City Commission Meeting Held 6/14/2021
“When you talk, you are only repeating what you already know. But if you listen, you may learn something new.” Dalai Lama XIV
“When Your Talking, You Are Teaching. When You Are Listening You Are Learning.” Author unknown.
Her name is Becky Harris and she traveled from Stuart Florida to WPB in order to address the Mayor and City Commissioners on the blue-green algae problem and was the last resident to speak on non-agenda items All residents are allotted 3 minutes to make their case.
Ms. Harris spoke on the problem and mentioned her dog was violently ill, and was grateful her pet had survived while other loved pets did not.
She quoted information, and included documentation she had received from a study in toxins along with an analysis from the Green Water Lab and left copies of the report with the city.
She began speaking on Plan CC (I have no idea, but was anxious to hear it) and she encouraged the Mayor and Commissioners to look into it and work with the Army Corps who has something to do with Plan CC.
Her magical 3 minutes ended and James said a total of 8 times “your time is up thank you” the last time he said “your time is up” I could hear the anger in his voice. She left the podium.
Public comment is over and it’s time for Commissioner’s comment. Commissioner Peduzzi was absent and James allowed Commissioner Lambert to start.
Lambert started with a joke, and asked James if she could include Commissioner Peduzzi time to speak.
James response “You know there are no time limits on you guy’s, speak all night”
Lambert, who has aspirations for the Mayor’s seat, does have a tendency to speak longer than other Commissioners.
How do you think Becky Harris felt hearing James make that comment to Lambert? Talk about lack of respect.
Whatever she was attempting to bring to the Mayor and City Commissioners attention, possibly give him information he didn’t have was dismissed by James. The press who is doing a great job staying on the story will not be dismissed so easily.
Wayne Washington is the Palm Beach County government reporter for The Palm Beach Post. He is a veteran reporter of 25 years, and has stepped into Tony Doris’s shoes and will cover stories for the City of WPB. Wayne has written stories on the water crisis and his newest story can be read below.
Where is Tony Doris?
Tony Doris is now the Editorial Page Editor. Tony’s writing will consists of editorials, which go without a byline. He’s responsible for all of the opinion page material, from editorials to letters to the editor and columnist selections. I wish him good cheer in his new endeavor.
Below are excerpts from the recent Wayne Washington story on the water situation. and my comments are in Italics.
James: “The letter from the Department of Health is not the final say on this matter, OK? It’s like filing a complaint in court. The defendant gets a chance to make their case, and that’s what we will do when we go meet with the Department of Health armed with the data that we have available.”
The problem I have with his approach is that he is defending his actions while the public is in possible danger. At least he recognizes he’s a defendant.
“It would not be appropriate to comment on this any further until after we have that meeting with the Department of Health. We cannot and will not litigate this matter in the public arena.”
James is handling the water issue as a defense lawyer as opposed to a lifeguard. He loves his press conferences as long as words such as green, blue and water are not up for discussion. He should have a press conference with his pal Lois Frankel. I would like her opinion on how James handled the situation.
“Residents and government officials in West Palm Beach, Palm Beach and South Beach have been angered by how the James administration has handled the drinking water problem. Many of them contend the city should have moved more quickly to alert the public to the threat.”
It was reported by city insiders that James was vacationing on the west coast of Fl. the last week of May, and he was fully briefed on the situation by City Staff. Why he continues to deny having knowledge defies logic.
Town of Palm Beach is concerned as told in the PB Post story published 6/26/2021. Below are excerpts from the story and comments from Town Manager Kirk Blouin.
Amid transparency concerns, Palm Beach will seek to conduct own water tests.
West Palm Beach did not notify its water customers for eight days after a dangerous toxin was found in its water supply last month.
The town will ask to conduct its own tests at West Palm Beach’s water treatment plant when officials from the neighboring municipalities meet next week, Town Manager Kirk Blouin said Thursday.
Amid transparency concerns that were heightened Wednesday after the town learned that the city had received a warning letter on Tuesday from the Florida Department of Health over its handling of recent water problems,
“People just want the truth, whatever that is,” Blouin said. “That’s the bare minimum.”
“I think I feel the same way everyone else does,” Blouin said about the possible violations. “I’m disappointed and even more concerned than I was previously.”
The end
Weekly Meeting List –Cancelled!
The City would send notice of upcoming meetings and the last notice residents would receive was emailed June 7, 2021 and contained the Meeting List Week of June 7 2021 & Draft City Commission Agenda June 14, 2021.
“WEEKLY MEETING LIST June 7, 2021 – June 11, 2021”
Mon. 3:00 PM Mayor’s Task Force for Racial and Ethnic Equality: Time change to 4:PM.
Tues. 3:00 PM Mayor’s Task Force for Racial and Ethnic Equality: Cancelled
Wed. 1:00 PM Mayor’s Task Force for Racial and Ethnic Equality: Cancelled
Fri. 8:30 AM Mayor’s Task Force for Racial and Ethnic Equality: Meeting held
WeeklyMeetingList_2021-0607-0611_Correction(1)
There were 4 scheduled meetings to be held the w/o June 7 2021 on Mayor’s Task Force for Racial and Ethnic Equality. As you can see 2 were cancelled and 1 time change. This is consistent with other City notifications but at least we were kept aware of the changes by receiving updated emails and not traveling to City Hall for a meeting that was cancelled.
Until the new administration was sworn in and a new City Administrator was appointed I have never witnessed the amount of meetings cancelled, times and or dates changed, meeting location changed. The Mayor was so proud of his newest committee “Mayor’s Task Force for Racial and Ethnic Equality” that in 1 week 2 meetings were cancelled, but it will be a selling point when needed for re-election.
After receiving the last notice of City meetings this message was added.
“Going forward, the weekly meeting list and meeting agendas will be accessible on the website, “wpb.org”. Subsequently, this email will discontinue.”
I questioned why the City decided to stop sending notice of upcoming meetings, and received this response from Cheryl Robinson | Executive Administrative Assistant.
“The City is streamlining its processes. Meetings and agendas are posted to the website and available to all to be accessed at any time; therefore, it is redundant to send email notifications. Thank you for your inquiry.”
I emailed back:
I appreciated the emails you sent. Lately there have been changes to city business, like meetings being canceled, times and dates being changed. If I see a meeting I want to attend and travel to city hall only to find it’s been cancelled or time/date changed residents will not be happy. Can you tell me who made the change?
I received this response from Hazeline F. Carson, City Clerk
“Per your question to Cheryl, the change was made at my direction for the reason you mentioned in your email, that meetings were cancelled and the list had to be updated constantly. This is to eliminate all of the emails being sent out.”
Lets say Friday night I check the upcoming meetings on the City website and see a meeting I wish to attend for example the Mayor’s Task Force for Racial and Ethnic Equality to be held Monday @ 8:30AM.
I would be wise to re-check the City’s website early Monday morning to insure the meeting wasn’t cancelled, or time changed.
If you know “Chain of Command” both Ms. Carson and Robinson report to City Administrator Faye Johnson who reports to Mayor James.
If James and Johnson aren’t making changes to the way business is being handled they keep moving staff around, promoting and demoting, handing out raises, taking them back, all the while making room for friends.
It wasn’t broke, what are they trying to fix? It’s obvious to me and the rest of the City it’s not the water problem on their mind, but how to make it more difficult for residents to follow City business. Then again maybe James isn’t aware of the changes being made like he wasn’t aware of the water situation. Someone needs to inform him our City is going to hell in a hand basket.
The end
City of WPB Under Investigation
A Warning letter from the DOH (Department of Health) sent to the City on June 22,2021 was addressed to Poonam K. Kalkat, Director of Public Utilities, and stated.
“The purpose of this letter is to advise the City of West Palm Beach of possible violation of law for which you may be responsible, and to seek your cooperation in resolving the matter.
Information provided by the City of West Palm Beach (City) to the Florida Department of Health Palm Beach County (Department) on June 3, 2021 indicates that the following violations(s) may have occurred”
4 violations are mentioned, and #1 & 2 refer to Aug. 9, 2016 and mentions cylindrospermopsin was detected in 55 samples collected at the point of entry to the distribution center in which the City failed to report these detections.
#3 & 4 violations refer to May 17 to May 26, 2021 when 8 samples exceeded the Health Advisory Level of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The City issued a public notice informing the public of the HAL exceedances on May 28,2021. The City failed to issue public notice within 24 hours of receipt of sample results that exceeded the HAL for cylindrospermopsin for four (4) of the eight (8) sample results.
The aforementioned eight (8) samples were subject to notification to the Department within twenty four (24) hours. The City failed to notify the Department on four (4) of the eight (8) samples.
Violation of Florida Statutes or Florida Administrative Code Rules may result in liability for damages, and the judicial imposition of civil penalties. Read the 2 page letter below.
You have read this far, now read how the City is attempting to get ahead of the story.
Published: Jun. 23, 2021 at 6:46 PM “West Palm Beach reports drinking water violation” The city of West Palm Beach issued a public notice Wednesday regarding a drinking water violation. The city also claims the Florida Department of Health has acknowledged that the situation is not an emergency.” Read the story below.
https://www.wflx.com//app/2021/06/23/west-palm-beach-reports-drinking-water-violation/
In closing it appears to me that Poonam K. Kalkat, Director of Public Utilities, will take the hit for following orders of someone who claims to have not know about the water situation until May 28, 2021.
The end
WPB Assistant to the City Administrator
“Mayor James Announces New WPB Assistant to the City Administrator Dr. Philip C. Harris
Post Date: 05/27/2021 3:30 PM
WEST PALM BEACH, FLA (May 27, 2021) – West Palm Beach Mayor Keith A. James is pleased to announce the selection of Dr. Philip C. Harris for the position of Assistant to the City Administrator effective Monday, May 24, 2021. In this role, Dr. Harris will oversee the City’s Community and Business Services which include the Departments of Housing and Community Development, Parks and Recreation, Public Works, Library, Office of Economic Opportunity, and ArtLife WPB.
Dr. Harris brings to the City 18 years of diversified government experience and a background in civic engagement, strategic planning, human services, public policy, emergency management, grant management, budget management, community and business development, and volunteer management.
He has held positions with the City of Clearwater, City of St. Petersburg, United Way Suncoast, Hillsborough County, Broward County, P.M.E. Development Consulting, LLC in Tamarac, FL, and Broward County Public Schools.”
“Congratulations to new Assistant to the City Administrator Dr. Philip C. Harris,” said West Palm Beach Mayor Keith A. James. “With a multifaceted background in operations and administrative experience, Dr. Harris brings a wealth of experience to this position. I am confident he will do great things for our City and serve our residents well. I welcome him to the City of West Palm Beach leadership team!”
“I am grateful to the Mayor and the City Administrator for the opportunity to join the dynamic City of West Palm Beach team,” said Dr. Harris. “I have tremendous respect for this innovative city, its residents, businesses, nonprofits, and city staff. I look forward to helping address the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead.”
“Dr. Harris holds a Bachelor of Arts in Communication degree from the University of South Florida and a Master and Doctor of Business Administration degree from Argosy University.”
Dr. Harris is the South Florida Chapter President of the National Forum for Black Public Administrators and a member of the Florida City and County Management Association (FCCMA) and the International City/County Management Association. He was also recently recognized as 2020 ICMA International Honorary Member of the Year and 2021 FCCMA Who’s Who Under 40 Award Honoree.”
The City’s pay scale salary for level GM17.
“Min. $121,330.00 Mid. $151,663.00 Max. $181,995.00”
“Mayor’s Office Harris, Philip Christopher 101117. Assistant to the City Administrator. Admin, Clerical&Fiscal GM17 $152,000.” (Mid. Level)
City Administrator Faye Johnson’s salary is $261,450.00, and as the City Charter states she must live in the City of WPB with no time frame for moving. This is a loop hole in the Charter that James and Johnson use to their benefit. James knows the rules, he just doesn’t follow them.
That’s a combined total of $413,450.00. for 2 employees. (The WPB Police Dept. has a new contract with the City after 9 months of back and forth negotiations, unfortunately the City refused to make the contract retroactive due to money shortage ???)
The City’s Education Requirements can be read below.
ASSISTANT TO THE CITY ADMINISTRATOR
FLSA: EX Page 2 of 2
B/U: NA-RgUncl Last revision: January 2020
CLASS DESCRIPTION
Class Code: 101117
• Ability to establish and maintain effective working relationships with those contacted in the course of work.
PHYSICAL REQUIREMENTS AND WORK ENVIRONMENT
Work involves sedentary to light work in an office setting. There is occasional need to stand, stoop, walk, sit, lift objects (up to 25 pounds) and perform similar other actions during the course of the workday. The City of West Palm Beach promotes and maintains a drug/alcohol free work environment through the use of mandatory per-employment and random drug testing for certain employees.
MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS
Master’s degree with a major in Business Administration, Public Administration, or related field is required for this position, or any equivalent combination of training and experience. Education will be verified using the “Education Requirements” listed below. Must have seven (7) years of progressively responsible experience in upper management including budgetary experience.
A current and valid Florida driver’s license is required. For application purposes, a valid driver’s license from any state (equivalent to a State of Florida Class E) may be utilized; with the ability to obtain the State
of Florida driver’s license within thirty (30) days from date of employment.
Education Requirements
• To be considered valid (or verified) for position qualification purposes, and consistent with City Hiring Policy 4-5, a High School, GED or equivalent diploma, and all higher education degrees or certifications must have been issued by:
a) a public education institution in the State of Florida or any State or Territory of the United States; or
b) an institution accredited by an accrediting organization that is recognized by the Florida Department of Education or the U.S. Department of Education; or
c) an institution that is accredited by an organization that is recognized by the Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA).
• International degrees will be evaluated to determine if they satisfy qualification requirements.
“On February 27, 2019, the US Department of Education stated that they were cutting off federal funding to Argosy University. According to Inside Higher Education, “The Education Department said that the roughly 8,800 students enrolled at Argosy campuses could seek to transfer their credits elsewhere or apply for loan cancellation in the event their campus shuts down.”
All Argosy campuses were officially closed on March 8, 2019.
Be sure to read the entire Wikipedia entry below for what became a bogus university.
The overall graduation rate? Answer: 6 percent.
Misspend money, lack of accreditation, multiple lawsuits and on and on.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Argosy_University
I could not find where the City advertised for Dr. Harris position. Is this a case of “It’s not what you know, but who you know?”
The end.
PB Post Gave Up To Easy
The Palm Beach Post wrote an editorial questioning why Mayor Keith James took so long to notify the public of the water contaminated by Blue/Green Algae and a health hazard to seniors, children and people with health issues, and finally don’t give city water to your pets. My comments in Italic.
Mayor James was upset with the editorial and notified the Post who printed a correction on 6/5/2021, and can be read below at the end of the story.
May 5, 2021 Blue/Green algae first appeared. 2nd Sample taken and algae disappeared.
May 17, 2021 Blue/Green algae appears again.
The time line was reported by WPTV (Chanel 5) and the entire story can be read below.
May 19, 2021 Results came back high.
May 24, 25, 26, 2021 The City wanted to make sure this was not an anomaly, so it tested again.
The City wanted to test for 3 consecutive days and based on the outside lab schedule the samples were collected on May 24, 25, and 26, 2021. 5/19/21 results came back “high” and nothing more was done until May 24. That’s 5 days! If not James who made the decision to test the water 3 days in a row?
May 27, 2021 Results were formally received at approximately 5 pm.
May 28, 2021 The city contacted the Florida Department of Health to inform them and begin the process of public notification. The city’s notification required approval from the Florida Department of Health which was received late Friday night.
Here are the players:
#1 Mayor Keith James
#2 City Administrator Faye Johnson
#3 Public Utilities Poonam Kalkat
#4 Penelope Redford Division of Public Utilities, Office of Sustainability.
Office of Sustainability | West Palm Beach, FL
Taken from the WPB Website:
“Public Utilities Billing & Payments; Report Damage by an Outside Utility Contractor; Backflow Prevention and Cross Connection; Water Quality Reports; Fats, Oils and Grease; Our Watershed; UV System and Water Plant; Grassy Waters Preserve; Customer Water Portal; Public Works. Sanitation; Pickup Schedule; Street Maintenance & Lighting; Request for Service; Sustainability.”
We have all heard Keith James and Poonam Kalkat on the water situation, why haven’t we heard from Ms. Redford who reports to Ms. Kalkat, who reports to Ms. Johnson, who reports to Mr. James.
The PB Post wrote an editorial on the contamination on the City’s water supply which obviously upset James and the Post issued a correction on 6/5/2021 apologizing to James and readers for the error. The Post also states:
“The Post cannot disprove the mayor’s explanation and has removed the editorial from it’s website”
If the Post placed a PRR (Public Records Request) for all emails, and especially text messages between James, Johnson, Kalkat and include Redford from May 5 through May 28,2021 that should show when James first knew about the water contamination. Taxpayer’s pay for their phones, so it makes it public record and I wouldn’t trust City officials to provide the information but would trust the report from the phone carrier.
I don’t believe the Post owe it’s readers an apology for the editorial, but do believe an apology is due for endorsing him for Mayor of WPB. Editorial Staff learn from your mistakes, and common sense dictates when James realizing the City Commissioner’s were upset concerning the way they learned of the situation, he publicly apologized to them saying “we need to do better” The Commissioners want a work shop on improving communication. Double click to enlarge “Correction”
In closing does anyone believe James didn’t know we had contaminated water until May 28. I don’t, and his lying miscommunication is what has me upset. Everyone dropped the ball but him. He thanked the PBC Sheriff office for lending WPB their plane to fly the water sample to Tallahassee. The WPB Police have a helicopter, and depending on the fuel tank, a helicopter can travel 955 mi.and it’s 832 mi. round trip.
The end.
WPB Plays By It’s Own Rules
I attended the City Commission meeting last night and listened to residents concern over the water problems we are all faced with. Today marks 5 day’s of bottled water.
In all fairness we can’t blame Mayor James or City Administrator Faye Johnson for the outbreak of the Blue-green algae, technically known as cyanobacteria.
What we can and should hold them responsible for is how they handled the situation after they were notified of it’s existence which first appeared 5/3/21 and again 5/17/21.
James said the problem was unprecedented and they were at a loss of what to do. Understandable.
Why wasn’t a call made to the DOH (Dept. of Health) or the DEP (Dept. of Environmental Protection) and seek guidance on what turned out to be a disaster for the City.
What has me most upset is City Commissioners were not notified until they received emails advising them to boil their water. The Commissioners sent out notices to Presidents of Homeowners Associations who then sent out email to residents warning of the situation.
Now I’m wondering how the water situation has affected the County’s water supply and emailed Commissioner Bernard who forwarded my email to Ali Bayat, Utility Director, and his response was “Palm Beach County uses groundwater (wells) to produce potable water. As Commissioner Bernard said the current situation with City has no impact on PBC water system.”
Now I’m wishing I lived in Unincorporated PBC, and today I wish I never had that thought. Be patient reading this story, I’m not wandering around but making a point.
The City of WPB should be ashamed of how they treated our First Responders (Police & Firefighters) over a new contract. I am happy to report the City and the Police have a new contract, and the Firefighters meet with a Special Magistrate for 2 days and he will make the final decision.
The City Charter which is supposedly the Bible of can and cannot do say’s the City Administrator must live in the City of WPB. Ms. Johnson does not reside in the City of WPB. Her home is located in unincorporated Palm Beach County.
City Administrator Pay Grade, GM20 ($174,303-$261,454).
Ms. Johnson’s current salary as Interim City Administrator is $220,000.
The Mayor is recommending to the Commission a starting salary of $249,000. Upon successful completion of a six (6) month probationary period, Ms. Johnson’s salary will increase by 5% to $261,450. City Commission unanimously approved the increase and pay grade.
Below is the new Organizational Chart for the City, and you can enlarge the picture by clicking on it.
City of WPB Org Chart Effective 05.24.21-2
The departments reporting directly to Ms. Johnson are: City Clerk, Human Resources, Finance, Police and Fire Dept.
Johnson represented the City in negotiations with both the Fire & Police Dept.
Ms. Johnson has held the position 1 1/2 years and has the protection of the PBC Sheriff’s Dept; PBC Firefighters and can use all the water she needs because the County knows how to keep their residents safe, and their report can be read below.
Palm Beach County 2020 Water Quality Reports Released
“The reports feature results from more than 80,000 laboratory tests of PBCWUD’s drinking water. The test results are summarized in easy-to-read charts, which explain to residents where their water comes from, how the water is treated and disinfected, and who they can contact for more information.” If interested in reading the report it is enclosed below.
https://discover.pbcgov.org/waterutilities/Pages/Press-Releases.aspx
To fully understand the problems WPB residents are facing I believe Ms. Johnson should reside in the City and suffer along with us.
The end.
WPB Water Problems Known by Officials for 8 Day’s.
UPDATE: The story below was posted on WPB Watch @5 /29/2021 @ 10:18am. The PB Daily News wrote an updated story 5/29/2021 @ 10:37 am. And more information was disclosed that readers should be aware of. Here it is.
“In a release issued late Friday night, the town of Palm Beach said cylindrospermopsin, a toxin produced by cyanobacteria (known as blue-green algae), was detected in the drinking water from West Palm Beach’s Water Treatment Plant on May 20.
Poonam Kalkat, West Palm Beach’s director of public utilities, said there were no outward signs of the cylindrospermopsin toxin but that tests began seeing it in Clear Lake on May 3 at low levels. It had disappeared in subsequent tests, but showed up again in a May 17 sampling, which was returned May 20.
Samples were then taken every day with results reported to the Florida Department of Health and Florida Department of Environmental Protection.
The advisory from the city came out about 10 p.m., followed by an 11 p.m. order issued by the DOH. Calls to the DOH and DEP were not immediately returned this morning. Read the story below:
I sent out emails to residents of Spencer Lakes @ 11:15 pm after hearing the news report. Below is a response from a board member Sat. morning. “Thank you, Comm. Warren notified me this morning.”
5/28/2021 @ 11:00 PM I listened to the news and received a warning WPB water was contaminated and advised not to use the water due to blue- green algae, and that included bathing. I immediately sent the warning to everyone in my address book, hoping they received the news before using water.
Below are excerpt’s from Chanel 25 news and the entire story can be read below. My comments are in italics.
“Cylindrospermopsin, a toxin produced by cyanobacteria (formerly known as blue-green algae), was detected in the drinking water from the City of West Palm Beach’s Water Treatment Plant on May 20.” Water contamination can happen to any city at any time and I certainly don’t fault WPB officials for the problem we are now facing, but I do hold them responsible for having the information since May 20,2021 and informing us eight (8) days later.
“The city is working closely with the Florida Department of Health, the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, and the City’s Emergency Operations Center to address the situation.” Which agency had the City release the information?
“Residents are urged not to drink tap water. Infants, young children, the elderly, and those with preexisting liver conditions may be vulnerable to the effects of cylindrospermopsin. Animals are also vulnerable.” The city allowed the most vulnerable residents to use city water for 8 days before issuing a warning. How many may have been affected? We’ll never know.
“Officials also warned residents not to boil the water as it can increase toxin levels.” How comfortable are you taking a hot shower/bath?
“The city has established a point of distribution for bottled water to any resident affected. Impacted residents may pick up a supply of water from Gaines Park on May 29, 30 and 31. The park is located at 1501 Australian Ave. and will operate from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m on those days.” Over 100,000 residents affected and water can be picked up at the one location above. If you drive a car you have a total of 9 hours to pick up water. Survive Carona virus and become sick by drinking city water.
“Residents with questions can call the city’s hotline at (561) 822-2222. Future updates will be shared on the city’s website, wpb.org and on the city’s primary social media platforms. I called the hotline and received a continuous busy signal, you may have better luck contacting them.
Mayor Keith James and City Administrator Faye Johnson are the two people with the responsibility of running the City, and both have failed residents by not releasing the news of contamination when the problem was first discovered. Shame on you both.
City Commissioners: When were you advised the city had water problems, and why didn’t you do something about it? You do realize you can call the media and have a press conference to warn us immediately when you became aware. You were elected to protect residents not the Mayor or City Administrator. Shame on you also.
James has begun running for his second term as Mayor, and holds press conferences and updates regularly. You wont see or hear any press conference on the recent water development.
The Mayor attended the DDA (Downtown Development Agency) recently and advised the audience he would not be taking questions, and advised those in attendance the City didn’t criminalize the homeless. Repeat the lie enough and it becomes the truth, that’s a great example of hiding info. don’t allow questions.
https://www.wpbf.com/article/toxic-algae-detected-in-west-palm-beach-drinking-water/36574097
The end
Major Planned Development Amendment
Double click image to enlarge.
Another “Major Planned Development Amendment”.
Unless you live within 500 ft. of Publix located in Rosemary Square, formerly CityPlace, you were not likely notified of this “major planned development amendment”.
Rosemary Square is owned by Related and they are planning to build a 25 story building, above a new 40K+ sq. ft. Publix, on a site that is zoned for 15 stories so the City Commissioners will be asked to approve an amendment allowing the additional 10 Stories which they will approve as they always do for a Related project. The new project may contain office space and an assisted living facility.
Residents in the area are questioning the loss of Publix during this project and there is no answer coming from the City which is an answer in itself. The City or Related don’t care if shopping becomes difficult for you. When you think about it were only talking about a 2+ years of inconvenience.
It is my understanding residents living in the area aren’t happy with the change. City Commissioner Christy Fox is a resident of the area, was employed by Related, and I can’t wait to hear her vote. Will she go with the people who put her in office or will she make the vote unanimous, or be sick the day the vote is taken?
I can relate the story below with what you have read so far.
“Thousands of homeowners could be forced to get flood insurance” PB Post 5/27/2021
“Questioning whether the federal government used the best methods and data to predict Palm Beach County’s coastal flood risk, county commissioners unanimously supported moving forward with an appeal of FEMA coastal hazard maps.
Thousands of county coastal homeowners could be forced to get flood insurance under FEMA’s maps, adding about 1,900 acres of land along the Intracoastal Waterway and Atlantic Ocean into the high-risk flood zone.
Top of mind for commissioners was their constituents’ wallets.
“I guess my editorial would be that anything we can do to protect our residents, we need to, especially right now,” Commissioner Maria Marino said. “Property values are going to go up, so property taxes are going to go up, so insurance is going to go up, anyway. Let’s not try to hurt them too much.”
My opinion
Flagler Drive floods to the point where side streets have being affected with rising tides, and with a warning of the coming hurricane season I’m thankful I don’t live in the area.
All the new construction where 5 stories were allowed and residents voted twice to keep the cap, the City ran to Tallahassee and it was changed to allow taller buildings and the City allowed construction up to 25 stories. It was a free for all, and construction is non-stop.
Has anyone noticed that concrete does not absorb water?
So residents will pay higher premiums for flood insurance. The only people that care are the folks paying the bills, certainly not the City or Related.
The end.
Is WPB In Bed With The Mob?
2/1/2016 Below is a story about the ground breaking of the Banyan Cay Resort with Former Mayor Muoio and Domenic Gatto. Five years ago I am going to assume the City was unaware of Mr. Gatto’s reputation. Five years later the City should be well aware of who Mr. Gatto is thanks to the PB Post and the Florida Bulldog.
https://www.nicklaus.com/2016/12/01/jack-nicklaus-breaks-ground-banyan-cay-resort-golf/
4/28/2021 (PB Post) “Domenic Gatto is the developer behind the $100 million Banyan Cay complex just east of Interstate 95, off Congress Avenue and north of Palm Beach Lakes Boulevard, near the Palm Beach Outlets shopping mall. When complete, Banyan Cay will be the largest redevelopment in West Palm Beach since Rosemary Square, formerly known as CityPlace, the popular downtown mixed-use dining and shopping center.
Domenic Gatto, a 46-year old Palm Beach Gardens resident, is one of five men charged in what the U.S. Department of Justice described as a $65 million “nationwide kickback and bribery scheme” to order medically unnecessary orthotic braces for Medicare beneficiaries.
The 250-acre Banyan Cay property used to be the site of the President Country Club, but the club fell into financial trouble and was sold to an investor group for $11 million in 2011. That investor group then flipped the property to Banyan Cay Dev LLC, led by Gatto, for $26 million in 2015.”
5/4/2021 (Florida Bulldog) “Elderly South Florida mobster Thomas Farese at the top of $93 million healthcare fraud, feds say
Joining Farese as a defendant in the case is old pal, Colombo family associate Pat Truglia, 53, of Parkland. Both men, along with Domenic J. Gatto, 46, of Palm Beach Gardens, and Nicholas Defonte, 72, and Christopher Cirri, 63, both of Toms River, N.J., are charged with conspiracy to commit health care fraud between October 2017 and April 2019
Gatto and Defonte posted bonds of $700,000 each and were released. Cirri posted a $500,00 bond. The status of Farese and Truglia is not public. Oddly, because the charges against them are public, their cases remain sealed.”
12/5/2019 “Money laundering is an after-the-fact crime. Only after drugs are sold, extortions settled, cons completed and frauds finished, does money need to be cleaned.
Laundering, the near-invisible financial fiddling to make the money from crime look respectable so it can be openly used, is an essential element of the cycle that keeps mobsters and transnational crime bosses in business.”
https://nationalpost.com/news/the-underworld-laundromat-how-to-clean-10-million-in-mob-money
I find it suspicious and can’t understand why “staff” who recommended approval of the Banyan Cay Resort didn’t do a background check on the developers.
Heads up Commissioners, your not asking the right questions.
The end!
WPB K9’s Have New Outfits
WPB Watch recently made an appeal to readers for donations to the WPB Benevolent Foundation to purchase ballistic vests for our police dogs and a Bite Suit to replace a 20 year old suit that served it’s purpose, and definitely needed retiring. Residents came through for the Police Dept. And I have good news to report.
A new company Crazy Tuff K9 stepped up and donated ballistic vests, leash’s, collars and various other equipment to keep all our 4 legged officers safe. It is my understanding the new dogs will be fitted for their vests when they reach the age of 11/2 to 2 years old and fully developed to insure the best fit possible. Crazy Tuff also donated ballistic vests to the Riviera Beach Police Dept. K9 unit. These are good people running a good company.
The bite suit was purchased through numerous donations to the West Palm Beach Police Benevolent Foundation designated for K9 equipment.
K9 Officer Rob George in the new bite suit. He looks happy modeling the new Bite Suit. The next picture I hope to receive is one of our K9 hanging off the sleeve to insure a good fit for Rob.
There are 6 dogs in Canine School at the moment being trained for:
4 K9 training for patrol with their 2 legged partners.
1 K9 being trained to detect currency. You read that right, they will sniff out $$. Let the drug dealers beware flying into WPB airports.
The last dog being trained is one of my favorites namely Moose. the blood hound. More on Moose below. All pictures can be enlarged by double clicking on the picture.
Moose
Moose’s mom is Officer Jen Hardiman and he came to Jen @ 3 months old and this month he will be 11 months of age, and has already seen some action. A request by the Boca Raton Police Dept. was received to aid in finding a man who complained his pacemaker was causing him pain, and unfortunately he left his home on foot and could not be located. The man was located shortly before Moose could aid in the search, but good to know he’s a valued member of WPB K9 unit.
Moose at 3 months old. His handler Jen cuddles him in her arms.
Moose at 11 month’s. Cuddle time is over, he’s a big boy now. Check out his nose and paws. Crazy Tuff donated a harness, collar and leash for him. Thank you to everyone who donated to keep them safe. Well done.
