Serving Highland Beach and Coastal Boca Raton
September/October 2020
Volume 13 Issue 6
Delray Beach
Sediment in drinking water was linked to neglected maintenance
By Rich Pollack and Jane Smith One morning in late March residents throughout a large portion of Delray Beach woke up to find water coming out of their taps that just wasn’t right. Some complained of a
INSIDE Utilities director praises fixes to reclaimed water system. Page 26 yellowish or reddish tint to the water while others complained
of a strong odor. Residents Reeve and Anne Bright noticed that even the ice coming out of their ice maker looked strange. “There was black and brown stuff, like little pieces of dirt, that came out with it,” Reeve Bright said.
Concerned, the Brights threw away the ice. They now suspect the discoloration may have been the result of a series of system failures at Delray Beach’s water treatment facilities that resulted in what the industry refers to as a “slug” getting into the city water lines.
A “slug” is sediment that gathers at the bottom of storage tanks and is unintentionally released. It does not generally pose a health threat to those using the water, according to people in the water treatment industry. See WATER on page 27
Reflections from the front line T
his Labor Day, essential workers reveal how their jobs have changed to meet the challenges of the coronavirus pandemic. These are the folks who protect us from fires, comfort our souls, teach our children, deliver food and mail, and treat those who have fallen ill to COVID-19. Meet them, Pages 20-21 INSIDE Overdose deaths double during pandemic. Page 22 Kindergarten teacher Julie O’Brien, the Rev. D. Brian Horgan, Dr. Bill Benda, Battalion Chief Kevin Saxton, restaurant manager Sue Brown, postal clerk Valerie Jacoby and Shipt shopper Michael Varesio. Seven photos shot individually at a COVID-19 safe distance and assembled into this composite by Tim Stepien/The Coastal Star
Delray Beach
Feds accuse doctor of $681 million fraud in substance abuse treatment billings By Larry Keller
Coastal Delray Beach osteopathic doctor Michael Ligotti was a man in whom investigators had long been interested as they probed fraudulent practices in one of Palm Beach County’s largest industries — substance abuse
treatment centers. Numerous people have been charged and sentenced in recent years in connection with abuses at halfway houses — or sober homes — including medical insurance scams. Now some of them have turned on Ligotti. The doctor was arrested at home in
PRSRT STD US POSTAGE PAID WEST PALM BCH FL PERMIT NO 4595
late July. The U.S. Justice Department charged him with conspiracy to commit health care fraud and wire fraud — fraudulently billing private insurance companies and Medicare of around $681 million, for which they paid $121 million over a span of nine years. His attorney said Ligotti “looks forward to
establishing his innocence.” A federal judge Sept. 1 in West Palm Beach conducted a preliminary hearing and concluded that the government’s evidence established probable cause for the case to move forward. Ligotti, 46, is free on a $1.5 million See DOCTOR on page 10
Boca Inlet bridge closes
Delivery of this month’s edition is sponsored by our friends at
Span to remain shut through late fall. Page 3
Cultural group proposes new performance space at Mizner Park. Page 6
Obituaries
Pages 24-25 AT5