By Carol Porter

The first order of business at the Lighthouse Point city commission meeting on Feb. 14, was to accept the results of the Jan. 31 election, according to the city charter, and then swear in three commissioners: Commissioner Earl Maucker, Commissioner Rebecca “Becky” Lysengen, and Commissioner Michael Long.

After the results were certified, Hasis and Gordon, who were sitting on the dais for the last time, gave some closing comments and thanked their fellow commissioners and staff for serving with them.

Hasis said that the time he had spent on the commission would be something he would treasure forever. Commission President Susie Gordon concurred with Hasis and also thanked her family for being behind her while she served on the dais.

After Gordon and Hasis left the dais, Commission Vice President Michael Long asked for nominations for President and Vice President from the floor. Commissioner Michael Long was nominated for President, and Commissioner Sandy Johnson was nominated for Vice President.

[  ] City Administrator John Lavisky asked for commission approval of a resolution awarding the bid and approving the agreement with Florida Coastal Services for $9,475 for corrective pruning of trees in the city’s right of ways, and to authorize expenditure of $15,600 to take full advantage of the grant funds awarded by the state.

[  ] Lavisky also asked for commission approval on a resolution for a grant application in the amount of $287,200 for the 2012 Transportation Enhancement Cycle to install solar powered pathway lights on Lighthouse Drive in the area from NE 24th Street to NE 36th Street (Sample Road.) After a few questions about both items, commissioners approved both resolutions.

[  ] Commissioners then recognized Broward County Commissioner Chip LaMarca, who was in attendance that evening and asked him to say a few words. LaMarca, a former Lighthouse Point Commissioner, congratulated the new commissioners, the new President and Vice President, and said, “Let me know if there is anything I can do at the county level for you.”

On Thursday, Feb. 16, city of Deerfield Beach Code Enforcement officers will conduct a daytime sweep through the Deer Run residential community, to improve cooperation and compliance with the city’s codes. Warnings will be issued for noted code violations and will be followed up to ensure compliance.

Property owners who receive a warning but do not correct the violation could receive a code enforcement citation during the follow-up process. For questions about the sweep, or to report a code violation, e-mail web.code@deerfield-beach.com, or call 954-480-4241.

Quiet Waters Robotics team wins South FlL Regional Competition.

By Rachel Galvin

Fifth grade Quiet Waters Elementary teacher Maryellen Pinzon has been coaching First Lego League (FLL) Robotics team for the past eight years and time and again, her kids come home with oversized trophies for their accomplishments. Recently, this year’s team, the Kitchen Kommandos won the South Florida FLL Regional Competition at Mc Nichol Middle School. This was the second Champion’s Award they received. In addition, they were invited to compete at the Florida State Championships on Feb. 26 at the Florida Institute of Technology (FIT) in Melbourne. They will be one of 48 teams asked to compete out of 450 teams total.

At their first competition, they won the 1st Place Champions Award. That event was held at Crystal Lake Middle School. They competed against 18 other teams.

The First Lego League is an international competition that has over 20,000 teams in over 61 countries. It is for elementary and middle school students, grades 4-8. The students create robots who can move, pick up items and complete certain tasks. Each year, the contest focuses on a different real-world topic related to the sciences. Students work out solutions to the various problems they are given. Then they meet for regional tournaments to share their know-ledge, compare ideas and run their robots.

This year’s theme was “Food Factor” and dealt with the science of keeping food safe.

The Kitchen Kommandos are competing for a Global Innovation award for their Glove Factor invention. This invention helps keep gloves used by food service employees sanitary by creating a vacuum chamber that inflates the gloves, allowing employees to insert their hands without touching the outside of the gloves. It also helps keep gloves sterile for the medical field. Help them win. Visit http://fllinnovationaward.firstlegoleague.org/glove_
factor to cast your vote for this local team!

The Robotics team meets every afternoon from 2 to 5 p.m. Pinzon volunteers to coach the team after school.

“I do not get paid for the time I put in. I just love the ideals of the program and the Core Values instilled in my students/team. They learn that friendly competition and mutual gain are not separate goals and that helping one another is the foundation of teamwork. Of course, I love a good competition.”

She said the most rewarding part is that high schoolers come back to mentor the program.

“I have them [the students] for one school year and then they go to middle school and compete against me for three years! However, I have high school mentors who were on my team when they were in 5th grade. One is a senior applying to MIT. One is a sophomore. Two are freshman. Mentors come on Fridays, our official meeting day.”

Public invited to reception and presentation on Feb. 15 at Wyndham Deerfield Beach Resort

The City of Deerfield Beach was recently selected as one of 15 communities nationwide— and the only city in Florida—to receive Smart Growth America’s free smart growth technical assistance, which includes training with a smart growth expert from the National Complete Streets Coalition.

The technical assistance was made possible through a grant from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Building Blocks for Sustainable Communities program.

What are “Complete Streets” and Complete Streets policies?

Complete Streets are designed and operated to enable safe access for all users. Pedestrians, bicyclists, motorists and transit riders of all ages and abilities must be able to safely move along and across a complete street. Complete Streets make it easy to cross the street, walk to shops, and bicycle to work. They allow buses to run on time and make it safe for people to walk to and from train stations.

Adopting a Complete Streets policy for the city’s roadways means that every transportation project will make the street network better and safer for drivers, transit users, pedestrians, and bicyclists – making Deerfield Beach a better place to live.  This is the second award for technical assistance that the City of Deerfield Beach has received in less than a year through the EPA’s Building Blocks program.

The first award was in April 2011 for Using Smart Growth to Produce Fiscal and Economic Health. Input from public meetings resulted in a memo from the EPA, with recommendations on next steps for applying Smart Growth Principles in Deerfield Beach.

Mayor Peggy Noland believes that Complete Streets planning is coming to Deerfield Beach at the right time. “We have seen major roadway improvement projects on Hillsboro Boulevard and the Dixie Flyover, and plans have been underway for several years to improve State Road A1A. A Complete Streets policy will assure us that our community’s roadway objectives are kept in the forefront as new projects come online, ensuring a better and safer quality of life in Deerfield Beach.

Two Complete Streets events will be held at the Wyndham Deerfield Beach Resort, at 2096 NE 2 Street.

[  ] On Wednesday, Feb. 15, from 6:30-8:30 p.m., the public is invited and encouraged to attend a Complete Streets reception and presentation to learn more about Smart Growth and Complete Streets principles. The reception is sponsored by the Deerfield Beach Community Redevelopment Agency (CRA). Complimentary parking will be available in the Wyndham’s parking lot, located just south of the hotel, at the corner of NE 20th Terrace and NE 1st Street.

On Thursday, Feb. 16, from 8 a.m. – 4 p.m., a Complete Streets Policy Development Workshop will be held as part of the technical assistance grant provided by Smart Growth America (through funding from the EPA) and sponsored by the National Complete Streets Coalition. The public is welcome to attend the workshop, however input will be limited to decision makers, community stakeholders and city staff. At the end of the workshop, the instructors will help the city develop strategic next steps based on the community’s opportunities and strengths. For more information about the Complete Streets presentations and workshop, contact Chief Planner Amanda Martinez at amartinez@deerfield-beach.com or 954-480-4208. For more information on Complete Streets, visit www.completestreets.org.

By Andrea Freygang

He was a fine American. For the man known for recognizing fellow Americans, that is how Firefighter Bill Elliott will be remembered. Elliott, 49, died in the line of duty on Friday, Jan. 6 when he fell from the top of a 100-ft. aerial fire truck during a training exercise in Pompano Beach. Elliott served 22 years as a firefighter with the department and is the department’s first on-duty death. Bill was previously with the Lighthouse Point Fire Department for seven years, making him a 29-year veteran of the fire service.

Fellow firefighters and personal friends Mike Anderson and John Butler were two of the thousands that showed up at Elliott’s family home after his death.  The duo explained how their friend Bill Elliott always ended conversations telling people they were fine Americans. In the aftermath of his death, many remembered what a fine American Elliott was.

“It sounds like a cliché, but he was the epitome of a good firefighter—everyone respected him in Pompano Beach,” said Firefighter Stan Babinski, who worked with him in Pompano Beach before moving to the Lighthouse Point department. “This has just been a total devastation for everyone because he is family.”

Since his death, a non-stop stream of visitors have come from around the state in support, starting with over 200 people who were at the hospital, then filled the home he shared with his brother John Elliott, also a firefighter.

“It was a career that chose him. He was working in Lighthouse Point public works and they asked him to work in either the police or fire. He chose fire,” said his brother. “He was an old-fashioned firefighter—he was hands-on, very mechanical — he could take anything apart.”

John also joined the “brotherhood” at his family’s urging.

“I wanted to be a firefighter when I was a kid though I worked for years in carpentry and finally my mom convinced me to follow my brother’s footsteps,” said John Elliott. “She knew what my dream was as a kid and I saw the camaraderie and brotherhood.”

And that camaraderie is what was helping to carry him through his brother’s death.

“Everyone has helped me get through this whole thing. I knew even after it’s all over, they will still be here to help me,” said John Elliott. “He had more friends than anyone I’ve ever seen.”

The response for the first line-of-duty death in Pompano Beach was incredible.

“It’s unfathomable — so many units from all over the county and all over the state —a few thousand people are expected at his funeral,” said Firefighter Scott Friend. “We’ve lost great people, but never in the line of duty.”

Broward County, FL. (December 27, 2011) – On Tuesday, January 31, 2012, there will be a Presidential Preference Primary for all registered Republicans, as well as Municipal Elections in the cities listed below.  Since Florida is a “closed-primary” state, only persons registered as Republicans will be eligible to vote in the Republican Preference Primary.

The following Municipalities are scheduled to have elections on Monday, January 31^st, 2012

The voter registration books will close on Monday, January 3, 2012 for these upcoming elections.  Anyone turning in an application to register to vote the first time in Florida after Monday, January 3rd, will not be eligible to vote on January 31st, and will not receive a voter information card until after the election.

Anyone wishing to change his or her party for this election must do so on or before January 3, 2012.  Florida law does not permit the election office to process party changes after the books are closed.  We can accept such application requests, but party changes requests will not be processed or become effective until after the January election.

Attention: Any voter who wishes to vote by mail using an absentee ballot for this Election may submit a request in person, by mail, by telephone at (954) 357-7055 or by filling an Absentee Request Form online at:  http://www.browardsoe.org/AbsenteeRequest2.aspx. The last day to request an absentee ballot to be mailed is January 25, 2012 by 5:00 p.m. For any questions or concerns, please call the main office at 954-357-7050

DEERFIELD BEACH - Most city facilities will be closed on Monday, Jan. 2 in observance of the New Year’s holiday. The International Fishing Pier and Aquatic Center will maintain normal operating hours. All facilities will reopen on Tuesday, Jan. 3. To receive the latest news for Deerfield Beach, sign up for E-subscriptions at www.Deerfield-Beach.com/esubscriptions.

Please be advised the detour for the Hillsboro Boulevard nighttime bridge closure on Wednesday, Dec. 7 will be changed due to the Boca Raton 41st Annual Holiday Street Parade. All traffic traveling along Hillsboro Boulevard over the Intracostal Waterway will be detoured to the Spanish Boulevard ICWW Bridge via A1A or Dixie Highway.

Please note that this detour change will only be in effect on Wednesday, Dec. 7 from 7 p.m. to 6 a.m.

View Pompano Yuletide Parade Route 2011 in a larger map

DEERFIELD BEACH – Broward County residents are invited to view new preliminary flood insurance rate maps for the County at three public open houses, November 14-16, 2011. Flood maps show the areas at risk for flooding, and help determine flood insurance rates and building requirements.

Open house dates and locations are:

Monday, November 14, 4-7:45 p.m.
South Regional Library
7300 Pines Blvd.
Pembroke Pines, FL 33024

Tuesday, November 15, 4-8 p.m.
Volunteer Park Community Center
12050 W. Sunrise Blvd.
Plantation, FL 33322

Wednesday, November 16, 4-8 p.m.
Herb Skolnick Center
800 S.W. 36 Ave.
Pompano Beach, FL 33069

Property owners — both homeowners and business owners — renters, realtors, mortgage lenders and insurance agents are encouraged to attend the open houses and take advantage of this opportunity to meet one-on-one with specialists, including Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and other local representatives, to ask questions and learn more about flood risk within their communities.

Broward’s preliminary maps have not yet been officially adopted. Maps will become effective after a public comment period, during which property owners can submit appeals and protests if they can show that any parts of the maps are in error.

For more information on the flood map timeline and new building elevation standards for Broward County, visit broward.org and click NEW BROWARD FLOOD MAPS under Hot Picks. There is also an interactive map viewing tool that allows residents to enter their address and determine their flood zone designation and flood risk.