Weekly Newsflash 11-18-24

Message from the Mayor - Milani Park Update

Mayor Natasha Moore, Maggie Chappelear, and Laura Thurston participated in a meeting last week hosted by Commissioner Marci Woodward and Palm Beach County (PBC) staff to discuss Milani Park. Many kudos to Maggie Chappelear and Laura Thurston, who urged Marci to include a Highland Beach Commissioner in the meeting. There were 16 participants in the meeting, including 4 members of the architecture firm and several of PBC staff.

The purpose of the meeting was to introduce the architects who were selected by PBC to design the park and to provide the architects with stakeholder input on the design of the park. Brooks and Scarpa is the architecture firm that was selected by PBC. The lead architect is Jeffrey Huber. Here is a link to Jeffrey's bio. 

PBC staff encouraged a discussion of Highland Beach resident concerns and preferences regarding the park. The topics discussed were: reduced parking spots, excessive traffic, vagrants, stormwater drainage, dangers regarding Yamato Rock, environmental concerns emphasizing the importance of protecting the sea turtles, and aesthetics of the park (we don't want it to look like a parking lot).

The architects were extremely engaged and took notes on the discussion. Next steps are for the architects to start work on the design. We will be invited to another meeting early next year to preview and provide input on preliminary designs for the park. PBC is planning to have another public meeting for Highland Beach residents to preview designs for the park sometime in February or March 2025.

PBC stated that they intend to comply with the settlement agreement between PBC and Highland Beach, but PBC will address Highland Beach's concerns as much as possible. It was a positive meeting with a spirit of collaboration. Stay tuned for future updates!

Mingle & Jingle is Almost Here - RSVP Today!

The Town of Highland Beach cordially invites all residents to celebrate our 75^th Anniversary with a night of community festivities on December 5^th from 5 - 8 PM at St. Lucy Catholic Church. There will be live entertainment, local vendor booths, and food trucks for residents to enjoy! Click here to RSVP and here to view the official flyer!

SR-A1A RRR Project Update

According to FDOT's latest update, the project is 37% complete and on track to be finished within the stated timeline of summer 2025. The project improvements include milling and resurfacing the existing roadway to enhance infrastructure resilience, traffic flow, and safety, widening the roadway in each direction to provide five-foot bicycle lanes to enhance bicyclist safety, modifying swales to improve drainage, and upgrading signing and pavement markings to meet current standards for motorist and pedestrian safety. For more information, contact Community Outreach Specialist Melissa Readling at 772-577-8803 or mreadling@corradino.com.

Movie Night at the Library

Join us on Tuesday, November 19^th at 5:30 PM for a screening of The Marsh King’s Daughter. In this tense thriller, a woman with a secret past returns to the wilds of her youth to face the most dangerous man she’s ever met: her father. Based on the best-selling book by Karen Dionne.

Town Board Vacancies

Board of Adjustment & Appeals - One (1) vacancy for a three-year term.

Code Enforcement Board - One (1) vacancy for an unexpired term ending December 2024 and one (1) vacancy for an unexpired term ending May 2025.

For additional information, please contact the Town Clerk’s Office at (561) 278-4548 or email jdehart@highlandbeach.us (Jaclyn DeHart) or lgaskins@highlandbeach.us (Lanelda Gaskins), Monday through Friday from 8:30 AM to 4:30 PM.

Upcoming Town Meetings

11/19/24 at 1:30 PM - Town Commission Meeting

Friendly reminder - You can always watch live and past meetings by visiting the Town's website and clicking the Watch Meetings button or by directly visiting the Town's YouTube channel!