Proposal for the Redevelopment of West Atlantic Avenue Properties
The Delray Beach Community Redevelopment Agency has notified Uptown Atlantic developer John Flynn that he is in default under the agreement to buy the land for the project from the CRA.
In a letter last Wednesday from CRA Attorney Donald Doody to Uptown Atlantic’s attorney, Michael Listick, Doody said Uptown Atlantic had failed to deliver “a letter of credit or a performance bond” 10 days before closing on the $1.2 million purchase of the roughly 6-acre site – three blocks east of the Fairfield Inn and Suites. Closing is scheduled for Wednesday. Supporters envision Uptown Atlantic as the catalyst for wider redevelopment in Delray Beach’s southwest and northwest neighborhoods.
Flynn is president of Equity Enterprises, which is based in Palm Beach Gardens. He would develop Uptown Atlantic – a mixed-use project of residential, office and retail — under a subsidiary called Equity Delray LLC. After City Commissioner Jordana Jarjura recently raised questions about the status of the project, Flynn sought to reassure CRA board members that he had a contractor and would be ready to proceed.
Yet when I spoke with Flynn on Monday, he said he hadn’t heard about the default letter. “I’ve been away for Thanksgiving.” CRA Director Jeff Costello told me, “We are prepared to close, but we intend to adhere to the terms of the contract. So we have put them on notice, and we’ll see what happens.”
FAU Seeks Tradition
Florida Atlantic University’s decision to fire Football Coach Charlie Partridge after Saturday’s season-ending game was no surprise. It was a business decision.
Football matters a lot at any university with a team in what used to be called Division I and now is called the Football Bowl Subdivision. Under President John Kelly, however, FAU has especially linked itself with athletics in general and football in particular.
Two years ago this week, FAU announced a $16 million gift – the largest in school history – from the Schmidt Family Foundation for the Schmidt Family Complex for Academic and Athletic Excellence. The university said the project “exemplifies FAU’s drive to enhance its stature and visibility nationally and internationally,” and FAU would seek to “create a national model of academic excellence in athletics to attract the nation’s top coaches and student-athletes. . .”
The project remains unbuilt, despite the Schmidt foundation’s generosity. One reason surely is that FAU’s football team just finished its third-straight 3-9 season under Partridge. Though news reports said the team’s grade point average had improved, you can’t tout “excellence” with a continually lousy record. FAU has a wonderful on-campus stadium, but students and area football fans won’t go unless the Owls win more.
Patridge’s hiring made sense. He graduated from high school in Broward County and had recruited South Florida for the University of Arkansas. One could argue that Partridge deserved a fourth season. Obviously, however, the urgency for change was too great, even though FAU will owe Partridge roughly $1 million for the final two years of his contract. FAU Athletic Director Pat Chun and others no doubt noted that the University of South Florida in Tampa, another commuter school that added football as a marketing tool, just finished 10-2.
Kelly wants to make FAU more of a traditional college. The decision to fire Charlie Partridge shows how much FAU believes in that new model.
Deadlocked in Delray
If the Delray Beach City Commission deadlocks again next Tuesday on an appointee to finish Al Jacquet’s term, the city charter calls for a special election. If the commission doesn’t schedule one, however, that violation could be no big deal.
On Nov. 15, Mayor Cary Glickstein and Commissioner Jordana Jarjura voted for Yvonne Odom. Mitch Katz and Shelly Petrolia wanted Josh Smith. The next commission meeting is a week from today.
According to the charter, if the commission fails twice to fill a vacancy, the commission must hold a special election within 60 days. But here’s the problem:
Jacquet’s seat is up for election on March 14, with Jarjura’s. If the clock starts on Dec. 6, the election could take place as late as February, with the winner serving for five or six weeks. One estimate I’ve heard is that a special election could cost Delray Beach $40,000.
As City Attorney Max Lohman pointed out when I spoke with him on Monday, qualifying and campaigning for a special election could overlap with qualifying and campaigning for the regular election in March. That could confuse voters.
Also, Lohman said, the Supervisor of Elections Office – with which the city contracts — might not be able to hold a special election. Many other cities hold elections on March, and the office will be planning for them. In addition, a court might order a special election for Florida Senate District 30. Bobby Powell won the seat and has been sworn in, but a lawsuit contends that a candidate was unfairly disqualified before the primary.
Supervisor of Elections Susan Bucher would have to give such an election priority. Any request from Delray Beach, Lohman said, “might not be possible.”
So would Delray’s failure to schedule such an election violate the charter? “I don’t know,” Lohman said. “Sometimes, there’s nothing you can do about it.” Of course, the deadlock could end next week, but Glickstein, Jarjura, Katz and Petrolia all seemed unwilling to change their votes. Said Lohman, “It’s a challenging situation.”
A Delay for Mizner 200?
Bonnie Miskel is the attorney for Mizner 200, the next major downtown project in Boca Raton’s approval pipeline. Miskel told me last week that the developer intends to seek another “informal” appearance before the Community Appearance Board to discuss the look of the luxury condo project. Miskel said she hoped for a date in December.
The project is not on the agenda for tonight’s meeting of the CAB. According to a city spokeswoman, nothing on Mizner 200 has been scheduled for December, either.
DOT Decision
A traffic light will not be installed at the Delray Beach intersection that was the scene of a horrific crash in September.
Roger Wittenberns crashed his Lamborghini into the SUV carrying 82-year-old J. Gerald Smith. He was attempting to cross Federal Highway – Northeast Sixth Avenue – at First Street, going west. Wittenberns was traveling north on Federal Highway. Smith’s widow has sued Wittenberns, claiming that he was speeding and driving drunk. Wittenberns admitted that he had been drinking in downtown Delray Beach with his girlfriend, who was following Wittenberns in her car. The Delray Beach Police Department, however, is still investigating, and has not released its report on the crash.
Despite calls by some residents to install a signal, a Florida Department of Transportation review found that the intersection did not warrant one. A study concluded that drivers generally observe the posted speed limit of 35 miles per hour and that a stop sign on First Street is sufficient.
Still, there will be some changes to improve safety. A sign on Federal Highway will tell drivers that they are approaching an intersection. Larger stop signs – three feet square – will be installed on First Street, and signs will warn that traffic on Federal Highway doesn’t stop. The city will move trash bins and benches that might obstruct views.
The state and the city will review the safety record at the intersection every six months and make further changes if needed.
Who Pays?
Palm Beach County’s Office of Inspector General released its 2016 report on Monday. The office takes complaint about potential misuse of public money and mismanagement in local government. The county created it after several elected officials went to prison.
The report notes that of the office’s 40 positions, only 23 are fully funded. That’s because 14 cities have sued, claiming that they shouldn’t have to pay their share of the office’s expenses – even though voters in every city asked for the OIG’s oversight six years ago and understood that cities would pay for it.
The cities lost at trial and lost their motion for a rehearing, after which they appealed. Oral arguments took place before the 4th District Court of Appeal in West Palm Beach on Oct. 4. Boca Raton is a party to the lawsuit. Delray Beach has withdrawn.
Update on Phase 2 of Hillsboro/El Rio Park
A Boca Raton resident recently questioned whether the city would meet its timetable for opening Phase 2 of Hillsboro/El Rio Park, on the south side of Southwest 18th Street west of Dixie Highway. The plan is to offer a non-motorized boat launch and other amenities on the site of Boca Raton’s old landfill.
According to Municipal Services Director Dan Grippo, the paperwork for the consultant has been slower than expected, but he believes that the city can save an equal amount of time through faster permitting. Grippo said the scheduled opening date remains mid-2019.
Sober Home Regulation
To appreciate why Delray Beach is moving so quickly on sober house regulation, consider how much the problem – combined with the heroin epidemic – could harm the city’s reputation.
The sober house problem has popped up in a neighborhood of Palm Beach Gardens, which considers itself the tony hub of the county’s north end. At one recent meeting, The Palm Beach Post reported, a resident complained, “If I wanted to live in Lake Worth or Delray, I would have moved there.” No disrespect to the good residents of Lake Worth, but such a comparison would terrify Delray Beach’s leaders.
Schmidt Family Complex for Academic and Athletic Excellence has a groundbreaking tentatively scheduled for January 20th, 2017 with a completion date of Fall 2018.