Open Letter to WPB City Commissioners
Posted by Sandy on January 25, 2023 · Leave a Comment
Dear Commissioners, Fox, Lambert, Peduzzi, Warren, and Ward.
What you are about to read I witnessed a few years ago when I attended the meeting between the mayor and city commissioners to discuss the agenda for the upcoming city Commission meeting.
At the meeting Former City Commissioner Shannon Materio asked why she was not allowed to ask a question of a staff member about a concern she had with an item on the agenda. She was looking for clarification. Apparently, the staff member told Commissioner Materio her questions must go through the city administrator, who at the time was Jeff Green.
The response Commissioner Materio received was “that was the rule” and they couldn’t have commissioners asking questions of staff which would pull them away from their regular duties.
I’m ashamed to admit that it took me a couple of years to figure out why that rule was in effect, but better late than never.
When commissioners meet to vote on an item, they are given a presentation by city staff and they are allowed to ask questions, but sometimes I believe they don’t ask the right ones. If the project is particularly important to the mayor, staff had better give the right response as I believe their job is on the line. With that said, in my opinion that is why Commissioners are not allowed to ask a question of staff. God forbid Staff give the wrong answer to the right questions.
Commissioners are kept in the dark on many issues, and a couple of commissioners have shared with me that they were told when asked to run this would be a “part time” job.
The 2021 census has the population of WPB at 117,286 residents and should never be considered a “part time” job. Your loyalty should be to the residents, not the Mayor, City Administrator, developers or special interest groups. That’s my opinion, and I’m sticking with it.
Joel Engelhardt
No one can write a better story than Joel Engelhardt, award winning newspaper reporter who wrote for the PB Post for 28 years before leaving for brighter skies. The story below on his website (OnGardens.org) is long, but when you tell both sides of a story, don’t hide the facts it tends to be long.
If Mr. Engelhardt hadn’t used the words County, or name County Commissioners, I would think he was writing about WPB City elected officials. Please take the time to read the story, you’ll be better for it.
Below are excerpts from his story. The entire story is below.
“Emails show how county helped racetrack-to-warehouse conversion”
“County staff moved quickly to help landowner avoid zoning obstacles but never publicly told the commission or the public why.”
“Last May, Palm Beach County staff rushed to avoid a legal challenge over the zoning board vote that blocked warehouses at the former Palm Beach International Raceway site on Beeline Highway west of Jupiter.”
“Top county officials from multiple departments responded to urgent requests from county attorneys for speedy action to get a seemingly mundane item before county commissioners at their May 26 zoning meeting.”
“While appearing innocent, the action would clear the way for the conversion of the racetrack to a warehouse complex by removing a potential hurdle for the developer — an action staff never made public or clear to commissioners.”
“When Commissioner Maria Sachs asked repeated questions about the move at a May 26 meeting, county staff never told her or anyone else publicly about the real reason behind their actions.”
“But more than 900 internal county emails, made public after a records request submitted and paid for by racing fan Jennifer Davis, reveal the untold story. Davis paid $187 for the emails — the county’s fee for producing, reviewing and redacting — and shared them with OnGardens.org.
The emails portray a county government doing one thing but telling public officials another.”
“They show how the county abandoned the rights of way to avoid a legal fight with the warehouse builder. By removing the rights of way, the county would remove the hurdle that had blocked the warehouse proposal.”
If you have read his story his far and Mr. Engelhardt story hasn’t piqued your curiosity to read more, so be it. I feel good because you have the information You’ve been given a heads up.
Read entire story below.
https://ongardens.org/2023/01/23/emails-show-how-county-helped-racetrack-to-warehouse-conversion/
The end