A flight
Serving Hypoluxo Island, South Palm Beach, Manalapan, Ocean Ridge, Briny Breezes, Gulf Stream and Coastal Delray Beach
September 2013
back in time
Local pilot helps re-create women’s WWII air journey By Ron Hayes After the long flight across the Atlantic, the Boeing 767 taxies to the gate at Miami International Airport. The hatch opens, passengers scramble, the pilot stands in the cockpit doorway to thank them for choosing American. Florence Mascott flew And WASP missions. almost every Story, Page 21 time, one of those departing passengers says, “Oh, are you the pilot? Oh!” American Airlines has about
Pilot Elizabeth Ackerly joined Alan Anders, Jeff Geer and Mark Kandianis on a flight in a T-6 warplane from Bellingham, Wash., to Great Falls, Mont. (in background), then to Fairbanks, Alaska. Photo provided 10,000 pilots, of which a mere 400 are women. Elizabeth Ackerly of Ocean Ridge is one of them. For the past 15 years, she’s flown those big 767s from Miami to Paris, Barcelona and Madrid. And then, for eight days in June,
she flew back to 1943, on a mission to honor the female pilots who helped make her career possible. “I’m always up for an adventure,” Ackerly explained recently, relaxing at home on a break between flights, See PILOTS on page 21
Volume 6 Issue 9
Delray Beach
Revised plan for Atlantic Crossing still raises concerns over traffic flow By Tim Pallesen East Atlantic Avenue traffic congestion remains a concern as the proposed Atlantic Crossing development goes before Delray Beach officials for site plan and design approval. In response to residents’ concerns, the developer drew a site plan that shows delivery trucks unloading at the center of the mixed-use project. “We moved all the loading internally into the site,” project manager Don DeVere said in announcing his revised 9-acre site plan to neighboring residents last month. The project is under development by the Edwards Co. in a joint venture with Carl DeSantis. But now city planners will oppose the central loading location, saying delivery truck drivers might reject it because it is too far from the project’s Atlantic Avenue shops and restaurants. “My fear is that delivery trucks such as UPS are going to park in the traffic lanes of Atlantic Avenue, which would result in an unsafe situation at the foot of the Atlantic Avenue Bridge,” said senior city planner Scott Pape. Coastal residents are still asking for an entrance from Federal Highway into the project as an alternative to entering from Atlantic Avenue. “We feel an entrance from Federal Highway makes a lot of sense because it is a commercial road,” See TRAFFIC on page 10
Along the Coast
Highland Beach construction disturbs Indian burial ground – again By Cheryl Blackerby
In March 2003, workers were digging a trench for underground utility pipes at the Sea Frolic hotel in Highland Beach when they came across something unexpected and disturbing — human bones buried about three feet deep.
Inside Summer Arts
Artists hope to boost scene on Boynton’s Ocean Avenue. Page H10
Getting a ‘green’ go-ahead St. Patty’s Day parade will stay in Delray Beach, but the popular event will be alcohol-free. Page 11
A routine construction site suddenly turned into a crime scene. Highland Beach police and the Palm Beach County Sheriff ’s Office were called, and the bones were taken to the Palm Beach County Medical Examiner. Police tape surrounded the area. The 22 bones turned out to be that of
Not just dinner
Several local venues offer a package deal: Tasty meals along with fun activities or entertainment. Page H1
a woman about 30 years old and a child about 2. And there was a surprising twist in this case: The bones were about 1,000 or more years old. It was a lucky break for archaeologists who had a rare opportunity to examine Florida’s ancient history in an area
Reef madness
Volunteer divers pull pounds of trash from coral reefs along the South County coastline. Page 19
covered with condominiums and parking lots. A stop-work order was issued, giving a team of Florida Atlantic University archaeologists 13 days to examine the ground. Ten years later, the Sea Frolic, at See INDIAN MOUND on page 12
Around Town
Local ‘celebs’ strut their stuff — and raise a ton of money — during Boca’s Ballroom Battle. Page 7