The Boca Raton City Council on Monday postponed a decision on whether to grant preliminary approval for a performing arts center in Mizner Park.
Council members, meeting as the Community Redevelopment Agency, wanted more time to hear details about The Center for Arts & Innovation’s plans. In addition, the group must report next month on whether it has met its second fundraising goal. All those questions caused the council to delay the vote until Oct. 21.
An attorney for TCAI said the group did not object to that one-month postponement. Any longer, though, and all timetables would get pushed back by the same amount. TCAI and the city then would have to amend their agreement.
Councilman Marc Wigder asked for the delay. He also wants the city to hire its own consultant to evaluate plans for the project, which envisions demolishing and rebuilding the Mizner Park Amphitheater and making it part of the center. TCAI would lease city-owned land on the east side of the amphitheater.
At issue Monday was whether TCAI’s concept conforms with what the city expected when the council approved the lease. The staff recommendation was for approval, even though Deputy City Manager Chrissy Gibson noted that TCAI had made “significant material changes” to its original plan.
One is the proposed underground parking garage. Gibson told me that there are questions about whether such a garage could be built on that site. In addition, the main stage now would face west, not south. Gibson said the staff has concerns about how loading docks and other service facilities could affect the residential neighborhoods east of Mizner Park.
Gibson said the staff recommended approval, though, because most of the details will be part of the actual development application. That would be the main approval. “We wanted to let [TCAI] know about our concerns now,” Gibson said, to avoid surprises.
City Manager George Brown said it was “unlikely” that the city could find a consultant who could render a wide-ranging analysis by Oct. 21. Council members seemed to agree that a consultant—if Brown could find a suitable one—would offer guidance not for that meeting but as TCAI’s plans develop.
As TCAI’s attorney pointed out, the city had some flexibility Monday. There won’t be any next month.
A surprising double-murder in Boca
Friday’s double-murder in Boca Raton seemed so unusual because it was.
Until then, the city had recorded just one homicide this year. That was a murder-suicide this month. A man fatally shot his wife and then killed himself.
According to investigators, Friday’s shooting began with a late-afternoon purse snatching at an extended stay hotel on the beach just north of Palmetto Park Road. Thirty-year-old De’Vante Lashawn Moss ran from a room of the 365 Ocean Hotel. A woman followed, attempting to get back her purse.
Two men then tried to intervene. Moss allegedly shot all three, killing the woman and one of the men. Moss fled. He was arrested early Saturday morning in Laurens County, Georgia, roughly halfway between Macon and Savannah.
At a press conference Monday afternoon, the victims were identified as Christopher Liszak (age 49) and Chandler Dill (age 32), both of Oakland Park.
Moss faces two charges of first-degree murder and one charge of attempted first-degree murder. There is no timetable for his extradition to Palm Beach County. I’ll have more when that happens, and the probable cause affidavit is made public.
Moss has faced federal and state drug charges. He is on federal probation for selling fentanyl, which has been responsible for most of the nation’s recent overdose deaths. He also was arrested in 2015 on a state charge of marijuana possession below 20 grams, a misdemeanor. Though news reports said Moss lives in Boynton Beach, he listed Delray Beach addresses for the drug arrest and for a speeding charge three years ago.
Moss pleaded guilty to the state charge and was sentenced to time served and court costs. His driver’s license was suspended for a year.
In 2021, after he hadn’t paid the court costs, Moss asked to perform community service. Writing to the judge, Moss said he was “looking to pursue my career which involves driving company vehicles and having an infraction on my license, will impact my future career path.
“As I mentioned before, I take full responsibility for my actions and understand that I have placed myself in this situation.” Moss added, “I am looking forward to hearing from you again and appreciate all you do.”
Boca to begin streamlining review of development applications
After much internal discussion, Boca Raton tonight will begin the process of streamlining the city’s review of development applications.
Projects must go to two advisory panels—the community appearance and planning and zoning boards—before going to the city council. Successive councils have complained that the responsibilities of the boards overlap, making the review process redundant and slower. Council members and developers also have said that the staff could approve minor issues.
On the agenda for tonight’s meeting is introduction of an ordinance that would make several changes. It would reduce the membership of the Community Appearance Board from eight to five and change the qualifications for membership. Only one member, not three, would have to be an architect. One would still have to be a landscape architect. The others would have to be an engineer, planner, contractor or Realtor.
The board no longer would review proposed facades that aren’t visible from public places and would not review minor building alterations. Staff would take over review of some permits for downtown projects. The ordinance also would restate some of the board’s purview, such as signs.
The community appearance board has been the only one that meets every week. To some, that reinforces Boca Raton’s high esthetic standards. To others, it involves the board in too many minor details.
One board member resigned as the city was discussing these changes. They could become controversial. The city touts them as part of the effort to make Boca Raton more business friendly. The ordinance will go to the planning and zoning board before it gets to the council.
Clarification
I wrote recently about the “cone of silence” that Boca Raton approved as part of the process toward redevelopment of the area around City Hall. It will govern contact between city officials and companies seeking to be the city’s private partner.
According to a city spokeswoman, the cone will take effect after the deadline for submittals has passed. The cone will last until the council chooses one of the bidders, rejects all the bids or ends the process. It also will end if one of the bidders withdraws and the withdrawal is “not tied to public debate on the contract.”
There is no timetable for when bids might go out.
Correction
The headline in my Sept. 17 post (“Delray Commissioners Withhold Approval of Sundy Village Parking Garage Plan”) was incorrect.
During its Aug. 5 meeting, the commission approved the garage itself, but the commission did not allow the developer—Pebb Capital—to close the garage on its own for private events. Pebb must get commission approval.
My post also wrongly suggested that this would be the main parking garage for the mixed-use project along Swinton Avenue. It would be part of the second phase, and the private events would be at the revitalized Sundy House. The 138 spaces would be for tenants of the associated office building and for the public after business hours.
