Ocean and Cardinal Drives: Updating the vision
The City of Vero Beach recently dusted off a seven-year-old vision plan for what Ocean and Cardinal drives could be, giving the community an opportunity to talk about what draws people to the beachside retail district. Some say it's the feel of old Florida, a trip down Memory Lane for an ice cream with the grandkids. For others, its good food and drink in equally savory company. Shopping with attentive merchants does the trick for those weary of malls, the mass-produced and the impersonal chain-store mentality. The smell of festival street food, the sound of a live band and ocean breezes lure others to discover the shops and galleries that make up Ocean and Cardinal drives. City planners and the volunteers will update the shelved plans in the months ahead and devise a way to implement them while accentuating the district’s positive features. Most people see the retail district as needing just a few tweaks and not a major facelift. READ FULL STORY
Marine Bank wins a victory as state regulators back off
They are places where people are a name and not a number – places where, historically, members of the community could come in, sit down, meet the president, and walk away with a small loan. But community banks in Florida and across the country are seeing their ranks rapidly dwindle. Just 200 community banks currently are left in Florida. Vero has just one, Marine Bank & Trust, headquartered on Beachland Boulevard. For five days over the course of two weeks, Marine Bank officials and their attorneys fought to defend the institution from the notion that it is failing, or could fail. Of Florida’s 200 community banks, 40 percent are on the danger list with the Federal Insurance Deposit Corporation. Marine is not on that list, and its fight in federal court is an attempt to stay off it. While the judge is not expected to render a decision for several months, Marine won an interim victory last week when the state regulatory agency that oversees state-sanctioned banks decided to drop its charges against Marine Bank. READ FULL STORY
Robert W. Bauchman, for more than a decade the face of Northern Trust in our community following its acquisition of locally owned Beach Bank in 1995, has returned to Vero from California – this time to head the next-door office of Wilmington Trust. Bauchman, 62, who spent the past three years as president of Northern Trust’s San Diego region before retiring on Oct. 31 after a 33-year-career with the company, concedes that it feels a little funny to have returned to Vero as managing director of the local office of a direct competitor. “I don’t see my role as trying to poach clients from Northern Trust,” Bauchman said. “I spent over 30 years with the organization, have a tremendous amount of respect for the organization and what they do. I like the people there and have a great relationship with them. But I think Wilmington can be a very viable and effective alternative in the market.” READ FULL STORY
Shores nearing key water-sewer vote
The city of Vero Beach and Indian River County made their final pitches to the town of Indian River Shores Monday for more than $100 million worth of water and sewer utility business over the next 30 years. At the conclusion of the meeting, no decision was made, but at least the town knows what’s clear and what’s still negotiable. Rates are somewhat of a no-brainer – the Shores would either get county rates from the county or county rates from Vero. Most residents would be better off, condos would benefit the most and only very large consumers of water would pay more than they do now. The winner of the franchise would collect a 6 percent fee that would fund either Vero’s city or Indian River County’s government functions. The two items still in play are ownership of the pipes, pumps and tanks within the town limits – both now and at the end of the 30-year agreement – and how best to ensure all the communities in the Shores get adequate quantities of reuse water at a fair price. READ FULL STORY
City moves to stabilize dunes under boardwalk at Conn Way
The City of Vero Beach is going ahead with a $93,000 project to stabilize the dunes under the boardwalk at the southernmost end of Jaycee Beach – across from the eastern end of Conn Way – despite the fact city officials don't know for sure where they will get the money. Last season's storms, especially the unnamed Columbus Day weekend storm, chewed up the beaches and dunes under the boardwalk, leaving gaping holes where there is no sand at all under the walkway. To protect the boardwalk, the road and adjacent condominiums and businesses, the dunes are periodically padded, but last year's project only required 450 tons of sand. About 1,200 linear feet of beach will be closed for two weeks while the work is being completed, according to Public Works Director Monte Falls. "We had a permit but we had to make some minor revisions to it and we've sent that off, so we should have a permit within the two weeks," Falls said. "Once we get the permit in hand, then the insurance and bonding will take another two to three weeks, so I would guess that we'd be looking at the middle of February." READ FULL STORY
Richard Brown agrees to give up license to practice law
A former barrier island attorney – jailed on allegations he stole hundreds of thousands of dollars from clients – has agreed to be permanently barred from practicing law in Florida regardless of the outcome of his upcoming criminal trial. Richard Brown signed the paperwork paving the way for him to be disbarred back in December when he stood before a judge and pled guilty to multiple charges that could have put him away for 50 years. Four days later, the disgraced attorney changed his mind and said he no longer wanted to take the plea deal. Judge Robert Pegg allowed Brown to withdraw his guilty plea because Brown’s attorney failed to inform his client of the correct minimum time behind bars that he faced – 20 months – and instead told Brown there might be no minimum time to be served. At that time in December, it appeared the arrangement for Brown to voluntarily agree to be disbarred was also off the table along with the plea deal. Instead, the paperwork was filed and the process started. READ FULL STORY
Marine Bank now fighting state as well as federal regulators
Even as Marine Bank and Trust defends itself against a Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation challenge of its lending practices and financial stability, it turns out the FDIC isn’t the only regulatory body scrutinizing the island’s only locally-owned bank. The state also is looking at Marine Bank, Vero Beach 32963 has learned. The state Office of Financial Regulation, a Florida agency charged with licensing and regulation of state-charted financial institutions, informed Marine Bank it is in violation of state laws relating to the operation of the bank and charged that it continues to engage in unsafe and unsound practices. The bank is vigorously contesting the allegations. A hearing on the state action was scheduled for January 23, but Marine Bank lawyers asked for a continuance. As of press time, a decision had not been made. Records say the state agency made an agreement with Marine Bank in 2009 to correct what state officials said were safety and soundness deficiencies discovered during a routine bank examination. A year later, the state alleged the bank’s asset quality remained unsatisfactory and that its portfolio had deteriorated. READ FULL STORY
Swan and Harpring vie for top elections post
It is hard to position yourself as the hardworking fiscally conservative alternative in an Indian River County race when your incumbent opponent claims the exact same credentials, but that's what Sandi Harpring aimed to do when Republican Women Aware hosted a lunch-time faceoff between her and Supervisor of Elections Leslie Swan last week. In many ways, Swan and Harpring, who is challenging Swan for the elections supervisor job, are the same person. Both are college-educated Republicans with lots of volunteer service and solid resumes showing experience in business and government. Both promote themselves as dedicated public servants, fiscal watchdogs and proponents of increased efficiency. Both are long-time county residents and Vero Beach High School grads. Both are married to attorneys and have three children. But there are differences. READ FULL STORY
At Beachland Elementary, one child in three gets a subsidized lunch
The line behind the little girl snakes out the school cafeteria doorway. She loads her tray with a baked chicken sandwich, some grapes and milk and moves through the lunch line so another child can grab her lunch, and then another and another. Chances are better than one in three that the first girl who picked the chicken sandwich and grapes at Beachland Elementary qualifies for either a free or reduced price lunch. Ten years ago, it would have been one in five. “I am not surprised at all,” said Carol Wilson, principal of Beachland Elementary which has 38 percent of its pupils enrolled in the program. Wilson said roughly 19 percent of the students got free lunches when she started at Beachland 10 years ago. READ FULL STORY
Shores near key vote on water and sewer contract
After nearly three years of discussing options, the Indian River Shores Town Council will meet at 9 a.m. Monday to compare – and perhaps decide between – two concrete proposals for water and sewer service. Both the City of Vero Beach and Indian River County have had many months to submit and re-submit their best offers to lure the Shores as a customer for the next 30 years. The Indian River Shores council decision is important because its decision will determine whether the City of Vero Beach should plan to operate a water-sewer system that includes the Shores, or a system just for city residents that would bring in 25 percent less revenue. In effect, the Shores decision very well could determine whether the city is left with no realistic choice but to take a good, hard look at regionalization. READ FULL STORY
Vero utility panel seems no rubber stamp
Any suggestions that the newly appointed members of the Vero Beach Utility Commission were selected by a City Council majority to provide no-questions-asked support for sale of the Vero electric system appeared to be firmly put to rest at the group's meeting last week. The advisory panel got a primer on the electric system, and asked good, tough questions of the city staff, during a workshop prior to the regular meeting. The commission dug into the critical issues related to sale of the electric utility to Florida Power & Light and also to the future of the water-sewer utility. Members appear engaged and enthusiastic about being a part of a dynamic process which could change the city government on a very basic level. The old commission consisted mostly of former utility managers, and that's the perspective they brought to their work. The new commission members might need to learn more of the technical nuts and bolts, but so far, they appear to approach their job from a business perspective and from the point of view of the taxpayer. READ FULL STORY
