Chilean Avenue beach access remains closed after erosion
The Town listed the Chilean Avenue closure as active and is pointing beachgoers to other entrances. Plus a state judge rules for the town in a beach access dispute, the Midtown Beach health alert lifts, and the elections chief answers where your ballot goes.
Chilean Avenue beach access is closed. Significant beach erosion after recent weather is the stated cause. The Town of Palm Beach Alert Center listed the closure as active on July 29. Lifeguards remain on site. They are there for public safety and to guide beachgoers. The Town directs residents and visitors to nearby alternate access points. That is the practical instruction. Walk to another entrance. Erosion is the slow story on a barrier island, and it surfaces as a closed access point. The Town says it stays closed until conditions improve and repairs are complete. (Town of Palm Beach Alert Center)
State court rules for Palm Beach in beach access dispute
A state judge has ruled for the town of Palm Beach. The case came from property owners who alleged the town wrongfully took their privately owned area of the beach when it allowed public access. The judge ruled against them. William Kelly reported it for the Palm Beach Civic Association on July 30. Who owns the sand is the oldest argument on this island. The dry line, the wet line, the seawall behind both. Each has been fought over somewhere. A ruling in the town's favor is the news here. Beach access cases rarely end with a single order. Appeals and follow-on filings are always possible. (Palm Beach Civic Association)
Health alert lifted for Palm Beach's Midtown Beach
The health alert for Midtown Beach has been lifted. The Palm Beach Post reported it on July 30. Alerts like this go up loudly and come down quietly. The warning always outruns the all-clear. So here it is plainly. Midtown is cleared. Beach advisories are a routine part of a Florida summer. Rain, runoff and heat all push in the same direction. What a swimmer needs is the status, and the status is lifted. Conditions can shift again after a heavy storm. Check again after the next one. (The Palm Beach Post)
The elections chief says county voting systems are secure
Where does your ballot go once you vote? Most voters never see that part of the process. The Palm Beach Civic Association took it up on July 31, in a William Kelly piece built around the county's elections chief. His answer: voting systems in Palm Beach County are secure. Florida's primary election is August 18. Island voters are on that calendar with everyone else in the county. Questions about how ballots are handled tend to arrive late, in the last week before a vote. Better to ask them now. Two weeks out is the right time to understand the machinery. (Palm Beach Civic Association)
Town Council Development Review Meeting is set for August 12
The Town Council Development Review Meeting is set for August 12. It runs 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. The location is Council Chambers, second floor, 360 South County Road. Development review is where a house becomes a hearing. Scale, setbacks, demolition, landscaping. Each item is small on its own. Together they decide what a street looks like in ten years. Anyone with a stake in a particular block should check the agenda before the meeting. Neighbors usually hear about a project after the concrete truck arrives. This is the earlier door. Showing up beats objecting afterward. (Town of Palm Beach calendar)
A Fairview Road home is listed at $7.45 million
A home on Fairview Road in Palm Beach is listed at $7.45 million. The Palm Beach Daily News ran a photo gallery of it on August 2. Fairview is on the island, and that number lands squarely in the middle of this market. On most of the mainland it would be a headline price. Here it is a house rather than a landmark. Listings are not sales. What a seller asks and what a buyer pays part ways often on this island. Still, an asking price is a public statement about a street. Watch what it closes at, and how long it takes. (Palm Beach Daily News)