Commission puts the Parker Avenue rehab back on the books
A possible Air Force One arrival, new steel art on South Dixie and a playground on Old Congress.
Kids in the after-school programs at the Pleasant City and South Olive centers have their snacks paid for. On Tuesday the City Commission approved $26,260 from a state health department food program to cover them.
On Tuesday the City Commission approved three fire trucks through a lease/purchase, with a principal cap of $6,381,628 for all three. That cap covers principal only, and no financing costs were announced. The commission also moved $5.11 million into the 2026-27 fiscal year budget to restart the Parker Avenue rehabilitation project. No start date or scope of work came with the money. A $26,260 state health department grant will pay for snacks in after-school programs at the Pleasant City and South Olive centers. Whiting-Turner Contracting put up a $2,500 sponsorship for BBQ contest prizes at BBQ, Brew & Blues. Commissioners also ratified a successor contract with the Service Employees International Union covering Oct. 1, 2026, through Sept. 30, 2029. Separately, Mayor Keith A. James proclaimed Oct. 18-24 United Against Hate Week in the city.
West Palm's rainy season ends about 3.3 inches short
South Florida's rainy season runs from May 15 to Oct. 15, which makes today its average end date. West Palm Beach logged 33.21 inches of rain this season, short of the 36.50-inch average. It still beat last year's 31.09 inches over the same stretch. The Treasure Coast ran wetter: Vero Beach recorded 37.31 inches and Fort Pierce 36.77, both above their averages. The drier months ahead may not be so dry. NOAA expects a strong-to-very-strong El Niño to hold through winter, and the water management district's October outlook favors above-normal rain from October through December.
A playground built for kids with autism opens on Old Congress Avenue
Connections Education Center, at 1310 Old Congress Ave., now has a communication board, sensory elements and an accessible safety surface on its new playground. Stop and railroad crossing signs give students a place to practice real-world safety skills. Local philanthropist Addy van Leeuwen, who volunteers at Connections, made the project possible. It is a school playground, and no public hours were announced.
The firm that helped uncover the 1916 Courthouse began with two drafting tables
Rick Gonzalez and his late father, Ricardo, were Cuban immigrants who arrived in the U.S. with one suitcase, and they founded REG Architects in 1988. They started with no money and two drafting tables. The firm later worked on restoring the 1916 Palm Beach County Courthouse, and part of that job was helping uncover the original from the building constructed around it. Current projects include renovations and expansion on the St. Ann Catholic campus in West Palm Beach. The firm is also working on affordable housing with a Spanish influence for the West Palm Beach Housing Authority. That means the team that peeled back an old courthouse is now designing homes for the Housing Authority.
Air Force One may make its first landing at the renamed airport
The FAA has announced federal flight restrictions over Mar-a-Lago and much of the county, taking effect at 4:30 p.m. Friday. NORAD fighter jets will enforce them, and pilots should check advisories before they fly nearby. In the town of Palm Beach, closures along South Ocean Boulevard start at 5 a.m. Friday. Both point to an expected Air Force One landing at the newly renamed Trump International Airport. No visit has been confirmed by the White House. For now, the airspace limits and road closures are the firm part, and the landing is still only expected.
Sinta Tantra's 'Petals of the Moon' rises beside Stub Canal
Petals of the Moon, a public artwork by Sinta Tantra, has been installed at The Sound, 8111 S. Dixie Highway, at the city's southern gateway. Its two steel forms run parallel to Stub Canal. The piece came out of a partnership between the city's Art in Public Places program and Woodfield-Flagler Venture. Tantra drew on the area's history of growing pineapples and on its waterways, calling the work "a gesture of optimism and offering." The Sound has not opened yet. The city plans a public commemoration of the piece in December, when The Sound opens. A free AiPP guide on Bloomberg Connects carries audio commentary from Tantra in English and Spanish.