Highland Beach News

A woman faces aggravated assault and domestic battery charges after she allegedly fired a handgun during a fight with her boyfriend early Monday, police said.

Case: Leland Morris v. Merry Morris, et al. Case No.: 2005-ca-006191 Description: Violation of post-nuptial agreement Settlement date: June 26, 2008 Plaintiff attorney: Jeffrey D. Fisher, Fisher & Bendeck, West ...

After spending more than five months in the Palm Beach County jail, a former Boca Raton woman has been freed after agreeing to pay $1 million of the $2.5 million her ex-husband claimed she owed for violating a ...

Fort Lauderdale's James Crystal claims it's the largest locally owned radio group in South Florida, but some of its stations barely register a blip with listeners.

A 19-year-old man has been charged with attempted murder after allegedly stabbing his roommate five times.

The word micromanagement came up several times today during the town's planning board meeting, in which the county's plan for Milani Park was approved unanimously - with a host of conditions.

Singer Ashlee Simpson, now known as Ashlee Simpson-Wentz, has canceled her North American tour, which included a June 21 date at the Pompano Beach Amphitheatre.

An 18-year-old from Boca Raton has been charged with raping a girl while she slept at her friend's house.

Town officials are negotiating a Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office takeover of town police.

“You say the county owns the land”

Calling all Indians! Calling all Indians! No, not the telemarketing kind of Indians. via Palm Beach Post

“The Book and Author Luncheon is the highlight of season, because it raises so much money for the university”

The Boca Raton chapter of Brandeis University Women's Committee is wrapping up a season of study groups, day trips and fundraising.

Joan Schreiber , recently installed as president for a second term, said the 2,000 members living as far south as Pompano Beach and as far north as Boynton Beach make it the largest chapter in the country.

'We're very proud of it,' said Schreiber, who lives west of Boca Raton.

The chapter raised $100,000 this year for scholarships, medical research and the school library, Schreiber said. Read more

“Our property taxes are high enough because we live on the beach”

Those who enjoy the town's three miles of beaches could be taxed to keep them clean.

Fed up with litter that dots the private shoreline of Highland Beach, the town's Beaches and Shores Advisory Board wants the Town Commission to create a separate taxing district for those who have beach access.

'As it stands now, the method of cleaning is at best inconsistent and worst nonexistent,' Lucy Miller, board chairwoman, told commissioners.

Most of the beaches along the shoreline are private, so the town is not responsible for picking up trash. Residents pick up their own litter, either on their own or by hiring private cleaning companies. Read more

The town has to install a $21,142 fence around the perimeter of its water plant because of new regulations by the Department of Homeland Security. via South Florida Sun-Sentinel

Municipalities, utilities managers and landscapers were among those protesting last week at a South Florida Water Management District workshop, after hearing the permanent limits the district's governing board ... via Palm Beach Post

Apparently it all became too much for Denis Palmer to bear. Lingering criminal charges related to practicing optometry without a license in Palm Beach County The recent death of his father. via Palm Beach Post

Not in our backyard. That's the sentiment Highland Beach residents have expressed for years when it came to proposals for a public beach park within the town limits. After years of lawsuits and general discontent, the county answered a laundry list of Highland Beach residents' concerns during town Planning Board meetings from February through April. But the plans still faced opposition from residents. 'There is no doubt any access to the beach should be eliminated,' said Planning Board member Max Angel during a March meeting. 'We wouldn't want to have transients using those beaches to clean themselves.' The saga began in 1987, when the county purchased the 5.39 acre-site for $3.9 million. In a letter dated March 4, 1987, Parks and Recreation Director Dennis Eshleman wrote to county commissioners, 'We can expect five to seven years of negotiations before permits can be obtained to develop the beachfront.' Five to seven years evolved into two decades; all while the beachfront property sat relatively untouched. The county stands by its purchase, which it says was necessary to keep up with demand for public beaches. 'We are legally bound to provide beach access,' Palm Beach County Commissioner Mary McCarty said at a March meeting. 'The people of Palm Beach County did not put money up for this park for only Highland Beach.' The rest of the town's approximately three miles of beaches are private, maintained either by homeowners or condominiums who have expressed concerns about possible increases in crime with a public park. 'As a homeowner, we pay property taxes [on the beachfront] and we have to keep that property clean,' resident Beverly Knight said at an April meeting. 'If people see that the public beach is full, they will walk to the north and south and we will have a terrible problem.' The town's Planning Board will take a look at the county's solutions to its concerns. If the board says that the county has passed the hurdles needed to get a special exception from town codes to develop the land, the county will take the proposal to the Town Commission in a future meeting. Read more

A Las Vegas couple was charged with trying to steal more than $900 in razors and razor blades from Publix at Cove Center Sunday, according to Martin County sheriff's reports. via Palm Beach Post

Contractors will begin pumping odorless smoke Tuesday into sewer lines east of the Intracoastal Waterway, from Gulfstream south to Highland Beach. via Palm Beach Post

“It's encouraging that volunteers were able to recognize [the hawksbill]”

The turtle tracks in the sand looked funny. Not like the comma-shaped fin prints volunteer Beverly Knight usually sees. These were pointed.

'We thought they looked strange,' Knight said. 'We joked that maybe the turtles were wearing pointed high-heeled shoes.'

Turns out the prints in Highland Beach belonged to the critically endangered hawksbill species. They led to the only hawksbill nest in Florida for the 2007 season, which starts in March each year.

Findings like this encourage volunteers, but as far as the overview for Florida's sea turtles goes, there's good news and bad news. Loggerheads, the most prevalent species in the state, are declining, while populations of green and leatherback species are increasing. Read more

“I come to the new office with no personal agenda”

The dais was home to a game of musical chairs last month when four of the five commissioners were either newly elected or assigned to new positions.

Now that the dust has settled in Town Hall, residents seem hopeful for what's to come.

'It was evident from the first meeting that things have changed already for the good,' said resident and former Commissioner Rachael Scala-Pistone.

There was change indeed: Former Commissioner Jim Newill slid into the mayor's seat, Miriam Zwick was appointed vice mayor, and Jim Sorrelli and John Pagliaro are the new faces on the commission. Read more