It’s becoming more and more difficult,” Priore said.

“Many community colleges are bursting at the seams because the community college graduates are guaranteed acceptance at the universities. It’s going to be more and more difficult to get in the colleges, just by the sheer numbers.”

Committee Member Terri Priore, the vice mayor’s daughterin-law, said more Florida high school graduates are going out of state because that’s where they’re getting accepted.

“It’s actually very difficult right now to get into the good

state universities,” she said.

“What the schools are doing because of all the budget cuts is limiting in-state students, especially those with pre-paid college plans, and getting more outof-state students because they pay more, so we are going to definitely need more community colleges, because those students in the future are not going to be able to get into the fouryear schools.”

Terri Priore said she is already looking ahead at colleges close to home for her eighth grader, to get him through his first couple of years while saving money for the ensuing years, which would be more expensive.

Benacquisto said she would like to create a seamless “twoplus-two” program at the PBCC campus in which a student could attend for the entire four years and get a degree.

“I’m a dreamer, and if we close our eyes, I can see many different scenarios,” she said.

“What you’d like to see there programming-wise, things that we can piggyback on with hospitals, the equestrian community... It’s about having a vision for the community, and we need to

hear from you because this is your area of expertise.”

Committee Member Melissa Fritsch said she would like to see an early childhood education program that would produce graduates who would open a preschool in the area, or a nursing program in which high school students could earn community service hours.

Mayor Darell Bowen said he would like a local campus so high school students in accelerated programs can earn early credits and in some cases have almost two years’ credit by they time they graduate from high school.

“They have some of those classes here now, I’m not trying to diminish what’s here, but it’s very limited compared to what you could have if a facility was right here,” Bowen said. “What it would do is, the students who are going to school here in the teaching program and the nursing program, we’ll see those students working in the community, and it’ll be good for the community. Some of it will be volunteer hours, some of it will be very cheap, so it would enhance all kinds of educational things throughout the community.”

PHOTO BY DENISE FLEISCHMAN/TOWN-CRIER

Driver Survives Crash On Aero Club Drive

SEPT. 30 — On Tuesday, Sept. 30, at approximately 3:50 p.m., units from Palm Beach County Fire-Rescue Station 20 responded to a traffic collision in front of the Wanderers Club on Aero Club Drive in Wellington. According to a PBCFR report, fire-rescue units arrived to find a heavily damaged SUV,

PZA Board Stable Proposal Tabled

continued from page 1 mental design, surface water management and traffic, but he felt the project was a good one for the village.

which had collided with a tree. The driver was already outside of the vehicle. The force of the impact peeled away the passenger side of the SUV and separated the roof. Fortunately, the driver was wearing her seatbelt and sustained only minor injuries. She was transported to a local hospital for treatment.

“I see no reason why we should take a turn from what we were doing since this village was founded,” Johnson said. “We want to have roads. We want to have growth. We want to have economic centers. We are still a bedroom community. The employment centers should support the people who live here. I think the project is fine the way it is. I think the project is excellent. I commend the staff and the applicant. You are building a first-rate congregate living facility.”

station in the second item, and reached consensus on changing the distance to two or three miles instead of one. Priore made a motion to recommend approval of the new congregate living facility category. It passed 4-1 with Delai opposed. The Wellington Village Council is scheduled to review the applications at its Oct. 28 meeting. In other business, the board tabled a proposal to allow construction of horse stables and stalls in neighborhoods along equestrian trails outside the village’s Equestrian Preserve Area in southern Wellington. Among the suggested limitations would be a maximum of two stalls per acre and prohibition of groom’s quarters.

Delai said he was very concerned about what seemed to be a piecemeal approach to this project and some others. It seemed to him, he said, that the board did not have a long time to get educated on the ramifications of such a project and its unintended consequences. The Sunrise facility is a good one, but the door is still open for others to come into the village.

“This board has to have a more comprehensive approach to dealing with things brought before us,” Delai said. “This will apply village-wide. It’s just not good planning. We don’t where it might be effective or where it might apply. You need to think about perhaps having two meetings to get the board up to speed on the issues. One would be an educational process to think about it, and the other would give us the opportunity to come in and be educated and informed.”

After further discussion, PZA Board Member Carmine Priore III made a motion to recommend approval of the land-use change, which was seconded by PZA Board Member Craig Bachove. It passed unanimously.

Board members then had discussion about the language concerning the distance to the fire

PBCC Lease To Council In

November

continued from page 1

Margolis voted against moving ahead with negotiations, saying he wanted the question to go to a public referendum. Councilman Matt Willhite, who questions building the campus on the K-Park land because it was purchased for recreational use, was absent. Bowen said there has been a lot of dialogue to satisfy the wishes of other council members.

Councilwoman Lizbeth Benacquisto, a longtime proponent of a college campus in Wellington, has insisted on having up-

Hodgkins said some residents of the Paddock Park and Saddle Trail subdivisions would like to gain access to the trails near their homes, and have the ability to build small family-type stables. These homeowners would go along with whatever other conditions are included in the code requirements for the Equestrian Preserve Area, he said. Both Medoff and PZA Board Member Morley Alperstein said they were concerned about allowing horses in some sections of the Aero Club and other nonequestrian communities. Priore wanted to know how the language being proposed had been crafted. Hodgkins said several residents on the western side of Paddock Park in excess of an acre have had stalls for a number of years. “They were grandfathered in as legal and nonconforming uses when the stables ordinance was adopted,” he said. “We knew that they were there, and a provision was made for those buildings.” Johnson asked staff to notify residents about the proposed changes to the land development regulations. Delai said he did not think allowing stables would be a good idea, due to the effect on other upscale homes in that area.

“I don’t know what it would look like if it becomes predominantly an equestrian area,” he said.

Johnson made a motion to table the item, which was seconded by Bachove. It passed unanimously.

per-level institutions offer junior and senior level courses there, Bowen said.

“Lizbeth has been hell-bent on getting other colleges involved, and I think that’s a wonderful thing,” he said. “I’ve been determined to get the ball fields and the cultural center.”

Bowen said the college has access to about $20 million as well as bonding for construction. “They have enough to get started with the groundwork and the first building,” he said. “They get a certain amount of funding for capital work every year from the state, and they were going to channel most of that to this project for the next few years.”

Bowen said he also anticipates receiving private donations for certain parts of the project.

PHOTOS COURTESY LT. KEVIN HANNAH/PBCFR

Wrecked — (Above and below) This vehicle was totaled after colliding with a tree on Aero Club Drive in Wellington.

PBSO Hammering Out Action Plan For Troubled Neighborhood

By Carol Porter Town-Crier Staff Report

The Wellington Village Council devoted much of a Tuesday workshop session to discussing ways of combating crime in the village’s White Pine Drive/12th Fairway area, including some strategy proposals from the village’s top law enforcement officer.

The 12th Fairway neighborhood and adjacent White Pine Drive in central Wellington have long been dogged by frequent residential burglaries, incidents of vandalism and drug-related activity.

Although the council earlier this year proposed developing a playground for the neighborhood, in August local residents convinced the council to call the project off due to fears that the “tot lot” would attract more criminal activity. The council instead decided to come up with an action plan for the neighborhood within 60 days.

On Tuesday, Capt. Greg Richter, commander of the PBSO’s District 9 substation in Wellington, offered some statistics on recent criminal activity in the area, saying seven percent of the village’s residential burglaries and nine percent of robberies between April 1 and Sept. 30 occurred in the White Pine Drive/12th Fairway area.

Richter said that he and his

staff are already implementing a number of approaches in the neighborhood, including partnering with PBSO specialty units such as narcotics, the Gang Task Force and the Tactical Unit; deploying the District 9 Street Team and teaming PBSO deputies with the village’s code enforcement officers.

Richter said he wants to see an increased community-oriented policing effort in the area, including more personal contacts with residents, a possible alliance of local landlords and more community meetings.

“Some of the meetings have been sparsely attended in the past,” he said. “We will try to get more people to come to these meetings. We also want to try to have a block captain program. Another option would be a safety day. We had one in the past where we had a bike giveaway and a barbecue. It was well attended, and it brought out a lot of the community.”

Richter said other options include a landscaping strategy called “Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design” (CPTED).

“We made a suggestion that we need to look at street lighting in that area,” he said. “That is something we need to look at. We can do things like trimming the hedges. The fences

need to be improved. Through attractive landscaping, we can direct people not to go within certain areas.”

Richter said his deputies are maintaining contact with the community volunteer group that originally proposed the tot lot, and are examining the possibility of basketball courts or a recreation area to keep local teenagers occupied. He also said imposition of a curfew in the neighborhood is being considered, but cautioned, “it does affect the crime rate, but it also results in directing people into an area which does not have a curfew.”

Discussing environmental design concepts, Vice Mayor Dr. Carmine Priore said the PBSO should be careful about implementing high-intensity lighting that gives off a “daylight” look and sends the message that the area might not be a great place to be.

Priore also said that he wanted to see the problems addressed as quickly as possible for the safety of the residents living there. He wanted to see more partnerships formed with the residents. However, the PBSO and the village should be careful not to duplicate work that would be done as part of the village’s planned redevelopment process, he said.

“This is something we have to do, but we are going to come back and address [older]

neighborhoods as part of the redevelopment process,” he said.

Councilman Matt Willhite agreed that something must be done immediately to address the safety of residents. He suggested that the neighborhood might benefit if an Earth Day commemoration or cleanup effort were centered there.

Councilwoman Lizbeth Benacquisto said that taking it to the neighborhoods is a good idea, and also said staff members had met with residents before the meeting to discuss their concerns. More fences to prevent shortcut-type trespassing is wanted, she said, and something to occupy the area’s teens.

“Village staff is going to see if any properties are in the condemnation process or if another slice of dirt that can be utilized,” she said. “We need to be finding opportunities for the kids to keep them out of trouble and occupied. The residents are thankful that we are focusing on the neighborhood first.”

Richter noted that crime has both geographic and economic influences. He noted that the area around the Kravis Center of the Performing Arts was once the site of the worst crime in West Palm Beach, but after redevelopment, the crime disappeared.

“The people go elsewhere,”

he said. “By improving the neighborhood, it makes it more attractive. The rent goes up. Crime has flattened in some cities. We need to make the areas more attractive.”

Mayor Darell Bowen said that rising crime will likely present problems for Wellington and many other communities as the economy struggles, but something must be done to address it.

“We all realize that this is a long-term societal problem,” he said. “It will take a long time to find a solution.”

Bowen suggested prioritizing approaches that could be implemented quickly without a high cost, such as a curfew, street lighting, and fencing and landscaping to prevent trespassing, which would be partially the responsibility of property owners. “Access is a real important part of that,” he said. “We need to look at some of the things we can do and get

the shovels out.”

Council members expressed interest in a curfew, but wanted to know how they would go about it. Councilman Bob Margolis said that there were advantages and disadvantages to a curfew. Benacquisto asked what time Richter would recommend. Richter said the curfew could be in effect at 11 p.m. during the week and midnight on the weekends. “After 11 p.m., there is nothing to do except get into mischief,” he said. “That’s typical of what I see.”

Richter said he would do a CPTED evaluation of the area, which wouldn’t cost a lot of money. Benacquisto suggested that an evaluation be done neighborhood by neighborhood. Richter said such an approach could work, and that his personnel would prioritize the neighborhoods and report back to the council on the efforts.

‘We made a suggestion that we need to look at street lighting in that area. We can do things like trimming the hedges. The fences need to be improved. Through attractive landscaping, we can direct people not to go within certain areas.’

— PBSO Capt. Greg Richter

OUR OPINION

YES On County Change; NO On State Amendment 2, Yes On Others

The Nov. 4 general election ballot will include one county charter amendment and six state constitutional amendments for voter approval.

COUNTY CHARTER AMENDMENT

Voters countywide will be asked whether or not to require both county and municipal approval of charter amendments affecting municipalities. The genesis of this ballot question was a controversial 2004 county charter amendment on annexation policy specifically designed to block Wellington’s possible western expansion. Voters in the western communities rejected the new annexation limits, but the amendment narrowly passed countywide. Municipal governments, led by the Palm Beach County League of Cities, support the current amendment to protect home rule and make sure that the county can never again run roughshod over the needs of its cities, towns and villages. Should this amendment pass, future charter amendments will not apply to municipalities whose voters do not support the measure. The Town-Crier has long maintained that the 2004 charter amendment was an unfair snub of the western communities, the legality of which is questionable in light of subsequent revelations regarding the activities of former county commissioner Tony Masilotti. Such an unnecessary display of county might should not be allowed to occur again. The Town-Crier strongly endorses a YES vote on the county charter amendment regarding future charter amendments and municipal power.

STATE CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENTS

Amendment 1 — This amendment, known as “Declaration of Rights,” would delete constitutional provisions allowing the legislature to prohibit the ownership, inheritance, disposition and possession of real property by aliens ineligible for citizenship. A long un-enforced vestige of Florida’s xenophobic past, this constitutional provision was originally designed to stop Asian immigrants from buying land. Florida is the only state to still have such a law on it books, and it should be removed. The TownCrier endorses a YES vote on Amendment 1.

Amendment 2 — This amendment, the so-called “Marriage Protection Amendment,” defines marriage as a legal union between one man and one woman and that no other legal union that provides marriage or “the substantial equivalent thereof” will be recognized. Amendment 2 is bad public policy on a number of fronts. First, Florida has several laws on the books restricting marriage to one man and one woman. Those laws have not been seriously challenged here, and given Florida’s constitutional background, any challenge is not likely to be successful. Second, the broad wording of the amendment is very likely to be used to throw out the limited “domestic partner” benefits (such as hospital visitation) currently offered by counties such as Palm Beach and cities such as West Palm Beach. While supporters of the amendment suggest that will not happen, it has happened in other states that have passed broadly worded bans. Thirdly, seniors advocates are very worried that an unintended

Wenham: Stop Land Giveaway

Many concerned residents have contacted me about Wellington’s proposed $30 million K-Park land giveaway to Palm Beach Community College and whether this is in the best interests of the residents.

Nearly all the information and presentations put forth thus far in the rush to close the deal come from the people and companies interested in moving the project forward; an objective assessment is missing. We know:

• The K-Park land, which was purchased by the residents, to provide land for recreational facilities and water re-use purposes, has an estimated value of $30 million that PBCC won’t be paying.

• PBCC will require extra police and fire protection, causing continuing traffic issues that will be paid for by residents because

PBCC won’t be paying property taxes. The project will gobble funding otherwise meant for parks and recreation and other projects such as drainage and roads.

• The proposal will compromise new recreational facilities and sports fields required by Wellington’s comprehensive plan to keep pace with community needs.

Our many parks and recreational programs make Wellington a great place to live. Giving the K-Park land away without giving village residents the true picture and a chance to vote on it is wrong The rights of residents must be protected.

Readers can find out more by e-mailing stopthegiveaway@ att.net.

Tom Wenham Wellington

Editor’s note: Mr. Wenham was mayor of Wellington from April 2000 to March 2008.

Loxahatchee Groves residents are probably remembering what many of their mothers admonished them: be careful what you wish for. Just short of two years since the tiny community’s first election after incorporation, the municipality is rife with controversy — not the least of which is circulation of a petition to dissolve the town.

Consider these problems:

• The long-standing Loxahatchee Groves Water Control District and the Loxahatchee Groves Town Council are locked in a battle over whether to bring the district under the town’s control.

• Some residents, particularly nursery and other small business owners, claim that selective code enforcement practices are forcing them out of business.

• Some say the promised 24/7 police protection at a cost of $275,000 per year through a contract with the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office has produced only the same services the community received before incorporation.

• Consultants so thick they’re bumping into each other, including one with a hefty $68,000 contract to study how to manage the roads, a job the water control district has been doing for many years, and another with a $24,000-a-year contract to provide lobbying services for the council.

• Complaints that the town council is not adequately informing residents of issues before they are approved, and that there is an atmosphere of

consequence of Amendment 2 will be to limit the rights of elderly widows and widowers on fixed incomes who choose to live in “domestic partner” arrangements rather than remarry and jeopardize survivor benefits from pensions and Social Security. Finally, Florida’s constitution is not the appropriate place to insert intolerant language specifically designed to relegate a minority to second-class status. Amendment 2 is a cynical ploy, funded largely by the Republican Party of Florida, which on its face has little merit and is designed primarily to boost conservative voter turnout during a presidential election year. The Town-Crier strongly endorses a NO vote on Amendment 2.

Amendment 3 — This amendment allows the legislature to prohibit the consideration of hurricane-resistant improvements and the installation of renewable energy devices in determining the assessed value of residential property. Currently, there is a financial disincentive for people to upgrade their homes to make them more storm-proof or energy-efficient because such improvements could increase its assessed value. Amendment 3 would eliminate the disincentive and encourage people to make such worthy improvements. The Town-Crier endorses a YES vote on Amendment 3.

Amendment 4 — This amendment would provide a tax break for property permanently dedicated for conservation. If the amendment passes, conservation land would be assessed on the basis of the character of its use, rather than the “highest and best use.” It will help encourage non-profit organizations and others to buy land for conservation, rather than continue to encourage excess development. The Town-Crier endorses a YES vote on Amendment 4.

Amendment 6 — Like Amendment 4, this amendment provides for the assessment of some working waterfront properties based on current use instead of “highest and best use.” The proposal came about after some marina owners could no longer afford to pay their property taxes following construction of highrise buildings nearby, which caused the marina’s taxes also to go up. Amendment 6 will help small business owners, slow waterfront overdevelopment and offer more economic diversity on Florida’s coasts. The Town-Crier endorses a YES vote on Amendment 6.

Amendment 8 — This amendment, called “Local Option Community College Funding,” would allow the creation of a local option sales tax to supplement funding for community colleges. If the amendment is approved, voters in each county seeking extra funding for its community college would then need to approve the tax by referendum. Should Palm Beach Community College want to benefit from this extra funding source in the future, it would have to make its case to county voters, but given the shaky state of education funding in Florida, it would be good to have the option. The Town-Crier endorses a YES vote on Amendment 8.

Amendments 5, 7 and 9 were removed from the ballot by the Florida Supreme Court. State constitutional amendments require 60 percent approval to pass.

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Wellington On A Dangerous Path

In the worst economic times since the Great Depression, it is an outrageous idea to give away 63 acres worth $30 million to Palm Beach Community College!

Wellington is implementing a major renovation plan to change the face of our village, and to start the ball rolling the council will build a municipal government complex for $15 million. They are doing it with current funds mostly dedicated to capital improvements, but they still need $5 million from the general fund to complete the project. What this does is deplete our impact fee reserves for future capital improvements, and significantly reduce our general fund. In 2009 we are spending $4 million for critical infrastructure, $2 million for road improvements and now $15 million for the complex.

By Don Brown

intolerance among council members aimed at residents opposed to council decisions. One resident claims his safety was threatened by a council member’s surrogate.

• Citizen concerns about how much money they will have to pay when the dust finally settles as the town emerges from its infancy.

• Continuing fears that began during the 2007 election that the town council wants to minimize the community’s nurseries (nearly half the town’s property) that have long been the lifeblood of Loxahatchee Groves. Many nursery owners point to the council’s confusing comprehensive plan language concerning the zoning “ag-residential” and rural-residential designations.

That’s quite a load for a new town to carry while it still tries to find its legs. And a load too large for supporters of a petition drive who would rather dismantle the municipality. Groves resident Eric Marple told me he became so disenchanted with

Tentative future budgets for the next few years are projected to be lean with almost nothing left for capital improvements and repairs. To keep future budgets somewhat in line, reserves are scheduled to be used to keep the taxes from growing out of hand. This is a stopgap measure that will last only for a few years, and when the reserves are depleted, we will be in real trouble.

Wellington has always been fiscally responsible, keeping enough reserves on hand to ensure low borrowing rates with good credit standards. Staying on the proposed budget track will challenge our past practices and lead to serious tax increases.

Why are we going down this path, when we have a 63-acre asset worth $30 million to help keep our future budgets in line? Where is the fiscal responsibility? Where is our foresight? Where is the good

judgment of former councils?

We are trading a feel-good proposal for dire future consequences.

Morley Alperstein Wellington

Semande Supports Enriquez

Let me start by saying that it has been my honor to serve on the Indian Trail Improvement District Board of Supervisors. Although it has been one of the

most rewarding experiences in my life, it has also been one of the most challenging. As you may know, I have decided not to seek re-election at this time, as there are personal endeavors that must be a priority. It is important that I get back to the family that I dearly love and enjoy.

Remembering back to when I first took office two years ago, our community was dealing with a very hostile environment, not to mention the embarrassment that many felt from all of the negative newspaper articles

See LETTERS, page 20

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the town council that two weeks ago he started a petition drive among the 950 voters (out of 1,900 registered voters) who cast ballots in the 2006 incorporation election. “I’ve gotten about 150 petitions back, and they are running four to two for dissolution of the town,” he told me.

“What sent me over the edge was when the town council members decided they want to take over the water control district. They said they wouldn’t do that, and it’s even in the charter,” Mr. Marple said.

He reminded me that LGWCD board members are elected by property owners on a one-vote-peracre basis. “Who’s protecting the rights of all those people who own acreage,” he asks, “including those who don’t live here?”

Only registered voters living in the town elect council members.

In his petition, Mr. Marple pointed out that eight other cities have been dissolved over the past several decades. “If you review your latest county tax assessment, you will see what you could save by not having to pay taxes to the Town of Loxahatchee Groves,” the petition letter reads. “We now have the power to reduce the taxes in Loxahatchee Groves by way of a referendum calling for the dissolution of the town…”

Mr. Marple said he was somewhat disturbed by a letter he received by Councilman Dr. Bill Louda, whom he described as a friend. In the let-

ter, Dr. Louda pointed out that the LGWCD “actively and openly campaigned against incorporation and the present council.” I hope that is not a suggestion of political retribution. In his letter, Dr. Louda dismissed any interest in protecting the rights of landowners who do not live on their property. “As you are an educated man,” he wrote Mr. Marple, “you should recall the governing policies of the Middle Ages. Does feudalism ring a bell? That is, rule by the landed gentry.”

Then he added that the “town, as is, is experiencing growth pains and I would have expected you, as a scientist, to have been able to observe, analyze and conclude in a more meaningful manner.”

Mr. Marple, a chemical engineer, said he is preparing a response to Dr. Louda’s letter. “I’m going to try to explain the math to him,” he said. At Tuesday night’s Loxahatchee Groves council meeting, LGWCD Board Chairman David DeMarois delivered a stinging letter to the council in which he noted several board objections to the town’s study on consolidating the district. In his letter, Mr. DeMarois asserted that the town violated public procurement practices in bidding out the study and that the process is weighted in favor of putting the LGWCD out of business.

“The town currently ‘outsources’ its primary

See

page 20

I’m Supporting Bob Margolis For PBC Supervisor Of Elections

Wondering & Wandering

By Ernie Zimmerman

I am going to do something I have never done before in my column. I am going to endorse a candidate who is running for office in Palm Beach County. So gather the kids and the grandkids so they too can hear my words of wisdom. I am endorsing Wellington Councilman Bob Margolis for Palm Beach County Supervisor of Elections. For years, the Supervisor of Elections Office has been the laughing stock of the country. First they messed up the presidential election a few years back. You remember the “year of the butterfly ballot.” That election paved the way for our country to have George W. Bush as our president for the past seven and a half years. And we all know what a good job he has been doing. He is one of the lowest-rated presidents who ever held the office. This year, in a simple primary election in the middle of the summer, the Supervisor of Elections Office screwed up an election for judge. So far they have counted the ballots in that race at least three times and it may not be over yet. The ousted incumbent is seeking another election. These are just a couple of reasons why we need some stability at the Supervisor of Elections Office. And I know Bob Margolis can create that stability. In the years that Mr. Margolis has been on the Wellington Village Council, he has been a voice of reason and has been well respected by the community. Mr. Margolis has the experience and the background to lead the Supervisor of Elections Office.

TOWN-CRIER

There have been suggestions from some on the Palm Beach County Commission to make the supervisor of elections an appointed position instead of an elected position. I think this is a very bad idea. The people should have the right to vote and choose who they want to run this office, not the seven county commissioners. Since we only are allowed to vote for one county commissioner, we the people would have very little say-so on who they would select to lead this very important office. We don’t need a political hack as the supervisor of elections.

Just think: if the county commission does decide to appoint the elections supervisor (voters would have to support this change in law), will they next decide to appoint the sheriff or the clerk of the court? The possibilities are endless. Of course, if we could each vote for all seven county commissioners like we used to, then maybe I might have another opinion on this subject. However, until that happens, I am very satisfied

that the voters choose the supervisor of elections. Please don’t take that right away from us. I was wondering why a certain club in Century Village will only allow certain candidates to speak at their meetings, and not allow other candidates to speak to them. It sounds very strange and unAmerican to me. I voted in my first election while I was serving in Vietnam, and I have voted in every election since then. And I plan on voting in many more elections. Remember, if you fail to vote in this election, in my opinion you have lost the right to complain about the way the government is being run. So don’t forget to vote!

Editor’s note: Given the nature of Mr. Zimmerman’s column this week, it was moved from its normal location in the feature section to the opinion page. Further, we should point out for the record that in addition to being a Town-Crier columnist, Mr. Zimmerman is an employee of the Village of Wellington.

Despite Misgivings, Indian Trail Extends Contract With PBSO

By Ron Bukley Town-Crier Staff Report

The Indian Trail Improvement District Board of Supervisors approved a one-year extension Wednesday to a contract for two Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office deputies to patrol district property, but only after seeking clarification on the responsibilities of the deputies.

ITID has contracted with the PBSO for the deputies for several years, and this year’s extension is worth $220,000. The contract deputies’ duties are different than those of zone patrols, the primary law enforcement officers whose services are paid for by county taxes, ITID President Mike Erickson said. The two contract deputies are specifically supposed to patrol ITID’s property and parks, he said.

The board began discussing an extension of the PBSO contract at its September meeting, but postponed a decision after Erickson said he had been ticketed for speeding by a deputy with assistance from one of the district’s contract deputies. The

board appointed Supervisor Michelle Damone and District Administrator Chris King to meet with PBSO representatives to clarify the duties of district deputies.

King reported that they had a constructive meeting with PBSO Operations Director Major Mike Veccia, where they learned that there is a profile already in place for the duties the district’s deputies are to follow.

“That made our job a little bit easier,” King said. “Our requests were already in the profile.”

Lt. Steve Thibodeau, who participates in contract negotiations for the PBSO under Veccia, attended the meeting and said the board’s concerns were being addressed, including that the district deputies not conduct law enforcement services unless it is in an emergency where the district deputy is the closest responder.

Thibodeau said the results of the meeting and the board’s concerns had been passed on to Capt. Chris Calloway, the commander of the PBSO’s District

3, which includes The Acreage.

“Capt. Calloway is well versed in the concerns of the district,” Thibodeau said.

Damone said the district was partly at fault for some of the misunderstandings that had arisen because they discovered the contract had not been reviewed for six years.

“We made a clear difference in zone deputies and district deputies,” Damone said. “Obviously if there is an emergency, the deputy will be a backup. If he is going from Park A to Park B and a driver zips by him at 70 mph, he will make a traffic stop, but he is not going to set up radar.”

Erickson said he did not feel the district is getting its money’s worth from the two deputies, suggesting that the district should reduce the contract to one deputy and use the $110,000 savings to hire two night watchmen or park rangers.

Erickson added that he remains concerned that deputies are conducting law enforcement activities on the district’s dime, which the ITID is not authorized

to do. “We don’t expect deputies to have special power. We’re not a municipality,” he said. “We don’t have a police force or a contract with the PBSO.”

Supervisor Sandra Love Semande said she would like to see more deputies, but sometimes wonders where their contract deputies are. “I agree with Mike that we could hire one deputy and two watchmen, but I do like seeing a Rambo guy out there with a gun,” she said.

Supervisor Ralph Bair suggested that after what had been described as a successful meeting with PBSO representatives to clarify their expectations, that the board go ahead and approve the contract as written.

“I think we should continue to work with the sheriff,” Bair said. “Night watchmen generally sit and watch a building. We’re asking a night watchman to drive all over the district.”

Damone said she favored extending the existing contract.

“I’m for two Rambos with guns and arresting power,” Damone said.

SHELLEY VANA FUNDRAISER HELD IN ROYAL PALM

A fundraiser and reception for County Commission District 3

candidate Shelley Vana was held last Sunday at the home of Brian and Mary Anne Hanley of Royal Palm Beach. In attendance were representatives from the Town of Loxahatchee Groves, the Village of Royal Palm Beach and the Village of Wellington. Vana, currently the District 85 state representative, was introduced by Jay Weitz of the Democratic Executive Committee and Joe Abruzzo, who hopes to replace her in the state house. Also speaking at the event was State Senate District 25 candidate Linda Bird.

Thibodeau said if a deputy were checking a pump and saw a crime in progress, he would have immediate arrest power, while a watchman would not, and the suspects could escape while waiting for a deputy to arrive.

“I’m also a resident of The Acreage, and I like the extra security, also,” Thibodeau added.

However, Semande said she felt the district has been paying more for law enforcement and fire protection than it receives, and noted that several residents questioned some of the activities of the deputies, which allegedly included fraternizing with school crossing guards.

“I don’t like the double-dipping,” Semande said. “I don’t want deputies at school crossing-guard posts just hanging out.”

Damone said she sensed a lack of distinction in the PBSO between district deputies and zone deputies.

“If we want more law enforcement, we need to go to

Election Day is coming, and it’s not all about senators John McCain and Barack Obama. Floridians will have several amendments to ponder before Tuesday, Nov. 4. That is why Congregation B’nai Avraham in Wellington has invited Pamela Goodman of the League of Women Voters on Wednesday, Oct. 15 at 7 p.m. to discuss what’s on the ballot. Refreshments will be served,

The School District of Palm Beach County invites all parents and guardians to the “Showcase of Schools” on Tuesday,

Commissioner Jess Santamaria and ask for more bang for our buck,” she said. “Some of our district deputies have played zone deputies.” Damone asked that the contract be extended to give an opportunity to resolve the issues.

“Major Veccia brought out the deficiencies,” she said. “This district has not supplied an adequate job description for six years.”

Damone added that there is gang activity and drug activity in the parks. “There is plenty of crime going on in the parks in this district,” she said.

King said he felt they had made great strides in discussions with the PBSO. “I would ask to let staff work with the sheriff,” he said. “If you find the level of service is not acceptable, you have a 60-day clause to get out anytime.”

Supervisor Carol Jacobs made a motion to approve the one-year contract extension, which Semande seconded. The motion was approved unanimously.

PHOTOS BY CAROL PORTER/TOWN-CRIER

Jay Weitz of the Democratic Executive Committee.

Shelley Vana says a few words.

George Pelzmacher, Royal Palm Beach Councilwoman Martha Webster, Shelley Vana, Doreen Baxter and Loxahatchee Groves Councilman Dennis Lipp.

Wellington Councilman Matt Willhite and his son Luke with Martha Webster and Brian Hanley.

Patrons Get Rowdy At RPB Sports Bar

By Jason Budjinski Town-Crier Staff Report

OCT. 3 — A man and woman were arrested last Friday after they were caught smoking marijuana outside the Mall at Wellington Green. According to a Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office report, deputies from the PBSO substation in Wellington were conducting surveillance at approximately 1:30 p.m. when they were advised of a vehicle backed in by the bus stop. The occupants of the vehicle, 42year-old Gwendo Hall and 37year-old Kenneth Baker, were discovered drinking beer and smoking marijuana. Both were arrested and issued notices to appear in court.

OCT. 3 — A deputy from the PBSO substation in Wellington was dispatched last Friday to the Pei Wei Asian diner near the Mall at Wellington Green in response to a vehicle burglary. According to a PBSO report, the victim parked her Chrysler Town & Country at the rear of the restaurant at approximately 10:30 a.m. When she returned at 4:15 p.m., the victim discovered someone had smashed the driver-side rear window and entered the vehicle, rummaging through the compartments. Nothing was taken.

OCT. 4 — A Royal Palm Beach man was arrested last Saturday night and charged with criminal mischief outside Duffy’s sports bar on Southern Blvd. According to a PBSO report, 21year-old Mark Raso was found to have been involved in a drunken argument that led to him pounding his fists on a vehicle parked outside the bar. Witnesses told a PBSO deputy they observed Raso attempt to verbally engage several individuals before challenging the crowd to a physical altercation. According to the report, no one responded to Raso and he took out his aggressions on the vehicle, smashing out the rear windshield and injuring himself in the process. Palm Beach County Fire-Rescue personnel responded and treated Raso for his injuries. He was arrested and later transported to the Palm Beach County Jail.

OCT. 4 — A resident of Bob White Road called the PBSO substation in Royal Palm Beach last Saturday regarding a burglary. According to a PBSO report, the complainant told deputies the foreclosed house next door to hers had been burglarized sometime between July 24 and last Saturday. The exterior air-conditioning unit had been dismantled, a window had been broken, two windows and a door were left open, an FPL meter had been removed and a mirror had been broken, among other damages. No latent prints were obtained. The deputy was unable to contact the home’s previous owner at the time of the report.

OCT. 4 — A deputy from the PBSO substation in Royal Palm Beach was dispatched last Saturday to the Wal-Mart Supercenter on Belvedere Road regarding a vehicle burglary. According to a PBSO report, the victim parked her vehicle and entered the store at approximately 5 p.m. When she returned at

approximately 6:45 p.m., the victim discovered that the passenger-side window had been smashed and her global positioning system had been stolen. No latent prints were obtained due to rain. There were no suspects or witnesses at the time of the report.

OCT. 4 — A resident of Oak Bend Way called the PBSO substation in Wellington early last Saturday regarding a burglary. According to a PBSO report, sometime between 8 p.m. last Friday and midnight the following morning, someone entered the victim’s unlocked vehicle and stole numerous items, including a gate opener, flashlight, camera, a Garmin global positioning system, garage-door opener and miscellaneous CDs. The items had been stored inside a black bag on the back seat.

OCT. 5 — A Loxahatchee man was arrested last Sunday and charged with disorderly conduct at Duffy’s sports bar in Royal Palm Beach. According to a PBSO report, 21-year-old Joseph Schunatz sprayed pepper spray into the air, causing patrons to gag, some asking for refunds for their meals. Schunatz admitted to the charges, according to the report. He was issued a notice to appear in court.

OCT. 5 — A deputy from the PBSO substation in Wellington responded early last Sunday to an apartment on Goldenrod Road regarding a theft. According to a PBSO report, the victim, a taxi driver, arrived at the residence with a customer at approximately 4:50 a.m. The customer asked the victim if he could use her BlackBerrry cell phone, to which she obliged. The customer took the phone and headed toward the apartment, entering the front door without returning the phone, according to the report. The deputy checked the apartment but did not find the suspect, who is described as an Hispanic male approximately 22 years old, 5’9”, with black hair and a thin build.

OCT. 6 — A West Palm Beach man was arrested early Monday morning on drug charges following a traffic stop at the intersection of Royal Palm Beach and Okeechobee boulevards. According to a PBSO report, the deputy pulled over a vehicle for making a U-turn while the traffic light was red. Upon making contact with driver, the deputy observed the smell of marijuana emanating from the vehicle. According to the report, the deputy further noticed that the passenger, 21-yearold Preston Whitefield, was concealing an open beer behind his back. The deputy conducted a search of the vehicle and found a pill bottle containing Xanax and cocaine stored beneath the passenger seat. Whitefield was arrested and charged with drug possession. He was transported to the county jail.

OCT. 6 — A resident of Sheffield Street called the PBSO substation in Wellington on Monday morning regarding a vehicle burglary. According to a PBSO report, sometime between 8 p.m. last Sunday and See BLOTTER, page 20

on the charges of burglary of a conveyance and petit theft. His occupation is laborer. His last known address was South 38th Court in Greenacres. Howell is wanted as of 10/09/08. Remain anonymous and you may be eligible for up to a $1,000 reward. Call Crime Stoppers at (800) 458-TIPS (8477) or visit www.crimestopperspbc. com.

Chad Brown

Jason Howell

Changing Newspaper Industry The Focus At P.W. Chamber Lunch

By Carol Porter Town-Crier Staff Report

Palm Beach Post publisher

Doug Franklin shared his views on the state of the newspaper industry in the current faltering economy with Palms West Chamber of Commerce members at the chamber’s monthly luncheon Monday.

Franklin, who took the helm of the Cox-owned Palm Beach Post in April, said that even as a recent transplant from Ohio, it seemed to him that Florida must further diversify its economy beyond tourism and real estate to experience a real recovery.

“As we go through some more challenges in the next six to 12 months,” Franklin said, “I think more people are going to recognize we need to do more in terms of diversity. Real estate will come back, but we need to have some other opportunities in the business models in South Florida.”

Franklin said the emerging biotech sector centered on the Scripps Research Institute is a good start. “From my view and perspective, I looked at Scripps and the biotech project. That’s fantastic. That’s a 25-year bet, but it’s a good bet,” he said. “We have to make those kind of bets in the community. You can’t make a lot of them, but I think it’s a good one to go for.” Franklin added that while Florida’s economy and stability would eventually rebound, the state must make a better effort

to sort out its policies on taxation and insurance. Meanwhile, Franklin said, he and others in the newspaper business are experiencing more dramatic changes than the industry has ever seen before, and have encountered an “economic perfect storm” of shrinking readership, competition from other media and rising costs. The paper’s single largest material cost is newsprint, he noted.

“Newsprint prices are 33 percent higher than last year, and they are expected to double next year,” he said. “Another factor that is pressing on newspapers and putting pressure on the industry is the Internet. The Internet is only 12 years old, and it has put a tremendous amount of strain on all the mass media when you talk about newspapers, radio or television. They are all experiencing the challenges that the Internet brings.”

Franklin noted that advertising accounts for 80 percent of the Post’s revenue, with subscriptions the other 20 percent. He said the Palm Beach Post would continue to diversify its media outlets beyond the traditional newspaper in order to serve loyal readers and advertisers.

“We have this big print readership which is doing very well and which is stable,” Franklin said. “It’s declining ever so gradually. The web audience is growing fantastically.”

Franklin said readers can ex-

pect to see more changes, and not all of them will be negative. “Strategically, we will have to spend more time in the western communities,” he said. “I think you will see us continue to emphasize our coverage and do more things that bring more attention to the western communities. This is a great area in terms of growth, and a great area in terms of future growth. It’s important that the Post have a strong presence, but I think we can capitalize on it even more.”

And the Post will continue to play its role in the community, Franklin said. “We still have about 200 journalists in our newsroom, covering news every day,” he said. “We will continue to do our investigative reporting in areas that are important. We will keep the watchdog out there in terms of our elected officials and our public dollar. We will continue our strong partnership with the Palms West Chamber of Commerce.”

Monday’s luncheon was sponsored by and held at the Fountains Country Club in Lake Worth.

Club official Stan Wishnoff invited chamber members to explore the possibility of a club membership, and noted the club’s clubhouse renovation plans and new 16,000-squarefoot sports complex, including a state-of-the-art fitness center.

Wishnoff also noted that the Fountains has a mix of housing stock that offers a home for ev-

ery type of need. “We feature three championship 18-hole golf courses,” he said. “We can boast of 1,765 homes, ranging from one to three bedrooms, townhouses, villas and stand-alone homes.”

Like the chamber itself, Wishnoff said the Fountains is very active in the community, providing practice facilities for golf teams from Lake Worth High School and Florida Atlantic University. The Fountains also hosts tournaments that develop the talents of golfers for the PGA and nationwide tours.

“Throughout the year, we host men’s charity events such as Hospice and the Susan G. Komen breast cancer walk,” Wishnoff said. “Over the years, the Fountains has donated close to $1 million to the Special Olympics, and they have honored us by dedicating a building to the Fountains Country Club. As you can see, although we are a private country club, we are very much involved in our community.”

For more information about the Fountains Country Club, call (561) 642-2700 or visit www. fountainscc.com.

The Palms West Chamber of Commerce’s next luncheon is scheduled for Monday, Nov. 10 at the Royal Palm Beach Cultural Center. Tickets cost $15 for members and $25 for non-members. For more info., call (561) 790-6200 or visit www.palms west.com.

PHOTOS BY CAROL PORTER/TOWN-CRIER

Palm Beach Post Publisher Doug Franklin discusses the newspaper industry.

Palms West Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Jaene Miranda recognizes Palm Beach Post publisher Doug Franklin and Fountains Country Club official Stan Wishnoff.

Debra Dargan is honored as Ambassador of the Month.

Lox Town Council Responds To Mailed ‘Dissolution’ Survey

By Carol Porter Town-Crier Staff Report

The Loxahatchee Groves Town Council mulled its reaction Tuesday to a resident’s survey on the possibility of dissolving the town, which incorporated less than two years ago.

Resident Eric Marple mailed the survey to other residents in mid-September, raising the possibility of creating a petition to dissolve the town in the name of lower taxes. Such a petition could pave the way for a referendum of voters on the issue.

Councilman Dr. Bill Louda raised the matter at the council’s Tuesday meeting, asking whether the town should take any damage-control measures related to the survey.

Town Attorney David Tolces said he would send the survey letter to the state’s elections office to see if it violated any laws.

Lippman also said he would send out a newsletter educating people on how the town works, the revenue it receives as a result of incorporation and other issues.

Councilman Dennis Lipp asked how the dissolution process might work. Tolces explained that like incorporation, such an effort would need the approval of the county’s legislative delegation to be sponsored as a bill in Tallahassee, and if a majority of legislators approve it, the town would be unincorporated.

During public comment, Loxahatchee Groves Water Control District Supervisor Ron Jarriel said he had spoken with Marple and received the survey in the mail, and he didn’t think it really anything to worry about. Jarriel said Marple is worried about relations between the town and

the district, and decided to put out a survey to gauge how people feel about the town.

“All I hear from the meetings is complimentary stuff about the town council,” Jarriel said. “It’s the way that you run the business that’s bothering him. I know his heart is in the right place. I would say wait until the survey is over. I would also ask the attorney if it would cost anything to check with Tallahassee.”

E Road resident Howard Voren called Marple “a heck of a nice guy” and cautioned the council about blowing the issue out of proportion. Sending out a newsletter educating residents would be a good idea because it would describe how the town had the benefit of revenues the community could not access when it was a part of the county, he said.

“The drainage district cannot collect the gas taxes,” Voren said. “They had to go begging. As a municipality, we have the right to get that.”

Also Tuesday, LGWCD Supervisor John Ryan presented a letter from LGWCD Chairman David DeMarois expressing strident objections to a study authorized by the town last month on the costs and benefits of making the district a dependent entity of the town.

In his letter, DeMarois charged that the town had not bothered to advertise its request for proposals to perform the study in a daily newspaper and that the “random” distribution of the request had generated three proposals from entities that each have extensive links to people providing the town legal, management or planning services. He wrote that it would be no

surprise if the study determines that the LGWCD should be a dependent district with the same sort of outsourced management.

DeMarois called the period of 60 days from suggesting the study to contracting to delivery “an absurdly rushed” timetable for such an important subject.

“The consultants have only 34 days from contract award to final presentation,” he wrote.

“This is a ludicrously short time in which to do an evaluation of intergovernmental relations — unless the outcome is already established.”

DeMarois also cited the wide variance in the three bids submitted — from a low bid of $5,000 to a high bid of more than $43,000 — as evidence of the “vague and open-ended” scope of work in the study.

“A truly cooperative approach would better serve the interests

of the Loxahatchee Groves community,” DeMarois wrote. “The town, however, insists on a unilateral, dictatorial approach that denies the legitimacy of the district’s viewpoint, unnecessarily generating conflict and confrontation. The consolidation study is fundamentally flawed on many levels — motive, concept and implementation. The public has legitimate concerns regarding the ‘cost-effectiveness’ of the governmental services provided by their tax dollars.”

Tolces denied any relationship between his firm or Town Manager Irv Rosenbaum’s firm to any of the bidders. He also dismissed any ulterior motive on the part of the town.

“We would not force a company to commit to a conclusion before they have done the study,” Tolces said.

PBSO Has Lox Groves Criminals, But Needs Victims To Come Forward

By Carol Porter Town-Crier Staff Report

Although the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office has arrested several suspects who confessed to robberies in Loxahatchee Groves, it is having problems locating the victims. That was the focal point of a PBSO report on criminal activity in the area at the most recent meeting of the Loxahatchee Groves Landowners’ Association Delivering his monthly report on crime in Loxahatchee Groves, PBSO Lt. David Kronsperger told LGLA members at their Sept. 25 meeting that his deputies had made progress in combating a rash of robberies of migrant workers in the area, but that one of the agency’s biggest investigative obstacles continues to be the refusal of many victims to report the crimes.

“We did make an arrest of three different individuals who admitted and confessed to several robberies,” Kronsperger said. “The problem we have run into, like the problem we have been running into in the past, is that these people say they have robbed 15 different guys out there, and we don’t have the people calling in and saying they were robbed.”

Kronsperger urged LGLA members to encourage victims

to come forward. “Once again, they are not calling us when they are becoming victims,” he said.

“If you know some of them, or if they work for you, and if you know something is wrong, tell them to call us.”

Law enforcement personnel are not looking to investigate immigration status, Kronsperger stressed, noting that such an effort would only worsen the robbery problem.

“That is not our job,” Kronsperger said. “That is not our concern. We specifically stay away from that just for that reason. If we start down that path, everything we have been working for years on with these people would be gone in a matter of one night. You would have a society that everyone would prey on, knowing they would never call us.”

Kronsperger said a local law enforcement problem tied to the current economic situation is a rising number of burglaries of homes in the process of foreclosure. Many times the burglars are looking to strip a home of metal fixtures that can be sold for scrap, such as screen enclosure framework.

“This is happening all over the place,” Kronsperger said. “They are gutting the inside of the homes. A lot of times, they are going to the back screened

patios and taking the screened patios and selling them for scrap. People are taking the screens off the pool, and then we have a pool that’s wide open. We have to look at that especially in light of the Wellington girl who recently drowned. We don’t want any open pits sitting around.”

The unclear ownership status of many of these homes further complicates the problem, Kronsperger said.

“We have to figure out who actually owns the house,” he said. “A lot of them are in the courts. It becomes quite an issue. We are trying to figure out who the victim is. The bank doesn’t own it, but it’s in the courts.”

Also at the meeting, planner

Colleen Walter of Kilday & Associates offered an update on the Solid Waste Authority’s search for a new landfill site in western Palm Beach County, which has been narrowed to three sites. The county garbage agency, searching for a landfill location in the Everglades Agricultural Area, has settled on three potential sites between seven and eight miles from Loxahatchee Groves. Walter said the SWA is in its second phase of evaluation of those sites, all of which would be accessed from Southern Blvd.

Walter said offers of all three

sites had come from private owners after environmental interests raised concerns about the proposed use of a 1,600-acre SWA-owned site on the west side of the Arthur R. Marshall Loxahatchee National Wildlife Refuge when the current landfill near Jog Road reaches capacity, expected in 2021. Walter said the three sites have been ranked for preference based on a review of development and operating costs as well as terms of acquisition of the land. The Palm Beach County

Commission, which also serves as the SWA Governing Board, will review the possible alternatives at their Oct. 22 meeting, but Walter said it is uncertain whether a decision would be made that day. “Landfills usually take five years to permit and construct,” Walter said. “We’re getting close to the time frame where the county has to make a decision and move forward. This is a public hearing, and everyone is invited to attend.”

Walter invited LGLA members to offer feedback to the

Solid Waste Authority for incorporation into their Oct. 22 presentation.

Diane Von Grote asked about the fate of the SWA-owned site if an alternative is selected. Amber Barritt of the consulting firm CDM, who accompanied Walter for the presentation, said the site would be put up for sale. “They are talking with different interests,” she said. “The South Florida Water Management District is interested, but the SWA has different options out there for it.”

College Funding Seminars At Wellington High School

John Convery of the Educat-

ed Wealth Center will host free college funding seminars Tuesday and Thursday, Oct. 14 and 16 at 7 p.m. in the Wellington High School lecture hall.

The seminars will cater to parents of high school aged children but are open to the general public.

“I realize that more and more people in Palm Beach County are having problems paying for their children’s college education and that they are looking for answers to

these problems,” Convery said. “The purpose behind having these free seminars is to answer the questions that parents have about college funding and to try and show them there is hope during these tough financial times.”

Palm Beach County residents will be most interested in the new changes to the financial aid rules. “Everyone has heard about the new rules parents must follow to get financial aid for their children’s college education, but no one is really sure how these rules

will affect them,” Convery said. “During the seminar, parents will hear how these rules are applied and what they need to do to comply with them.” Convery, who just returned from a college financial planning conference in Las Vegas, Nev., will make all the new information he learned at the conference available to the community at no charge. Any parents interested in attending the seminars can make reservations by calling Convery’s office at (561) 7847910.

Town Consultant: Road Workshop The Start Of A Long Process

By Carol Porter Town-Crier Staff Report

A Saturday workshop on a road plan for the Town of Loxahatchee Groves drew plenty of local residents late last month.

The Master Road, Equestrian and Greenway Trail Plan or MREG is being drafted as a companion document to the town’s comprehensive plan, which has been submitted for state review.

The Sept. 27 presentation on the road plan was intended to gather public input. Of the five members of the Loxahatchee Groves Town Council, only councilmen Dave Autrey and Dr. Bill Louda were present for the entire workshop. Councilman Dennis Lipp was there for part of the meeting.

Traffic engineer Jeff Maxwell

of the town’s consulting firm Calvin, Giordano & Associates, who is devising the MREG plan, explained that the MREG would aim to determine how well the town’s mostly unpaved road network is performing now, and estimate how it would perform in the future with the town built out more fully.

Maxwell was quick to point out that the MREG would not concern itself only with the merits of different road surfaces, noting that the Loxahatchee Groves Water Control District had examined that topic with a district-wide paving study in 2006.

Maxwell said his firm would be performing traffic counts to rate how well the town’s intersections are currently handling traffic loads, and use computer

programs to determine what improvements are needed now.

“We need to find out which intersections are failing, and then we can take a look at what we can do to fix those failures,” he said.

Computers will also help forecast what may happen in the future as traffic increases, Maxwell said. “We want to understand how they are working out and how they are going to work out in the future so we can identify any problems that could arise and figure out a solution for it,” he said.

Maxwell said he would also examine the road network as a whole and the effects of various surfacing improvements such as full paving, the open graded emulsified mix that has been used on some roads such as Marcella Blvd. and F Road, and traffic calming measures such as speed tables, versus leaving the surfaces as they are.

Maxwell also noted that the final report would also include the possibilities of equestrian and pedestrian trails along the roadways. “We are going to look at opportunities for putting in trails on the existing roadway network,” he said. “We will look for opportunities for north/south and east/west and see what is available out there for you. We want to keep an eye on those, always with the thought of creating connectivity throughout the town.”

Town Clerk Matt Lippman told residents the town would welcome any road information, plans or data they might happen to have on hand, no matter how old or outdated it might seem.

“I encourage anyone here who has information to talk to us,” he said. “We don’t want to reinvent the wheel. We want to take what’s existing and incor-

porate what we are doing and blend it together.”

Town Manager Dr. Irv Rosenbaum said the town would also consider options for funding road network and trail improvements such as bonds, while remaining sensitive of the possible burden on taxpayers.

“What we don’t want to do is burden the community with an assessment process and a taxation process that will cost you a lot,” he said. “What we want to do is look at the total package and total road network. Horse trails are a part of your community. They can be a strong recreational element.”

During public comment, equestrian Ingrid Taskin asked whether asphalt roads would include easements, guardrails and other amenities. Maxwell said there may not be the roadway width for such improvements, but reassured her that asphalt was not the sole option being considered. Maxwell also noted that Loxahatchee Groves has particular considerations to factor in, such as canals.

E Road resident Bill Gurney was concerned that paving would likely cost too much.

“Paving is a very expensive option,” he said. “If you want to go with OGEM or dirt roads, we don’t have to purchase any additional property. We don’t have to put in guardrails or drainage. It’s up to us to decide what we want. Paving is a heck of an expensive deal for all of us.”

Veterinarian Dr. Deborah Marshall said she had seen negative changes in the seven years since she moved to the community, and that OGEM stabilization work had hurt her business.

“We were promised that it would be a surface that would be safe for the horses,” she said.

“It wasn’t. I lost all three of my

boarders. Am I going to yell and scream? No. I am struggling. I would like to get that income back if possible.”

Sunsport Gardens owner Morley Schloss suggested narrowing some roads to slow down or discourage traffic. Widening of the road in front of his resort had encouraged a lot of cut-through traffic, he said.

“A few years ago when there was a one-way section, there was far less traffic,” he said. “Cars would have to stop at one end, and make sure nobody was coming before they proceeded. It has been widened, and now it’s more of a two-lane road. We get a lot more trucks. I would love to see whether it’s possible to consider narrowing the roads so they return to a one-lane status.”

Several residents questioned the long-term usefulness of OGEM, among them Bryan Road resident Ruth Menor. “We were one of the first roads in the community for OGEM,” she said. “That was six years ago. Now we are looking at huge potholes in the road. We have to look at it. We paved it, and we got a lot of cut-through traffic, and the heavy trucks damaged our roads. Our residents on the road are trying to do something about it, but it’s like putting a finger in the dike.”

Equestrian Mary Ann Miles said that she rode on her own property and would love to ride on the other roads in the community, but she just did not think it safe to ride on the roads in their present condition, especially North Road. As far as shrinking the roads, she said, there were safety issues with that as well.

“When you are on horseback or not, you can’t see unless you pull out halfway,” Miles said, “and by the time you stick your

nose way out, someone coming east or west has clipped you. We have children standing out there every morning waiting for the bus. I feel there are safety issues. Shrinking the roads and making it one lane, that is a safety issue. You guys are adults. You need to slow down. If you have young drivers, you need to catch them by the back of the head, and say if I catch you speeding, you are done. Safety comes first whether we are a town or a drainage district. The drivers need to slow down. Everyone needs to take a step back and ask themselves, why are we here?”

LGWCD Supervisor John Ryan urged cooperation between the town and the district on the issue, and encouraged residents to attend the LGWCD board’s Oct. 13 meeting to hear the results of a survey on the roads. He said the LGWCD is trying to find ways to keep the roads drivable and safe, but that it has been difficult to please everybody.

“Over the years, we have tried to respond or develop a way to respond to residents who are concerned about washboard surfaces, and dust and safety,” Ryan said.

“My own experience on A Road is we’ve had two speeders and two deaths in the canals in the last year. We tried to consider alternatives and come up with a common-sense solution. We did take advantage of county funding to do an experiment on both North and South F Road. We’ve had a mix of reactions. Some people like it, and some people don’t like it. It has calmed and slowed the traffic down and provided a more reliable surface. We’ve had some equestrians who say they like it with respect to trailers and riders. We’ve had others who say they don’t like it.”

Traffic engineer Jeff Maxwell of Calvin, Giordano & Associates explains the Master Road, Equestrian and Greenway Trail Plan or MREG at the Sept. 27 town workshop. PHOTO BY CAROL PORTER/TOWN-CRIER

Indian Trail Offers Drainage Help To Rural Enclave

By Ron Bukley Town-Crier Staff Report

The Indian Trail Improvement District offered several options Wednesday to an isolated neighborhood in the western part of the district plagued by drainage problems.

Residents of Sunny Urban Meadows, west of the L-8 Canal in ITID’s westernmost area, appealed to the ITID Board of Supervisors last month after tropical storm rains flooded their neighborhood.

Although Sunny Urban Meadows is within ITID, the area is not an active development unit and residents do not pay assessment fees or receive drainage services. Residents say a farm to the north shut down recently, along with its drainage pumps. At the board’s Wednesday meeting, ITID Engineer Lisa Tropepe explained what would be necessary and the approximate cost to residents for the district to outfit the neighborhood with drainage infrastructure.

Tropepe said the least expensive option might be to install only a 13-cubic-foot-per-second diesel pump, possibly in the northeast portion of the subdivision, if a 20-by-20-foot easement could be obtained from the owner of the lot located at 59th Lane North and 190th Terrace North next to the L-8 Canal.

“In order to provide the pump there would have to be a proposal to [the] South Florida Water Management [District] to discharge one inch per day,” Tropepe said. “Providing a pump doesn’t mean there won’t be flooding, but it would not be as bad as what they have been experiencing.”

A one-inch daily removal rate would provide the residents a level of service consistent with other agricultural areas, according to Tropepe’s report. The cost would be between $195,000 and $267,000.

The next step would be to look into how the residents could acquire an easement and get a permit to excavate a canal. Tropepe said there are many uncertainties in acquiring ease-

ments for the pump and excavation of a canal

Tropepe said a ditch or canal might be located along the north property line between the agricultural land and Sunny Urban Meadows, but she could not tell yet because it is heavily vegetated.

Tropepe estimated the cost of canal debris removal at between $40,000 and $150,000. The cost of making the neighborhood an active ITID development unit was not included in the report, she said.

Resident Kathi Talbert said the north end of the neighborhood is actually the higher end and a canal would be necessary to route water there. She said the problem was compounded when flooding overran a portion of 190th Terrace North, washing out a portion of the road. The South Florida Water Management District filled in the road but did not replace a culvert underneath it, Talbert said.

Resident Charlotte Gomes asked if a feasibility study could be done without Sunny Urban Meadows becoming an active unit.

ITID attorneys Mary Viator and Charlie Schoech explained the powers of improvement districts. By law the district can charge landowners for expenses up to $50 per acre for initial costs without activation, Viator said, but more than 50 percent of the landowners must approve.

Schoech noted that Sunny Urban Meadows asked the district for drainage help ten years ago. “The answer was the same then as it is now,” he said. “We cannot charge the other residents of the district for improvements to Sunny Urban Meadows.”

District staff estimated that the cost to residents for drainage infrastructure installation would be about $1,500 per acre for the 49 residences.

Schoech said the district would need approval from 51 percent of property owners to get the assessments in place and 100 percent approval to get access to the currently private easements.

ENRIQUEZ KICKS OFF CAMPAIGN FOR ITID

Lox Toddler Critical After Near Drowning

OCT. 7 — A Loxahatchee man called the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office Tuesday after discovering that his two-year-old son had nearly drowned in a pond behind their home.

According to a PBSO report, 26-year-old Jason Rogers found his son Kyle at approximately 6 p.m. after Jason’s

three-year-old daughter Kayla informed him of Kyle’s whereabouts. Upon hearing this, Jason ran outside and rescued Kyle from the pond, performing CPR on him before calling 911, according to the report. Kyle was taken to Palms West Hospital, where he was last listed in critical condition.

Palm Beach Central Project Grad Committee Seeks Volunteers

Attention Palm Beach Central High School senior parents: if you are looking to get involved in your child’s final year at Palm Beach Central and don’t know how, the school has an answer for you. Join the Project Graduation Committee meetings the first Monday night of each month in the Palm Beach Central media center.

Meetings start at 6 p.m. and are the perfect way to get involved. Bring a friend and help plan your child’s big end-of-year bash. For more information, email co-chair Ruth Douthitt at fanofgh@comcast.net or cochair Debbie Nicholson at deb.tennis@comcast.net.

• The Bronco Players Proudly presented by the Bronco Players, “A Night of One Acts” will take place Oct. 10 and 11 at the Palm Beach Central High School auditorium. Friday night’s show will begin at 5 p.m. and Saturday’s show will begin at 6 p.m. The show will feature Man of the House , The Red Coat, Bridal Terrorism and Our Rotten Town The Bronco Players will present High School Musical Dec. 12, 13, 15 and 16. Tickets will go on sale Nov. 1 and can be purchased online at www.seatyourself.biz/bronco.

• FBLA News — The Bronco Future Business Leaders of

America had an amazing day at the District Fall Conference, held Oct. 1 at the Palm Beach County Convention Center. There were about 20 schools represented, and out of three competitions, the Broncos took first place in two of them. Palm Beach Central was represented by 50 amazing business leaders (they really looked the part, too). Matthew Boykin and Reed Jeschonek brought home first place in Battle of the Schools (keeping the title two years in a row), and Cristian Albanil and David Moses took first place in the Brochure Competition. The school is proud of them and their hard work.

• Debate Team — Fifty members of the Palm Beach Central debate team recently competed against 20 other schools at Cardinal Newman High School. Raphael Pierre brought home a first-place plaque, and Joshua Weinberg brought home a second-place plaque. Also placing were Jake Schneiderman, Eva Reynoso, Omar Helal and Bryan Velasco. Twelve other students were recognized by the judges for their outstanding efforts. Next up: Seminole Ridge High School on Oct. 11. Congratulations to the Bronco debate team!

• Academy Advisory Board — The academies at PBCHS

are looking for local businesses to participate on the advisory board, which meets approximately four times a year. The next meeting is scheduled for Thursday, Dec. 4 at 6:30 p.m. The three academies are Culinary Arts, Information Technology and Engineering. The academies welcome your input and expertise that you can provide teachers and students. Palm Beach Central is looking for guest speakers, field trips and job shadowing and/or internship opportunities. Contact Ms. Anita Foster at (561) 304-1057 for more information.

• Volunteers Needed — If you are interested in volunteering at PBCHS, you must be registered with the school district. Stop by the main office to apply online. Any parent who works with Palm Beach Central students, athletes or club members must be a registered and approved volunteer. Call Ms. Anita Foster at (561) 304-1057 for further information.

• Senior Meeting — All seniors will meet on Friday, Nov. 7 during Period 2 to receive graduation dates, activities, and cap and gown orders. Check with your child to be sure you receive the important information that will be given

to them that day.

• Student Masterpieces Exhibition — For the past two years, the Village of Wellington and the Wellington Art Society has presented the Student Art Program, featuring the artwork chosen from Wellington schools, including Palm Beach Central. The works of

art are on display for a fourmonth rotation throughout the year. On exhibition at the Wellington Community Center are the photographic masterpieces produced by Emily Nichols, Aly Goldstein, Jessica Terrell, Sarah Noeske and Ashley O’Brien, and the artwork cre-

Western Pines Announces Students Of The Month

Western Pines Middle School Principal Robert Hatcher is very proud to announce the students of the month from the sixth, seventh and eighth grade social studies classes.

The character word for October is trustworthiness, and each of these students exemplifies this character trait.

The eighth grade student of the month is Ravena Rampersad. In addition to being a stellar student, Ravena takes on many leadership duties at Western Pines. She is a “student runner” for the office and participates in the O Ambassadors program to raise peer awareness on global issues. An active member of the National Junior Honor Society and the newly formed after school

book club, Ravena is also maintaining a straight-A honor roll status.

Austin Crumm is the seventh grade student of the month. His teachers all praise him for being an excellent role model in and out of the classroom. Austin participates in class discussions and always gives his best. He has an excellent attitude and is always willing to help. Finally, the sixth grade student of the month is Brianna Posner. Brianna is an excellent student who is always dependable, well-organized and selfdisciplined. She is a very attentive young lady and always well behaved.

Western Pines Middle School is located at 5949 140th Avenue North in The Acreage.

To Host

Ideal Elementary School and Dream Middle School in Royal Palm Beach will hold the family campout event “Koreystock” overnight on Saturday, Oct. 18 at Pony Express Polo Farm in Wellington. The fun begins at 2 p.m. and lasts until 11 a.m. the following morning. There will continuous live entertainment throughout the afternoon and evening, as well as fun family games, delicious barbecue and marshmallows by the bonfire. The cost is $35 for adults and $15 for children. Guests are asked to bring their own tents and camping equipment. For more information, call (561) 791-2881 or visit www.ideal elementary.com.

The Palm Beach Central High School debate team.

ated by Erica Zahornacky. These students, under the tutelage of Ms. Jennie Eve Barnett, produced the exceptional masterpieces, which have been accepted for this current exhibition. The exhibition will begin in October and run through January 2009.

Students Of The Month — Western Pines Principal Robert Hatcher with Brianna Posner, Ravena Rampersad and Austin Crumm.

National Merit Program Commends SRHS Student

Seminole Ridge High School senior Sarah Grunder has been named a Commended Student in the 2009 National Merit Scholarship Program in recognition of her exceptional academic promise. Sarah placed in the top five percent of the more than 1.5 million students who entered the 2009 competition by taking the Preliminary Scholastic Aptitude Test (PSAT). Recognition of academically talented students and the key role played by schools in their development is essential to the pursuit of educational excellence in our nation, noted National Merit Scholarship officials. Sarah has demonstrated outstanding academic potential by her strong performance in this highly competitive program.

SRHS Principal Recognized as Literacy Advocate In recognition of her advoca-

cy of literacy, SRHS Principal Dr. Lynne McGee received the Principal’s Excellence Award from the Florida Association for Media in Education last week in Orlando. One elementary and one secondary principal statewide receive the annual award.

Freshmen Cage Panthers — They did it again! The 4-0 Baby Hawks freshman football team traveled to Dwyer High School last week and came back with a hard-fought 14-8 victory over the Panthers. The Hawks were again inspired by their strong running game. Wingback Gary Holmes continued his record-setting season, earning his “lucky 13th” touchdown and a twopoint conversion. Also getting into the end zone was fullback Matt Fioramonti.

The Seminole Ridge defense was strengthened by lineback-

ers Nick Medina and Alston Pickrell, both of whom sacked the Dwyer quarterback. Noel Poblano recovered a Panther fumble in the second half, and Jarred Blount had the most important sack, the last one, which sealed the victory for these undefeated freshmen.

Class of 2009 Panoramic Photo — Bob Knight Photography, Florida’s premier graduation and panoramic photo studio, will shoot the annual Seminole Ridge senior class picture Wednesday, Oct. 22 at 7:30 a.m. in the gym. Seniors will get details of the photo shoot as the event approaches, and they or their families will have the opportunity to purchase panoramic photo items by phone or online from Bob Knight Photo. For more information, contact SRHS newspaper adviser Mr. Kim Grinder in Room 7-115.

Dreyfoos To Present ‘Fame

The Musical’

The Dreyfoos School of the Arts will present Fame the Musical Oct. 30 through Nov. 9 in the school’s Meyer Hall theater, located one block north of the Kravis Center in West Palm Beach. Tickets are $15 (with discounts for groups of 20 or more) and may be purchased by calling the box office at (561) 802-6052 or at the box office one hour before curtain (if available). Show times are Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays at 7 p.m., and Sundays at 2 p.m.

To research the setting of their fall musical, some of the Dreyfoos cast members visited the original site of New York’s High School of Performing Arts (now the Jackie Onassis High School). They posed for cast photos as well as studied the specific architecture of the old building to be able to add authentic detail to their stage setting. The visit to the original “Fame” school was just part of a four-day trip to New York to visit colleges and conservatories so that the students could learn more about the audition/admissions process to the prestigious

Manhattan schools. While in the city, the students networked with successful Dreyfoos graduates who are now actors, technicians, designers, playwrights, stage managers and casting directors. It was a trip that completely enhanced their theatrical education.

The Dreyfoos Theatre Department chose Fame the Musical to open its season to recognize all arts schools that began with the vision of the original High School of the Performing Arts in New York City. The musical also celebrates the success of Dreyfoos, which has become known locally as Palm Beach County’s own “Fame” school with notable graduates like Joshua Harto, who plays Reese in the blockbuster film

The Dark Knight; Sharon PierreLouis, who is now a regular on ABC Family’s Lincoln Heights; and Eddie Pendergraft, who is in the cast of Wicked on Broadway.

Fame the Musical is set on the campus of the old High School of Performing Arts building on 46th Street east of Broadway just off Times Square, during the years 1980 to 1984. It follows the last group of students and teachers to inhabit the historic building after the four-year jour-

ney from freshman term through graduation. Because the action begins in 1980, the characters know their school has been the subject of a hit movie and TV series, and is now the world-renowned “Fame school.”

Fame the Musical premiered at Miami’s Coconut Grove Playhouse in 1994 with book by Jose’ Fernandez, lyrics by Jacques Levy and music by Steve Margoshes. The Dreyfoos production is directed by Beverly Blanchette, choreographed by Garry Q. Lewis and musically directed by Craig D. Ames. The two-story set and costumes for 45 cast members have been designed and built by Dreyfoos theater students.

Crestwood Night At Barnes & Noble Oct. 15

The Crestwood Middle School family will be involved in a worthwhile event on Wednesday, Oct. 15 at the Barnes & Noble bookstore near the Mall at Wellington Green. During that evening, teachers and parents will gather to not only have fun browsing books or watching students perform, but the school also hopes to raise

money to add books to its classroom collections. Event sponsor Citibank, located on Southern Blvd. in Royal Palm Beach, will join in the evening’s activities. Many student groups will showcase their talents throughout the evening. The athletic teams will be in the area to encourage community participation, while the Crestwood band, chorus and handbell groups will entertain. Student council members will distribute bookmarks, and honor society students will read books to the little ones in the storytelling area. The school’s mascot Regal will be in the center of all the action. Teachers will be there to greet parents and to make recommendations to students who wish to purchase books. All Crestwood teachers, students and family members should mark this important date on their calendars. Neighboring elementary schools and other community members are also invited to help make Crestwood’s Barnes & Noble Night a grand event and huge success. Enjoy the performance, sip some coffee and buy books! For more information, call the Crestwood Middle School main office at (561) 753-5000.

Fame! — Dreyfoos School of the Arts Fame the Musical cast members Abby Botnick, Josie Murray, Cody Goodrich, Kaitlyn Finkelstein, Shayne Leighton and Meaghan Brown.

Book Safari — Binks Forest Elementary School mothers are going wild for the school’s “Safari Book Fair,” which began Monday, Oct. 6 and will continue through Monday, Oct. 20.

Pictured above are (front row, L-R) Stephanie Hays, Michelle Goldenberg, Lori Planco, Tammy Isola and Gloria Peck; (back row) Gena Hugus, Cyndi Reuhsmund, Vickie Seher, Monica Turey, Cheryl Kernus and Jennifer DeSilva.

YAQUES WAL-MART

Director

recently won the Wal-Mart Teacher of the Year Award. He was nominated for this award by his students, who wrote a letter and filled out the application. Mr. Yaques received $1,000 to use toward any school program as well as $100 gift certificate to Wal-Mart for his own personal use. Anyone who has seen one of Mr. Yaques’ concerts or witnessed a half-time show at the football games understands that this recognition is well deserved.

Local Speech Club Helps Teens Polish Their Oratory Skills

By Candace Marchsteiner Town-Crier Staff Report

At their monthly meeting held last Thursday at Wyndham Park in the Victoria Woods neighborhood off Summit Blvd., Teen Speech Club continued their work with volunteer coach Jim Sturgis of Wellington. For the past ten years, Sturgis has gently challenged home-schooled teens to overcome the common fear of public speaking through a “fun atmosphere with positive feedback.”

The day’s featured speakers included 13-year-old Joey Johnson of Wellington, who was voted the best speaker for his animated and humorous speech titled “How I Celebrated My 13th Birthday.”

Anthony Bennett of West Palm Beach looked back over the past 17 years in his speech titled “My Life in a Nutshell.”

Fifteen-year-old Sofi Kumpulainen, also of West Palm

Beach, shared her family’s experiences sponsoring children through Compassion International and encouraged others to get involved.

In a typical session, students volunteer to orally evaluate each other’s speeches. Then each student takes a 30-second turn to respond to a spontaneous question posed by Sturgis, while another student rings a bell every time an “uh” or “um” is uttered.

In addition to awarding the Best Featured Speaker, prizes are awarded monthly to the best evaluators and spontaneous speakers. Students vote for their favorites, who receive large candies as the motivating prize.

“It’s amazing to watch students’ improvements over time,” Sturgis said.

Meeting on the first Thursday of every month during the school year, the Teen Speech

Club precedes the Teen Activity Support Group (TAG) parent informational meeting. While students play pickup sports and socialize, parents discuss career-related field trips and issues relating to teaching a high school student, such as developing transcripts for college.

Co-leaders Bonnie Sturgis and Sharon Russell have led the group for more than ten years.

Wyndham Park at Victoria Woods is located on the south side of Summit Blvd., between Jog and Haverhill roads. For more information about the Teen Speech Club, contact Bonnie Sturgis at (561) 795-4784 or via e-mail at bajsturgisfam@ adelphia.net, Russell at (561) 686-2545 or jsjrh@bellsouth. net, or visit the Parents Educating Children web site at www.parentseducatingchildren. com.

Teen Speakers — Speech coach Jim Sturgis (front row, second from left) with members of the Teen Speech Club at last Thursday’s meeting at Wyndham Park in Victoria Woods.

Palm Beach Central High School Band

James Yaques

Palm Beach Central High School students recently collected cans for My Brother’s/Sister’s Keeper Charitable Trust to help the Royal Palm Covenant Church food pantry, which is open from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Thursdays. Royal Palm Covenant Church is located at 660 Royal Palm Beach Blvd. For more info., call (561) 793-1077. (Above left) Pastor Michael Rose talks to Palm Beach Central students about the food drive. (Above right) Rose and the Broncos pose for a group photo with the donated items. PHOTOS

Acreage/Loxahatchee Rotary Club Donates Dictionaries To Schools

For the third consecutive year, the Acreage/Loxahahatchee Rotary Club has given dictionaries to all the third graders in its service area. The Acreage Rotary Club this year partnered with businesses, organizations and individuals to purchase and distribute approximately 750 dictionaries to six elementary schools. The schools and partners were: Acreage Pines Elementary School (Carreras Financial), Benoist Farms Elementary School (Sherri-Ann Lopez), Frontier Elementary School (National City Bank, Acreage branch), Golden Grove Elementary School (New Harvest Baptist Church), Loxahatchee

Groves Elementary School (Loxahatchee Groves Landowners’Association) and Pierce Hammock Elementary School (Tromsi Inc.).

The dictionaries that are given out become the personal property of each student and are more than just dictionaries — they are actually mini encyclopedias covering other areas such as the planets, world geography, United States history and geography. The reactions from the third graders were great, and it was rewarding to everyone involved.

The Acreage/Loxahatchee Rotary Club would like to thank everyone who helped make this project such a great success.

Parssi Artwork Brightens Area Agency On Aging’s New Office Space

When the Area Agency on Aging of Palm Beach/Treasure Coast moved into its new offices at 4400 North Congress Avenue, the organization suddenly had much more space for employees — and much more wall space.

When Wellington artist Jeannette Pomeroy Parssi stopped by the new building to visit her friend and longtime collector Patricia Ernst, who oversees community relations and event planning for the agency, Parssi noticed that “the walls in the lobby were pretty bare” and needed brightening, “particularly the space above

the stairway,” she said. Parssi offered to loan one of her works to the agency, a large, colorful oil painting titled Wellington Sunset that she thought would be perfect for the space.

That painting was installed recently, and on her second visit to the office, the artist “couldn’t help but notice that the space behind the receptionist might be a good spot for another painting,” so she offered to loan the agency another oil painting, this one titled Crossroads “The title of that painting really speaks to the agency’s

work,” Parssi said. “Many people are at a crossroads when they are facing the prospect of getting older or caring for an aging loved one, and have more questions than they have answers.”

Area Agency on Aging CEO Robert McFalls was impressed with the artwork. “The paintings look great, and they really brighten our new space,” he said. “We can’t thank Jeannette enough for thinking about us.”

The Area Agency on Aging of Palm Beach/Treasure Coast is a dynamic non-profit organization dedicated to serving the needs of all seniors and

their caregivers in Palm Beach, Martin, St. Lucie, Indian River and Okeechobee counties.

Part of a nationwide network, the Area Agency on Aging provides information on aging issues, advocacy, oneon-one assistance and a host of services that help seniors maintain their independence and dignity. With the help thousands of dedicated volunteers, donors, sponsors and professional agencies, the Area Agency on Aging delivers a wide range of services. For more information about the agency, call (561) 6845885.

Rotarians Bud Holvay, Roland Greenspan, Brian Cuenot, Tom Carreras and Richard Helton at Frontier Elementary School.

Richard Helton, Pierce Hammock

Assistant Principal Carol DeLong, Roland Greenspan, Tom Carreras, Mike Erickson, Lia Larrea of Tromsi and Bud Holvay.

Art In The Office — Robert McFalls, Jeannette Pomeroy Parssi and Patricia Ernst with Parrsi’s oil painting Crossroads, which is on display inside the Area Agency on Aging office.

Benoist Farms Principal Dr. Ruthann Miller (center) with Richard Helton, Tom Carreras, Sherri-Ann Lopez and Roland Greenspan.

John Thomas, Michelle Desjardins, Laura Pedersen, Richard Saulsbury, Tom Carreras, Roland Greenspan and Pastor Sam Jay at Golden Grove.

Acreage Pines Principal James Campbell, John Thomas, Tom Carreras Jr., Tom Carreras, Richard Helton, Roland Greenspan and Bud Holvay.

PRESIDENTIAL CAMPAIGNS VISIT TEMPLE BETH

Temple Beth Zion in Royal Palm Beach hosted a debate featuring representatives from the two major presidential candidates on Sunday, Oct. 5. The topic was, “what impact will the U.S. elections have on Israel?” Representing Sen. Barack Obama was Eric Lynn, who serves as the campaign’s Middle East policy advisor and Jewish liaison. Representing Sen. John McCain was Lynn Forester de Rothschild, a member of the United Nations Advisory Committee on Inclusive Financial Services and a supporter of Sen. Hillary Clinton’s bid for the presidency. The two debated the candidates’ platforms and positions on Israel in an effort to inform the temple’s congregation. For more information about Temple Beth Zion, call (561) 798-8888 or visit www.templebethzion.net.

Colton Matthew Vickers son of Amanda and Billy Vickers of Fort Pierce, formerly of Wellington, was born at Palms West Hospital on Aug. 12. Gabriel Ryan Ocampo son of Rechelle and Benson Ocampo of Royal Palm Beach was born at Palms West Hospital on Sept. 22. Payton Rose Kaden daughter of Janice Marie Kaden of Royal Palm Beach was born at Palms West Hospital on Sept. 22.

WHO’S NEW

RPB’s Steve Petrone Promoted At The Carlisle Palm Beach

After only four months on the job as activities coordinator, Royal Palm Beach resident Steve Petrone has been promoted to activities director of the Carlisle Palm Beach.

Petrone, 56, is the former cultural center supervisor for the Village of Royal Palm Beach, where he planned senior citizens activities, community-wide events and managed the municipal center. He brings that philosophy of creating community through activities and affinity groups to the Carlisle Palm Beach.

Feedback from residents led Petrone to form two new groups, the Carlisle Men’s Club and the Carlisle Classy Ladies. He said it’s important to listen to how residents want to spend their time and structure their day, not just keep them occupied.

“Each month we strive to offer our residents an assortment of activities to choose from,” Carlisle Palm Beach Executive Director Frank White said. “Knowing they come from backgrounds filled with art and culture, we work to offer the activities they enjoy. Steve is a great asset to our team.”

Rhode Island and is a longtime member of

Emalyn Dawne Gjonbalaj — daughter of Jennifer and Efrim Gjonbalaj of Wellington was born at Palms West Hospital on Sept. 23. Alexander Lantigua — son of Jessica Blanco and Angel Lantigua of Royal Palm Beach was born at Palms West Hospital on Sept. 23. Isaiah Marley Brown — son of Crystal Nevarez and Jacob Brown of West Palm Beach was born at Palms West Hospital on Sept. 23. Kaleb Evan Koemm — son of Casey Allison Keen and Kyle Evan Koemm of The Acreage was born at Wellington Regional Medical Center on Sept. 25. Vincent Michael Jablonski — son of Erica and Joseph Jablonski Jr. of Wellington was born at Wellington Regional Medical Center on Sept. 26.

daughter of Bridget and Charles Mackrey of Wellington was born at Palms West Hospital on Sept. 26.

Earlie Brown IV — son of Donamac S. Simmons and Earlie Brown III of Royal Palm Beach was born at Wellington Regional Medical Center on Sept. 27.

Luke Travis Walker — son of Angela and Curt Walker of Royal Palm Beach was born at Wellington Regional Medical Center on Sept. 27.

Juliana Maria Botero daughter of Isabel and Lucas Botero of Wellington was born at Wellington Regional Medical Center on Sept. 26. Mia Vivian Mackrey

Brianna Anel Saunders daughter of Michelle Sterling and David Saunders of West Palm Beach was born at Palms West Hospital on Sept. 29.

Ava Grace Heinen daughter of Ivannia and Alfred Heinen of Wellington was born

at Palms West Hospital on Sept. 30.

Gabriella Elizabeth Bonfonti — daughter of Sheri and Joe Bonfonti of Loxahatchee was born at Wellington Regional Medical Center on Oct. 2.

Jared Carlton Polywoda — son of Jayme Elizabeth Polywoda of Royal Palm Beach was born at Wellington Regional Medical Center on Oct. 3.

Leo Bruce Luna — son of Jackie White and Leo Luna of Royal Palm Beach was born at Wellington Regional Medical Center on Oct. 3.

Cole Christopher Reickel — son of Christina and Kurt Reickel of Wellington was born at Wellington Regional Medical Center on Oct. 5.

Petrone is also known in his community for forming the Royal Palm Beach Community Band. He plays the trumpet for the group, which gives six or seven concerts a year. He has lived in Royal Palm Beach for 14 years. He holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of

Duclair Completes Army Basic Training

Army Reserve Spec. Jennifer Duclair has graduated from basic combat training at Fort Jackson in Columbia, S.C. During the nine weeks of training, the soldier studied the Army mission, history, tradition and core values, physical fitness, and received instruction and practice in basic combat skills, military weapons, chemical warfare and bayonet training, drill and ceremony, marching, rifle marksmanship, armed and un-

armed combat, map reading, field tactics, military courtesy, the military justice system, basic first aid, foot marches, and field training exercises. Duclair is the daughter of Benoit Duclair of Loxahatchee and Marie Duclair of North Miami Beach. She graduated in 2002 from the School for Advanced Studies in Miami and received a bachelor’s degree in 2004 from Southern Adventist University in Collegedale, Tenn.

When Just One Average Household Switches a Non-Gas Water Heater to Natural Gas, it Eliminates Approximately 3,000 Pounds of Carbon Dioxide From the Air Every Year.

Steve Petrone

Eric Lynn with Rabbi Bert Keiffer.

Lynn Forester de Rothschild with Rabbi Bert Keiffer.

Eric Lynn addresses the congregation.

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Folke Peterson

Morning Movie

The Folke Peterson Wildlife Center had such a great attendance for its first Morning Movie that the center has scheduled an encore performance.

On Saturday, Oct. 11 at 10 a.m., Folke Peterson will present a screening of Open Season, an animated film about a bear raised by humans. The film teaches the message that wildlife species are best left in the wild and do not belong in people’s homes. After the screening, guests will have an additional treat: live animal encounters with several of Folke Peterson’s educational ambassadors.

The donation for this event is $5 per person, which includes popcorn and a juice box or water. Reservations can be made by phoning the center at (561) 7932473. Walk-ins are also welcome. The Folke Peterson Wildlife Center is located at 10948 Acme Road. For more information, visit www.fpwildlife.org.

Area Hospitals

Scare Away Diabetes

Palms West Hospital, Jupiter Medical Center and West Boca Medical Center each will host Halloween parties for children with diabetes and their immediate families.

The parties will take place Tuesday, Oct. 28 at Palms West Hospital; Friday, Oct. 31 at Jupiter Medical Center; and Saturday, Nov. 1 at West Boca Medical Center. Each hospital will invite families to participate in an evening of crafts, games, music, food and entertainment. This complimentary event is hosted by the hospitals and the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (JDRF).

“Halloween can be a challenging time for children with diabetes,” said Siobhan Gross, a certified diabetes educator at Jupiter Medical Center. “It gives us great pleasure to provide an alternative to the traditional Halloween where the focus will be fun, not candy. We plan to have music, dancing, games and crafts.” For more information about the Halloween parties or to RSVP, call the local JDRF office at (561) 686-7701. For more

information about JDRF and other local events, visit www. jdrf.org/greaterpalmbeach. Symptoms of Type 1 diabetes include extreme thirst, frequent urination, drowsiness or lethargy, increased appetite, sudden weight loss for no reason, sudden vision changes, sugar in urine, fruity odor on breath, heavy or labored breathing or unconsciousness. These symptoms may occur suddenly. Symptoms for Type 2 diabetes include any of the symptoms of Type 1, recurring or hard-to-heal skin, gum or urinary tract infections, drowsiness, tingling of hands and feet, and itching of skin and genitals. JDRF, the leading charitable funder and advocate of Type 1 (juvenile) diabetes research worldwide, was founded in 1970 by the parents of children with juvenile diabetes — a chronic disease that strikes children suddenly, makes them insulin dependent for life, and carries the constant threat of complications such as kidney failure, adult blindness and non-traumatic amputations. Insulin neither cures the disease, nor prevents its eventual complications. Since its inception, JDRF has become the leading non-profit, non-government funder of Type 1 research worldwide, donating more than $1.16 billion to diabetes research, with approximately 87 cents of every dollar raised going directly to support research and education.

Shop ’Til You Drop Holiday Bazaar

On Thursday, Nov. 6, the Wellington Women’s Club will hold the Shop ’Til You Drop Holiday Bazaar at the Binks Forest Golf Club (400 Binks Forest Drive in Wellington). Come sell your old gold, silver jewelry and coins with On the Spot Gold. Then find unique and wonderful gifts for your friends, family and yourself at Pampered Chef, Tastefully Simple, Avon, Silpada, Beauty Mark, Everything Beaded, JDB KnitArt, Jenny’s Jewels, RonnaCards, Global Art, Joan’s Accessories, Discovery Toys, Fashion Jewelry by Renee, BeautiControl, Premier Jewelry and Vicki’s Trinkets. The hours are 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. This event is open to the

NEWS BRIEFS

public and there is no charge to sell your old jewelry or shop for great products. If you would like to join the Wellington Women’s Club for the Binks Forest buffet dinner, the cost is $30, and reservations must be made by Nov. 1.

The Wellington Women’s Club, now in its 30th year, is a proud supporter of the YWCA Harmony House, a shelter for abused women and their children. The club also provides annual college scholarships for graduating high school seniors in the western communities. The club meets the first Thursday of each month at Binks Forest Golf Club and has an interesting guest or activity every month, plus other social programs such as Bunco, Pokeno, Out-to-lunch and more. Guests are always welcome for a $30 fee, which includes dinner.

For reservations or more information about the Wellington Women’s Club, call Stacy Kaufman at (561) 632-5165.

Saddle Club Days At The Tackeria

The Tackeria in Wellington will host the National Breyer Model Horses Saddle Club Days at their store during the week of Oct. 10-17. Free gifts with purchase include a gift set of mini collectible Breyer model horses and a lovely doublesided Saddle Club and Running Horses poster.

A great gift for horse lovers of all ages, Breyer Saddle Club figurines and play sets are made of durable, quality materials for years of active play. Breyer has been making models of the world’s most famous horses — such as Seabiscuit, Secretariat, Black Beauty and the Black Stallion — for nearly 60 years. Quality and authenticity have long been the hallmarks of this high-end, yet affordable collectible that has become a toy that mothers hand down to their own daughters.

Breyer teamed with The Saddle Club in 2007 to make replicas of the characters from the popular television show. The new season, Series Three: The Saddle Club Rides Again, debuts this month on public television stations nationwide. Based on the best-selling novels by Bonnie Bryant, the series features

three 12-year-olds: Stevie, Carole and Lisa, who form the Saddle Club at Pine Hollow Stables, and their horses — Starlight, Belle and Prancer. Each halfhour episode of The Saddle Club is filled with action and adventure, but there is always an emphasis on wholesome relationships as the girls meet the challenges of riding, caring for their horses, school, home and growing up. In forming the Saddle Club, the girls promised to remain loyal to each other, to help each other through good times and bad, and to stay horse-crazy. The Saddle Club and Breyer are perfect together for the emphasis on realism and authenticity. Breyer model horses are sculpted by real equine artists and all the Saddle Club models are based on the real equine stars of the show.

Visit the store anytime, and especially during Breyer Saddle Club Days, Oct. 10-17, for previews of the new series and to view the entire collection of Breyer Saddle Club horses, figures and accessories.

Breyer Animal Creations is the world’s best-selling brand of equine-themed toys and collectibles. Breyer designs, manufactures and markets authentic model horses and animals of enduring quality for play and collecting. See the entire collection at www.breyerhorses.com. For more information about Breyer, contact Kathleen Fallon at kfallon@reevesintl.com.

The Saddle Club series is a coproduction of Crawford Productions PTY Ltd. (Australia) and Protocol Entertainment Inc. (Canada). A phenomenon in Australia where it aired on the ABC Network, the series debuted in Canada on YTV. It is now seen in 14 countries and the books are published in nine languages. For information on why all kids love horses, visit www. saddleclubtv.com.

Life Line Screening At Wellington JCC

Residents living in and around the western communities can be screened to reduce their risk of having a stroke. The complete screening package now includes a new heartrhythm screening checking for irregular heartbeat, which is a

major risk factor for stroke. Life Line Screening representatives will be at the Wellington branch of the Jewish Community Center of the Greater Palm Beaches on Friday, Nov. 21. The site is located at 13889 Wellington Trace, Suite 15. Appointments will begin at 9 a.m.

A stroke, also known as a “brain attack,” is ranked as the third-leading killer in the world and the leading cause of nursing home admissions. Stroke often occurs without warning, but painless screenings can help identify risk for stroke, vascular diseases or osteoporosis early enough for physicians to begin preventive procedures.

Screenings are non-invasive and easy to obtain. They help identify potential health problems such as blocked arteries and irregular heart rhythm, abdominal aortic aneurysms and hardening of the arteries in the legs, which is a strong predictor of heart disease. A bone-density screening to assess osteoporosis risk is also offered and is appropriate for both men and women. Register for a wellness package with heart rhythm for $149. All five screenings take 60 to 90 minutes to complete.

Life Line Screening was established in 1993 and has since become the nation’s leading provider of vascular screenings. Ultrasound teams are on staff to travel to local communities, bringing the screenings to local residents.

For more information regarding the screenings or to schedule an appointment, call (877) 237-1287 or visit www.lifeline screening.com. Pre-registration is required.

‘Native Offerings’ Opens Nov. 21

The Pine Jog Environmental Education Center (6301 Summit Blvd., West Palm Beach) will present the art exhibit “Native Offerings” Nov. 21 through Jan. 9. Curated by Talya Lerman, the opening reception will take place from 6 to 9 p.m. on Friday, Nov. 21 featuring a dance performance by Brooke Waszak and Shanna Lillis, and a musical performance by Dennis Weise. This exhibition showcases five South Florida artists who

interpret the Florida landscape either conceptually, physically, topographically or through assemblage — Scott Armetta, Vikki Henderson, Sandy Lerman, Hegina Rodrigues and Terre Rybovich. Each of the artists represented use their environment as either muse or medium, translating the Florida landscape in a unique way, whether by assembling regionally specific materials, using the human body to express native terrain or employing an inherently “Floridian” palette. In her drawings, Rybovich’s own body is a physical presence creating a new topography. Lerman’s delicate and often ethereal paintings of intimately sized creatures often uses the color of our native environment as a backdrop or as an under-painting layer. Henderson’s often oversized yet microcosmic portraits of flora and fauna is evocative of the surroundings many take for granted. Whether we are aware of it or not, in one way or another, our surroundings become us. The way people filter, process, translate and in some cases transmute their environment is of concern to these artists.

Exhibition hours are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Wednesday and 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. Thursday through Sunday. The closing reception will take place Jan. 9 from 6 to 8 p.m. For more information, call (561) 543-0219 or e-mail talya @talyacreates.com.

Forum The Loxahatchee Groves Landowners’ Association will host a candidates’ forum on Thursday, Oct. 23 at 7 p.m. inside Classroom 1 at Palms West Hospital. The following political candidates have been invited to participate: State House District 85 candidates Joseph Abruzzo and Howard Coates; state attorney candidates Michael McAuliffe and Joseph Tringali; and Supervisor of Elections candidates Susan Bucher and Bob Margolis. For more information about the forum or the LGLA, call President Marge Herzog at (561) 791-9875.

Car Show & Family Fun Fair Nov. 1

At St. Michael Lutheran Church

St. Michael Lutheran Church in Wellington, located at the corner of Forest Hill Blvd. and Birkdale Drive, is sponsoring a Car Show & Family Fun Fair on Saturday, Nov. 1 from 10 a.m. to 3 pm. The church parking lot will be transformed into a midway where there will be games for children and youth, food stands and a plant sale booth. Car enthusiasts will enjoy the car show, in which many classic cars will compete for prizes. A Vietnamera helicopter and a one-eighthscale steam locomotive will also be on display. Inside the church building, folks will find specialty gift baskets for raffle, handmade greeting cards, handmade Swarovski crystal jewelry and handmade

Don Brown Growing Pains?

continued from page 4 municipal management functions,” he wrote. “The consultant the town selected to conduct the ‘independent’ evaluation provides outsourced management services for special districts. It should come as no surprise if the recommendations of the consolidation study concludes that the most efficient and effective organizational arrangement will be a dependent special district with outsourced management.”

Mr. DeMarois, who strongly opposed the town’s incorporation in the first place, told me he now favors dissolution of the

Letters continued from page 4 being written about our wonderful community. Lawsuits were an everyday occurrence, and other elected officials wouldn’t even listen to our concerns. Employees were frustrated with the lack of leadership, and some even left the district. Residents were demanding to speak and be heard, but were turned away with no resolution to their concerns. Well, times have certainly changed! Our ITID board respects our community and our residents. We respect other municipalities and elected officials from Palm Beach County to Washington, D.C., but most importantly, we now have their respect as well. Our voices are being heard! As a team, our board of supervisors have brought back accountability, respect and pride to our community. We pay a lot of taxes to our local and state governments, which is why the ITID board demands and will continue to demand better services for you. Our district will continue to move forward in the 21st century with safer roads, sidewalks, better drainage, more police and fire protection, expansion of our parks system, etc., while being accountable for every penny. Although great strides have been accomplished, we must stay focused on the issues at hand and continue to move our district forward, cutting through all the political bureaucracy, to a brighter future for all Acreage/ Loxahatchee residents. I would like to ask for your support and your vote for Carlos Enriquez in the Nov. 4 election. In my opinion, we are fortunate that Carlos stepped up to the plate to run for my ITID seat, for he is the right person to carry on the goals, professionalism and respect for our community. He will see to it that your taxes are being accounted for! Carlos has

Christmas ornaments. The congregation will also highlight fair trade with a booth offering coffee, tea and chocolate as well as beautiful handcrafts. Fair trade gets the profits from the sale of these goods into the hands of the growers or creators, eliminating the middlemen along the way, and thus significantly raising their standard of living.

A silent auction will be a popular stop for many people, where folks can make bids on more than $4,000 worth of goods, tickets and services. Great bargains can be found on the following, plus much more: a round of golf for four at Breakers West, Venetian glass jewelry, gift certificates to C.R. Chicks and TooJay’s, a one-hour Swedish massage at Zen Mas-

town. While the council’s attempt to take over his board is a factor in his decision, it isn’t the only one. “There isn’t any one issue,” he said. “There are several issues I looked at including code enforcement, roads and government in the sunshine.” He said the other LGWCD board members agree with him. Loxahatchee Groves Town Clerk Matthew Lippman said that the council is indeed studying the future of the LGWCD, but that the study’s outcome is far from a foregone conclusion. “We’re doing a study looking at all the alternatives,” he told me. “There are three options we’re looking at: making the water control district a dependent district of the town, making no changes, or any other recommendation made by the study.”

been extremely active in our community and serving as the past president for the Acreage Landowners’ Association, he is aware of the needs of our community. I am confident that Carlos will do a great job working for us!

Again, it has been my privilege to serve as one of your supervisors, and I thank you for the opportunity. Positive change has taken place, which I am proud to have been a part of. I look forward to continuing to help make our community a great place to live, work and play. I urge each of you to get involved in some way to help make a difference. Remember TEAM — together, everyone achieves more!

Finally, I would like to send special thanks to our district employees for a job well done and for hanging in there through some very difficult times. You are the foundation of this district, and I ask that each of you continue working hard for the residents of The Acreage.

Please join me and vote for Carlos Enriquez on Nov. 4 for ITID Seat 2. A vote for Carlos will be a vote for you!

Sandra Love Semande, Vice President, Indian Trail Improvement District

Lox Groves: One Town, One Government

To all of the residents of Loxahatchee Groves who feel the town council is not being fiscally responsible, I ask how do you justify the fact that the Loxahatchee Groves Water Control District cost the taxpayers over $20,000 in legal bills because they couldn’t make a decision on the gas tax revenue agreement? In addition, the LGWCD board charges the town council, i.e. the taxpayers (you and me) to use the district office for their

PBCFR INSTALLS WALK OF HONOR

sage, an original 1968 Star Trek script autographed by George Takei (Mr. Sulu) and James Doohan (Scotty), a handcrafted quilt, a “do-it-yourself” birthday party for eight at Lion Country Safari, and a family membership to the Fort Lauderdale Museum of Art. The auction will also feature tickets to many recreational sites in Florida, including museums, parks, zoos, the Kennedy Space Center, the Kravis Center for the Performing Arts and a Miami Dolphins’ home game. Proceeds from the event will benefit St. Michael and the Glades Area Pantry in Pahokee, which provides food for the needy. For more information, call (561) 793-4999 or visit www.stmichaelelc.com.

Mr. Lippman denied selective code enforcement in the community. “Our code enforcement policy is solely on a complaint basis,” he said. He did agree that law enforcement protection has not changed since incorporation. However, he said the PBSO requires a paid contract to provide protection for municipalities. “The difference is we have to pay for it,” he said. He said the lobbying services involved the town’s opposition to the proposed widening of Southern Blvd. and removing the E Road/140th Street connection off the county’s thoroughfare road plan. The road consultant, he said, was hired because a “planning process is required to determine traffic impact analysis and overall impact [of roads] on the community.”

meetings. In retaining both governing bodies, we the taxpayers are responsible for paying two different legal counsels. The town is paying to rent office space and the district is using taxpayers’ money to maintain the district offices.

We the taxpayers are paying [LGWCD Administrator Clete] Saunier a salary in part because he is a civil engineer. Yet when the south section of F Road was paved with OGEM and the speed deterrents were put down, our engineer did not draw up or certify any plans or specifications for them. In researching this, I was told by the company that put the OGEM down, with the district’s help, that when they asked for the specs, they were told there weren’t any. A district employee showed them where to place the deterrents, and that was all the direction they received. Why are we paying for an engineer when it is clear that part of the job is not being done?

While doing research about how other 298 districts handle their “district” and “non-district” roads, I was amazed at the response I received. All of the other districts I spoke with treat all their roads the same. All of their roads are district roads because all of the residents pay the same assessment. When and how did our roads get different designations?

As to the concerns that if the LGWCD board were no longer to exist, all of their employees would lose their jobs: I have not heard one of the council members say this would happen or that that is their plan. The plan as I understand it is to keep the 298 designation and just disband or change the LGWCD board

The idea behind no longer having or changing the board is so that the only governing body would be the governing body elected by the people’s popular vote, not the proxy vote, which is an archaic system of voting.

As for the complaints of coun-

cil intolerance of residents expressing their opinions on issues, he said simply, “I haven’t seen it.”

As to the town dissolution issue, Mr. Lippman sent me an email of talking points concerning incorporation. “As an unincorporated community, there was no control over the revenues brought back into the community,” he wrote. “With the financial crisis in our country and Palm Beach County cutting [its] budget and many jobs, the ability to get county money is diminished. The town now has control over the revenues that are brought back into our community. For the current fiscal year, 2008-09, the town will bring over $1.1 million in revenue. The net gain to the town,

What does it tell you when we’re one of the only special districts left in the State of Florida using this outdated system of voting? The roads and canals would still need to be physically maintained, and why not retain the people who already know the roadways and waterways?

There is misinformation being spread about the town council’s intention with code enforcement. Residents are being told that the town council is proactively going after non-conforming businesses and “shutting them down.” By policy, the only way a code complaint can be pursued is if someone calls in a complaint. If you check the public record, you will see that most members of the town council have said that they want code enforcement to be a slow process while the town revises the land development code. At the last town council meeting, it was brought to the council’s attention that a particular longstanding local business was not up to code. The council indicated that they would be willing to work with this particular business owner through a possible variance process. I just thought those of you who thought differently should know, as public record will show, that Councilman Dennis Lipp is the person who reported that business as a code violation. We have been a town for over two years now. We cannot afford two governing bodies fiscally and operationally. We as a town need to be a complete working unit. Not everyone is going to like every decision all the time. This concept is universal. If the council makes decisions in the best interest for the greatest amount of residents, then we as a whole need to respect that. The best government is the one elected by the people for the people. There should only be one governing body in our municipality — the town

On Thursday, Sept. 25, members of Palm Beach County Fire-Rescue’s Project Pride installed the engraved bricks in the Walk of Honor. On the same day, the 6,000pound solid-granite Fallen Firefighter monument was moved from the current headquarters location to its new home at the Fallen Firefighter Memorial Park at the new Chief Herman W. Brice Fire Rescue Complex on Pike Road. Bricks for Phase II of the Walk of Honor can now be purchased. For more information, or to download the order form, visit the Project Pride Walk of Honor page at www.co.palm-beach. fl.us/fire/walk_of_honor. asp.

Blotter

continued from page 6 8:50 a.m. the following morning, someone entered the victim’s 1996 Mercedes C280 and stole a Sirius satellite radio. The device is valued at approximately $200.

OCT. 8 — An employee of the Solstice Sunglass Boutique in the Mall at Wellington Green called the PBSO substation in Wellington on Wednesday regarding a retail theft. According to a PBSO report, the employee was working shortly after 6 p.m. when she observed two Hispanic males. One of the males engaged her in conversation while the other took a pair of Prada sunglasses. Both left the store without paying for the merchandise, which was valued at approximately $250.

after you take out Loxahatchee Groves property taxes, is over $710,000. This net gain gives us the finances to run this municipality and provide the needed services to the community. This net gain will increase over the years and bring even more money back to the community. Another cost saving for the town is the solid waste hauling fee. Our fee is $55 less per year than if the community was still unincorporated.”

It’s also a good idea to note that the prime reason for the original incorporation effort was to gain local control over development. Now perhaps the end of the housing bubble, a slow economy and the accompanying construction lull has made controlling development a backburner issue, but make no mis-

council. They are the only entity in our town that “really” represents all of the residents and landowners.

Ilene Rindom

Loxahatchee Groves

Groves Study A Waste Of Money

Recently, a Loxahatchee Groves resident wrote a dramatic and inaccurate letter to the Town-Crier regarding the socalled “independent study” authorized by the Loxahatchee Groves Town Council geared toward changing the status of the Loxahatchee Water Control District. The letter was so full of spin and misinformation, I couldn’t even begin to address it in a short letter to the editor. But anyway, the writer goes on to sing the praises of council members Dr. Bill Louda, Marge Herzog and Dave Autrey. I feel the letter-writer is incredibly misguided. We should be singing the praises of Mayor David Browning and Councilman Dennis Lipp, who both voted no on this wasteful study. At least two members of our council are not on board for blowing more tax dollars on lawyers. In preparation for this internal battle, the town’s law firm is already penciled in for $144,000 of our hard-earned tax dollars on next year’s budget. Compare this to the Town of Juno Beach, with its similar population to Loxahatchee Groves. On gross revenues of $5.8 million, Juno Beach’s legal expenses budget for 2008-09 is $30,000. On gross revenues of $2.04 million, Loxahatchee Groves’ legal expenses budget for 2008-09 is $144,000. Even the Village of Palm Springs, with its population of almost 14,000 and gross revenues of $27 million, has only $100,000 budgeted for legal services. Does anyone see anything wrong with this picture?

take about it — the development interests will return. I think that now might be a good idea for everyone in Loxahatchee Groves to push back from the table and take a deep breath. Are those bulleted allegations true? Beats the heck out of me. But the allegations do exist and they are constantly part of Loxahatchee Groves conversations. The community is a paradise for gossip-mongering. I believe those on both sides of these issues should remember that before incorporation, they were all friends and neighbors. Perhaps both the LGWCD and the town council should arrange a series of Sunday dinners and talk about the issues. I’ve never heard a voice raised in anger or a problem not solved over Sunday dinner.

This study is a total waste of our money, as the outcome is a foregone conclusion. Does anyone really think this “independent” study is going to come back with any other results than what the clients desire? Of the three companies presenting proposals, the first representative stated he had a prior relationship with our town manager, the second rep stated he has known the head of our town’s law firm for “a long, long time,” and the third company (which was chosen) has prior relationships with our town law firm, our town planners and even joked that our town manager owes him lunch! Clearly, this conflicts with the council’s previous assurances of an objective, independent party to do the study. Here’s an idea: how about we let the LGWCD choose who will do the study? The same letter-writer also included the comment: “they [meaning the LGWCD] are hellbent on taking over our town or destroying it.” Really? Well, let’s just think about that for a moment. I ask my neighbors to consider this one simple question: do you see the LGWCD authorizing an expensive study to try to “take over the town,” or do you see three council members making a power grab to seize control of the water district offices, assets and the budget that comes with it? I rest my case. For the record, I live on less than four acres and own a small plant nursery. I have no connection whatsoever to the water control district. My letters are simply based on my own observations and opinions. My letters are completely my own. I am not working for anyone and I have no agenda... except to expose what I feel are injustices to our taxpayers.

Cindy Lou Corum Loxahatchee Groves

St. Michael Fun Fair — (L-R) Olene Nelson, Walter Carney, Dave Weiss, Bill Haines and Mara Haines with some of the completed raffle baskets.

Project Pride members with the Firefighters Memorial.

A Project Pride member with a brick honoring Lt. Ray

Vasquez, who was killed in a shooting in West Palm Beach.

Project Pride members with the engraved bricks to lay down.

VINCEREMOS HOSTS HARVEST FEST AT JIM BRANDON EQUESTRIAN CENTER

The Vinceremos Therapeutic Riding Center in Loxahatchee Groves hosted its Second Annual Harvest Fest on Saturday, Oct. 4 at the Jim Brandon Equestrian Center on Forest Hill Blvd. This event helped fund scholarships for kids who need help with the cost of horse therapy and featured a horse and rider Halloween costume contest, Breyer model horse-decorating contest, kids games, lunch from Outback Steakhouse, pony rides, arts and crafts, and DJs who entertained kids with juggling, music and dancing. For more information about Vinceremos, call (561) 792-9900 or visit www.vinceremos.com.

PHOTOS BY DENISE FLEISCHMAN/TOWN-CRIER

Taris Handy mounts Cracker Jack with help from barn manager and head instructor Carly Brown and support from uncle Billy Dillon.

Tiffany and Hannah Panico “feed” the frog a hamburger.

Maya Suchy of Loxahatchee with scarecrow dolls.

Taylor Lamberson and Danielle Buxbaum with their Breyer model horses.

Most Creative Costume winner Katelyn Drury with horse Tommy and volunteer Randy Shattel.

Noisy Neighbors DJs Randall Glass and Seamus Murphy.

Sarah Lishen (as Pocahontas) has horse Will take a bow after they won Most Original Costume.

Marysue Jacobs, Taylor Lamberson, Vinceremos Executive Director Ruth Menor and Danielle Buxbaum with decorated horses for the contest.

Vincermos Board Member Iseult Broglio at the check-in table.

Karen Schmidt assists Elijah Whaley as he rides Sweet Pea.

Volunteer mom Louisa Legato with her son Jason, horse Cracker Jack and Carrie McMillian.

St. Peter’s Annual Harvest Fest Returns To Wellington Oct. 25

St. Peter’s United Methodist Church in Wellington (12200 W. Forest Hill Blvd., Wellington) will hold its Third Annual Community Harvest Fest on Saturday, Oct. 25 from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. It will be an all-day affair with funfilled activities.

Harvest Fest will start with a huge rummage sale beginning at 8 a.m. and continue throughout the day. There will be a large group of crafters selling their crafts inside the air-conditioned gym a well as a big bake sale. There will also be children’s games, a bounce house, rock-wall climbing, bungee acrobatics, gladiator jousting, a 21-foot slide, a 45foot obstacle course, a bungee run, face painting, ponies and more.

The Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office and Palm Beach County FireRescue will have demonstrations

throughout the day. Onstage entertainment will begin at 10 a.m. and continue to 4:30 p.m. Entertainers will include the Wellington Twirl National Champs, Gospel Truth singers, Celebration and Joys-R-Us singers, TNT Gymnastics, Donna Tucci’s School of Dance, Cats Gymnastics, Palm Beach Super Tae Kwon Do and the band City of David. There will be a puppet show starting at noon in the church’s Fellowship Hall. The children’s and youth ministries will have the pumpkin patch open all day, selling all sizes of pumpkins and gourds as part of their fundraising program. All residents of the western communities are invited to St. Peter’s Community Harvest Fest. Admission is free. For more information, call the church office (561) 793-5712.

Fall Festival Returns To

Wellington

Join the Village of Wellington and the Palms West Chamber of Commerce as Royal Palm Toyota presents the Wellington Fall Festival on Friday, Oct. 31 from 5 to 10 p.m. at the Village Park gymnasium (11700 Pierson Road).

All activities require the purchase of coupon booklets or the purchase of an all-access bracelet for $20. Advance bracelets are on sale now for only $15 and are available for pur-

chase at Village Park or the Wellington Community Center (12165 W. Forest Hill Blvd.).

The fun begins at 5 p.m. with the Old Gym Haunted Hallways. You’ll scream through 3,000 square feet and 15 minutes of twisting and frightful hallways. The evening continues with a costume contest. Costumes will be judged on originality, scariest and best look-a-like character. Festivities will continue throughout the evening with face painting, hayrides, haymaze, door-todoor trick-or-treat, inflatable rides and more.

The Village of Wellington is cur-

rently accepting volunteer applications for those who want to frighten event-goers in the best haunted event this side of the western communities. Volunteer service hours will be awarded. Sponsorship opportunities for this event are available. Call Catherine at the Palms West Chamber of Commerce at (561) 790-6200 for details, or visit www.palmswest. com. The Wellington Fall Festival is a way to spend Halloween with friends and family of all ages. For more information, call (561) 791-4005. Sponsors include Royal Palm Toyota, the Sun-Sentinel, Sister’s Towing,

Spookyville This Month At Yesteryear Village

Yesteryear Village at the South Florida Fairgrounds will host Spookyville on Saturday and Sunday, Oct. 25 and 26 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., and Friday, Oct. 31 from 4 to 7 p.m.

Highlights of Spookyville include:

• Family-friendly, old fashioned-Halloween fun targeted for families with small children 12 and under.

• Trick-or-treating at historic buildings in the village (on Halloween Night Oct. 31).

• Costume contests and a costume parade.

• Fun children’s activities.

• James Changefield magic shows.

• A not-so-scary witch and Deanna the mime.

• Amazing Hitchiti dancers.

• Community vendors.

• A rating of “G” for great family entertainment. Admission is $5 and free for ages two and under. Parking is free. For more information, visit www.southflorida fair.com or call (561) 793-0333.

County Line Feed & Supply and Waste Management.

Howl At The Moon To Benefit Dog Park

Wellington’s pampered canines will strut their stuff at the sixth annual “Howl at the Moon” event at the Wellington Dog Park. Come out with your canine best friend on Saturday, Oct. 25 to show them off and let them know how special they are. The event is being held from 9 a.m. to noon and offers a wide variety of dog activities for all to enjoy.

The event will kick off with a dog costume contest, silly pet tricks by Elite Greyhound Adoptions and canine good citizen testing by Marc Street from 10:30 to 11 a.m. Other activities include pictures with your pet, pet adoptions by Pet Haven Rescue, microchip implantations for $15, portraits painted by your pet, face painting, trick-or-treat bags for the dogs, nail trimming by Kim Barker and refreshments for all who attend. For more information, call Dr. Marc Pinkwasser of Courtyard Animal Hospital at (561) 784-PETS. The Wellington Dog Park is located at 2975 Greenbriar Blvd.

Jake and Alexa Robert at last year’s harvest fest.

Jake Roberts competes in last year’s hat toss.

John Sullivan dressed as a scarecrow in 2006.

Youngsters take part in a sack race at last year’s Spookyville.

The family-friendly event is fun for all ages.

A

Year Ago I

Was Thin, Lithe And Healthy; Now I’m An Apple

OK, more bad news. I’ve just discovered I’m an apple. Yup. Evidently you’re either an apple or a pear, and being a pear is better. I should’ve known. After decades of study, researchers decided those who carry extra weight around their middles (us apples) are more likely to have health problems than you pears, who carry it on your hips, thighs or backsides. So quit whining to me about saddlebags — my life may be in danger! I remember this time last year, when I was thin, lithe and healthy. I had been scared into dieting for the first time ever due to the approaching nuptials of my daughter (you all read about the wedding, I’m sure — and read about it... and read about it). To prepare, I had shelled out 50 bucks for some pills that don’t let food settle inside you. It sounded like a plan. Inside the package was a “companion booklet” with a calorie counter. The

Deborah Welky is The Sonic BOOMER

booklet suggested that a fairly sedentary person of my height should consume no more than 1,500 calories a day. It told me how many calories were in various things — including fast food (which I cannot live without), and this was a revelation! I decided to count calories instead of taking the pills. I also walked half an hour three times a week.

Between July 5 and Sept. 20, I lost 20 pounds!

My clothes fit better; I had all kinds of energy, and best of all, I knew that right after the wedding, I could go back to my typical “eatos” diet (Cheetos, Doritos, Tostitos — you know, all things bright and beautiful). And I did.

Now my daughter has celebrated her first anniversary, and I have just been informed that I’m a big, fat, juicy apple headed for the applesauce machine. So much for an apple a day.

The truth is, even before this bad news, I was considering going back to the diet. I actually miss the almonds, the dried apricots, the fresh fruit and the gingersnaps. It wouldn’t kill me to substitute bottled water for soda several times a day, and you know what? Cheese is overrated.

No, that’s a lie. There is nothing more delicious than cheese. Go to any restaurant and look at the shiny, glossy photos they’ve chosen to put on the

cover of their menu — everything good is topped with cheese. Want to go from a cook to a chef? Melt some cheese over whatever you’re making. And, for irony as well as flavor, top off your apple pie with cheese instead of ice cream. Yum. It’s not just because I’m from Wisconsin or because the cow is my favorite animal in the whole wide world — cheese is a wonderful food. It is also the most efficient fat producer and artery clogger in the world. Want proof? Take a look at cows — all they eat is grass and they still look like boxcars on little footstool legs. (No offense, Bossy, you know I love you all the same.) So I’m going to compromise — more fruits and nuts, fewer hamburgers and snacks, and less than a total boycott of cheese. If I do this right, I may go from an apple to an apple core. And that would be nice.

‘Life’ May Be A Matter Of Taste For Crime-Show Enthusiasts

Life, running Fridays on NBC, is not a new show, but somehow I managed to miss it last year. I caught up for its first episode in the second season, which for one reason or another ran on a Monday night, right after Heroes.

The show is about Charlie Crews (Damian Lewis), a cop released from prison after serving 12 years for a murder he did not commit. Instead of being vengeful, Charlie has become meditative with a Zen wisdom not seen since the glory days of Kung Fu. The show focuses on his ability to see things, to notice different kinds of details in new ways, as a way to fight crime. Crews is one of a long line of popular detectives who see what the rest of the police do not. Edgar Allan Poe created C. Auguste Dupin in “The Murders in the Rue Morgue” in 1841, before the word “detective” was even coined. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s Sherlock Holmes then became the real prototype for the crime solvers we have become infested with in books and television.

‘I’ On CULTURE

By

Leonard Wechsler

Note how many current TV detectives are able to spot things the rest of us cannot. Monk (Tony Shalhoub) sees every detail as part of obsessivecompulsive disorder. Shawn (James Roday) of Psych was trained to notice details even if he plays things for laughs. Patrick Jane (Simon Baker) of The Mentalist knows how to read body language. One could argue that the gang on all the CSI shows use their microscopes and other equipment to do the same thing using science.

tives can assure us that they close the majority of cases, but usually through simple good police work. However, that is not nearly as much fun and does not fit neatly into one-hour packages. Charlie Crews is a fairly interesting character, although his more mystical side comes across as a bit of a put-on. The show itself, happily, does not take itself that seriously. As Crews sits in a subway, a young boy spots his gun and asks if ever shot anyone. “Violence against one is violence against all. Violence against all is violence against me,” is Crews’ overly portentous response. The boy, straight-faced, responds, “but did you shoot anyone?”

become regulars. Much of the information about the “conspiracy” is on the show web site at www.nbc.com/life.

We all want our brilliant detectives because they give the impression that law enforcement is omniscient, that it can solve all crimes. Real detec-

Life contains an overriding story arc in which Crews and a former cellmate (Adam Arkin) are searching for the people responsible for the killings that sent him to prison. References to that back-story confused me a bit as a first-time viewer. I had to ask a fan of the show what it was all about. The producers and writers need to clear up confusion for casual viewers if they want them to

The cast is very good. Lewis is both enigmatic and charismatic as Crews. Sarah Shahi, as his partner, plays the skeptic very well and is, as is to be expected in shows like this, very pretty, Arkin as Ted Earley, the former cellmate, is a good foil for the hero. The series added Donal Logue as Crews’ new commander, a crusty former New York cop, which added a nice bit of spice. For a change, on this show, the commander is not played as a fool who the detective generally one-ups. Is Life a show to watch? Well, this one comes down to a matter of taste. It certainly fits the bill as entertainment and it is somewhat different from other detective shows, although more as a minor variation than a truly different scheme. Of course, any good show on a Friday night is welcome as it seems to be turning into the next Saturday: a night when nothing particularly great is on. Perhaps will grow on you. Give it a try, Grasshopper.

ST. ANDREW’S EPISCOPAL CHURCH HOLDS BLESSING OF THE ANIMALS

Sandrine Buttay with Josephine.

Father Paul Rasmus blesses Rabelais, held by Benoit Mailloux.Chris Ragsdale holds Stover.

The Phantoms Preview The 2008-09 Season At The Kravis Center

Once again, somehow, they have managed to outdo last year!

Listed below are some of the almost nightly performances from October through January at the Kravis Center for the Performing Arts (701 Okeechobee Blvd., West Palm Beach). For a complete list for all performances October through June, call the Kravis Center box office at (561) 8327469 or choose your seat at www.kravis.org.

• Saturday, Oct. 25 at 8 p.m.: Peter Frampton — Guitarist/ singer Peter Frampton’s superstar status was sealed with Frampton Comes Alive!

• Tuesday, Nov. 4 at 2 p.m.: Kirov Orchestra — One of the most celebrated orchestras in the world, the Kirov Orchestra will be making its first appearance at the Kravis Center.

• Thursday and Friday, Nov. 6 and 7 at 7:30 p.m.: Women in Shakespeare — Starring the legendary actress Claire Bloom, this is a splendid scrapbook of film and stage interpretations of Shakespeare’s works over the past half century.

• Wednesday, Nov. 12 at 8 p.m.: Carmen — Teatro Lirico d’Europa, Europe’s largest touring company, presents Georges Bizet’s immortal Carmen

• Tuesday, Nov. 18 at 8 p.m.: Vince Gill — The singer, musician, songwriter and Country Music Hall of Fame member has a record-breaking 18 Country Music Association awards and over 26 million album sales worldwide. He stands as one of the most successful artists in the history of country music.

• Thursday, Nov. 20 at 8 p.m.: Phoebe Snow — Phoebe Snow burst onto the music scene in 1974 with her haunting self-penned single “Poetry Man.” Praised by critics as “the voice of a generation,” Snow’s eclectic career-defining Kravis Center performance is one you won’t want to miss.

• Friday, Nov. 21 at 7:30 p.m.: Gallagher — Comedy legend Gallagher has taken the concept of food processing to new heights, showering his audience with humor, Big Macs, cottage cheese, pureed water-

melons and other food groups with his trademark Sledge-OMatic.

• Friday through Sunday, Nov. 21-23: Rubberbandance Group — With choreographic works that examine human relationships, this extraordinary collection of world-class dancers articulates the perfect marriage between explosive hip-hop physicality and the subtle profoundness of contemporary storytelling.

• Friday, Nov. 21 at 8 p.m.: The Pajama Game — This must-see musical of the season features an all-new production of the Tony Award-winning, Broadway smash hit. The high-energy score by Richard Adler and Jerry Ross brims with popular hits and musical theatre standards such as “Hey There,” “Steam Heat” and the hilarious “Hernando’s Hideaway” that will keep you humming all the way home

• Tuesday through Sunday, Nov. 25-30: Avenue Q — Avenue Q is Broadway’s smashhit 2004 Tony Award winner for Best Musical, Best Score and Best Book. A hilarious show full of heart and hummable tunes, Avenue Q is about trying to make it in New York City with big dreams and a tiny bank account, one of the funniest shows you’re ever likely to see!

• Wednesday, Dec. 3 at 8 p.m.: Dave Koz and Friends: A Smooth Jazz Christmas Dave Koz joins special guests Jonathan Butler, Jeff Golub and Keiko Matsui, offering smooth jazz fans a treat. This annual Christmas performance is a celebration not to be missed.

• Wednesday through Sunday, Dec. 10-14: Marc Salem: Mind Games and All That Jazz — Mixing the old and new, Marc Salem can change the time on your watch without touching it, he can describe your last vacation and he can tell you the serial number of a bill in your wallet!

• Tuesday, Dec. 16 at 8 p.m.: Barbara Cook — This legendary soprano is at the peak of her interpretative powers. Barbara Cook has delighted audiences around the world for more than 50 years, first as Broadway’s favorite ingénue

in the heyday of the Broadway musical.

• Wednesday, Dec. 17 at 8 p.m.: Idols In Concert for the Holidays — Featuring former American Idol contestants, the surprising combination of four of the top-ten finalists from seasons one through six will take to the stage for an exciting night of solo, duet and ensemble performances. Relive your favorite American Idol moments as these talented young artists perform a thrilling array of holiday favorites.

• Sunday through Wednesday, Dec. 21-24: My Son the Waiter: A Jewish Tragedy Part theater, part standup comedy, Brad Zimmerman’s homey send-ups on his childhood, family, career and misbegotten love life are as warm and poignant as they are hilarious.

• Friday through Wednesday, Dec. 26-31: Forbidden Broadway’s 25th Anniversary Tour — Don’t miss this fall-down funny, musical roast of Broadway’s biggest hits, brightest stars and most notorious flops. So why see just one show when you can see them all in 97 minutes of nonstop hilarity?

• Monday, Dec. 29 at 11 a.m. and 2 p.m.: Melissa Manchester — For more than three decades, Grammy award-winning artist Manchester has remained one of the most compelling singer/songwriters in contemporary music. She created a sensation in 1975 with her first smash hit single “Midnight Blue” and continued to top the charts with classics such as “Don’t Cry Out Loud,” “Come In From the Rain,” “Through the Eyes of Love” and “You Should Hear How She Talks About You.”

• Monday, Dec. 29 at 8 p.m.: The Romeros — A veritable institution in the world of classical music, this classical guitar quartet has dazzled countless audiences and won the raves of reviewers worldwide. Their program will feature mostly Spanish music, including Pepe Romero’s own compositions.

• Tuesday, Dec. 30 at 8 p.m.: Barrage — Often described as “Stomp meets Riverdance,” Barrage is a high-octane, footstomping fiddle-fest that fea-

tures an international, multitalented cast performing an eclectic mix of music, song and dance that will take your breath away.

• Wednesday, Dec. 31 at 8 p.m.: NBC’S Last Comic Standing Live Tour — The Emmy-nominated laugh fest returns with an all-new group of the world’s funniest comics. Watch season six of the series on NBC, then see the finalists perform live right here!

• Thursday, Jan. 1 at 8 p.m.: Salute To Vienna: The World’s Greatest New Year’s Concert — Enjoy the music of Vienna’s “Waltz King” Johann Strauss in an unforgettable and uplifting performance of music, song and dance! The full Strauss Symphony of America, talented European singers, an exciting maestro and costumed dancers performing the ever-popular Viennese waltz will inspire and delight.

• Friday through Sunday, Jan. 2-4: Blue: A Tribute to Joni Mitchell — This show focuses on music from the first phase of Joni Mitchell’s career. Taking its title from her landmark 1970 album of poetic confessional songs, the concert presents Blue in its entirety, along with many other favorites from her other early albums: “Song To a Seagull,” “Clouds” and “Ladies of the Canyon.”

• Friday, Jan. 2 at 8 p.m.: Giselle — Presented by the esteemed State Ballet Theatre of Russia, a troupe of 54 principal dancers and soloists, this romantic classical ballet is a tale of deceit, forgiveness and never-ending love that has touched audiences for more than 150 years. The performance includes a full symphony orchestra.

• Tuesday through Sunday, Jan. 6-11: The Drowsy Chaperone — Welcome to The Drowsy Chaperone , the new musical comedy that is swooping into town with tons of laughs and the most 2006 Tony Awards of any musical on Broadway. It’s a glamorous and hilarious tale of a celebrity bride and her uproarious wedding day.

• Monday, Jan. 12 at 8 p.m.: Itzhak Perlman — The vio-

linist will be joined by pianist Rohan de Silva for this performance. Undeniably the reigning virtuoso of the violin, beloved for his charm and humanity as well as his talent, Itzhak Perlman has come to be recognized by audiences all over the world who respond not only to his flawless technique, but to the irrepressible joy of making music which he communicates.

• Tuesday, Jan. 13 at 8 p.m.: The Music of Led Zeppelin: A Rock Symphony — Conductor/arranger Brent Havens recreates Led Zeppelin hits such as “Stairway To Heaven,” “Heartbreaker,” “Immigrant Song” and more, including vocalist Randy Jackson’s eerily accurate note-for-note interpretations of Robert Plant’s high-octane, high-octave vocals.

• Thursday, Jan. 15 at 8 p.m.: ’70s Soul Jam — This show includes the Stylistics, Heatwave, Harold Melvin’s Blue Notes and the Main Ingredient featuring Cuba Gooding Sr. and hosted by Jimmie “J.J.” Walker. Get set for a rollicking evening of chart-topping favorites mixed with a selection of new classics.

• Saturday, Jan. 17 at 8 p.m.: Laughter and Reflection with Carol Burnett — In this interactive performance, Carol Burnett combines a montage of hysterical video clips from her Emmy Award-winning variety show with amusing revelations about her life and career. Come with your questions

and share in the fun with one of America’s true entertainment legends.

• Tuesday, Jan. 27 at 8 p.m.: Budapest Festival Orchestra — In true Hungarian style, this orchestra will devote the first half of the program to gypsy folk music, under the baton of Maestro Fischer, who is the current principal conductor of the National Symphony in Washington.

• Wednesday, Jan. 28 at 8 p.m.: Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra with Wynton Marsalis — Composed of 15 of the finest jazz soloists and ensemble players, this group is the resident orchestra at Jazz at Lincoln Center in New York City. The performance will feature arrangements by John Coltrane, Duke Ellington, Dizzy Gillespie, Benny Goodman, Charles Mingus, Thelonious Monk, Lee Morgan, Horace Silver, Mary Lou Williams and members of the orchestra. Upcoming shows for the Kravis Center in the 2009 season include Jackie Mason, Christopher Cross, Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons, Engelbert Humperdinck, Natalie Cole, Kenny Rogers, the Temptations and the Four Tops, José Carreras, Legally Blonde the Musical , Fiddler on the Roof, Don Rickles and Regis Philbin, The Wizard of Oz, the Ten Tenors, and more. Joe & Kathryn, the Phantoms, are featured writers for the Town-Crier newspaper. Comments are welcome at the phantomdiners@aol.com.

The Romeros will perform Monday, Dec. 29 at 8 p.m.

TOWN-CRIER SPORTS & RECREATION

Wellington Remains Winless After Tough Loss To Jupiter

By Lisa Keeney Town-Crier Staff Report

The Wellington High School varsity football team was still searching for its first win of the season this week after suffering a tough loss in Jupiter to the Warriors, who shut out the visiting Wolverines last Friday night 410. The Warriors established their dominance early, intercepting a Wellington pass and returning the ball for a touchdown less than a minute into the game. Jupiter added two more touchdowns in the first quarter and scored another pair by halftime. On Friday, Oct. 10, WHS hosts Lake Worth to cap homecoming week. Meanwhile, Palm Beach Central hosts Park Vista, Royal Palm Beach hosts Palm Beach Gardens and Seminole Ridge hosts Jupiter.

The Silver Spur In Royal Palm Beach: There For The Community

Tucked away off State Road 7 in the Royal Palm Beach Business Park is a wonderland of new and used equestrian items: everything from saddles and supplements to clocks and knick-knacks. The Silver Spur is open seven days a week and is owned and run by Cristina Burwell of Loxahatchee.

It all started when Burwell’s daughter Tiffanie wanted to show at the Posse Grounds. There were a lot of moms at those shows, all trying to please their horse-crazy daughters and still make ends meet. “We all helped each other out,” Burwell recalled. “We used to share helmets and jackets, just take them off one kid and pass them on to another in the next class. No one had enough money. I thought that one day I’d open a place that would help people who wanted to show but had trouble affording it.”

That day came in 2003 when Burwell opened her shop. In addition to new items, she sells used items and also takes things on consignment. Especially in today’s economy, horse people welcome the chance to find just what they need at bargain prices. “There are a lot of single moms out there with kids who want to ride in the local little shows,” Burwell said. “I try to keep everything very rea-

Tales From The Trails

By Ellen Rosenberg

sonably priced, even under the advertised prices in the mail-order catalogues.”

Wandering through the store is a little like falling down Alice’s rabbit hole. The aisles and walls are crammed with bits, reins, bridles, stirrups, girths, gloves, crops, halters, spurs, jewelry, bell boots, saddle pads, hobbles, books, videos, fly masks, horse sheets and blankets, pitchforks, clippers, blacksmith tools, lead ropes, grooming supplies, wormers, supplements, saddle racks, and tons of saddles — all kinds — English, western, Paso, treeless, Australian.

There are sets of dishes, horse models, bird houses, wall hangings, glass and china figurines, dried flower arrangements, jugs, candle sticks, clocks, decorative plates, mail boxes, cell phone holders, paintings and a stuffed life-sized horse.

In the bathroom, an old boot serves as a toilet paper holder. And then there are the clothes: shelves of cowboy boots of every size and variety, tall leather English boots, rubber boots, short paddock boots, racks of rat catcher shirts, show jackets, jodhpurs, breeches, belts, hair nets and helmets. There are cowboy hats and sparkly western shirts.

“A lot of people come in looking for clothes,” Burwell said. “The kids grow out of one size and need the next one. We also get a lot of equipment that someone no longer needs, say a bit or saddle, and it’ll be just what someone else was looking for. We carry a little of everything — hunter jumper, western, dressage and saddle seat.”

Stephanie DeFazio of Royal Palm Beach has been visiting the Silver Spur ever since it opened. Her three daughters are into barrel racing, so she often needs something. “I drop in here a lot,” DeFazio said. “Nine times out of ten I find exactly what I need. It’s really hard to always buy new, new, new. I love the cheaper prices.”

DeFazio has bought and sold saddles at the shop. She loves how friendly and helpful they are. If they don’t have exactly what DeFazio is after, they’ll find it for her. This day she stopped in for a pitchfork — and found one. Then she had to

just look around — in case she happened on something else she maybe didn’t exactly need but couldn’t pass up.

The Silver Spur also does repairs on leather halters, saddles, bridles and boots. DeFazio said she had a saddle restitched and was pleased with the results.

In addition to helping horse owners afford their hobby, Burwell said there’s another reason she’s still in business: she gives back to the community. This year she sponsored a whole year of riding lessons for a little girl who really wanted to learn to ride. She also donates saddles to local 4-H groups for fundraisers. She knows how it is. She cleaned stalls for years in exchange for her daughter’s riding lessons.

“People were good to me when I didn’t have a lot,” she said. “I really like being able to give back in the same way others helped me.”

“This is an all-around great place,” DeFazio agreed. “They help the average person afford their horses. And that’s a lot, the way things are today. It’s the truth.” The Silver Spur is located in the

PHOTOS BY LISA KEENEY/TOWN-CRIER

The Wellington defense pursues the Jupiter rusher.

A pack of Wolverines bring down a Jupiter ball carrier.

Wellington’s Ken Konn takes the handoff from Winter Cullen.

Tanoris Rogers runs the ball for WHS.

Brian Pupo handles the kickoff return for Wellington.

Victor Jones turns to make the tackle for WHS.

Wellington’s Chris Thomas hangs on to the offense’s jersey as Ben Chapman rushes in to help tackle.

(Above and below) Wolverine Winter Cullen’s pass is incomplete as he scrambles to avoid being sacked.

Wellington’s Nestor Lantigua passes under pressure.

Wolverine Nestor Lantigua eludes a Jupiter tackler in the backfield.

SPORTS & RECREATION

WELLINGTON YOUTH VOLLEYBALL PLAYOFFS THIS SUNDAY AT VILLAGE PARK

Power Play, one of five pro-level volleyball teams from the Wellington Parks & Recreation Department’s youth co-ed league, have been practicing resistance training on one of the village’s sand courts. Team coach Matt Spaeth, a fouryear veteran of Royal Palm Beach High School’s volleyball team and current Palm Beach Community College student, said playing on sand ultimately improves reaction time on an indoor court. According to Athletic Program Coordinator Jill Denoff, the indoor league boasted a record number of registrants this year at both the pro level (ages 13 to 16) and the college level (ages 10 to 12). The eight-week league culminates in single-elimination playoffs on Sunday, Oct. 12 at the Village Park gymnasium (11700 Pierson Road).

PHOTOS BY CANDACE MARCHSTEINER/TOWN-CRIER

Team Power Play (front row, L-R): Kevin Arrango, coach Matt Spaeth and Zach Whitehead; (back row) Shelbi Sparks, Berkley Olsen, Stephanie Marchsteiner, Courtney Dobkins, Sydney Vitale and Carly Besson. Not pictured: Lexis Eisenson.

Zack Whitehead leaps and successfully blocks the ball.

Sydney Vitale bumps a serve to the front line.

Carly Besson moves in for the bump.

Stephanie Marchsteiner and Shelbi Sparks prepare to switch setting positions.

Shelbi Sparks lunges to meet the serve.

Courtney Dobkins calls the shot during serve-return practice.

Kevin Arrango and Zack Whitehead perfect their set-spike strategy.

More Improvements Underway At PBIEC

A new round of multimilliondollar improvements to the Palm Beach International Equestrian Center in Wellington are underway to prepare for the winter circuits. The latest phase of improvements focus on substantial upgrades to footing in competition arenas and enhanced exhibitor and spectator experiences for the 2009 Winter Equestrian Festival and the December holiday circuit.

Equestrian Sport Productions, which manages the horse shows at PBIEC for owners Wellington Equestrian Partners, estimated the latest round of improvements at $4 million. More than $5 million was spent overhauling the facility that was previously called Palm Beach Polo Equestrian Club, prior to WEF last winter.

Unlike last year when improvements had to be made at a breakneck pace as Equestrian Sport Productions took over management of the facility just

one month before the 2008 WEF opened, comments and reactions from exhibitors, spectators and others involved in the horse show were considered and plans for new improvements drawn up.

Highest priority has again been given to footing in competition and warm up arenas for the comfort and safety of horses. New footing — the same quality that was installed in the centerpiece International and the DeNemethy arenas — is being prepared for other rings and arenas. The network of bridle paths, golf cart roads and pedestrian walkways that significantly improved safety and reduced congestion are scheduled to be further enhanced based on the experience of the first year. The FEI stabling area will undergo a major renovation with larger stalls and better drainage. For more information, visit www.equestriansport.com.

Newman Scores At Capital Challenge

Katherine Newman of Wellington accumulated top ribbons and two tricolors recently at the Capital Challenge Horse Show in Upper Marlboro, Md. The young rider trains with her parents, Kathy and Gerry, at their hunter/jumper show stable Allwyn Court. In the Small Junior 16-17 Hunter division, the young rider rode Lifetime Guarantee for Robert Cole and came home with consistent ribbons. In addition, they pinned fourth in the World Champion Junior Hunter Under Saddle. She showed Pirate in the older Small Juniors for Boggs Hill Farm, and the pair earned second and sixth place over fences. They also finished seventh in the WCHR Junior Challenge.

Newman competed in the Large Junior 16-17 Hunters with Pacemaker, a catch-ride that she showed for V. Mavec LLC. Pacemaker rode to a blue ribbon finish in the handy hunter class. Along with their first, they earned the reserve championship after winning two fifths over fences and seventh place under saddle. She also competed with All the Answers, owned by Sherri Crawford. In the 17-Year-Old Equitation division, Newman came away with the reserve championship after she pinned second in both over fences classes. In the first over fences, she rode Goodtime for Laura Patava and Bonaventure Farm. In the second class, she piloted Wave on Wave for SBS Farms Inc.

Register Now For Wellington Fall Programs

The Wellington Community Center offers a wide variety of programs for babies to adults. Fall programs for children include TumbleTots, GymKids, KinderSports, Acting Fun, Acting and Performance, Tiny Toes, Dancing Darlings, Budding Ballerinas, Kinder Dance, Dancing Kids and Super Stars, and Super Stars Special Needs. Adult programs include Intermediate Italian, Yogilates, Pilates, Yoga and Almighty Salsa. Be sure to sign up so you don’t miss a thing!

For times, dates or more details on these programs, check out the village’s web site at www.ci.wellington.fl.us or call

Julie Strow at (561) 753-5262. In addition to these programs, Jazzercise has begun at the Wellington Community Center. Jazzercise is a great workout that incorporates cardio, strength and stretch moves by combining yoga, pilates, kick-boxing, hip-hop and resistance training into one hour for a total body workout. It is the perfect exercise for all ages and abilities. The program is offered from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. on Mondays, Tuesdays and Thursdays, and from 8:30 to 9:30 a.m. on Saturdays. For more information, or to register for Jazzercise, call Jackie Orloff at (305) 904-1474.

Getting Ready — Workers install improvements at the Palm Beach International Equestrian Center in Wellington.

COMMUNIT Y CALENDAR

Saturday, Oct. 11

• The fall edition of the Palm Beach Home Show continues

Saturday and Sunday, Oct. 11 and 12 at the Palm Beach County Convention Center (650 Okeechobee Blvd., West Palm Beach). The show features more than 100,000 square feet of displays, including interior decorating, furnishing, kitchen and bathroom design, pools and spas, landscaping and outdoor living. Admission is $9 for adults and $4 for children ages four to 12. Seniors receive $2 off the regular admission price. For more info., visit www.palmbeach homeshow.com or call (800) 321-6164.

• Come out and get wet and dirty while helping to maintain the hiking trails at Jonathan Dickinson State Park with the Loxahatchee chapter of the Florida Trail Association on Saturday, Oct. 11. Meet at the park entrance on U.S. 1 in Jupiter at 8 a.m. Call B. Rogers at (561) 968-4864 for more info.

• Grassy Waters Preserve (8264 Northlake Blvd.) will present a First Aid Course on Saturday and Sunday, Oct. 11 and 12 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. American Red Cross instructor Val Wilson will lead a course on emergency response practices. The cost is $125, which includes materials and lunch. RSVP to (561) 650-9110.

• Virtuoso sitarist, composer, teacher and writer Ravi Shankar will perform at the Kravis Center for the Performing Arts (701 Okeechobee Blvd., West Palm Beach) on Saturday, Oct. 11 at 8 p.m. in the Dreyfoos Concert Hall. For more info., call (561) 8327469 or visit www.kravis.org. Sunday, Oct. 12

• The Wellington Runners Club and the Village of Wellington will host the Fourth Annual Horse Country Ten-Miler on Sunday, Oct. 12 at 7 a.m. The race will start on Greenbriar Blvd. in front of New Horizons Elementary School. Registration is $25 through Oct. 11 and $30 on race day. Race day registration begins at 5:45 a.m. Pre-registration is available online at www.active.com or pick up a registration form at the Wellington Community Center or FIT2RUN in the Mall at Wellington Green. Information and application forms are available at www.wellington runners.org. The run will benefit the Kids Cancer Foundation of South Florida.

• Palm Beach Central High School’s Homecoming Week will be held Oct. 12-18. The theme is “A Heroes’ Homecoming.” Class themes are as follows: freshmen, “Iron Man;” sophomores, “Spider-man;” juniors, “The Hulk;” and seniors, “Superman.” Activities are scheduled all week, culminating in the homecoming game and presentation of the homecoming court on Friday, Oct. 17 and the Homecoming Dance on Saturday, Oct. 18 from 8 to 11 p.m. in the gym. Tuesday, Oct. 14

• The Wellington library (1951 Royal Fern Drive) will present “Twilight Trivia” during Teen Read Week 2008 on Tuesday, Oct. 14 for ages 12 through 17. Participants talk about “books with bite.” Test your knowledge of the vampire/werewolf series by Stephenie Meyer. Call (561) 790-6070 to pre-register.

• Representatives from McMow Art Glass of Lake Worth will give a demo on the art of stained glass during a meeting of the Wellington Art Society on Tuesday, Oct. 14 at the Royal Palm Beach Cultural Center (151 Civic Center Way). Light refreshments will be served at 6:30 p.m., followed by a brief business meeting at 7 p.m., with the demo starting about 7:15 p.m. While the meeting is free and open to the public, there is a $5 fee for the McMow demo for non-society members. For more info., visit www.wellingtonartsociety.org or call WAS President Adrianne Hetherington at (561) 7847561.

• The Wellington Village Council will meet on Tuesday, Oct. 14 at 7 p.m. at the Wellington Community Center. For more info., call (561) 7914000. Wednesday, Oct. 15

• The Wellington library (1951 Royal Fern Drive) will present “Flick Lit: Bridge to Terebithia” on Wednesday, Oct. 15, 3:30 p.m. for families. You’ve read the book, now watch the movie! Call (561) 790-6070 for more info.

• Grassy Waters Preserve (8264 Northlake Blvd.) will host a Sunset/Moonlight Parade on Wednesday, Oct. 15 from 4 to 7 p.m. at the Bingham Wilderness Pavilion. Experience sunset over the fresh-

water marsh, watch wild birds fly home to roost and then glide back in canoes under the moon’s glow. The event is for ages ten and up, and costs $15 for adults and $5 for children. For more info., call (561) 804-4985 (south side) or (561) 804-4980 (north side), or visit www.grassywaters preserve.com.

• The Wellington library (1951 Royal Fern Drive) will present “Socrates Café” on Wednesday, Oct. 15 at 6:30 p.m. for adults. Marji Chapman will lead a discussion group for amateur philosophers on a variety of topics chosen by the group. Call (561) 790-6070 to pre-register.

Thursday, Oct. 16

• The Wellington library (1951 Royal Fern Drive) will present “Computer Basics for Kids” on Thursday, Oct. 16 at 4:15 p.m. for ages eight to 12. This is a hands-on class to practice basic computing concepts and learn new vocabulary. You must be able to use a mouse. Call (561) 790-6070 to pre-register.

• The Wellington library (1951 Royal Fern Drive) will present “Pizza & Pages: Hope Was Here” on Thursday, Oct. 16 at 7:30 p.m. for ages 12 through 17. Eat pizza and discuss Hope Was Here by Joan Bauer. Pick up a copy of the book and call (561) 790-6070 to pre-register.

Friday, Oct. 17

• Palm Beach County’s Fall Home & Garden Show will be at the South Florida Fairgrounds (9067 Southern Blvd., West Palm Beach) Friday through Sunday, Oct. 17-19. More than 500 exhibitors will be on hand, as well as features, experts and celebrities. Admission is $9 for adults and seniors ($6 for seniors Friday only), $4.50 for ages six to 12, and free for five and under. For more info., visit www.west palmbeachhomeshow.com.

• The Wellington library (1951 Royal Fern Drive) will host the Whole Wide World Book Discussion Series on Friday, Oct. 17 at 2 p.m. for adults. Barbara Harnick will lead a discussion of The Boleyn Inheritance by Philippa Gregory. Sign up and check out the book. Call (561) 790-6070 for more info.

• The Wellington library (1951 Royal Fern Drive) will present “Science Club: Geology Rocks!” on Friday, Oct. 17 at 3:30 p.m. for ages nine through 12. If you love rocks and minerals, come explore the rock cycle and examine a few rock samples. Call (561) 790-6070 to pre-register.

• Palm Beach Dramaworks kicks off its ninth season with Eugene O’Neill’s A Moon for the Misbegotten on Friday, Oct. 17 at 8 p.m. at the downtown theatre (322 Banyan Blvd., West Palm Beach). Specially priced preview performances are slated for Oct. 15 and 16 at 8 p.m. The production will run through Nov. 30. For tickets, call (561) 5144042 or visit www.palmbeach dramaworks.org.

• All Suncoast Chargers alumni are invited to this year’s homecoming events Friday and Saturday, Oct. 17 and 18. The theme for this year’s homecoming is “Eras: ’60s, ’70s, ’80s and ’90s.” All alumni interested in participating in Suncoast homecoming events and representing the era in which they graduated are invited to contact Student Government Association Historian Maggie Lynn Powers at (561) 315-1989 or magerdoodle @hotmail.com. Saturday, Oct. 18

• The Making Strides Against Breast Cancer Walk will take place Saturday, Oct. 18 at the Greenview Cove Golf Course in Wellington. Registration and survivors’ breakfast begins at 7:30 a.m., the program begins at 8:15 a.m. and the 5K walk begins at 9 a.m. For more info., call Maureen Gross at (561) 650-0136 or visit http://makingstrides. acsevents.org/westerncommunities.

• Meet the Loxahatchee chapter of the Florida Trail Association for a walk at Okeeheelee Park (7715 Forest Hill Blvd.) on Saturday, Oct. 18 at 7:30 a.m. Participants will meet at the western entrance. Call Daisy at (561) 439-5780 for more info.

• The Wellington library (1951 Royal Fern Drive) will present “Drop-in Story Time” on Saturdays, Oct. 18 and 25 at 11 a.m. for ages two and up. Call (561) 790-6070 to preregister.

Send calendar items to: The Town-Crier, 12794 W. Forest Hill Blvd., Suite 31, Wellington, FL 33414. FAX: (561) 7936090. E-mail: news@gotown crier.com.

BRIGHTON COLLECTIBLES HOSTS AMERICAN CANCER SOCIETY FUNDRAISER

Brighton Collectibles and the American Cancer Society held a fundraising event Sunday, Oct. 5 at the Mall at Wellington Green to honor cancer survivors and remember those who lost the battle. The Tree of Hope was unveiled, and survivors and family members wrote down names of loved ones to hang on the tree. Jewelry and other items were also available for sale, with a portion of the proceeds going toward the ACS. To contact Brighton Collectibles, call (561) 333-3558 or e-mail wellingtongreen@brightoncollectibles.com. The Western Communities Making Strides Against Breast Cancer Walk in will be held Saturday, Oct. 18. For more info., visit http:// makingstrides.acsevents.org/westerncommunities, call Maureen Gross at (561) 650-0136 or e-mail maureen.gross@ cancer.org.

PHOTOS BY CAROL PORTER/TOWN-CRIER

Katherine Hostetler with some goodies.

Curt and Tara Perrella do some shopping.

Pam Pandey with her mother Lalita.

Shari Zipp decorates the Tree of Hope.

Sales Managing Partner Connie Angrisani with one of the special items for sale.

Terrie Priore, Maureen Gross and Ana Maria Silva.

Jasmyn Rose Eiler and her sister Jenna Maria Gentile.

Cancer survivor Ana Maria Silva chats with fellow survivor Bonnie Scarlett.

Maureen Gross and Lorna Johnson.

West Palm Beach Home & Garden Show Oct. 17-19 At Fairgrounds

With a challenging real estate market continuing to present a challenge to homeowners, more people are opting to remodel rather than sell their home right now. For those looking for ideas to spark their next home improvement project, the West Palm Beach Home & Garden Show — the largest show of its kind in the Palm Beaches and Treasure Coast — may provide the inspiration. Held Oct. 17-19 at the Americraft Expo Center at the South Florida Fairgrounds, the show will feature more than 500 exhibitors focusing on the latest trends in home improvement, decorating and gardening, including some of the newest products in the marketplace. Some of the best in the business will conduct live, interactive seminars and demonstrations from the Palm Beach Post Home Improvement Stage all three days of the show, including HGTV’s Joshua Foss, designer and columnist Stephen Saint-Onge and chef Bonnie Muirhead, a finalist on TV’s Hell’s Kitchen A talented interior designer, Foss has a passion for the ecorevolution and utilizes healthy, eco-friendly materials and technologies in his designs. His

work has been summarized as “sustainable design of the highstyle variety.” Foss is also a contract designer for the U.S. Green Building Council and is touring the country spreading what he calls “the Green Gospel.” Saint-Onge is a designer best known to millions of Americans from his home design and lifestyle column “House Calls with Stephen Saint-Onge” in Better Homes and Gardens magazine. His friendly, approachable and family-focused interior design talents have been featured on top-rated programs such as Oprah and The View, as well as in popular publications including In Style and Real Simple House Beautiful magazine even named him “one of the top 15 designers in America.” Muirhead, a 26-year-old personal chef from Los Angeles, Calif., parlayed her TV fame into a successful business for herself, where she works as a private chef for hire and is also working on her first cookbook. A graduate of the Kitchen Academy in Hollywood, Calif., Muirhead spends her spare time volunteering at a rehabilitation center cooking with troubled teen girls. She will conduct live cooking demonstrations throughout the three-day show

from the Whole Foods Market Cooking Stage and prepare samples.

Additional features include the Best Buy Tech Zone, where consumers can get straightforward answers on the analog to digital conversion coming in 2009, techy tidbits, and cash and carry cool gadgets. Sears will feature the Kenmore Pro suite of appliances and offer consumers information on saving energy and money through the use of energy-efficient appliances. The show’s “pet charity” is the Humane Society of the Treasure Coast. Each year, the Home & Garden Show partners with a nonprofit organization to help raise awareness and funds for a good cause. The Humane Society will play a big role during the event with its Pet Demonstration Stage, Agility Trial Pavilion, “Barkitecture Village” and a doggie wedding to cap it off. “Barkitecture Village” will feature creative dog houses made by the show’s media partners, and visitors will have a chance to bid on one of these unusual doggie dream houses featured in a silent auction. All proceeds benefit the Humane Society.

At the Pet Demonstration Stage, various speakers through-

out the weekend will cover such topics as dog obedience training tips and pet therapy programs.

A large area will be set aside to feature top notch dogs showing off their agility skills, and on the last day of the show, the Humane Society will give paws (rather pause) to salute the doggie bride and groom prancing down a runway in the first-ever wedding at the West Palm Beach Home & Garden Show!

Patrons can also take a chance on a highly coveted gas saving

Recyling Cartridges Good For The Environment

Good Morning

’s Sam Champion highlighted recycled printer cartridges, encouraging consumers to recycle them through Cartridge World, the world’s fastest-growing ink and toner refilling retailer. In an effort to help local businesses and families in the Wellington marketplace save on ink costs and decrease the growing number of cartridges that find their way into America’s landfills each year, Howard Sohn, owner of Cartridge World Wellington, is encouraging consumers to recycle their empty printer cartridges rather than throw them away.

“This is the ultimate form of environmental responsibility, not only recycling but reusing cartridges,” Sohn said, noting that 600 million ink cartridges

will be used in North America this year alone.

Customers can bring their empty ink and toner cartridges into the local store and have each refilled or swap out their cartridge for one that is ready to go.

All Cartridge World products come with a 100-percent money-back guarantee on quality and offer substantial savings over buying new.

Remanufactured cartridges save landfill space and extra resources to produce new cartridges. In addition, remanufacturing laser cartridges conserves natural resources by eliminating the need for virgin materials used to make new cartridges. For each pound of new material used in remanufacturing, five to nine pounds of virgin materials are conserved.

Other points to consider:

• In 2008, 600 million printer cartridges will be used in North America.

• American consumers throw away about 150 million ink cartridges each year, approximately five per second.

• If stacked end to end, ink cartridges discarded by U.S. consumers and businesses would reach from New York to Los Angeles and back (about 7,000 miles).

• According to the EPA, one toner cartridge requires a gallon of oil to create.

• Almost three ounces of oil are required to produce a new ink cartridge.

To contact Cartridge World Wellington call (561) 791-5050 or visit the store at 13860-5 Wellington Trace. Emeryville, Californiabased Cartridge World is the

world’s fastest growing ink and toner refilling retailer and franchiser in the $80 billion printer cartridge industry. The company refills and remanufactures inkjet and toner printer cartridges, using state-ofthe-art processes and high quality inks and toners.

Cartridge World offers consumers and businesses a more affordable option to buying new, provides a money-back guarantee and helps the environment by keeping cartridges out of landfills. Voted number one in the category of Toner Replacement Services in Entrepreneur magazine’s Franchisee 500, Cartridge World has more than 1,700 franchised retail locations in 61 countries.

For more information, call (888) 99-REFILL or visit www. cartridgeworldusa.com.

2009 Toyota Prius donated by John Pierson’s Toyota of Stuart. The car will be on display at the show and raffle tickets will be sold for $20 each with all proceeds benefiting the Humane Society. The winning Prius ticket will be drawn at the Humane Society’s Paws & Claws event Feb. 15, 2009. Home & Garden Show

Ribbon Cutting For Caribbean Choice — The Palms West Chamber of Commerce recently held a ribbon-cutting ceremony for Caribbean Choice Restaurant & Bakery located at 955 Sansbury’s Way, Suite 213, West Palm Beach. The restaurant creates delicious foods using a variety of exotic spices and only the best ingredients from the Caribbean islands. The menu includes jerked chicken, jerked fish and Jamaican-style pot roast. The restaurant also caters to vegetarians. For more info., call (561) 784-3737. Shown above are owners Don Smith, Patty and Michael Bartley with friends Pastor Donald Johnson, Pastor Rose and Pastor Gant, with chamber ambassadors.

Joshua FossBonnie MuirheadStephen Saint-Onge

Local Entrepreneur Bringing Boot Camp-Style Fitness To Area

By Ron Bukley Town-Crier Staff Report

United States Fitness Corps is landing in the western communities to get you fit.

The Boca Raton-based fitness program, run by a former U.S. Marine Corps drill instructor, is planning to open a franchise headquarters in Royal Palm Beach in a partnership with a local businessman.

Entrepreneur and Acreage resident George Domaceti, who owns the growing Da Vinci Teeth Whitening Systems franchise based in Royal Palm Beach, said he was impressed by the United States Fitness Corps concept after benefiting from the program as a participant.

“I invest in small businesses that I see have potential for development and want to further their business and might need some help, and that’s where I get involved,” he said.

He and fitness program founder Billy Hodge are in the process of narrowing down an office location in the western communities, which they plan to open in January, Domaceti said. They will hold a free weeklong demonstration boot camp the week of Oct. 20 at different locations at local parks and schools, Domaceti said.

Participants will meet at the Da Vinci office in the Regal Center at 1011 N. State Road 7 to pick up their paperwork and have their weight and body fat measurements taken.

“We’ll give them a packet, which will have a complete schedule of where to meet, when to meet, what to wear and what to bring,” Domaceti said.

Hodge founded United States Fitness Corps in 1998, and Domaceti said it was the first boot-camp-style program brought into the fitness industry. It operates in a 15,000square-foot, military-style training center in Boca Raton with obstacle courses, aerobic rooms, spinning and weights. However, 80 percent of the program is outside the gym, Domaceti said.

“We meet in a different place with a different routine every day of the week,” Domaceti said. “We focus on the outdoor part of it. If people become members, they can use the training facility, but we don’t require

them to become members to participate in boot camps. The boot camp program itself is a non-membership program. We’ll meet at parks or beaches, usually not the gym itself.”

Participants are charged a fee for each boot camp at varying rates depending on the nature of the class, Domaceti said.

United States Fitness Corps has also offered camps at more exotic locations such as Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach and the Bahamas.

“They were very successful,” Hodge said. “We did three down at Shula’s Athletic Club. We did a Boot Camp Bahamas in the Bahamas and we did a Boot Camp California in Redondo Beach. That’s when we had a lot of school teachers, a lot of very, very overweight individuals who needed some help. They all worked within the school system, including the principal, and it was a real good experience for them because it pulled them all together and saw they could actually lose weight and get in shape. They had a good time, even though it is very challenging.”

The teaser boot camp will be free. Each day of the week will have a different location.

“We will be on the beaches; we will be in Okeeheelee Park. We will be in some schools and different places of interest,” Domaceti said. “It’s very authentic what we do, and it’s a lot of fun. We might get in someone’s face and tell them to do 20 pushups, but they know it’s all in fun, and it does push them. It pushes farther than they would go if they work out solo in a gym.”

Hodge, who is a sergeant with the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office, was also a fitness instructor with the Milton, Conn., police department.

“We’ve had thousands of people come through the program, and it has been a life changing experience for everybody,” Hodge said.

Notable participants include professional hockey players Ed Jovanovski and Ray Whitney, and former NFL linebacker Thomas “Hollywood” Henderson. They also did a two-day program at Shula’s Athletic Club in Miami Lakes attended by retired

Miami Dolphins Jim Kiick and Paul Warfield.

The program is ideal to develop a team spirit mentality that gets people working together, Hodge said.

“I call it the power of teamwork. It’s the power of teamwork that brings everybody together and has people saying, ‘wow! If that person can do it, I can,’” Hodge said. “Then they help each other out and motivate each other, especially if someone is having a difficult time.”

Each class is divided into different squads or platoons based on a person’s fitness level.

“When we do a regular twoweek boot camp program, we divide the group into Alpha advanced, Bravo intermediate and Charlie beginners,” Hodge said. “We will have three or four drill instructors who will help those people along so the people in Charlie boot camp will only be there three or four days before they advance. We give people a chance to start slow and build on that each day.”

Hodge said participants are surprised at how quickly they improve their fitness and lose body fat. “I teach them to be self instructive, independent and responsible,” he said. “If I can teach people to be self-instructive and independent, they can work out anytime, and be responsible for their own actions and responsible for how they eat and how they work out and responsible for getting other people involved around them, especially after you see the difference.”

Hodge said he has received letters from boot camp grads saying their lives have been improved in different ways, including promotions at work. “I’ve got letters upon letters about their self-esteem boost,” he said.

As a military drill instructor, Hodge said he had to fast-track out-of-shape recruits into better physical condition. “I figured if the military people can do it, why can’t civilians do it?” he wondered. “I did the same thing with the police department in Connecticut. We had a lot of police officers who needed to get in shape, and the department added a physical fitness program.”

Hodge said the leading kill-

ers of police officers are stress, heart and hypertension related.

Moreover, he said he considers physical fitness a responsibility of a police officer to the public.

“If people need help, they call the cops,” Hodge said. “If we’re

not able to help them, we’re doing them an injustice.”

Hodge said the key for people is to make the commitment.

“A lot of people want to live right, but they’ve got to be willing to go that extra mile to

do it,” he said. For more information about United States Fitness Corps or its introductory boot camp in the western communities, call (561) 602-6000 or visit www.usfitness corps.com.

Fitness Trainer — Former Marine Corps drill instructor Billy Hodge of United States Fitness Corps, which will hold a free week-long demonstration boot camp the week of Oct. 20.

PHOTO BY RON BUKLEY/TOWN-CRIER

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