At a July meeting, the Royal Palm Beach Village Council voted 4-1 to submit a resolution to the Palm Beach County Commission opposing any increase in the Minto West project beyond the originally approved plan for 2,966 homes and 235,000 square feet for commercial use. The sole opponent to this resolution was Vice Mayor David Swift, who said, “Saying no to Minto doesn’t make a lot of sense. This project (4,549 homes and 2.1 million square feet of nonresidential space) is going to be built, and I’m guessing there’s five votes on the county commission already to do it.”
So what happened to our state’s Sunshine laws? If Mr. Swift’s statement is true, then there clearly has been illegal activity, with deals being made behind closed doors before the public meeting is to occur. If this is a done deal, and members of the Palm Beach County Commission have met with the builders and/or already agreed to approve Minto’s increased proposal, this is a violation of the Sunshine laws, an abuse of power and a misuse of the public trust.
This situation is one of many that may exemplify the need for an empowered inspector general who will protect our quality of life and eliminate the abuse of power that continues to plague our county. We voted for and must continue to insist on full funding and total independence for our new inspector general — and the voters need to pay closer attention to who is really on their side.
Arlene Olinsky, Royal Palm Beach
David Swift openly supported Melissa McKinlay who supports Minto as it is and who does not support SR 7 – meaning all roadways for District 6 because they will hurt those Ibis residents of whom Mayor Muio is one. What did you expect from him?
if you have so much faith in the inspector general’s office, why don’t you file a complaint see what happens. oh and good luck with that!
Great observation…you might want to forward your letter to the new IG.