I’m sure we all remember the Boinis sweetheart deal that caused more strife in this city than was deserved or necessary. Because Boinis didn’t get the deal he wanted, he put 17 no trespassing signs on the beach property he bought in hopes of combining it with the land he was hoping to lease from the city. This quarter acre of beach is nothing more than a sandbox to anyone. It can’t be built on. The EPA has seen to that. Boinis is the man who told the commissioners he loved children and now seems not to care if a child playing on the beach runs into one of his poles and hurts himself. Is it good for us to buy the land? ABSOLUTELY. Is it good for us to let a bully extort us? NO.

One of the reasons America is in the predicament it’s in is because of people like Boinis, who want to take whatever they can. We know about Wall Street. We know about the CEOs. We know about the heads of bailed-out companies giving bonuses to themselves and employees while many in America are facing foreclosures, etc. Boinis is a Fat Cat. If he took the $310 grant money, he would still be making a profit on his original $200K purchase. In today’s real estate market, to be able to claim any profit is unbelievable. And yet, he wants more. He wants more because he’s angry he didn’t get his way, his ego is bruised and he’s going to show us. Instead of acting with dignity and accepting that this business deal didn’t work out for him, he’s gotten to some people on the dais who feel he’s entitled to make a larger profit regardless of the economy and regardless of how little it would leave in the city’s contingency fund, which is where the $200K would be taken out to pay him.

I understand this may be an expedient way to deal with Mr. Boinis, but is it ethical? There’s more than one way to “skin a fat cat.” The commission can ask our City Attorney to write an ordinance limiting the number of signs on a beach property. At one point, the City Attorney was researching this until the new commission arrived and apparently put an end to his research on this matter. Furthermore, a person involved in one of the two audits for the city told me he had no other “useless” beach property to compare this with since beach properties can usually be built on. Comparables on other beach properties took place when real estate was a good investment and therefore high appraisals were the norm. This sandbox is overvalued at $310 K in today’s market. I, and others, would appreciate Mr. Boinis doing the decent thing — accept the $310 K offer and let the city heal, instead of dividing the new commission on this issue.

Caryl Berner

Deerfield Beach

Thanks for Relay for Life

Dear Editor:

I am writing this letter to thank the City of Deerfield Beach and Lighthouse Point for all the help the cities gave us during the American Cancer Society’s Relay for Life, held this past weekend at Quiet Waters Park. I want to thank Mayor Peggy Noland, Commissioners Joe Miller, Sylvia Poitier, Marty Popelsky, Bill Ganz and City Manager Mike Mahaney for attending along with Mayor Fred Schorr, Sandy Johnson and Chip LaMarca of Lighthouse Point. As a special surprise to us, our friend and survivor, State Rep. Gwen Clarke-Reed attended as well. Our Sheriff Al Lamberti read the Care Givers Pledge. A “special thank” you to our city employees, Mr. Fred Scott and his associates who were there to assist us with sound, light, park, etc. Mickey Gomez and Neill Mathes from Parks and Rec, as well as Amy Hanson, for all their help during the 18 hours we were at the park. We could not have done this Relay without their help.

Our Relay was a HUGE success with 99 Survivors, plus their caretakers! This is the most we have ever had. Dinner was served to them compliments of CJ’s Draft House. To date, we have raised approximately $75,000. There will still be fundraisers held to reach our goal of $100,000. These funds will help us with Research to find a cure for this disease. I want to take this opportunity to thank the 375 participants and 40 teams that attended. This has been the largest Relay for Life we have ever had. We thank the Citizens of Deerfield Beach and Lighthouse Point for their turnout and the fantastic support they have given Relay for Life. And on a personal note, as a survivor, THANK YOU!

Gordon Vatch

Event Chair Relay For Life – 2009

Deerfield Beach

Save Century Plaza Library

Dear Editor:

As we age, it appears that more and more is taken away from us.

Sometimes we lose our eyesight, or perhaps it is our hearing that goes, or our ability to drive is taken from us, and then our bodies lose mobility. All of these are very disturbing, but why must we now be plagued with the possible loss of our Century Plaza Library, the branch of the Broward County Library System that is adjacent to Century Village East (CVE) in Deerfield Beach? This library is extremely well utilized, very busy, informative and a wonderful resource to the residents of an 8,500-unit senior community at Hillsboro and Century Boulevard, as well as to children and families in the surrounding community. The Century Plaza Library is the place where computers are available for use, books and tapes and DVDs can be taken out, educational programs are given, newspapers and magazines can be read, and foreigners can learn the English language by attending the English Café.

The residents of Century Village East urge the Broward Commissioners to make budget decisions to save our Century Plaza Library, as we no longer have the mobility to get to any other public library.

Carol Lerner

Century Village East

Deerfield Beach

Beloved Percy White Library

Dear Editor:

This is the first time I have written to a newspaper in a very long time. I feel very strongly on this issue.

Please help us alert the public to the fact that Percy White Library in Deerfield Beach may be closed. The announcement that Century Village was to be closed was met with opposition from the residents of Century Village, and now the Broward Library Board is threatening to close Percy White and keep Century Village open.

It is regrettable that any library has to be closed down but certainly you don’t close a larger, more accessible and vibrant facility in order to appease a few (compared to the rest of the city) complaints.

Percy White is a true community library that is utilized by many on a daily basis. The selection of books and DVDs, the accessibility of computers and the Internet, the after-school and summer programs for children, various programs for adults (assistance in obtaining food stamps, counseling on resume writing, etc.) are just a few of the programs and opportunities that Percy White Library has to offer. A lot of these programs are funded by Friends of the Library, a group of men and women who volunteer to run our used bookstore.

We are very fortunate to have Lisa Manners, our head librarian, overseeing these programs as well as the daily operation of our facility. Admittedly, the facility is understaffed, but one would never know as the employees there are extremely knowledgeable, helpful and cheerful.

I implore you to send one of your reporters to check out the usage and programs our library has to offer. The public needs to be alerted about this outrageous development.

Irene Turner

Deerfield Beach

5-14-09