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The room soon filled after this shot was taken. Willie Howard of the PB Post was there covering the meeting.
Juan Ruiz put on the best meeting that I have attended in a very long time. It was productive, non-political, friendly, and citizens with great ideas for our Shuffleboard Court Building and a few not so great such as inferring that we need to "get with the times." Shuffleboarding may not be popular at the moment in Lake Worth due to factors beyond the control of those who were involved in the sport at our courts, but it can be again and it can draw in many people who will spend money in our City. With the correct facility and the correct marketing, I believe that this can be a money-maker for tourism and tournaments.
With about 30-35 or so in attendance, not one person wanted to eliminate our shuffleboard courts in their entirety but rather, keep them and preserve our history. There was a difference of opinion on whether to save all of the courts (28) as needed for national tournaments or only saving half of them thus reducing our exposure to only local and regional tournaments. At a show of hands of the 26 people who remained, the direction was nearly evenly divided. When all 28 courts are not in use for big tournaments, they can be covered and the space used for other things. Once we remove courts, we will
never get them back...sort of like our police and fire.
Shuffleboarding is thought of as a sport for the nearly dead. That is a myth. It is a recreation for all ages. Here in Lake Worth we have a unique opportunity to restore our courts (the same price as demolition) and become a destination on the east coast of the country in a city on the Atlantic Ocean. Cities that offer recreation are always more desirable than those that do not. We already have a beautiful 18 hole golf course and at present, our Casino is being rebuilt to the glory of yesteryear. Our beach redevelopment is still under plan as well as our artist focus. We could put together a great marketing effort for all of our assets including recreation within our City and a special emphasis on attracting shuffleboard tournaments. As the sport grows here, so will the interest around the country and the globe. Can you imagine a better city to visit for recreational and cultural fun than Lake Worth and to be known nationally for our shuffleboard tournaments, drawing people from all over the world.
Children who live by already have school recreation and programs in effect. Adults do not. Our Recreation Department offers children on-going programs like Youth Basketball, Sports Camps,Tennis lessons, Football, Baseball, Softball and Soccer. Swimming lessons are offered in the summer at the Municipal swimming pool.
I don't have a problem with children playing shuffleboard but it must be supervised and specific rules put into effect. The purpose of this building is not to become a teen-town or a place for kids to hang-out. I would like to see those in charge of the Shuffleboard Court Building making conservative decisions when it comes to its uses. I do not want to see our building going down the same path to destruction that it did just a few short years ago. Envisioning tournaments between schools, neighborhood associations, local and county meets as well as national shuffleboarding is exciting to contemplate. It can get done. National meets will put this city on the map and we already have the required amount of courts to do this. We have a volunteer Recreation Board that can get truly involved with this idea.
Right now we have something unique right in the palms of our hands--our own nationally required amount of courts and with grant money, we can refurbish them for a small investment that will bring great rewards in the future.
The only Commissioner who attended was Christopher McVoy.
