Town-Crier Newspaper September 20, 2013

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HIGHER ASSESSMENT IN LGWCD BUDGET SEE STORY, PAGE 3

REP. DEUTCH AT CHAMBER LUNCHEON SEE STORY, PAGE 4

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TOWN - CR IER WELLINGTON • ROYAL PALM BEACH • LOXAHATCHEE • THE ACREAGE

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INSIDE Wellington Might Need To Increase Insurance For Elected Officials

Volume 34, Number 38 September 20 - September 26, 2013

BENEFIT CONCERT AT ST. PETER’S

Members of the Wellington Village Council expressed concerns last week that frivolous ethics complaints against council members could cost taxpayers if the costs surpass the village’s insurance cap. Page 3

RPB Council Adopts Unchanged Tax Rate Bringing In More Cash

The Royal Palm Beach Village Council gave final approval to its 2014 budget on Thursday, Sept. 12, adopting a tax rate of 1.92 mills, which is unchanged from 2013. However, the village will take in approximately 3 percent more revenue due to property value increases. Page 7

Selinger Chiropractic Honors Heroes Of 9/11

PHOTO BY DENISE FLEISCHMAN/TOWN-CRIER

St. Michael Lutheran Church In Wellington Celebrates 30 Years By Anne Checkosky Town-Crier Staff Report From its humble beginnings, when congregants met at Wellington Elementary School and canvassed door-to-door to solicit members, St. Michael Evangelical Lutheran Church has come a long way. The church will celebrate its 30th anniversary with a special worship service on Sept. 29, the day the church was incorporated, followed by a dinner dance on Nov. 9, when seasonal residents return for the winter, Pastor Marjorie Weiss said. Pastor at St. Michael for nine years, Weiss was one of the first female Lutheran pastors when she was ordained in 1980. The church’s mission is service,

which is reflected in its mission statement: “Everything we do, everyone we meet, everywhere we go, we are Christ’s hands and feet.” “It’s our job to help lift other people up,” explained Ryan Arnold, the newly named director of ministry at the church. Arnold, 35, who has been in his new position just six weeks, is charged with outreach to a younger generation of worshippers, those in their 20s, 30s and 40s. “We’re trying to be more inventive in our worship style. We want to mix contemporary worship with traditional worship to appeal to younger people,” said Weiss, noting that because of his age, Arnold has more credibility in bring-

OPINION Rest In Peace, Bob Markey Sr.

DEPARTMENT INDEX NEWS ............................. 3 - 10 OPINION .................................4 CRIME NEWS .........................6 SCHOOLS ............................ 12 PEOPLE ............................... 13 COLUMNS .....................14, 21 NEWS BRIEFS..................... 15 BUSINESS .................... 22 - 23 SPORTS ........................ 27 - 29 CALENDAR .......................... 30 CLASSIFIEDS ................ 30 - 33 Visit Us On The Web At WWW.GOTOWNCRIER.COM

the district several years ago for $269,000. Actual development of the property got bogged down with permitting issues. Contractor Bill Featherstone said the project had started in early 2011, and the Seminole Ridge High School Construction Academy came in for a few days in the summer of 2012 and did some demolition work and then moved on to other projects. “I know there have been issues with Palm Beach County with this for permitting, residential ownership to public ownership and improvements that have to be made. For example, it has to be handicapped-accessible,” Featherstone See HAMLIN, page 16

Copeland Davis performed a benefit concert last Saturday at St. Peter’s United Methodist Church. The renowned jazz pianist was joined by his band. All proceeds will go toward Davis’ medical bills. Shown here are Bill Schoor, Copeland Davis and Ron Norman. MORE PHOTOS, PAGE 10

Selinger Chiropractic & Acupuncture hosted a 9/11 anniversary fundraiser on Tuesday, Sept. 10. The gathering was in recognition of heroes, victims and families deeply affected by the events of 9/11. Page 17

Last weekend, our community lost one of its pillars when Bob Markey Sr. passed away at age 80. A veteran, newspaperman and Wellington pioneer, Markey was a well-respected man who helped shape the western communities as we know it today. As founder of the Town-Crier newspaper, Markey holds a special place in our hearts. However, his impact traveled far beyond the pages of this publication. Page 4

ITID Takes Action On Hamlin House By Ron Bukley Town-Crier Staff Report The long-delayed Hamlin House project at Nicole Hornstein Equestrian Park in The Acreage got a major push forward on Wednesday when the Indian Trail Improvement District Board of Supervisors directed work to move forward with a contractor rather than as a high school construction academy project as it had been in the past. The board met Wednesday at Hamlin House to give approximately 40 residents attending an idea of what the 5-acre horse ranch west of the park looked like. The ranch was purchased by

Countywide 9/11 Ceremony At RPB’s Christ Fellowship

The Fire Chiefs Association of Palm Beach County and Christ Fellowship Church presented the 9/11 Countywide Remembrance Ceremony at Christ Fellowship Church in Royal Palm Beach on Wednesday, Sept. 11. Page 5

Serving Palms West Since 1980

St. Michael’s new worship hall opened last year.

ing this type of programming to the church. To that end, Arnold has started a Gen X group that meets every month or two to socialize, maybe take in a movie or try a restaurant. He’s on the worship committee, which is trying to incorporate contemporary music into worship services, and he hopes to hire a music director. Arnold is also developing educational programming, including a course that focuses on kids and worship and one that tackles being a Christian father, he said. Arnold is also studying to become ordained through a long-distance Lutheran seminary program based in Minnesota. He has been a member of St. Michael for four years and calls the congregation welcoming and refreshing. John and Sunny Meyer think that’s an apt description of those who worship at St. Michael, and they should know. They are founding members, the second-oldest charter members, if memory serves, Sunny said. The Meyers remember a time when there were fewer than 100 families in Wellington. “It was a frontier city,” John said. A group of about 25 or so started gathering at Wellington Elementary School to worship. That was the beginning of what would See ST. MICHAEL, page 7

Wellington Revamps Popular Senior Transportation Program By Lauren Miró Town-Crier Staff Report The Village of Wellington is revamping its Senior Transportation Program, allowing more Wellington seniors to ride for free. The program will now service only seniors 62 and older, but those seniors will no longer have to pay the $4 per ride to use the program. Seniors will also be able to hang onto their vouchers longer and use a convenient new swipe card system to keep track of their rides easier. “We’ve increased the minimum age from 60 to 62,” Director of Community Services Nicole Evangelista said. “One of the reasons we’re doing that is it will allow everyone in the program to be eligi-

ble for a [government] voucher that will mean they don’t have to pay the $4 fee.” The Senior Transportation Program has been financed by Wellington for many years, with the village picking up $14 of the $18 cost and seniors paying $4 for each ride. But Wellington has used federal Community Development Block Grant money for some seniors, which pays the $4 cost of the program. The federal program requires all participants to be older than 62. Evangelista said this change should not affect many people now using the program. “When we looked at the program, we didn’t have many users under 62,” she said. “There are

about nine users who will be grandfathered into the program. They will still have to pay the $4, because federal requirements don’t allow us to give them the vouchers for free.” Seniors will have to provide a copy of a valid photo ID to enroll in the program. It is open only to Wellington residents. “We have to keep the photocopy on record to prove age verification,” Evangelista explained. Seniors will still be eligible for up to eight ride vouchers each month, but they will no longer expire at the end of the month. Instead, they will be valid for an entire year. “We were issuing vouchers that See SENIOR, page 4

Attorney Ruth Clements looks on as ITID Super visor Ralph Bair, Supervisor Michelle Damone and Vice President Carol Jacobs meet at the Hamlin House to discuss the future of the building. PHOTO BY RON BUKLEY/TOWN-CRIER

Martha Webster Declares For County Commission Seat By Ron Bukley Town-Crier Staff Report Former Royal Palm Beach Councilwoman Martha Webster announced her candidacy Monday for the District 6 seat on the Palm Beach County Commission. The seat is currently held by Commissioner Jess Santamaria, who will retire next year due to term limits. Webster joins a Democratic primary that already includes Royal Palm Beach Councilman Fred Pinto and former Wellington Mayor Kathy Foster, who both declared their candidacies in June. Webster served on the Royal Palm Beach Village Council for five years, including one year as vice mayor, before she was unseated by longtime Councilman David Swift in March.

Holding a master’s degree in educational administration, Webster worked for several public-oriented organizations before entering politics, including as director of the Palm Beach County 4-H youth program for the University of Florida, the United Way and Consumer Credit Counseling Service. “I believe it is time for the western communities and the central communities together to begin to have some of the successes that our eastern communities have,” Webster told the Town-Crier on Tuesday. “We do have some economic successes… [but] we’re languishing behind, and we need some strong leadership and representation so that we can begin See WEBSTER, page 16

DEER RUN YARD SALE

A community tack and yard sale was held Saturday, Sept. 14 at the front entrance of the Deer Run community on Lion Country Safari Road. Shown here, Sheri and Amy Kovalsky enjoy their shopping. MORE PHOTOS, PAGE 17 PHOTO BY DENISE FLEISCHMAN/TOWN-CRIER

Town-Crier Founder Bob Markey Sr. Dies At Age 80

Bob Markey Sr.

Robert Charles “Bob” Markey Sr., founder and longtime publisher of the Town-Crier newspaper, a community leader, benefactor and Wellington “founder,” passed away peacefully under hospice care at 4:01 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 14. He was 80 years old. Markey was a New York native, Korean Conflict veteran and proud, lifelong newspaperman. His career started at publications including The Brooklyn Eagle and the New York World Telegram and Sun, moved onto The New York Times and ended with his sale of the Town-Crier, which he founded in 1980 and sold in 1998. Markey then founded Palms West Realty and was its broker until his retirement.

Markey loved the Palms West communities, especially Wellington, where he moved his young family in 1977. While an executive at The Palm Beach Post, he envisioned the future of the then-tiny planned community, and by May 1980, had created the Town-Crier from his kitchen countertop. Family and friends would deliver the weekly newspaper door to door on Thursdays. The newspaper blossomed along with the community, and expanded with editions in Royal Palm Beach, Loxahatchee Groves and The Acreage, Palm Beach Gardens, West Palm Beach, Haverhill, Greenacres and Lake Worth. At its height, Bob Sr. and wife Patricia employed more than 60 people, added a newspa-

per press and printing operation, and published twice a week for several years. All Markey family members — including his sons Brian and Bob II and daughter Patricia — and many close friends worked there. The office atmosphere was that of a large family, and there was almost nothing Bob Sr. and Pat wouldn’t do to assist their employees. Markey and a handful of community leaders started the Palms West (now Central Palm Beach County) Chamber of Commerce in 1984. Through his popular opinion column “Stray Thoughts” and strident editorials, Markey started an effort that would eventually give average Wellington residents

the right to elect supervisors of the Acme Improvement District, then the community’s local government. Realizing that Wellington should control its own destiny, Markey formed and supported a citizens group called Residents of Wellington, which spearheaded an effort that would eventually result in the incorporation of Wellington as a municipality. Late in his life, Markey was named one of the key people influential and important to Wellington history when his name was added to the village’s Founders Plaque. Today, just seven leaders have been so honored. Markey also led and supported See MARKEY, page 16


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