recreation – Northern Palm Beach County

Paddle with the current — BOTH WAYS — with Club Scrub

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Club Scrub’s Endless Summer River Paddle & Rocking Jupiter Sandbar Party is planned for Saturday, Sept. 16.

The Guided Paddle Adventure is from Jonathan Dickinson State Park down the NW Fork of the Loxahatchee River to the Club Scrub Jupiter Sandbar Party (about 5-miles).

Paddle down the Loxahatchee River to our Floating Refreshment Stops, relax then paddle the rest of the way to the Rocking Jupiter Sandbar Party.

They paddle both ways with current.

Launch is about 10 a.m. at JD Park’s River Area Swim Beach.

Organizers ask you arrive by 9:30 a.m.

Live music, food and music are planned.

Click here for to register or for more information.

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Lake Park: We want to join the U.S. 1 renaissance

A parking garage could be built near Lake Park Marina (Photo/Bill DiPaolo)

LAKE PARK — With new condos and businesses popping up along U.S. 1 in north county, tiny Lake Park wants to bring in mixed-use projects to join in the revival.

Public workshop planned Thursday, Aug. 31 at 6 p.m. at town hall.

Read the full story in the Palm Beach Post.

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Jupiter struts its stuff to attract a new town manager

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“Pristine beaches, unmatched recreational offerings, stunning scenic vistas, a high quality of life,” reads the national advertisement seeking a new town manager in Jupiter.

About 50 candidates from across the country sent in their resumes, seeking the position that Andy Lukasik vacated.

Read the full story in The Palm Beach Post.

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Love Street in Jupiter: Sept. 7 is the final vote

Wearing red shirts, opponents have attended town council meetings and said the plan will bring too much traffic and pollution to Jupiter’s Inlet Village.

Finally — after three years of revisions, lawsuits and public hearings — the Love Street plan to build an outdoor marketplace on the Jupiter Inlet is scheduled for a final vote before the town council Thursday, Sept. 7.

See full story in The Palm Beach Post.

Love Street developer Charles Modica says the outdoor marketplace will bring recreation, jobs and tax revenue to Jupiter.

Calling artists for 2018 ArtiGras Fine Arts Festival

Artist Anthony Gargiulo, Stuart touches up a concrete sandhill crane sculpture at The 32nd Annual Artigras Fine Arts Festival held at Abacoa in Jupiter. (Melanie Bell / The Palm Beach Post)

The Palm Beach North Chamber of Commerce is accepting artists’ applications online for the 2018 ArtiGras Fine Arts Festival scheduled for February 17-19, 2018 in Jupiter.

Artists can email artists@artigras.org, call (561) 748-3942 or visit www.artigras.org for more information.

ArtiGras showcases a juried exhibition of 300 nationwide artists. Featured are interactive art exhibits, children’s activities, live music, and art demonstrations.

ArtiGras is produced by the Palm Beach North Chamber of Commerce and is presented by Palm Beach Gardens Medical Center.

Artists’ applications are being accepted for jury selection in 13 fine art categories including ceramics, digital art, drawing and printmaking, fiber (wearable and non-wearable), glass, jewelry, metal, mixed media, painting, photography, sculpture and wood.

ArtiGras Fine Arts Festival offers the “Emerging Artist” category for local artists.

Artists who have never exhibited in a show and reside in the Palm Beach County area can apply.

Deadline for artists to apply online is Monday, September 11, 2017.

Wrists bands – and more stuff you didn’t know – about Juno Beach Pier

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The Juno Beach Pier is a great spot to fish, watch rocket launches, take photos, enjoy sunsets/sunrises, attend church services, get married, watch sea turtles and bring a brown-bag lunch. (Photo/Bill DiPaolo)

Fishermen and sightseers to the Juno Beach Fishing Pier might be wondering:

What’s up with the wrist bands?

And the music?

It’s all part of making the pier experience more fun, says Jack Lighton, President and Chief Executive Officer of the Loggerhead Marinelife Center, which manages the Juno Beach Fishing Pier just south of Marcinski Road.

The recorded music is piped-in. Live music events on the pier have been held.

As for the wrist bands now handed out to pier visitors:

“Guests often leave the pier to use the restrooms or leave during a quick passing rain shower. The guest entry bands allow for quick re-entry to the pier and eliminates the need for our guests to hold and manage paper receipts,” according to Lighton.

The wrist bands allow pier visitors to leave and return on the same day without paying

Here’s numbers on sea life rescues:

42 sea turtles rescued from the pier (2013 – present)
52 shore birds rescued from the pier (2015 – present)

Read about LMC’s $14 million expansion.

More Juno Beach Pier numbers:

2016 Anglers: 36,206
2016 Visitors: 73,269
2016 Amount of fishing line recycled (in miles): 52.68 miles
2016 Amount of glass and aluminum recycled: 19,465 individual items
2016 Amount of cigarette butts collected and disposed of: 3,924
2016 Amount of underwater debris removed via underwater pier cleanups: 199.06 lbs.
2007 – present: amount of underwater debris removed via underwater pier cleanups: 2,637.91 lbs.

Jonathan Zmistowski, left, and Byron Thomas show the 60-pound wahoo they caught on the morning of June 28 while trolling a lure in 88 feet off the Juno Beach Pier.(File photo)

Daily, it’s $1 to walk on the pier. For fishermen, it’s $4.

The hours of operation of the Juno Beach Fishing Pier:

March 1st – October 31st: Monday – Sunday 30 minutes before sunrise – sunset

November 1st – February 28th: Sunday-Thursday 6 a.m. – 10 p.m. and Friday – Saturday 6 a.m. to midnight.

LMC, using grants and support the Marine Industries Association of Palm Beach County and Keep America Beautiful:
– Added tables and seating to the pier deck
– Hosted several FREE fishing clinics
– Added additional recycling containers
– Added additional monofilament (fishing line) recycling containers
– Added cigarette butt recycling containers

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Cigarette butts make up a large portion of the trash collected on the north county beach.

No more balloons at PBC parks starting Sept. 1 to protect sealife

Sea turtles often wind up mistaking plastic for food and choking on them.

Starting Sept. 1, balloons are illegal at Palm Beach County beachfront parks.

READ: Balloon releases banned in Palm Beach

“Sea turtles think they are jellyfish. Plastic in the ocean is a big issue. We want to protect native wild life and preserve the environment,” said Jennifer Cirillo, Palm Beach County assistant director of parks and recreation.

Signs have been posted at Loggerhead Park on A1A for about a year in preparation for the county ordinance to go in effect Sept. 1., said Cirillo.

“The public has had a positive response,” she said.

Loggerhead Marinelife Center officials welcome the balloon ban.

Medical staff at LMC often treat turtles injured from eating balloons and other plastic items.

When ingested, the remains can potentially damage sea turtles’ digestive systems, lead to starvation and even death.

“Ending the use of balloons at these beachfront parks will help protect sea turtles and other coastal wildlife, as well as provide clean, beautiful parks for locals and thousands of out-of-county guests who visit them every year,” said Tommy Cutt, LMC’s chief conservation officer.

The penalty is up to $500 and up to 60 days in jail faces a person who violates the balloon ban, according to county records.

Signs recently have been posted in 11 beachfront Palm Beach County parks between Boca Raton and Tequesta.

Leading up to Sept. 1, park officials will warn those visiting the parks who have balloons about the upcoming ordinance.

Sea turtles, dolphins, whales, fish and birds have been reported with balloons in their stomachs and ribbons and strings can lead to entanglement, injuries and even death, according to Florida Fish and Wildlife Service.

There are two types of balloons in general use – latex and mylar.

Mylar balloons are made with nylon. They are not considered biodegradable.

Although latex balloons are considered bio-degradable, this will take anywhere from 6 months to 4 years to decompose. Latex balloons can be especially deadly as their burst remnants actually mimic the food of many creatures, according to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

READ: Banning plastic shopping bags is gaining support

Coral Gables on May 9 was the first in Florida to approve a plastic bag ban. City commissioners approved the prohibiting the use of single-use, carryout plastic bags by retailers in the city and at special events.

Violators in Coral Gables face a $50 to $500 fine.

Several exceptions are allowed, such as plastic bags that hold prescriptions, those used at veterinarians’ offices, those for yard waste and several more.

These are the Palm Beach County beachfront parks where the balloon ban will be enforced starting Sept. 1:

Carlin Park, Jupiter
DuBois Park, Jupiter
Gulfstream Park, Gulfstream
Juno Beach Park, Juno Beach
Jupiter Beach Park, Jupiter
Loggerhead Park, Juno Beach
Ocean Cay Park, Jupiter
Ocean Inlet Park, Ocean Ridge
Ocean Reef Park, Riviera Beach
Peanut Island Park, Riviera Beach
South Inlet Park, Boca Raton

Bon Jovi fans can help out Perry J. Cohen Foundation

The Perry J. Cohen Foundation is auctioning off an acoustic guitar autographed by rock n’ roller Jon Bon Jovi.

The foundation was established in Perry’s name to promote the arts, environmental and marine preservation, teenage entrepreneurship and boating safety.

The Perry J. Cohen Wetlands Laboratory will include native plants, educational information and a boardwalk to provide hands-on training for Jupiter Community High School Environmental Research & Field Studies Academy students. Other students will also have access to the area.

Perry Cohen and Austin Stephanos left the Jupiter Inlet on July 24, 2015. They never returned.

Jupiter baseball fans: Tim Tebow coming here this weekend

Former University of Florida and Heisman Trophy winner Tim Tebow

Tim Tebow and the St. Lucie Mets are playing this weekend at Roger Dean Stadium in Jupiter.

Orange and blue number 15 Tebow T-shirts were more common than hot dogs as dozens of fans lined up along first base for a pre-game autograph the last time Tebow played in Jupiter in July.

Fans waited in four lines each about 60 deep to get into the Abacoa park to watch the former University of Florida and Heisman Trophy winner play left field for the St. Lucie Mets against the Jupiter Hammerheads.

Game times at Roger Dean Stadium: