Wellington Community Foundation awards $56,000; council approves Related’s site‑access license for Wellington project

The Wellington Community Foundation presented the village with a $56,000 funding package at the April 14 council meeting to support local programs for children, seniors and veterans.

Foundation representatives and village staff outlined awards including: $4,000 for the holiday toy drive; $6,000 for Boys & Girls Club summer camp scholarships; $7,500 for the back‑to‑school drive; $20,000 to the Vince Ramos Therapeutic Riding Center for equine therapy programs at Palm Beach Central and Wellington High Schools; $8,000 for Village Park summer‑camp scholarships; $2,000 for a bicycle assistance program; and $1,000 for the youth council. Jim Sackett, chair of the Wellington Community Foundation, said the grants are intended to support ‘‘lifelines’’ and community needs and thanked council and staff for their collaboration.

Separately, Charles Duval of CareerSource Palm Beach County announced a National Apprenticeship Week‑linked Apprenticeship and Skilled Trades Fair on April 30 at 09:00 at the Wellington Community Center, describing the event as a response to local skilled‑trade shortages and listing participating trades and employers.

On a related development item, council approved a site‑access and construction‑at‑risk license agreement that allows Related/Wellington Property Owner LLC (the developer with a pending purchase‑and‑sale agreement) to perform limited pre‑closing site work on the mixed‑use and school parcels. Staff said the license includes security provisions requiring the developer to restore the property if the purchase does not close; council approved the license 5–0.

The foundation grants, apprenticeship outreach and the Related site‑access agreement represent parallel efforts to support community programs and advance an in‑progress redevelopment project while preserving village protections for the public interest.