Monday night, a state transportation official notified Delray Beach that she had denied the city’s attempt to keep its LGBTQ Pride intersection. Several hours later, the state sent a crew to paint over the mural.
Rand Hoch, founder of the Palm Beach County Human Rights Council, said Florida Highway Patrol officers stood guard as the work proceeded at about 2:30 a.m. Hoch noted that it was raining, which caused the new paint to run. Traffic across the intersection made the mess bigger.
The state could have waited. City Manager Terrence Moore said Delray Beach had been planning to sandblast away the colors after receiving the order. In an email to Moore and city commissioners, City Attorney Lynn Gelin said, “Absent further direction, the city should commence the process of removing the pavement markings in order to avoid further enforcement action from [the Florida Department of Transportation.]”
By moving so quickly, the state gave the commission no chance to consider its response or to seek other remedies. The city also had tried to have the hearing officer removed for bias allegedly shown in emails about the intersection and the state policy of removing them. That order also was denied.
A city spokeswoman said, “By acting outside of its process, [the Florida Department of Transportation] disregarded the city’s good-faith efforts to follow established procedures.”
Hoch, whose group helped to pay for the intersection in 2021, said, “What happened to due process? Gov. DeSantis has no respect for the Florida Constitution or the U.S. Constitution.”
The Delray Beach City Commission has scheduled a special meeting at 5 p.m. today to discuss the matter.
I’ll have more Thursday.
