Interviews take place this week regarding the whistleblower complaint in Delray Beach—that technically is supposed to remain private, but mostly has become public.
Based on news reports and my conversations, the accusation comes from Neighborhood and Community Services Director Jeri Pryor. Her portfolio includes code enforcement.
She is claiming that in late February, during a discussion with Delray Beach City Manager Terrence Moore and City Commissioner Rob Long about code enforcement policy, Long threatened Pryor’s job if code officers didn’t ease up on issues Subculture Coffee. The coffee shop/restaurant on Northeast Sixth Avenue has drawn complaints about inadequate parking, holding unauthorized live events, and an overstuffed Dumpster.
Pryor filed the complaint April 28. (One day later, the commission held a special meeting to authorize an investigation by employment lawyer Brooke Ehrlich; one year ago, she investigated a whistleblower complaint by former Fire Chief Keith Tomey against Moore. Tomey claimed that Moore fired him not because of multiple policy violations listed in the termination letter but because Moore had made a sexual advance that Tomey refused. Ehrlich’s investigation cleared Moore. Tomey has sued the city.)
At that April 29 meeting, it was clear that the complaint from Pryor involved Long, because he recused himself. The first public report came May 2 in a South Florida Sun Sentinel editorial. The Coastal Star ran a story May 5.
Moore hired Pryor in January to supervise a consultant reviewing code department operations to recommend improvements. The department had been the subject of commission discussion since October, when a code enforcement officer was arrested on extortion charges and later fired.
This being Delray Beach, it also has been clear that city politics is part of this story. This being Delray Beach, the background takes time to lay out.
In 2023, Long defeated Commissioner Juli Casale, who was running for a second term. During the campaign, a Casale ally called a land-use lawyer, Bonnie Miskel, to appear before the commission, threatening to go public about work that Long had done for clients of Miskel if she didn’t get Long to drop out of the race. Miskel refused, and it came out that the city attorney’s office concluded that Long had committed no ethics violations by voting on the lawyer’s projects while on the Planning and Zoning Board.
Last year’s election returned Casale to the commission. In the last 14 months, Casale and Long have sparred often. Casale also regularly has tried to impugn Moore; she gave him the least favorable evaluation of any commissioner.
During the April 29 meeting, Casale called the complaint against Long “tragic” and said it involved “the highest levels of the city,” which offered more evidence about the “private” complaint. Casale said anyone involved should be suspended.
Mayor Tom Carney, though, wanted to focus only on the hiring of a lawyer. Casale persisted. “I want to discuss this.” Carney responded, “What don’t you understand about not discussing it?” Only Casale pushed the issue.
Then during last week’s regular meeting, Casale griped about what she called the “leak” of the complaint. “I think we need to do something about that.” Commissioner Thomas Markert added, “I share Juli’s concern. I’m not averse to polygraphs.”
Long, though, implied that Casale had leaked the document. “You said, ‘This is already out there.’ How did you know?” The Sun Sentinel Editorial Board has endorsed Casale and amplified the earlier accusations against Long. A column Sunday by the paper’s editorial page editor all but judged Long and Moore to be guilty.
Casale, saying that Long’s name was redacted in the leaked version, responded, “If I had leaked it, I wouldn’t have left out your name.” Carney asked that no one make “accusations.” Of the report, he told me, “I’m sorry it became public.”
Before coming to Delray Beach, Pryor served as chief of staff to a Fort Lauderdale city commissioner. In that role, she accused another commissioner of harassment because he directed “an F-bomb” at her. An investigation found that the action did not constitute harassment.
Long told me, “I categorically deny allegations pertaining to me. The things [Pryor] quotes me as saying are not things that I have ever uttered. I believe this is politically driven.” An email to Casale for comment was not returned.
In the best case, Ehrlich’s report will be ready in time for next Tuesday’s commission meeting. If not, it should be on the agenda for the June 3 meeting.
How Subculture Coffee fits into the whistleblower complaint
The third related discussion came during the commission’s April 29 workshop meeting. The agenda read, “Clarity Regarding Matters Concerning Subculture Coffee Permitted Zoning Use and Code Enforcement Standing.”
On Jan. 7, Casale had referenced those complaints against the business. “I have a lot of questions.” The city, she said, “has to get this under control.”
Subculture opened its Delray Beach location in July 2024. Owner Rodney Mayo bought the site in April 2022 for $1.275 million. The business quickly became popular—and political.
Before Subculture opened, Mayo painted a mural on the walls of the former gas station. He did so before the city approved the design. In seeking forgiveness, not permission, Mayo got approval after the fact; Long was in the 3-2 majority.
At that April 29 meeting, Casale and Carney claimed that Subculture has been holding live events that require updated zoning. They said staff had granted what is called a conditional use without advising commissioners, as they had asked on Jan. 7. Carney called it “subverting the will of the commission.”
Four months ago, however, the commission asked only for an “update.” There seemed no demand that staff allow the commission to decide an administrative matter. On Friday, Carney repeated to me his belief that staff should have briefed the commission, but reiterated, “I only want a resolution.”
Of those complaints Casale cited, Long said they came primarily from two people—Daniel Rose and Albert Richwagen. They have a law office and bicycle shop, respectively, near Subculture and say that Subculture traffic hurts them.
Moore said the issue would come before the commission at its May 20 meeting, “We’ll use that time wisely.”
Delray to hold qualifying round of Davis Cup
In happier news for Delray Beach, Moore told the commission that the city has won its bid to host a qualifying round of the Davis Cup, which is to men’s tennis what the World Cup is to soccer. Competition likely will happen in September.
Delray election fields take shape
With Long running next year for the Florida House, real estate broker Judy Mollica has filed for his commission seat.
Mollica serves on the Planning and Zoning Board. She also is co-founder of Friends of Delray. Its mission statement is “Accountable Government, Sensible Growth and Civic Pride.”
In 2024, the group’s board endorsed candidates who lost to Carney, Casale and Markert. Mollica has had “olive-branch meetings” with Carney. “I’m not in one camp or the other,” she said of the city’s political factions. “I’ve reached out to everybody.” No one else has filed for the seat.
Commissioner Angela Burns also will be on the 2026 ballot as she runs for a second term, without opposition for now. She raised almost $28,000 in the first three months of the year, much of it from the development industry or entities that may have business before the commission.
Burns got $1,000 from RedSpeed, which makes traffic cameras. This month, the commission may approve the ordinance for cameras in school zones. She got $3,000 combined from land-use lawyers Neil Schiller and Bonnie Miskel. Burns also received about $3,000 from political players in the northwest neighborhood, among them Chuck Ridley and Reggie Cox.
Boca Raton election field heats up
Meanwhile, Boca Raton’s 2026 election field is growing.
Planning and Zoning Board member Christen Ritchey has filed for Deputy Mayor Fran Nachlas’ city council seat. Nachlas is running for mayor against Councilmember Andy Thomson.
UPDATE: We originally reported that Kimberley Trombly-Burmeister had filed for Nachlas’ seat. She has since withdrawn from the race.
Conclusions from Boca Raton airplane crash investigation
A preliminary investigation into the April 11 crash of a small plane near Boca Raton Airport has found that a damaged rudder likely caused the tragedy.
According to the National Transportation Safety Board, the pilots were unable to make a right turn. An accompanying graphic shows the flight path as a series of loops before the plane came down on Military Trail near Northwest 19thAvenue.
Three generations of a family were killed. The pilots, a father and grandfather, had planned to fly to Tallahassee with their daughter/granddaughter for a visit to Florida State University.
A final report on the crash can take anywhere from one to two years after the incident to be released.
Delray to honor Nancy Stewart-Franczak
Based on last week’s commission meeting, Delray Beach will honor the late Nancy Stewart-Franczak with a proclamation. The executive director of Festival Management Group died April 28 of complications from cancer.
In the late 1990s, Stewart-Franczak brought Garlic Fest to Delray Beach. What seemed like a fringe event grew so popular that in 2016, under the city’s new special events policy, Garlic Fest had to move to John Prince Park near Lake Worth Beach. It may return to Delray Beach next year.
