Stet News☀️ Good morning! For you today, commissioners jettison diversity programs, Lake Worth Beach may restrict who can share food, a win for Riviera Beach against a persistent plaintiff, hockey rink backers face time crunch, meet your county administrator candidates and coaching new leaders.
💣 DEI dismantled
County commissioners got personal last week when they voted to dismantle DEI programs to meet federal requirements.
Why it matters: Faced with losing $329 million in federal grants under orders issued by President Donald Trump to end diversity, equity and inclusion programs, county commissioners suspended programs to give women- and minority-owned businesses preference in county contracts and closed the county’s DEI office.
“You have not seen what I have seen,” Commissioner Joel Flores told his colleagues. “You have no idea how my heart breaks right now. Don’t try to paint this as something else than what it is. We deserve better. We deserve the freedom that I fought for.”
Commissioner Gregg Weiss, who is Jewish, added: “There’s places in this county that I can’t join, that I can’t be a member of. It’s not because of what I’ve accomplished or not accomplished. It’s because of who I was born to.”
Commissioners Sara Baxter and Bobby Powell offered quotes from the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. to support their polar opposite points of view.
- “He said he dreamed of a day when we would be judged based on the content of our character, not the color of our skin,” Baxter said, paraphrasing King’s 1963 “I Have a Dream” speech. “That is exactly where I want to be.”
- “Dr. King did have a dream, but there are also two Americas,” Powell countered, citing King’s “The Other America” speech.
Zoom in: Commissioners said they had no choice but to eliminate the diversity program that was created when a $700,000 study in 2018 showed women- and minority-owned businesses weren’t getting their fair share of county work. A $450,000 follow up review is underway.
- They faced loss of grants and the threat of criminal charges if they refused.
“The reality is that if we don’t comply, we lose millions in federal money that our taxpayers sent to Washington,” Weiss said. “Losing that money will hit our most vulnerable residents — seniors, families and kids who need county services — the hardest.”
Read more about the commission’s deliberations here.
— Jane Musgrave
🚫 Permits to feed the homeless
To clean up Bryant Park in downtown Lake Worth Beach, city officials are planning to require permits for organizations that feed homeless people in public spaces.
Similar measures have been blocked in court so Lake Worth Beach is studying the rulings to avoid violating anyone’s constitutional rights.
Why it’s important: The move comes as the Gulfstream Hotel, closed since 2005, moves toward opening in December. The hotel is next to the park. Its general manager, Lawrence Cassenti, has criticized the feedings, saying they contribute to “encampments, drug use and public safety concerns.”
City officials also are critical:
- “We have replaced sinks in the bathroom so many times just in Bryant Park, people kicking toilets off walls. It’s nonstop,” Interim City Manager Jamie Brown told city commissioners on June 3.
Zoom in: Some advocacy groups say permit requirements will hurt the community’s most vulnerable residents, including elderly on fixed incomes and working people priced out of housing.
- “If you prevent us from feeding our neighbors, do you think they will stop being homeless?” asked Sasha Orenstein of the Palm Beach Democratic Socialists of America.
Yes, but: While homeless advocates have said “we feed people because they’re here,’’ Mayor Betty Resch said, “There’s a counter argument to that that says they’re here because they get fed seven days a week.’’
Zoom out: The mayor and three commissioners voiced support for considering regulations. The rules could allow the city to limit the number and frequency of feedings. Permit fees could differ for local and out-of-town groups.
“We are trying to improve our quality of life,’’ Commissioner Sarah Malega said.
“We have a multimillion-dollar investment in a historical building that people in this city screamed to have saved.”
Read more here about the debate over cleaning up Bryant Park.
— Joe Capozzi
🏛️ Riviera Beach wins in high court
There won’t be a three-peat showdown between Riviera Beach and longtime city nemesis Fane Lozman in the U.S. Supreme Court — at least for now.
Catch up quick: The nation’s high court declined to wade into a multimillion-dollar dispute over whether the city illegally seized Lozman’s mostly submerged land along Singer Island by refusing to let him develop it.
Why it matters: While Lozman has twice battled the city before the Supreme Court and won, little money was at stake. This case subjected the city to tens of millions of dollars in liability, City Manager Jonathan Evans said.
What they’re saying: “This outcome is a tremendous relief for the city and our residents,” Evans said in a press release. “The Supreme Court’s decision affirms our position and protects the public’s interest.”
Zoom in: The high court upheld a ruling from the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals, which had ruled narrowly.
Instead of saying whether Riviera Beach robbed Lozman of use of his land, the appellate court said Lozman hadn’t taken the necessary steps to prove the city stopped him from developing the land.
What’s next: Lozman said he will go through what he calls a “futile” exercise of asking Riviera to let him fill the roughly 8 acres he owns along a narrow strip of upland off of Pine Point Road so he can build up to eight houses on it. He values the land at $6.5 million an acre.
If the city says no, as he expects, he will refile the suit in U.S. District Court. If that court says no, as he expects, he would appeal back to the 11th Circuit.
What’s he saying: The city’s victory will be short-lived, Lozman said. “They may have won the battle, but at the end of the day, they’re going to lose the war.”
Of note: In 2014, city leaders celebrated after a federal jury cleared council members of violating Lozman’s free-speech rights when they had him arrested for berating them during a public meeting. Four years later, the Supreme Court ruled the city had violated Lozman’s rights.
Read more about the ruling and Lozman’s past court encounters with the city at Stetnews.org.
— Jane Musgrave
💵 ‘Show us the money’
The noose tightened last week on plans to build an ice rink complex on public land in Palm Beach Gardens.
Catch up quick: After more than a year of public criticism over the city’s decision to lease a city park to a nonprofit group to build the two-rink complex, the City Council Thursday rejected a request to grant the group a three-month extension to finalize its financing and begin construction.
What’s at stake: Timetables presented at the meeting by the nonprofit Palm Beach North Athletic Foundation indicate the project can still meet the deadline. But it’ll be close. Without the extension, they’ll need every bit of the contract’s 30-day grace period, giving them until Aug. 2.
Zoom in: Figures presented at the meeting show the project is worth $53 million, up from $40 million. PBNAF consultants said they have $12 million in pledges and the promise of a $12 million loan from billionaire hockey enthusiast Larry Robbins, who has pledged $10 million.
- To finance the remaining $29 million, PBNAF plans to issue tax-exempt bonds through the Florida Local Government Finance Commission. A public hearing could take place in late June, with bond closing the week of July 28.
Zoom out: Dozens of residents have opposed the city’s decision to give up the 8-acre Plant Drive Park, demolishing a basketball court, softball field and skateboard park. They urged the council to reject the request.
What they’re saying: “If my kid waited until the last minute to start his science fair project, I wouldn’t blame the school for not giving him enough time,” resident Rebecca McKeich said. “And I definitely wouldn’t expect them to delay the science fair for him.”
- “I hate to tell you but I’ve lost faith in this organization,” Council Member John Kemp said. “I say if you’re so confident that you’re going to get this financing that you guys should be taking the risk. Not this council. Not this city.”
- Added Council Member Dana Middleton, “There is a theme here with my colleagues. The ‘Jerry Maguire,’ ‘show me the money’ — show us the money.”
See how the nonprofit organization explained its need for more time at StetNews.org.
— Joel Engelhardt
📅 Meet the final four
The field is set for the final interviews to replace Verdenia Baker as the next Palm Beach County administrator.
The public will have a chance to meet the final four candidates at 5:30 pm Monday June 16 at the county convention center. They’ll answer questions posed by the public in a panel discussion setting.
The finalists are County Clerk and Comptroller Joe Abruzzo, Deputy County Administrator Patrick Rutter, Assistant County Administrator Isami Ayala-Collazo and the county’s director of strategic planning and performance management, Keith Clinkscales.
- Two out-of-state candidates, Cornell Wesley and Eric Johnson, pulled out in recent weeks.
Also on June 16, county commissioners will interview candidates privately.
The next day, June 17, commissioners will conduct public interviews of the candidates before debating their merits and making a decision.
All the public sessions will be livestreamed on Palm Beach County Channel 20.
— Joel Engelhardt
🍊 The Juice
🎙️ In a few months, WLRN could be transmitting local and national programming into Palm Beach and Martin counties with the signal of “The Flame” 104.7-FM. South Florida Public Media Group, the public media management company for WLRN, is awaiting Federal Communications Commission approval for its purchase and conversion of the station’s license to non-commercial.
- “This acquisition is more than just an expansion — it’s a commitment to public trust, to community, and to closing the radio news gap that currently exists in Palm Beach and Martin counties,” said John LaBonia, CEO of South Florida Public Media Group. (WLRN)
🚨 MorseLife Health System agreed to change the way it pays its top executive, Keith Myers, after this story detailed annual payments reaching $10.3 million to a for-profit management company Myers co-owned. Several board members resigned from the 40-year-old, West Palm Beach-based organization that provides health care, housing and supportive services for seniors after an anonymous letter dropped in January. (The Palm Beach Post $$$)
🗣️ Self-help guru Tony Robbins, a Manalapan resident since 2013, encountered resistance from the Town Commission after a neighbor complained that he exceeded town codes when he erected a 10-foot wall to improve security at his oceanfront house. Remove it or work it out with the neighbor, the commission said. (The Coastal Star)
💸 Tampa-based Slide Insurance, which started in 2022, paid husband-and-wife executives Bruce and Shannon Lucas more than $50 million over two years, federal filings show. (The Palm Beach Post $$$)
🥫 Higher food costs coupled with federal cuts to food distribution are stressing local food banks scrambling to meet rising demand. (The Coastal Star)
Warren “Mac” McLaughlin, who oversaw the county Convention and Visitors Bureau during booming growth and championed construction of a convention center in West Palm Beach before departing in 2006 after an accountant embezzled $1.5 million from the agency, died June 1 at age 89. A celebration of life is planned for June 19.
561NSIDER: 🔌 The soft power of the New Leaders Council
A national program is recruiting and coaching community leaders in Palm Beach County.
What’s happening: The local chapter of the Washington-based New Leaders Council is marking 10 years of guiding more than 160 fellows in a program focused on community engagement and professional development.
Why it’s important: The council has become a catalyst for ambitious professionals who fan across the county with their new connections and civic skills as they build careers in education, nonprofits and government.
Who’s who: Palm Beach council alumni include a state representative, city commissioners and leaders of high-profile organizations including NAMI PBC, Suits for Seniors and PEACE.
What they’re saying: “There’s really nothing like it,” local Habitat for Humanity Chief Advancement Officer Julia Murphy said. She launched the local chapter in 2015 when she worked with Compass LGBTQ+ Community Center in Lake Worth Beach.
The free training attracts rising leaders who tend to be younger, Murphy said. Organizers are looking for people committed to diversity and inclusion and who value community service.
“NLC changed my life,” state Rep. Jervonte “Tae” Edmonds, D-West Palm Beach, said during a national panel discussion this year.
- Edmonds, the founder and CEO of Suits for Seniors, joined the first local cohort in 2015.
During the weekend, a new class completed the program. They are Berenique Carroll, JD Weatherspoon, Jazz Dickerson, Johanna Duerr, Lucy Joseph, Mariana Lopes, Melanie Chen, Queen Hinkle, Ryan Shepard, Sha’cora Walker and Yolanda Bates.
Keep reading: Find out what makes the New Leaders Council different here.
— Carolyn DiPaolo
🦈 And finally, as we approach the 50th anniversary of the summer blockbuster “Jaws,” Joe Capozzi traces the story of the Forest Hill High School graduate who captured cinema history as the killer shark’s first victim. Read it at ByJoeCapozzi.com
