Serving Highland Beach and Coastal Boca Raton
July 2018
Volume 11 Issue 7
Highland Beach
Along the Coast
Property values hit new highs Highland Beach tax roll up 3.63%, Boca rises 6.32% By Mary Hladky
respite and comfort, in keeping with the parish mission statement: “Our community welcomes all, judges none, embraces and protects the vulnerable, and seeks to
For the seventh year in a row, the taxable value of Palm Beach County properties has surged to a new high. After making up the losses last year from the Great Recession, countywide taxable property values jumped 6.53 percent to $187.8 billion this year, according to the county Property Appraiser’s Office. That’s well above the pre-recession taxable value record of $169.4 billion set in 2007. The total market value of countywide properties now is $264.7 billion, up from $251.9 billion last year. While property values continue their upward march, experts see no sign of a housing bubble. The $263,900 median value of a Palm Beach County home in April was 18.8 percent below the pre-recession peak of $325,100, according to the national real estate website Zillow. And while values keep rising, the rate of growth has decreased in recent years. “Continued modest, sustainable
See ST. LUCY on page 12
See VALUES on page 19
The Most Rev. Gerald M. Barbarito, Bishop of Palm Beach, presided over the Rite of Installation of the Rev. Father D. Brian Horgan (far right) on June 10 as the fifth pastor in the history of St. Lucy Catholic Church. Tim Stepien/The Coastal Star
St. Lucy Catholic Church marks 50 years Carved from an overgrown tract of mangroves, church has grown into centerpiece of Highland Beach
By Janis Fontaine Hundreds of Catholics in southern, coastal Palm Beach County call St. Lucy Catholic Church in Highland Beach their home church. The small house of worship on A1A is
wedged between towering condominiums that sprouted up around it since it was founded in 1968. This year, the church celebrates its golden jubilee, marking half a century of providing spiritual guidance,
Along the Coast
Rare seaweed washes ashore
Sargassum species perplexes but doesn’t worry experts, who see no threat to nesting turtles By Cheryl Blackerby Sargassum, the brown seaweed that is tossed onto South Florida’s beaches by Atlantic waves, has always been a mixed blessing: Environmentalists love it, beachgoers loathe it. But this year, the piles of seaweed also have presented a mystery that
has scientists baffled. It’s a new species of sargassum with larger leaves and heavier tangled mats than in years past. Where did this new sargassum come from and how did it get here? Scientists believe it didn’t take the usual path on the Gulf Stream. It doesn’t seem to be carrying as many tiny shrimp and crabs that made the old seaweed species sources of food for seabirds. And, most perplexing, this year there have been far fewer man-of-war See SARGASSUM on page 18
Bamboo Room redux
Slow approval process
Irma lessons
In Boca, rules are the same What we learned in hurricane’s aftermath. for small, large firms. Page 10 Page 8
Lake Worth nightclub reincarnated as Phoenix Charity Bar. Page AT5
Mounds of sargassum, in places more than 30 feet wide and more than a foot deep, pile up on the beach in Ocean Ridge in mid-June. Since then some of the seaweed decomposed but then more arrived on the tide. Jerry Lower/The Coastal Star
Surf’s up for kids
Maui Goodbeer’s program helps kids build selfconfidence. Page AT1