[{"_1":2,"_88":-5,"_89":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,76],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},"mediaId",6351656,"mediaKeyId","2229056-1e66cebdfb10228d9f83a46cb3716550","parentId",2229056,"title","Board outlines dune-restoration and beach-cleanup outreach plan; Delray Sands event targeted for spring","audioSeconds",3181,"startMs",2332000,"endMs",5513000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=2229056-1e66cebdfb10228d9f83a46cb3716550&start=2332&end=5513","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2229056-1e66cebdfb10228d9f83a46cb3716550/thumbnail_2332000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6351656/Florida/Board-outlines-dune-restoration-and-beach-cleanup-outreach-plan-Delray-Sands-event-targeted-for-spring","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6351656-633c276b1644268a3c7e73b9cccfea8e/orig.mp4?Expires=1777455061&Signature=NTWtfAOg3v-ohF-94LnSWbqABJSLZktokzsB1kVWuwldECaW9VS5QRMEj-Snx65d94llQdOvl~msWNCF41y8LBx-MDpmX3iFhvWEOd99mVPPP7r7WpJ8SYhmKEkzQoSwwq46GjdbjSDz~HD-wPNqH2oMkYlZp7xiZXDaF-UCcZ9zn-sqadbbblhhI4IVYE9nNRduU2qu6ExlOeZFdlw6Wt-XhBU3LY4h4dJdBf91zCBiG0lyQQGxFCtaBf-GSa0xyDAHgTiq97qgFkaYNOYyEqA7y8C5dfGUzsRX-uk88wp2vcZtXNpgxcK5wJanjGiG~Vaw-yqTIV68MZkCs2NtRA__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","Town of Highland Beach, FL","date","2025-02-05T15:57:30Z","article","The Natural Resources Preservation Advisory Board set a series of outreach tasks and pilot events during its Feb. 5 meeting, aiming to pair dune-restoration education with volunteer beach cleanups and condo outreach on beach-raker supervision and trash collection.

Board members and the town planner described four linked topics for outreach: dune-restoration demonstrations, placement of ‘‘bucket’’ receptacles by existing trash cans, quick outreach to condo managers about raker conduct and beach cleanup events that could include students from St. Andrew’s School. The board agreed members would contact specific condominium associations along the beachfront and report back at the next meeting.

Town Planner Alan summarized options for a public-facing event and said the town manager has no objection to an outreach session that could include a speaker, light refreshments and a demonstration. The board discussed a possible spring date — April or May — for a first event at Delray Sands Resort, with a target attendance of about 30–40 people and modest food/coffee costs if the resort does not sponsor the meeting.

Board members divided outreach targets among themselves during the meeting; assignments included contacting northern properties (Townhouses of Highland Beach, Highland Place and Wiltshire House), midtown properties (Penthouse Towers, Villamare, Ambassador East) and southern properties (Parker Highland, Boca Highland Beach Club). The planner said he will collect members’ findings and include a consolidated report on the next agenda.

On trash outreach, the board noted that the Townhouses of Highland Beach agreed to install three bucket receptacles hung from an existing enclosure; public-works staff will place or refill buckets on request. The town planner said the town’s website already includes guidance documents (invasive-plant guides, dune best-practice materials and a Penthouse Towers case study) and suggested a QR code linking directly to key resources to make materials easier for residents to access.

Separate volunteer efforts are also advancing: board members reported St. Andrew’s School may bring 20–30 students for a cleanup or dune-education session on deeded-access sections; members discussed liability, parking and coordination with private-property owners before scheduling a school-led activity. One board member said a volunteer-driven T-shirt idea and small fundraising or sponsorship could be timed to a cleanup day, but the board cautioned against adding too many new initiatives in 2025 and agreed to prioritize dune outreach and several pilot events first.

Ending: Board members collected outreach assignments and asked staff to add a follow-up item to the March agenda so members can report contacts and firm a date for the Delray Sands event and other pilot actions.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","February 05, 2025 Natural Resources Preservation Advisory Board Meeting","oneSentenceSummary","Advisory board members agreed to pursue a slate of community outreach actions — dune-restoration demonstrations, condo outreach about rakers and trash, bucket-tree installations and volunteer beach cleanups — and assigned outreach contacts and next steps ahead of a planned spring event at Delray Sands Resort.","taxTitle","Town of Highland Beach, Palm Beach County, Florida","taxId",75679,"location","Florida","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":77,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":78,"_41":79,"_43":80,"_45":81,"_47":82,"_49":83,"_51":84,"_53":85,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":86,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":87,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},6351661,"Highland Beach officials review long-running beach-raker practice; manager to press companies and DEP for clarifications",1940,384000,2324000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2229056-1e66cebdfb10228d9f83a46cb3716550&start=384&end=2324","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2229056-1e66cebdfb10228d9f83a46cb3716550/thumbnail_384000.jpg","/articles/6351661/Florida/Highland-Beach-officials-review-long-running-beach-raker-practice-manager-to-press-companies-and-DEP-for-clarifications","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6351661-d3b695d8f6fce507ed62e52bb43d4624/orig.mp4?Expires=1777455061&Signature=PxdzwJXr3zm6lJhV6FzsGJH-fIhgb2mtRI0DPb2Es92mMPbzg3-eDdTsnCDs7A3D2AbcWkKowIKmYjBjTCRKV3-DYXKINRYI4-4qx06g4S5i4~Yuh5PE-PsQVraFDgetsejMAGh7-U8iwKtq20hH4Y0vde2oIk1lrleQnxpoHWsfc1NXGuk1dA-nujk6pZCynHN8uWwzTUO7xwCIcD0ajBtGSfXxO~0AJlhcee6m0aObf3UoTRS2y2VmnOkQtbZXxWZXAFAglQKjQGPE2TvsIAqHguUNG9fPsEvWRFqFBf1qv3EIltbrZY2D0fJMtBpdOY~cjxNpdjyZUfIuYSq-6w__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","The Natural Resources Preservation Advisory Board and town staff spent most of their Feb. 5 meeting reviewing the long-running dispute over private beach rakers in Highland Beach, with Town Manager Marshall Labady summarizing 15 years of consultations, permits and resident complaints and telling the board staff will send a letter to the raking companies and copy the Florida Department of Environmental Protection.

Labady, the town manager, told the board that ‘‘they are permitted by the state of Florida to bury the seaweed and the wet sand’’ under current DEP permits and that the state grants wet-sand burial in part because removing large volumes of sargassum could cost “$3 to $4 million” to truck off beaches during a heavy season. He described the recurring cycle: neighborhood complaints about ruts and buried trash, DEP permitting that allows wet-sand burial, and limits on the town’s ability to regulate activity on private beachfront property.

The town manager framed the issue historically: Highland Beach considered a special-assessment district and multiple ordinances in the 2010–2019 period, consulted scientists and nonprofit experts, and repeatedly sought DEP guidance about where rakers may operate relative to the high-water mark. Labady said the town has generally deferred to DEP enforcement but maintains regular communications and forwards resident complaints to the agency.

Why this matters: raking affects sea-turtle nesting season, dune integrity and residents’ private beach areas. Residents and volunteer turtle teams have said rakers sometimes bury debris or leave ruts that damage dune vegetation or private entrances; beach-raker companies say they remove as much large debris as practical but cannot collect every small fragment mixed into sargassum.

Board members and several residents described differing experiences. One resident said beach-raker drivers sometimes do not leave their trucks to collect large items and at times drive above the wet-sand line, leaving visible ruts. Labady acknowledged drivers and driver turnover as enforcement challenges and said staff regularly reminds companies about tire pressures, permitted operating zones and turtle-season limits. He told the board he will prepare a formal letter for the Natural Resources Advisory Board to sign, and he said he will ask DEP for its view on ‘‘customary use’’ and on how king tides affect the permitted high-water operating zone.

Labady also repeated that Highland Beach’s narrow, largely private beachfront — unlike larger public beaches to the north and south — limits the town’s options for large-scale removal or truck-haul disposal of sargassum. He said DEP permits allow wet-sand burial because moving every ton offsite would be prohibitively expensive in heavy sargassum years.

The board discussed possible nonregulatory steps as well: an annual reminder letter or ‘‘harsh’’ reminder from the manager’s office to raker firms about expectations for pulling off trucks and removing large trash, closer coordination during turtle season, and copying the state on complaints. Labady said he would prepare a written letter and share it with the board.

The meeting did not adopt any new local ordinance or ban; the board recorded the discussion and asked staff to pursue the letter and additional DEP clarification as a staff action.

Ending: Board members asked staff to circulate the manager’s draft letter to the raker companies and to DEP before the next meeting so the board can follow up and assign outreach tasks if needed.","Town manager summarized 15 years of debate over private beach raking, saying companies are state-permitted to bury sargassum in wet sand and that the town will send a letter to raker firms and copy the Florida Department of Environmental Protection to press for compliance and clarity on customary-use questions during king tides.","actionData","errors"]

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Board outlines dune-restoration and beach-cleanup outreach plan; Delray Sands event targeted for spring

Highland Beach officials review long-running beach-raker practice; manager to press companies and DEP for clarifications