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12-23-47 DECEMBER 23RD, 1947 Regular meeting of the City Council of the City of Delray Beach was held in the Council Chambers at 7:30 P. M. with Mayor M. M. DeWitt in the Chair, and Oity Attorney J. W. Nowlin, and the following Councilmen present: B. C. Butler, F. B. McNeece, and C. J. White, a quorum being present. The minutes of the meetings of December 9th and 13th were presented and approved as written. A letter from the State Road Department, receive~d by City Attorney Nowlin, ms read, explaining that they had no Jurisdiction over the installation of the traffic gates at the Atlantic Avenue crossing of the Florida East Coast Railway tracks, as this was not a State road, but that they were responsible for the installation of the gates at the S. E. 2nd Street crossing. City Attorney Nowlin was instructed tow rite the State Road Department and ask for an explanation of this letter, as the Council thought that Atlantic Avenue was a State road and should be mad~ safe for traffic by then. N~. Nowlin was also instruc- ted tow rite to the Trustees of the Florida East Coast Railway Co. again, advising them that the traffic gates at the Atlantic Avenue crossing were still not operating properly, and requesting them to give the City i~mediate relief at this location. The following Resolutions were then presented, and same were read in full: "CITY OF DELRAY BEACH, FLORIDA RESOLUTION NO. 646 A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF DEIRAY BEACH, FLORIDA, LOCATING THE WEST RIGHT OF WAY LINE OF THE OCEAN BOULEVARD, ABANDONING ANY PORTION OF THE OCEAN BOULEVARD LYING WEST THEREOF AND PROVIDING FCR THE CONSTRUCTION OF CERTAIN STREET IMPROVEMENTS. WHEREAS, for many years there has been considerable uncertainty as to the exact location of the west right-of-way line of the Ocean Road, also known as the Ocean Boulevard, in the fractional East half of Section 16, Township46 South, Range 43 East, as per plat thereof filed in Plat Book 1, page 25 of the public records of Palm Beach County, Florida, and WHEREAS, a line to serve in the place of the west boundary line cf the Ocean Boulevard in Fractional Section 16, Township ~6 South, Range 43 East and commonly known as the Brockway Survey Line has heretofore been established according to plat thereof on file in Plat Book 20 at page 4 of the public records of Palm Beach County, Florida, which line has been used for building and zoning purposes as the west line of the Ocean Boulevard, and WHEREAS, the City of Delray Beach nM desires to proceed with certain street repairs and new'street and sidewalk construction on the Ocean Boulevard and desires to definitely establish the location of the west right-of-way line of such Ocean Boulevard before such construction is commenced. NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the City Council of the City of Delray Beach, as follows: SECTION 1. That the City of Delray Beach hereby accepts and designates the above described line known as the Brockway Survey Line as shown on that certain plat on file in Plat Book 20 at page 4 of the Public Records of Palm Beach County, Florida, as being the west right-of-way line of the Ocean Road or Ocean Boulevard as shown on the plat of the fractioDml East half of Section 16, Township 46 South, Range Z3 East, recorded in Plat Book 1, at page 25 of the Public Records of Palm DECEMBER 23RD, 1947 Beach County, Florida, insofar as the same affects the property hereinafter des- cribed. SECTION 2. That the City of Delray Beach hereby abandons and vacates all ef as that portion of the Ocean Road or Ocean Boulevard~ perplat recorded in Plat Book 1 at page 25 of the public records of Palm Beach voUnty, Florida, located in the hereinafter described property and lying west of the Brockway Survey Line as shown in the plat thereof recorded in Plat Book 20 at page 4 of the public records of Palm Beach CouSty, Florida. SECTION 3. That in consideration of the relinquishment of the adjacent prop- erty owner of all claims to any of the hereinafter described property located East of theBrockway Survey Line as above described, the City of Delray Beach will make no special assessments for benefits against said adjacent property for the pried repair, improvement and construction work to be done during the years 1947 and 1948. SECTION 4. This Resolution shall become effective upon the proper acceptance · thereof by the owner of the hereinafter described property, which acceptance shall be signified by the execution of the attached consent and release. SECTION 5. The property affected by this Resolution is: Ocean Beach Lots "North": The South 70.5 feet of Ocean Beach Lot 11, and the north 30 feet of Ocean Beach Lot 12, in Fractional Section 16, Township 46 South, Range 43 East, Delray Beach, Palm Beach County, Florida. PASSED in Regular Session on this the 2~ day of December, 1947. (Si~ed) M, M, DeWitt President, City Council. SEAL Approved: ATTEST: .~Si~ned) M, M, DeWitt (Signed) Ruth .R, Smith .. . Mayor City Clerk " For and in consideration of the abandonment by the City of Delray Beach of that property described in Section 2 of the foregoing Resoltuion and in further consideration of the agreement of the City of Delray Beach to make no special assessments for benefits against the above described property for street impreve- ment work on the OceanBoulevard during the 1947-1948 construction program, the undersigned owners here~ry accept the above Resolution and hereby remise, release and quit-claim to the City of Delray Beach, Florida, for use as a public street and sidewalk all of that portion of the above described property as set out in Section 5 of this Resolution, which may be located east of the Brockway Survey Line as shown in Plat Book 20, page 4 of the public records of Palm Beach County, Florida~ WITNESSES: _(Si~ned) Evelyn Dun,,da~ .... (S, izned) Carrot], Bailey (SEAL) (Sizmed) E. L. ~x~ckha~% .. (SEAL) DE0~HER 23RD, 1947 STATE OF .... F~orida, ,, COUNTY OF ..... Dade I HEREBY CERTIFY that on this day before me personally appeared, Carroll ..Bailey ... to me known to be the person described in and who executed the fore- going instrument and he acknowledged before me that he executed the same. WITNESS my h~nd andofficial seal at Miami Beach...Fla. on this the day of December , 194..7_. (Sizned) Eve]~n Dunda~ Notary Public State of Florida at Large My commission expires April 23, 1951 SEAL A motion was made by Councilman Butler, seconded by Councilman McNeece, that the foregoing Resolution No. 646 be pas ssd and adopted as read, and upon call of roll the motion carried unanimously. "CITY OF DELRAY BEACH, FLORIDA RESOLUTION NO. 64? (See Resolution No. 646 through Section 4.) SECTION 5. The property affected by this Resolution is: Ocean Beach Lots "North": The south 70.5 feet of Ocean Beach Lot 3, less the east 225 feet of the west 350 feet, in Fractional Section 16, Township 46 South, Range 43 East, Delray Beach, Palm Beach County, Florida. PASSED in Re&~lar Session. on this the .2~ day of December. 1947. (Si~ned) M. M. DeWitt President, City Council. ATTEST: Approved: (Si~ned) Ruth .R. Smith (Si~ned) M, M, DeWi.tt . City 01erk May~r SEAL ~ For and in consideration of the abandonment by the City of Delray Beach of that property described in Section 2 of the foregoing Resolution and in further consideration of the agreement of the City of Delray Beach to make no special assess- merits for benefits against the above described property for street imp~..ovement work on the Ocean Boulevard during the 1947-1948 construction program, the undersigned owners hereby accept the above Resolution and hereby remise, release and quit-claim to the City of De]ray Beach, Florida, for use as a public street and sidewalk all of that portion of the above described property as set out in Section 5 of this Resolution, which may be located east of the Brockway Survey Line as shown in Pla{ Book 20, page 4 of the public records of Palm B~ach County, Florida. DBOBMB~R 23RD, 1947 WITNESSES: (Si~aed) Dorothy R, Bryant (Si~ned) Lydia H, Deshler (SEAL) (Si~ned) .W, Harvel . . . (SEAL) STATE ~F Florida COUNTY OF Palm Beach I HERE~Y CERTIFY that on this day before me personally appeared Lydia H, Deskler to me known to be the persons described in and who executed the foregoing instrument and they acknowledged before me that they executed the same. WITNESS my hand and official seal at Delray Bgach, Fla. on this the .l~th day of....DecembeF, 194 7 · (SiKned) Wilmina Harvel Notary Public, State of Florida at large My commi, ssion expires January 19, 1948. SEAL " Bonded by American Surety Co. of N.Y. A motion was made by Councilman McNeece, seconded by Councilman White, that the foregoing Resolution No. 647 be passed and adopted as read, and upon call of ._ roll the motion erried unanimously. In a motion made by Councilman McNeece, seconded by Councilman Butler, the request of Mr. Harold E. Willson for the rezoning of Lots 22,23, and 24, Block 119, to allow the construction of duplex or apartment buildings, was referred to the Zoning Board for their consideration and recommendation to the Council. Mr. King S. Cone addressed the Council, presenting the following let%er fr~a Mr. A. W. Holroyd, Director of the local U. S. O. "DECEMBER 22, 1947 ~. The Honorable Marshall M. DeWitt, Mayor City of Delray Beach Dear Mr. Mayor: The U. S. 0. Club is endeavoring to close their books on December 27~ so as to be out of the premised by the 31st. Light, water and telephone service should be maintained in the building after December 27th due to the present use of the building by the County Regis- tration Office and Veterans' Service. I am requesting the city to assume the costs of these three services -- -~ light, phone, and water -- beginning December 27, 1947 to assist us in closing our books and at the same time maintain these facilities for those who will ~ sOOn be using this bu~ing. . Yours truly, (Signed) A. Waldie Holroyd A. Waldie Holroyd Director / DE~ 2~RD, 19/~? AWH:ds P.S. In assuming above obligation for above utilities please kindly give me formal release as of Dec. 27th for responsibility of building and premises. AWH" Mr. Cone stated that he would be in his Veteran's Office in the building from nine until five o'clock each day, and suggested that all of the valuable, movable equipment which th_e City had purchased from the United Service Organizations, Inc. be locked in one or two rooms until such time as the Council decides on the manage- ment of the building and places someone in ~harge. The Council agreed to have this equipment stored in a safe place at once. A motion was then made by Councilman McNeece that the City assume all respon- sibility of the building and premises, as well as the utilities, on December 27th, and release Mr. Holroyd as of that date. The motion ~ras seconded by Councilman White, and upon call of roll the motion carried unanimously. Mr. Cone again addressed the Council, with reference to proposed night Polo games during the winter season at the Memorial Athletic Field, stating that satis- factory arrangements had been made between the Gulf Stream Polo Club and the Ath- letic Committee, and they were asking the approval of the Council. Mr. Cone explained further that the Gulf Stream Polo Club planned to play definitely one game a week and possibly two games, and expected an attendance of at least 1000 people at each game; that games with college te_~s~which had been scheduled to play in the Orange Bowl in Miami might be reverted to this City as soon as the field can be prepared. A removal sectional fence ~ill be built around the field for the protection of the patrons, and the field wit! be conditioned be- fore and after each game by the Polo Club. There will be no expense whatever to the City. Mr. Cone stated that the Athletic Co~r~ittee felt that many people would be attracted to Delray Beach by night polo games, who had never been here before, ~hich will be an excellent advertisement for the City. The Polo Club proposes to erect a suitable neon sign directing people through the City to theField. After discussion by the Council, a motion was made by Councilman McNeece, seconded by Councilman Butler, that the recommendation of the Athletic Committee that polo games be allowed at the Memorial Athletic Field be approved, according to the terms and conditions as explained b~- Mr. Cone as a representative of the Athletic Committee, the Gulf Stream ~olo Club to assume all expense of maintain- ing and repairing the field, the days for playing the games to be arranged with the Athletic Committee. Upon call of roll the motion carried unanimously. Mr. Wm. F. Kraus asked the approval of the Council for the erection of a neon sign on the Federal Highway at Atlantic Avenue, possibly on the Colony Hotel building, which would direct traffic west on Atlantic Avenue to the Polo Field~ and also advertise the City to traffic passing along the Highway. Council was agreeable to the erection of such a sign, the location to be worked o~t with the Building Department. A letter from the O'Neal-Priest Auxiliary to Post No. 4141, Veterans of Foreign Wars, with reference to being granted permission to use the U.S.O. building one night of each week for bingo games, was read as follows: "DELRAY BEACH, Florida 16 December, 1947 The Honorable Mayor and City Council of Delray Beach Gentlemen: The O'Neal-Priest Post No. Al41, Veterans of Foreign Wars, De]may Beach~ Florida, and the Auxiliary, wish to ask for the use of the U. S. O. BUilding o on Wednesday nights, beginning January 7, 1948, for the purpose of holding weekly Bingo games,. The Proceeds form the games will go into our Buildin~ Fund. It is agreeable to our organization to put up a cash bond to guarantee against d._~_mage to the building or equipment. Your consideration and granting of our request will be appreciated. Very truly yours, (Signed) R. C. Keen, Sr. Commander of Post (Signed) Wi/ma Glisson President of Auxiliary " A letter from Mrs. Frances M. Jarrell, asking permission to use the library in the U.S.O. building on Thursday afternoons from 2 until 4 for a "Unity"class was also read. "November 13, 1947 To the City Council May the "Unity" class in Practical Christianity continue meeting in the Library of the U.S.O. on Thursday from two until four, as of December 26th. I read in the newspaper that the building would revert to City Management on that date. I wouSd appreciate your permission, and trust it will mee~ with your ap- provalo I am, Most sincerely, (Signed) Mrs. Frances Jarrell Mrs. Frances Jarrell Affiliated with the Unity School of Practical Christianity of Kansas City, Mo. of which there are 75 subscribers in ~elray." No action was taken on the above requests, as it was the consensus of opinion of the Council that arrangements should be made for .the operation and management of the building before allowing any organization to rose any part of the building. The requests will be considered at a later meeting. The request of the Sub-Deb Club for permission to hold a dance in the U.S.O. building on the night of December 29th was also denied, as the City would not · be in a position to grant the use of the building at this time. DECEMBER 23RD, 1947 Mayor DeWitt advised the Council that some time ago Boca Raton had asked to be included in our Police radio system, and the City had agreed to handle their police calls for a fee of $300.00 a year. They were now asking the Council to verify this agreement before purchasing equipment for their police cars. A motion was made by Councilman McNeece, seconded by Councilman Butler, that the City enter into an agreement with the Town of Boca Raton as outlined above, and the City Attorney be instructed to draw up such a contract. Upon call of roll the motion carried unanimously. A request of Allen M. Stewart, Manager and Professional at the Municipal Golf Club, for authority to hire a ranger and starter at the Golf Course for approxi- mately three months, at a salary of $40.00 a week, was granted in a motion made by Councilman Butler, seconded by Councilman McNeece, the ranger to serve at the discretion of the City Council. Upon call of roll the motion carried unanimously. Bills totaling $18,212.50 were approved for payment, subject to the approval of the Finance Committee. A letter from Mr. H. P. Edmond, r~signing his position as City Manager, to become effective January 1st, 1948 was read, as follows: "December 19, 1947 Mayor M. M. DeWitt & City Council Delray Beach, Florida Gentlemen: Due to the change that will be made the first of the year in the Council members, by whom I have been notified that they have decided that public opinion desires a change to be made in the office I now hold, I therefore resign the office of City Manager to become effective January ~, 1948. I ~nt to express to you and the City employees m~ appreciation for the splendid cooperation all of you have given me during my employment with the City. It has indeed been a pleasure and privilege to work with you. If at any time I can be of any assistance to you, or the City, do not hesitate to call upon me. Very truly yours, (Signed) H. P. Edmond H. P. Edmond City Manager HPE: CVB" In a motion made by Councilman Butler, seconded by Councilman White, unani- mously carried, the above resignation was accepted with regrets. The following two le~tters were then read: "Delray Beach, Florida December 18, 1947 DECEMBER 23RD, 1947 Honorable City Council Delray Beach, Florida Gentlemen: I wish to tender herewith my resignation as Building Inspector of the City of De/ray Beach, effective January 1, 1948. It has been a pleasure to me to work with the Council and other City officials~ during the time I have served as Building Inspector, but due to the fact that other business interests are need- ing my attention I believe it best to terminate my relations with the City Adm- inistration. If I can be of any assistance to the new Building Inspector, I will be glad to have him call on me at any time. Sincerely yours, (si~ned) H. Ben Adams" "December 20, 1947 Mr. H. P. Edmond City Manager Delray Beach, Fla. Dear Mr. Edmond: It is my desire to resign the position I now hold and may this letter serve as my formal resignation to take effect January 1, 1948. Very truly yours, (Signed) Caroline Van Ballegooien Caroline Van Ballegooien 67rB: S" A motion was made by Councilman Butler, seconded by Councilman McNeece, that the two foregoing resignations be accepted with regrets, and upon call of roll the motion carried unanimously. A letter from Mr. Joseph M. Buehler, Manager of John's Beach Service, was then read as follows.' "Delray Beach, Florida December 23, 1947 To the City Council Delray Beach, Florida Gentlemen: At this time we would like to submit this letter as application for renewal of a Beach Service license during the year 1947-1548. We are led to understand that this cc~amaxicati~ should explain the nature of our business and system under which we intend to operate. Tn regard to the first of these two subjects, our definite of Beach Service would be, briefly, the rental of equipment and the servicing of same. ~he second requires a little more explanation. We realize that this has caused a lot of controversy in the past. Last season we operated under a "reserved type" system. This meant that every cus%c~er had his or her cabana, umbrella, windbreaker, et cetera, labeled and set up in approximately the same location every day. As the season progressed we realized that the beach equipment was taking most of the beach. We devised our new system then, but it was too late in the season to put across to the customers we had already rented on the basis that "every one was reserved". This new system is labled simply "Take any one". By that we mean when a customer desires beach equipment, ~e will rent it to him on this basis; that when they come to the beach, they will occupy any vacant one they desire, Under this system we feel sure that we can operate success~_lly with one-third less equipment on the beach. We have found in the past that our clientele arrive at the beach at various times during the day. For instance: Mr. Jones and family always come in the morning, where Mr. Smith and family usually arrive around 2 P.M. Their mornings are usually taken up with golf or tennis. So you can readily see that when Mr. Jones and family leave, Mr. Smith and his family will use the same piece of equipment. We have also found that our clientele always manage to miss three to five days on the beach while vacation- ing in Delray Beach, depending of course on how long they intend staying. A man and wife coming for a month usually always go to the races twice, take a trip to Havana, go fishing, wife to the hairdressers, Rotary meetings, visit Fort Laud. trial. Palm Beach or Miami to see whether they have missed anything. I could go on but I'm sure these few examples can impress you that our new system is sound. We realize that this system will require a larger payroll with the necessity for extra atten- dants, but we feel it is worth the extra effort ~nd salaries, to keep the beach from being congested as in the past. We promise to abide by these follovling rules: (1) We will not set up more than 50% of our .rentals in. the morning.. (2) We will place all equipment as far back on the beach as possible. This will give the choice part of the beach to the non-rentals. (3) When ~s~ _r~qui~s more than the original 50%, we will not set up more a~ a ~m~. (4) If you deem it necessary, we will place all equipment under canvas in neat piles along the beach at night. (5) We will assist in any rescue work the lifeguards might be called upon to do, as we are qualified in that respect ourselves. (6) We will assist the city beach cleaning department, as in the past, by dis- posing during the day of any large articles such as newspapers, lunch boxes, et cetera. We fe&l that we are qualified to operate a beach service business in Delray Beach, having the finest equipment obtainable, and our attendants are of the highest cali- ber. Furthermore, JoHn's Beach Service has been in operation for sixteen years with an envious record of service and quality. We would like very much to make this our fourth season in Delray. We thank you for your kind consideration and attention to this letter. Any further questions you might have will be gladly answered at this meeting. Yours very truly John's Beach Service John B. Smith, PArry A. Eahler, Owners By (Signed) Joseph M. Buehler,Manager Co~mcfl discussed at length the revised plan of renting be~ch equipment, as out- lined in the above letter, insisting that the beach ~could not be filled with vacant equipment which might not be used during the entire day, that space must be provided for people who bring their own equipment , and for local residents. After consideration the Council approved the granting of license to John'~s Beach Service for the current year, at a fee of $1,500.00, with the following res~kie- tions: Not more than ten vacant pieces of equipment to be on the beach at any one time. No equipment to be placed in the area 200' north and 200' south of the center line of Atlantic Avenue. Ail equipment to be moved off of the beach property every night. It was also understood that if another license should be issued for the renting of equipment on the beach, the locations of each must be worked out between them- selves. Council then adjourned. APPROV~D: