IF THE TOWN of Palm Beach tries to drive truckloads of sand down the middle of Lake Worth Beach’s popular public beach in January, don’t be surprised if throngs of protesters form a human barrier to block the convoy.
That was the stark warning issued to town officials Tuesday night from city commissioners reacting to emails from angry city residents opposed to the town’s latest strategy to use the city’s public beach for a beach renourishment project.
“I’m not saying it as a threat at all, I’m honestly worried you wouldn’t be able to finish your project because of the protests,’’ Commissioner Mimi May told Town Engineer Patricia Strayer.
“I’m not saying I’m promoting protests in any way,’’ May said. “But if they happen, I don’t want you to not be able to do your project.’’
On Dec. 12, town officials told the city they planned to use a 10-foot wide strip along the shoreline of the city’s 1,400-foot public beach to transport sand stockpiled at Phipps Ocean Park in Palm Beach to renourishment areas in South Palm Beach. Town officials cited a 1935 state law that they say designates the strip of beach as town property.
Lake Worth Beach attorneys are studying that law and whether it supersedes a 2009 referendum that prohibits the city’s beach from being used for renourishment projects.
On Dec. 3, city commissioners voted 4-1 to allow the town to access the south end of the city beach because they weren’t aware of the 2009 prohibition, which was never codified in the city charter when voters passed the referendum. When reminded of the charter violation nine days later by former city commissioner Cara Jennings, the city attorney said the Dec. 3 vote was moot.
When the city told Palm Beach officials they could not grant access to town trucks, the town countered by citing the 1935 state law, setting up a tense discussion Tuesday night at City Hall between city commissioners and Strayer. Palm Beach Mayor Danielle Moore also attended the meeting.
Time is of the essence, Strayer told commissioners, because trucking and dredging contracts have been awarded and the sand must be transported during the month of January in order to finish the work before sea turtle nesting season.
“We are ready to start investigating how we utilize that 10 feet and truck the sand to the south end of the beach,’’ she said.
Lake Worth Beach Mayor Betty Resch asked, “Do you understand the reaction my citizens will have if you try to do that?’’
“We have town property,’’ Strayer replied.
“It's a horrendous prospect,’’ Resch said, “and it would be on some level easy for you to say ‘we’re just gonna do it, so screw your beach,’ which is not exactly a neighborly approach.”
A frustrated Resch then offered Strayer a run-on sentence laced with imagery: “I don't want to get into a giant, public legal front page, our people laying on the beach blocking your trucks,’’ she said. “You’re ruining our beach essentially.’’
Still, Resch said she wants the city attorneys to see if the Dec. 3 vote could still be valid, allowing the town to use the south end of the beach and pay the city $80,000 instead of driving trucks up and down the beach.
For previous renourishment projects, the town had used a condo on the south end of Palm Beach near the South Palm Beach border. But Strayer said the condo has refused to allow access for any more projects because of “structural impacts” to the condo from the heavy trucks.
City commissioners raised concerns about risks to beachgoers and the Lake Worth Pier from town trucks.
“It’s just not practical,’’ Commissioner Reinaldo Diaz said. “You can't drive 14-yard dump trucks underneath our pier. You just don’t have the space and even if it did fit, I don’t think a 3-axle 14-yard truck loaded with sand is going to maneuver very well over wet sand. And on top of that you won't be able to do that to ensure the safety of our beachgoers. It's not like you're going to hire crossing guards. You’re effectively cutting them off from the water.’’
Strayer said the town trucks would fit under the pier. But before anything happens, town surveyors will determine exactly where on the beach the 1935 law designates as town property.
Strayer also said she would go back to Town Hall and ask Palm Beach officials to consider other options, including use of private land in South Palm Beach. But she said the owners of that private land have refused previous requests by the town.
Besides that, she said, town officials have a legal right to use the property granted to them by the 1935 state law — prompting a terse reply from May.
“Just because you can doesn't mean you should,’’ May said. “We are talking about neighbors here.’’
City officials are trying to create a working relationship with Palm Beach, which didn’t exist in previous city administrations. Among the potential partnerships between the city and town: Lake Worth Beach is working on a proposal to sell bulk water to Palm Beach, which has long bought its water from West Palm Beach but is seeking options.
May said she hoped the beach dispute doesn’t “erode a relationship that can be very strong ongoing in the future. But I would be remiss if I didn't ask you to consider every single other possibility. The last thing we want is trucks on our beach.’’
If another access point on Palm Beach can’t be found, South Palm Beach is the most logical option because it will benefit from the beach renourishment project more than Lake Worth Beach, said Commissioner Chris McVoy.
“The fury of people in this town. They are very attached to their beach,’’ he told Strayer. “They will not have a problem camping on your part or right next or whatever, and I don’t think it's going to expedite your process.’’
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About the author
Joe Capozzi is an award-winning reporter based in Lake Worth Beach. He spent more than 30 years writing for newspapers, mostly at The Palm Beach Post, where he wrote about the opioid scourge, invasive pythons, the birth of the Ballpark of the Palm Beaches and Palm Beach County government. For 15 years, he covered the Miami Marlins baseball team. Joe left The Post in December 2020. View all posts by Joe Capozzi.