Now that we know that no one on staff or those that we hired considered lighting for turtles on our beach redevelopment, we still must address the grave situation if we are to have any business at our new casino that stays open after dark.According to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, improper outdoor lighting is probably one of the greatest issues affecting sea turtles. Sea turtles, one of the oldest animals on earth estimated to be here for 110 million years, must be protected. Light pollution and turtles just don't mix. Many species are on the verge of extinction and improper outdoor lighting is a major cause.
The FWC protects and manages...
- More than 575 species of wildlife
- More than 200 native species of freshwater fish
- More than 500 native species of saltwater fish
Because of the needs of our nearly 19 million residents and the millions of visitors we attract worldwide, we must balance the needs of our wildlife as well.
After our new Casino is built, we will be attracting more visitors than ever before spending money at our beach and in our City. Let's hope Rick Scott doesn't get his hands on this department.
The turtle lighting must be within the guidelines of the FWC. All exterior lighting for the entire project area including structural and landscape lighting must be reviewed and approved by FWC regardless of whether or not the area is seaward of the CCCL. Second level balcony lights, along with all of the lights, will be addressed in that the lights will not be allowed to illuminate areas seaward of the crest of the dune at the time of their night inspection.
The Palm Beach County Department of Environmental Resources Management has approved our turtle lighting application to install 610 exterior fixtures within the Sea Turtle Protection Zone and are specific as to what is authorized to be installed within the STPZ.
The City Manager is fighting the exclusivity in the potential contracts and is discouraging some of our long term tenants. She literally is wanting to give our beach control away to a tenant to dictate terms as our anchor by allowing them to have a bar business opened until the wee hours of the morning. She is making policy decisions on her own and convincing commissioners that her way is the right way and the project will fail unless we cement leases now and allow our beach to move in a direction that never was our vision.
When asking the city manager how the city was going to pay for this lighting, she said, "Once we finalize the design and know the cost and scope of lighting needs, the money will come from the capital budget, grant funding and revenue from the casino."
6 comments:
The City Manager's answer is Pelosi-esque - "We will find out" what is in the 2000 pages of the Health Care program "when we read it".
I don't approve of them cutting the number of boutiques we had before. It really would be detrimental for the city to give up control of who can sell what. The Surf shop seems to want it all. Everyone needs to make a living and if everyone can sell the same things, how does that work?
Does anyone wonder how the condo south of the LW beach was able to comply with the turtle lighting in and around their condo's and common area? They sit even closer to the beach than our building does.
In nesting areas, lighting must be shielded or designed so that it will not disturb sea turtles, and windows and doors visible from nesting areas must use tinted glass or other light control measures. If these and other sea turtle protection measures are not taken, DEP will suspend the permitted construction. With our casino, part of the building has always been eastward of the Coastal Construction Line so severe guidelines are now in place to protect these endangered turtles. Check with Straticon and what they did for the Omphoy Hotel that was also over the CCL.
Any utility with even a modicum of professionalism will have a copy of GE's Aladdin software or its equivalent (I know this because I even have a copy). This is a program which tells the operator and designer exactly what lighting characteristics are required at the beach and where the cutoff will be. The Asst. Utility Director, as a licensed EE, should have run this program a hundred times to determine exactly what lighting should, or shouldn't, be included in the beach design. If he hasn't, then LW has a problem. Cutoff lights and direction lighting will leave the beach virtually dark year around. In fact, a full moon will have a greater effect on the turtles than well placed lighting.
BTW: Well placed lighting will cost a few thousand and bath the area in near daylight lumens, rather then the $2 million budgeted
On one point Lynn if they want to give it all away I would say give the CM away first. She and everyone in this project is vomiting doom and gloom and there is no way on Gods Beautiful World there is not a cost effective solution to this issue.
I honestly think there is something far more sinister at work here and it has to deal with kick backs and crooked deals that someone is trying to keep the public "in the dark" over it.
There is simply no way that ANY CONTRACTOR/BUILDER in the State of Florida would not know this was an issue from day one of planning.
Something really stinks here so please everyone keep digging until we find out what is the REAL DEAL.
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