Town-Crier Newspaper October 11, 2019

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PBSO MARKS NEW WESTLAKE CONTRACT SEE STORY, PAGE 3

ROBERT WOLFKILL A MASTER OF WOOD SEE STORY, PAGE 7

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

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Cypress Trails Student Ambassadors Address Royal Palm Ed Board

Volume 40, Number 38 October 11 - October 17, 2019

Serving Palms West Since 1980

ART SOCIETY’S POP-UP GALLERY

The Royal Palm Beach Education Advisory Board received a special presentation on Monday, Oct. 7 from Cypress Trails Elementary School staff and students, followed by a presentation on school safety by Palm Beach County School District Police Chief Frank Kitzerow. Page 3

Royal Palm Young At Heart Club Enjoys A Pirate-Themed Lunch

The Royal Palm Beach Young at Heart Club held a luncheon on Friday, Oct. 4 at the Royal Palm Beach Cultural Center. The theme was “Pirates and Wenches.” Entertainment was provided by Wayne L., who sang oldies and had members of the audience help him sing and dance on stage. Page 15

Wellington Regional, Dillard’s Host Pamper And Shop For A Cause

Wellington Regional Medical Center and Dillard’s teamed up to fight breast cancer by bringing women together on Thursday, Oct. 3 at the Dillard’s store in the Mall at Wellington Green. Pamper & Shop event sponsors also included Century Oncology, Sari Center, Live 360 and the American Cancer Society. Page 17

Wolverines Suffer 17-10 Homecoming Loss To Boca Raton

The Wellington High School football team hosted Boca Raton High School on Friday, Oct. 4 for homecoming and fell 17-10 to the Bobcats in a defensive battle. The Wolverines (2-5, 1-1) suffered the loss after winning back-to-back games against John I. Leonard and Forest Hill. Page 21 DEPARTMENT INDEX NEWS...............................3 - 22 LETTERS.................................. 4 NEWS BRIEFS......................... 7 PEOPLE................................... 8 SCHOOLS................................ 9 COLUMNS............................. 16 CALENDAR............................ 18 BUSINESS............................. 19 SPORTS................................. 21 CLASSIFIEDS.................23 - 24 Visit Us On The Web At WWW.GOTOWNCRIER.COM

The Wellington Art Society hosted an Art Fusion Pop-Up Art Gallery from Friday, Oct. 4 through Sunday, Oct. 6 at Live 360 in the Mall at Wellington Green. Artists were available to discuss their artwork, while some artists did demos of their technique. Shown above, Leslie Pfeiffer and Bill King discuss her “Evening in the Glades” and “Green Cay” oil paintings. MORE PHOTOS, PAGE 10 PHOTO BY DENISE FLEISCHMAN/TOWN-CRIER

Couple Asks RPB For Support In Dealing With Developer

By Callie Sharkey Town-Crier Staff Report Anthony and Erica Swan live in the newly constructed Park Central townhome community off Southern Blvd., and after two years of concerns, the Swans have asked the Royal Palm Beach Village Council for help dealing with developer K. Hovnanian Cypress Key LLC. The Swans brought up their concerns at a council meeting on Thursday, Sept. 19 and plan to return to the council on Thursday, Oct. 17, hopefully with some neighbors who share their concerns. The Swans have experienced issues with several items, including property drainage, flooring and structural cracking. They purchased their home pre-construction in November 2016 and moved in less than a year later in August 2017. Drainage issues stemming from the landscaping in place were apparent immediately. “Before we closed, they started having major drainage issues. After a 10-minute rain, the sidewalks would completely flood out,” homeowner Erica Swan told the Town-Crier. “They rushed the landscaping, so they didn’t do the proper grading. We don’t

have physical drains or a lake or anything like that.” As water crept up over to their neighbors’ doorsteps, K. Hovnanian opted to attach drains to a sewer system in an effort to improve drainage. Unfortunately, this did not correct the problem, and the Swans knew their one-year warranty would approach quickly. “They said they were going to grade it down, and this was toward the end of our first year living here,” Erica said. “As soon as all these people were out of warranty, they said it’s too expensive. We brought this issue up with the village within the first couple of months.” The Swans decided to open a warranty claim ticket with the developer despite being given the impression that this and other issues would be fixed, and no ticket was needed. “Grading is covered in the warranty, but what happens, if you don’t put that in as a ticket item, they won’t do anything,” Erica said, adding that a representative of the developer told them that changes would be made. “We had a service advisor for warranty work telling us not to put gates or fences up. So that’s why we never put a fence up all this time.”

K. Hovnanian also began raising the patios for many homes in an effort to keep rising waters from reaching back doors. Anthony Swan was still concerned about the pitch of surrounding land not being addressed, so he hired a professional to complete an independent survey. “I hired a company to come survey our yard and our neighbor’s yard. I proved to them that something is wrong,” Anthony said. Eventually the situation escalated to arbitration. “With arbitration, they did come to the conclusion there is a state code — Florida State 2014 Building Code Residential Section R401.3 — that requires grading away from foundation walls, and there is a 6-inch pitch from any residential property within 10 feet,” he explained. In reference to the Swans’ survey, the highest point of the nearby road is level with the inside of their home, meaning the property is essentially flat and without grading. The developer paid for the Construction Arbitration Program to complete an assessment of more than 40 items on the Swans’ claim list. Another concern of the Swans See SWAN, page 18

Wellington, RPB Celebrate Season With Fall Festivals

By M. Dennis Taylor Town-Crier Staff Report As the breezes pick up in the evenings and temperatures dip below 80 degrees, fall is in the South Florida air. That means it is time for the Halloween-themed fall festivals in Wellington and Royal Palm Beach. The two local villages have once again organized upcoming special events for residents. Wellington will hold its annual Fall Festival on Saturday, Oct. 19 from 3 to 10 p.m. at Village Park on Pierson Road with special activities and something on stage every hour, event organizer Michele Garvey said. “It is nonstop action with activities for everyone from babies

to adults, with lots of activities for the kids,” Garvey said. “There are more than 18 food trucks confirmed with a wide variety of favorite yummies.” Garvey said that there are nearly a dozen events, including the popular haunted hallways, laser tag, hayrides, trick-or-treating, contests, bounce houses, a petting zoo, pony rides and face painting. Children’s bracelets to take part in the activities are $7 in advance and $10 the day of the event. Adult bracelets, which are $5 both in advance and on the day of the event, are only needed for the haunted hallways, laser tag or hayrides. Costume contests will be held at 4 and 7 p.m., with a pumpkin pie eating contest at 8 p.m.

“We hope everyone dresses up,” Garvey said. “There is a Monster Mash Bash with classic Halloween songs to dance to and a DJ on stage.” She expects a great turnout for the long-running event. “The laser tag that is so popular with the middle school set returns this year,” Garvey said. “And the vendor village of local businesses is even bigger and better this year.” Operating continuously from 2:30 to 10:30 p.m., a convenient, free shuttle runs from the Mall at Wellington Green, near Macy’s, right to all the action. “We want to thank all our community sponsors and featured sponsor Joe DiMaggio Children’s See FESTIVALS, page 22

Brefrank Temporarily Withdraws Plan To Change Preserve Areas Near Mall

By Gina M. Capone Town-Crier Staff Report The Wellington Village Council chambers were filled Monday, Oct. 7 with concerned citizens wishing to speak about a plan to shrink preserve areas near the Mall at Wellington Green. However, the item was unexpectedly pulled from the agenda by developer Gary Koolik of Brefrank Inc. Koolik, who was at odds with Wellington’s attorney and manager over which regulations should govern his request, initially asked for a postponement but withdrew the item when it seemed unlikely that the council would grant the delay. Koolik is expected to reapply for a similar change in the near future. The two parcels in question are

Tract W-3 and Tract W-5, which are presently zoned as conservation. Tract W-3 is a five-acre area on the south side of Forest Hill Blvd. Brefrank is proposing to build a restaurant on the five-acre tract. In exchange, the developer will build a lake to assist in the drainage for the shopping center. Tract W-5 is a 17.46-acre parcel on the interior of the Wellington Green development near the Axis apartment complex. The proposal would cut the size of the preserve to 9.13 acres, allowing 8.33 acres for an additional 185 apartment units. As part of the proposal, the remaining preserve will be enhanced and rehabilitated, and made to See PRESERVES, page 7

PBCFR ANNIVERSARY

Palm Beach County Fire-Rescue celebrated its 35th anniversary with a Free Family Fun Day on Saturday, Oct. 5 at its training center on Pike Road, off Southern Blvd. near Florida’s Turnpike. Shown above are Royal Palm Beach Councilman Jeff Hmara, County Commissioner Robert Weinroth, Fire Safety Specialist Tara Cardoso, PBCFR Chief Reginald Duren, Palm Beach County Mayor Mack Bernard and Royal Palm Beach Mayor Fred Pinto. MORE PHOTOS, PAGE 5 PHOTO BY DENISE FLEISCHMAN/TOWN-CRIER

Indian Trail Talking With Dellwood, Learwood And Las Flores On Activation

By Ron Bukley Town-Crier Staff Report The Indian Trail Improvement District Board of Supervisors is taking steps to help residents of the Dellwood, Las Flores and Learwood communities after a recent workshop meeting exploring whether to make the areas activated ITID units. The meeting on Wednesday, Sept. 25 was in response to residents who expressed interest in activation, primarily to maintain and/or improve roads. All three units are in the northwest part of ITID’s M-2 Basin. The workshop was attended by six residents of Dellwood and two from Las Flores. ITID Attorney Frank Palin explained that ITID is a special district with limited powers under state statutes. “The purpose of a special district is to provide public facilities and public services,” Palin said. “We’re not a municipality. We do

not have zoning power. We are only in the business of providing those services. That includes constructing them, maintaining them and financing them. Indian Trail has the power to provide drainage, roads and park services.” He explained that ITID’s legislative boundaries are much larger than what people think of as The Acreage. “Some of the units on our agenda tonight, Dellwood, Las Flores, are within the legislative boundaries, but are not currently what are called units of development, although certain services are being provided, like for drainage purposes only,” Palin said. ITID was created by Royal Palm Beach Colony, a private company that developed The Acreage and the Village of Royal Palm Beach, beginning in the 1960s. “They developed the roads and the drainage system for Indian Trail systematically, section by See ACTIVATION, page 18

New Ownership, Same Quality Service At Woody’s

By Callie Sharkey Town-Crier Staff Report After 32 years operating his iconic store in Wellington, Richard “Woody” Wood is hanging up his boots and trading it in for a fishing pole. When it came to the future of his cobbler shop Woody’s of Wellington, Wood had several offers. He decided that the store, which has a specialty in equestrian boot repairs, would be in the best hands with someone he knew personally and trusted. New owner Anthony Bozzi is no rookie, coming into the store with more than 25 years’ experience working with shoes and leather repairs. “It’s a continuous learning

curve, but after 25 years of working in the industry, I realized when I started working with Woody, there was more wisdom to be had,” Bozzi said. “I like that because you have got to be a seeker of wisdom in this business.” Bozzi moved to Florida from Rhode Island, where he grew up with three brothers and has always understood what it means to be a hard worker. “I came into a shoe repair shop with a stain on my shoe, and I was pretty amazed at how quickly he got the stain out,” Bozzi recalled. “He had a hiring sign up in the store, and I asked him to hire me. I had no experience. I started working, he took me in for the easiest job in the store — shoe shining.”

Over the next two decades, he gained experience working with all types of materials, including a variety of leathers, canvas and other fabrics. Bozzi found his calling in both working with his hands and luxury items. “I’m a firm believer that if you don’t have a passion for what you do, and love what you do, you’re not going to be good at it,” Bozzi said. “The luxury shoes are something that we specialize in. We have the materials, the knowhow and the machinery to do it. If you’re spending $500, $1,000 or more on a pair of shoes, you want to protect them and get the best value.” One popular new item is the See WOODY’S, page 7

Retiring owner Richard “Woody” Wood with new owner Anthony Bozzi at Woody’s of Wellington.


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Town-Crier Newspaper October 11, 2019 by Wellington The Magazine LLC - Issuu