Show Some Compassion!
On Sunday 4/26/2020 the wind, rain and lightning came fast and furious with little warning. Winds were reported at 60 MPH and 71 MPH at the airport. To be classified as a hurricane, a tropical cyclone must have one-minute maximum sustained winds of at least 74 mph. What we didn’t have was a hurricane but we did have damage in my neighborhood as the pictures will show.
The city always allowed residents two months April and May to prepare for the hurricane season and granted amnesty where the city would pick up yard waste at no extra cost to residents. This was the time we pruned back trees to allow the hurricane winds to pass through with little or no damage, and many residents took advantage of the city’s “gift.” Now neighbors are hesitant to trim back trees not knowing how they will pay for the pickup. I suppose if we are hit with a hurricane trees will come down on roofs, cars and possibly block streets.
Well Mayor Keith James decided the city was losing money and decided to eliminate the amnesty due to the Carona Virus. Cheap excuse.
Thousands of people out of work through no fault of their own, with no paycheck, desperately trying to apply for unemployment benefit or waiting for a check from the Federal Government. Both are slow in coming. Folks are panicked about paying their rent, mortgage, car loan and utilities.
FPL realizing the seriousness of the Carona Virus is giving customers 25% discount on their bill in May. Insurance companies are going to refund up to 25% on our car insurance bill.
What’s the city doing? There not going to shut off water on delinquent customers, but the late fees will continue to mount. How about the city stop collecting late fees and give folks a chance to catch up.
The City Commissioners, all 5 of them along with the City Administrator should put pressure on James and try to talk some sense into him. This is not the time to reach deeper into our pockets but to show compassion for folks who are already suffering. Double click on pictures to enlarge. These homeowners will be charged a minimum of $100.00 for removal.
Did You Vote?
The figures below were supplied by the PBC Supervisor of Elections, and I have included the link below if you are interested in reading the entire report.
Choice Votes
For Bonds (NON) 12,515
Against Bonds (NON) 2,729
No. of voters 15,244
Choice Votes
Christina D’Elosua Lambert (NON) 9,634
Stephen Sylvester (NON) 5,040
No of votes 14,674
Choice Votes
Kelly Shoaf 10,454
Martina Tate-Walker (NON) 3,718
No of votes 14,172
Breakdown of registered voters in WPB.
Total Dems Reps NPA Other
73,300 36,281 16,095 19,828 1,096
WPB has 73,300 Reg. voters and 15,244 took the time to vote.
I cannot understand the discrepancy between the number of votes. Residents who voted for the Park Bond and the number of votes for the candidates. Did some go to the polls just to vote for the bond and did not choose a candidate?
November 2018 Susan Bucher was the Supervisor of Elections.
My personnel experience with the PBC election office occurred when a friend of mine made a trip to their office to inform them that her mother had passed away and asked her name be removed from the election rolls. While she was there, she requested a copy of her voting record only to find it did not contain her recent vote in November. She complained and asked her husband to check his voting record. He did and found his vote was counted. He also asked for his wife’s record and found it had been corrected.
When she shared this information with me, I immediately made the trip and asked for my voting record. My record showed I had not voted. I was upset and told them I definitely had voted. On my return the following day my record was corrected. I filed a complaint with the State Elections office and received a call asking me if I filled out my own ballot, and I assured them I did. End of story.
Jul 21, 2017 “A Palm Beach County commissioner and a state House member clinched their seats last year by stepping into voters’ homes and helping them fill out their mail-in ballots, a Palm Beach Post investigation has found. Commissioner Mack Bernard and Rep. Al Jacquet, both Democrats running in the August primary, took advantage of gaping holes in Florida’s vote-by-mail laws to pressure and cajole voters in their living rooms.”
Read the story below:
https://www.palmbeachpost.com/news/special-reports/winning-candidates-help-voters-fill-out-their-ballots/V0ieae6VcZNNWF6I9ylRdM/
Governor DeSantis replaced Susan Bucher with Supervisor of Elections Wendy Link, and the ballot returned to “fill in the circle” and away from “connect the arrow” I was in line at 7:00 AM to vote and after being checked for my voter card and picture ID I was handed my ballot. After voting I walked to the counting machine and my ballot was rejected twice for “double voting”. I was assisted by a clerk who placed it in the machine and again it was rejected. The problem was the ballots are so thin I was handed 2 ballots together and didn’t realize it. I hope they return to thicker ballots in the future.
I no longer trust the voting system and it doesn’t matter if you vote in person or absentee ballot. There is talk of voting by computer like that would be safe from hacking, and I personally would never vote by absentee ballot.
I will share one more story. I asked a neighbor if he voted for the tax bond, and he said he didn’t vote because of the Carona Virus. He was afraid, and I understood until he mentioned he went to Sams for supplies. There was at least 100-125 people standing in line. So many people needing toilet paper.
Hurricane Season
Starts in June and ends in November. Now is the time to prepare and homeowners have always enjoyed the City’s Amnesty Program which ran April through May when trees can be trimmed back and placed on the street for pickup, and the city didn’t place restrictions on the size. This was a cost saving for homeowners and helped clear property. I imagine many roofs and cars were spared the damage of falling trees.
Mayor Keith James has decided to eliminate the Amnesty Program “until further notice” and has the audacity to claim it is because of the Carona Virus.
This will cost homeowners hundreds of dollars and comes at a time when people have lost their jobs and desperately waiting for $1,200 stimulus checks from the Federal Government.
“Until further notice” will not be coming anytime soon while he holds court over WPB.
Read the entire report from the PBC Supervisor of Elections below.
https://www.pbcelections.org/Records-Data/Voter-Statistics
Consent Calendar The City’s Best Friend!
City of West Palm Beach City Commission DRAFT AGENDA April 20, 2020 5:00 P.M.
CONSENT CALENDAR (3-11) Consent Calendar is usually passed without discussion, as in the $180,000.00 they tried to slip by residents with the payoff of a former city employee who has now filed a lawsuit against the city and started an investigation against Mayor James.
Item # 6. Resolution No. 111-20 authorizing a letter of support to the Florida Department of Transportation for the Lane Elimination planned for the Broadway Improvements Project from 25th Street to 45th Street.
The city states: “As one of the highest traveled corridors in Palm Beach County, Broadway (State Road 5/ US Highway 1) is the ideal location for storefronts and businesses that will contribute to business expansion and commercial revitalization”
“Background: Transportation staff is proposing to submit a Lane Elimination Application to the Florida Department of Transportation to eliminate vehicular travel lane(s) on Broadway from 25th Street to 45th Street.
The city is telling us Broadway is one of highest traveled corridors so why would they remove a travel lane? Do they have any knowledge of gridlock? The city wants to eliminate auto traffic and have residents walking and biking. New York has attempted to eliminated much of the traffic in the city and you can see people walking the streets in the thousands. How’s that working out for them being the epicenter of the Carona Virus?
Item #10. Resolution No. 110-20 approving the City’s intent to engage in mandatory conflict resolution procedures in an action filed against the Palm Beach Transportation Planning Agency regarding an amendment to its Long Range Transportation Plan that added a project extending and widening State Road 7.
“During the February 20th meeting, the TPA approved the SR 7 Amendment adding the SR 7 Project to the plan. The approval of the SR 7 Amendment has created a conflict between the City and the TPA. The specific legal challenges are identified in the Complaint for Declaratory and Injunctive Relief filed with the Fifteenth Judicial Circuit on March 23, 2020 and attached as Exhibit A to Resolution No. 110-20. The relief requested includes entry of an order 1) declaring the TPA’s passage of the SR 7 Amendment failed to comply with applicable federal regulations and state law, as well as the TPA’s own by-laws”
That tells me the city is willing to spend thousands more, on top of the millions already spent to stop the State Road 7 extension. Why do City Commissioners allow the money to be spent? Easy answer the residents in the west don’t want to deal with the traffic so commissioners allow lawsuit after lawsuit because the western communities vote and the rest of WPB can’t be bothered. We do this injustice to ourselves and continue dealing with Commissioners who find it easier to listen to “Staff” than residents.
Item # 11. Resolution No. 114-20 approving a funding interlocal agreement between the City of West Palm Beach and the West Palm Beach Community Redevelopment Agency for repaving a portion of Flagler Ave. adjacent to the Old City Hall development.
Resolution No. 115-20 approving the project participation agreement between Navarro Lowrey, Inc., and the City of West Palm Beach for repaving a portion of Flagler Drive, adjacent to the Ben Hotel, the site of the Old City Hall development.
Navarro Lowrey built the Ben Hotel and most of the damage was done during construction. Why are taxpayers footing the cost of the repair? Did someone’s palm get greased?
Read the entire agenda below. it will take longer to recite the Pledge of Allegiance that pass the agenda. Read entire agenda below.
DRAFT City Commission Agenda _04_20_20
Lambert votes Yes on WGI Contract
March 23, 2020 Two meetings at City Hall, CRA and City Commission. What I want to draw your attention to is in Bold type, my opinion in italics and if you have difficulty understanding what you are about to read, don’t feel bad it’s written to confuse us.
CRA meeting: Resolution No. 20-18 authorizing a funding interlocal agreement between the City of West Palm Beach and the West Palm Beach Community Redevelopment Agency for the Banyan Boulevard Streetscape project.
A RESOLUTION OF THE WEST PALM BEACH COMMUNITY REDEVELOPMENT AGENCY APPROVING A PROJECT FUNDING INTERLOCAL AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE CITY OF WEST PALM BEACH AND THE WEST PALM BEACH COMMUNITY REDEVELOPMENT AGENCY FOR THE FUNDING OF THE BANYAN BOULEVARD STREETSCAPE PROJECT; PROVIDING FOR AN EFFECTIVE DATE; AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES.
Agenda Cover Memorandum No.: 22079
Staff Recommended Motion: Approve Resolution 20-18.
Background: The CRA’s Strategic Finance Plans for the City Center/Downtown CRA District, Amendment No. 14, identifies infrastructure projects located within the Historic Northwest and funded with the Series 2019 Bond, and specifically the Banyan Boulevard Streetscape.
The City and CRA worked together on the design of Banyan Boulevard. The design features a raised bike lane, additional lighting and trees, a treed median, enhanced crosswalks and signalization and better connections from the Historic Northwest to Downtown.
Resolution No. 19-1 approved the issuance of $110,000,000 in Series 2019 Bonds for the CRA. As part of the bond issuance, the Banyan Boulevard Streetscape was allocated $15,400,000. The GMP was received on February 12, 2020 with a total price of $15,461,731.56 for phase 1. Funding will be provided through both the CRA Bond as well as the City’s Engineering budget.
Companion Resolution Nos. 57-20 and 58-20 will be presented to the City of West Palm Beach City Commission.
This project is in Commission District 3: Richard Ryles.
Fiscal Note: $20 million from bond proceeds.
I didn’t plan to attend the CRA meeting, walked in late in time to hear Commissioner Lambert say she was told by the WPB Ethics Officer it was acceptable for her to vote on the issue. I returned to the atrium and grabbed a copy of the CRA agenda.
On the CRA agenda there is no mention of the contractors contracted to do the construction, but I knew it had to concern the Wantman Group (WGI) Turns out I was right, WGI named on City Commission agenda.
City Commission meeting:
Resolution No. 57-20 approving the Guaranteed Maximum Price for Banyan Boulevard Streetscape project for the Construction Contract with Whiting-Turner establishing the GMP and Resolution No. 58-20 approving the Project Funding Agreement by the CRA to Banyan Blvd Streetscape project.
Resolution No. 57-20: A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COMMISSION OF THE CITY OF WEST PALM BEACH, FLORIDA, APPROVING THE FIRST AMENDMENT TO THE CONSTRUCTION MANAGER AT RISK CONTRACT FOR THE BANYAN BLVD STREETSCAPE PROJECT BETWEEN THE CITY OF WEST PALM BEACH AND WHITING-TURNER TO ESTABLISH A GUARANTEED MAXIMUM PRICE; PROVIDING AN EFFECTIVE DATE; AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES.
Resolution No. 58-20: A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COMMISSION OF THE CITY OF WEST PALM BEACH, FLORIDA, APPROVING THE PROJECT FUNDING AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE WEST PALM BEACH COMMUNITY REDEVELOPMENT AGENCY AND THE CITY OF WEST PALM BEACH FOR THE FUNDING OF THE BANYAN BLVD STREETSCAPE; PROVIDING FOR AN EFFECTIVE DATE; AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES
Background: The City issued its Request for Qualifications No. 17-18-402, for Construction Manager At Risk services for Downtown Streetscapes and Alleyways. Whiting-Turner Construction Company, was awarded a Construction Manager at Risk Contract for Banyan Blvd Streetscape, on May 17, 2019. Banyan Boulevard is a major collector road, with over 14,000 Annual Daily Trips, for Downtown West Palm Beach connecting Australian Avenue to Flagler Drive. In 2013, the City prioritized paving on Banyan Blvd. as part of the Public Works Bond to improve deteriorated road conditions. The Community Redevelopment Agency (CRA) and the City of West Palm Beach are partnering with Engineering Services to implement complete streets and enhance safety and efficiency of the corridor. The City retained Wantman Group (WGI), to perform a traffic study, investigate road conditions, and recommend a sustainable typical section. The scope of work includes but is not limited to: drainage improvements, street lighting, ADA access, landscaped median, midblock crosswalk enhancement, traffic signalization, smart city technology, and sidewalk and bike access. Whiting-Turner (WT), a contracting firm, was retained as the Construction Manager at Risk (CMAR) to build the project.
Banyan Boulevard has historically been considered a dividing line between downtown, the Northwest Neighborhoods and the northern border of downtown West Palm Beach. With the proposed improvements, Banyan Blvd will be transformed into a highly visible Gateway into the downtown district. Design for the Banyan Boulevard Improvements is funded utilizing Capital Acquisition Funds and CRA Bond funds. In accordance with its contract, Whiting-Turner Construction Company submitted a Guaranteed Maximum Price for the Banyan Blvd Streetscape, last revised February 11, 2020, in the amount of $15,461,731.56. The City desires to approve the GMP and proceed with the Banyan Blvd Streetscape Project. Resolution No. 57-20 approves the Guaranteed Maximum Price (“GMP”) for the Banyan Blvd Streetscape at $15,461,731.56 and authorizes execution of the First Amendment to the Contract establishing the GMP. Resolution No. 58-20 approves the Project Funding Agreement with the CRA for Banyan Blvd Streetscape. COMMISSION DISTRICT: District 3: Commissioner Richard Ryles.
The Wantman Group has received another lucrative contract from the city. This is the same company who employs Jeffrey Brophy, senior vice president of WGI and Mr. Brophy owns a home in Andros Isles and rented his home to then City Commissioner Keith James who voted approval on every contract that contained a WGI contract.
It gets better for WGI after City Commissioner Christine Lambert was sworn in and 4 months later WGI hired her husband Monty as a Senior Business Development Manager. It doesn’t get any better for WGI or the Lambert’s.
The contract that Lambert voted “yes” at both meetings do you believe she wont benefit from her vote?
How could the WPB Ethics Officer not believe this was a conflict of interest? My opinion I look to the no-bid contract for James friend Willie Perez, PSC Security. James tried to convince us both City Attorney and Procurement agreed it was their “opinion” that bids were not needed and a contract straight to PSC was acceptable.
Residents were outraged and spoke out at the City Commission meeting and strongly suggested both City Attorney and Procurement Manager be fired for their “opinion.”
Well it turns out both departments advised Mayor James that bids should be sought for the eight million dollar contract.
James sat there listening to residents knowing that the City Attorney and the Procurement Manager did their job and he didn’t do his. Disgraceful the way he continually throws people under the bus.