What one news outlet described as a “political tumult” in Delray Beach turned out to be a nothingburger.
According to an outside report by labor lawyer Brooke Ehrlich, City Manager Terrence Moore and City Commissioner Rob Long did not violate the charter when they spoke on Feb. 20 about code enforcement with Neighborhood and Community Services Director Jeri Pryor. Nor did Moore and Assistant City Manager Jeff Oris tell Pryor to practice “selective code enforcement” on certain property owners, most notably Rodney Mayo. He owns Dada restaurant and Subculture Coffee.
Those allegations were at the core of the whistleblower complaint Pryor filed with City Attorney Lynn Gelin on April 29. That day, the commission held a special meeting to authorize Gelin’s hiring of Ehrlich.
At that otherwise pro forma meeting, Commissioner Juli Casale wanted to talk about the complaint. Casale lost to Long in the 2023 election and has been Moore’s biggest critic. Casale called the complaint “tragic.” She wanted Moore and Long to be suspended. She got no support. Mayor Tom Carney cut off discussion, citing the process for such complaints.
The Coastal Star ran that “political tumult” headline. The editorial board of the South Florida Sun Sentinel editorialized darkly about “a subculture of big trouble in Delray Beach.” Opinion Editor Steve Bousquet wrote a column headlined, “Blowing the whistle loudly in Delray Beach.” The paper ran an editorial today critical of the report.
Yet Ehrlich found no grounds to support any of the three allegations. Though she stated that Moore’s and Long’s recollections of the Feb. 20 call “contradict” each other, she found insufficient evidence to support the charge of a commissioner giving orders to a staff member. Under the charter, communication runs through the manager.
Ehrlich also found the allegation that the city violated the Florida Whistleblower Act to be unsubstantiated. She reached the same finding on the charge that Moore and Oris told Pryor to practice “selective code enforcement.”
During their interviews with Ehrlich, Moore and Long said they had been speaking about code enforcement in general. Long had not met Pryor, who started work in January, and Moore thought that Long had ideas that Pryor might want to discuss. Both denied that Long threatened Pryor’s job if code enforcement didn’t ease up on Mayo.
Moore said, “The investigation speaks for itself.” He added that the Feb. 20 call was about “education and orientation,” which noted are “the purview of the manager’s office.”
In an email, Long said he had “offered only limited public commentary out of respect for the investigative process. During that time, however, my integrity—and the integrity of several others—has been called into question” by Pryor’s allegations.
The phone call, Long said, “was described consistently by myself and Mr. Moore as brief, professional, and focused on broader goals such as education, voluntary compliance and rebuilding trust in code enforcement. Although Mr. Moore and I recalled some details differently—an expected outcome, given the two-month gap and the presumed low-stakes nature of the call at the time—our accounts were fully aligned on all the substantive points.”
No special meeting is scheduled to discuss the report. The next regular commission meeting is Tuesday. Long said he plans to discuss the report. The report notes that Casale called Pryor to ask about Subculture; she has criticized the staff for not going after Mayo more aggressively.
The report also shows that code enforcement remains an emotional topic. Mayo sent a hostile email about Pryor. Moore, the report said, criticized Downtown Development Authority Chairman Al Costilo for conduct toward staff “that was not productive.” Moore said DDA officials must not contact staff with complaints about code enforcement.
Moore now must decide whether to keep Pryor in this key position. His decision could become harder if Pryor—against all the testimony—contests the report’s findings.
Long said, “The report also raises legitimate concerns about the reliability of Ms. Pryor’s account. She waited two months to raise her complaint, never brought her concerns to her direct supervisor, and acknowledged that her decision to file [the complaint] was shaped by prior trauma in a different workplace. Those factors, combined with the absence of corroborating evidence and the consistent accounts of multiple witnesses, speak for themselves.”
Investigation clears Delray police officers in Brightline collision case
Speaking of investigations, a Delray Beach Police Department review has cleared six officers in the case of the former firefighter who drove a ladder truck into the path of a Brightline train last December.
In June 2023, David Wyatt crashed his Jeep after hitting two signs and a tree in the median near Atlantic and Swinton Avenues. Wyatt was not arrested. The officers did not conduct a DUI investigation. In January, with attention focused on Wyatt after the Brightline incident, Moore asked the department to review the actions of all six officers involved.
The report, dated May 28, found no evidence that Wyatt got favorable treatment as a fellow first responder. Capt. Michael De Bree said the investigation confirmed that the responding officers found no probable cause—such as slurred speech—for a DUI investigation. Eight fighters whom investigators interviewed also said they saw no evidence of favoritism.
During questioning of Officer Nicolas Windsor, the police union attorney accused Moore of “Monday morning quarterbacking.” The probe, he said, was “dirty, unfair, what have you.” Wyatt received a citation for careless driving.
Just before the report was completed, Carney had complained about what he considered the slow pace of the investigation. As I heard his comments, Carney was implying that the department was stonewalling. I left a voicemail Wednesday for Carney seeking comment. I did not hear back by deadline for this post.
Former Delray Beach police chief lands new position in Longboat Kay
Speaking of the Delray Beach Police Department, former Chief Russ Mager will be the new chief in Longboat Kay, between Bradenton and Sarasota.
Mager resigned abruptly in June after nearly 30 years in Delray Beach, rising through the ranks to the top job. He announced his departure one day after City Watch reported his email to Moore and the commission about staff shortages caused by the failure to approve a new union contract.
According to news reports, Mager faces no such problem in Longboat Key. The affluent area—with a median household income $143,000—made a big investment two years ago in police pay.
Boca and Delray property values rise for 2024
Home prices may be flattening in South Florida, but property values rose sharply again last year in Boca Raton and Delray Beach.
According to preliminary estimates, Boca Raton’s taxable property value increased 7.51%. That’s down from when increases were 11.91% and 12.67%, but that was the pandemic boom when buyers from the Northeast and Midwest were overpaying just to move.
In Delray Beach, the tax roll went up 8.74%. That’s also a drop from the previous two years of 13.16% and 13.39%. The decrease could play a role in whether the commission reaches a deal on the police contract. Property tax revenue is the chief source of municipal government income.
Overall, Boca Raton remains the most property-rich city in Palm Beach County. Its value of roughly $40 million is $15 million more than that of West Palm Beach, despite that city’s influx of financial firms. Palm Beach, which is experiencing a Donald Trump-influenced real estate spree, is second at $34 million. Delray Beach’s value of roughly $20 million is double that of Boynton Beach, though that city has more people.
PBC School District reeling after federal funding freeze
Speaking of government and money, the Palm Beach County School District is $31.5 million short on federal funding after the Trump administration froze roughly $6 billion in local education grants.
Administration officials stopped the payments with no warning and offered no explanation, except to say that the grants were under review. In Palm Beach County, the money was set to go for after-school programs, teacher training and migrant education. District officials are completing the preliminary budget for the fiscal year that begins Oct. 1.
Happy Fourth of July!
Happy Fourth, everyone. City Watch will be back next week.
