Steinhardt Lease voluntarily terminated

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Update: 4-5-11. The City is waiting for a written termination from the Steinhardt heirs.

Save the Waterfront & Town...

Originally leased to Marshall, owner of the Gulfstream Hotel back then, who flipped it to Milton Steinhardt-- submerged land was leased from the City of Lake Worth in 1967 on a 99 year lease. He wanted to develop five, 10 story condos on three man-made islands at the southeast end of the Intracoastal Waterway bridge across from the Lake Worth beach. He also sought federal permits to build a boat marina at the site. The City applied for the permits on his behalf in order to bring some sort of clout to his requests and to possibly speed it along.

He was paying $6,000 a year to the City of Lake Worth and after Save the Waterfront and Town went out on a petition in 2005, won at the ballot box on a Public Land/Public Vote Charter Amendment with 60% of the vote. Steinhardt was stopped from his dream.

Betty Resch, former City of Lake Worth attorney represented the Steinhardts and came before the City Commission several years ago and asked for an extension of the Lease. On first vote, Romano, McKinnon and Burns voted FOR the extension. At the next regularly scheduled meeting, McKinnon brought it back on the Agenda and switched his vote to "no." Steinhardt lost again on a 3/2 vote.

Today, through a reliable source, I was told that the Steinhardts agreed to terminate the Lease and the City accepted.