Coral Springs officials are making a concerted effort to make sure residents spend their money within the city.

Mayor Scott Brook recently kicked off the city’s Buy Coral Springs campaign at the Coral Square Mall. “The more you spend here, the more small businesses will be supported. Let us keep the businesses and money local. It will help us diversify our tax base. The economy is hurting; we want to make a positive impact. We don’t want you to go to Boca, Margate or other cites for your purchases.”

Brook is also in favor of giving local businesses “an iota of extra weight” when it comes to awarding work on city projects. “We shouldn’t choose somebody just because they are local, but I do want us to look a little bit harder at local businesses.”

Commissioner Tom Powers said he liked the concept.

Brook also advocated including a member of the City Commission on the city’s construction review committee. Commissioner Roy Gold, however, said he was against the idea.

“We are five different people,” Gold said. “I like the independence of the process we now have. I will be hesitant to support the idea.”

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While Coral Springs will get more than $3.4 million from the federal department of Housing and Urban Development under the Neighborhood Stabilization Program, Parkland’s share of the pie will be only $35,000.

The money is to be used to offset the effect of foreclosed homes within the city. While six cities in Broward County will get the money directly, the amount set aside for smaller cities such as Parkland will be distributed throughout the county.

The Parkland City Commission recently discussed the issue.

“The amount for each municipality is decided based on population and the number of foreclosed homes in the area,” said City Manager Caryn Gardner-Young. “Some of the municipalities have said they want direct control of the money, but that carries considerable administrative costs.”

Mayor Michael Udine said he is in favor of the city getting the money through the county. “Since our city is so small, it doesn’t pay for us to hire an administrator [to implement the program]. The money will still be spent in Parkland; they will listen to our ideas.”

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Officials in Parkland have asked Miami-Dade County leaders to reconsider naming their newest city "Parkland."

A resolution recently passed by the City Commission said that while the city has no desire to interfere with the home rule authority of Miami-Dade County, it believes it would be confusing and unfair to create a city with the same name as one in a neighboring county. Copies of the resolution will be sent to the Miami-Dade County Commission, the county administrator and the Department of Community Affairs.

“Some residents have contacted me on the matter. We want to protect the name 'Parkland',” Mayor Michael Udine said. “We have worked hard to develop a brand which represents high quality semi-rural living and a family atmosphere.”

As soon as local leaders became aware of the issue, letters were sent to the Miami-Dade County mayor and the Florida League of Cities. Staff asked the city attorney to investigate the legality of two Florida municipalities having the same name. Inquiries revealed that there are two cities named Midway in Florida, one south of Sanford and the other northwest of Tallahassee.

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Coral Springs Mayor Scott Brook wants the city to use the services of residents who want to help people avoid foreclosures.

“There are people in the community who have come to me saying they would like to help,” Brook said. “It is a great thing that people are looking to help others; we should be thinking of forming a Foreclosure Avoidance Team. We don’t have the staff to form such a committee, but we can put together a booklet to help residents avoid foreclosure. A lot of residents do not know about the different ways to avoid foreclosure; the booklet will help them.”

Brook said heis excited about the neighborhood stabilization program that is aimed at helping cities affected by foreclosures. "We are building a list of potential customers that can take advantage of the program. I am really looking forward to seeing the program implemented. We are committed to spending every dollar," he said.

“It is a great program,” Commissioner Roy Gold said. “We should let residents know the details of the program. Lots of people have been contacting me; it is a very popular program across the nation.”

City Manager Mike Levinson said the city will set up a separate phone number for people to call and get details about the program. “We have an innovative strategy. We are anxious to get rolling," he said.

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Vince Boccard will continue to be vice mayor of Coral Springs.

At a recent commission meeting, Mayor Scott Brook decided in favor of giving an extended run for Boccard as vice mayor. "Vince has done a great job as vice mayor. He is a great presence for us in the community. Commissioner Gold held the position for a year and eight months."

Boccard, who has been a resident of Coral Springs for more than a decade, was elected as city commissioner Seat 2 in March 2006 and succeeded Gold as vice mayor in 2007. He is a general contractor/developer, and co-owner of Boccard Homes and Kessler Construction. He also has the experience of serving as vice mayor and village commissioner of El Portal in Miami Dade County.

Boccard founded the Lisa Boccard Coral Springs Breast Cancer Foundation for woman without health care and is a founding director of the Florida Breast Cancer Coalition. He is also the chairman of the Coral Springs Youth & Family Committee.

In neighboring Parkland, Mark Weissman recently took over for Jared Moskowitz as the vice mayor. The city also has a deputy vice mayor position, currently occupied by Jay Smith.

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In the midst of the celebrations, family reunions and all that holiday food, anyone can forget how many drinks they've had.

The AAA Auto Club South and Budweiser will be protecting drivers on the road this Thanksgiving weekend through a program called Tow to Go, which provides a confidential ride home and tow, free of charge, to anyone who may have had too much to drink simply by calling 1-800-AAA-HELP.

‘Tow to Go’ services will be offered throughout the state of Florida and will be available from Nov. 27 to Jan. 1.

Rather than allowing anyone whose sobriety is in question drive, call 1-800-AAA-HELP this weekend.

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In the end, the dream finish to the season eluded the Marjory Stoneman Douglas Eagle Regiment Marching Band, but there were plenty of high points for the band members to cherish.

The band, which was looking to win the state championship in the Class 3A division for the second year in a row, came second to Gainesville at the championship last Saturday in St. Petersburg. Eleven schools competed in Class 3A.

The Eagle Regiment, under the direction of John Rusnak and led by drum majors Dale Tuason and Mark Stein, captured honors for best percussion and best visual effect during the semifinal round. The school's show, “In the Shadow of Dragons,” came in for much praise at the championship.

The band began working on this year’s performance as early as May this year, said Rusnak, who has been working at the school for 19 years. “We had a design meeting and then had a camp in June. This was followed by a camp two weeks before school started. We practiced twice a week. We have a lot of talent here.”

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A Coral Springs resident appeared before the City Commission last week and complained that his firm had been denied a chance to bid for the $13.5 million project that involves renovation of the public safety complex and construction of a new fire station.

Todd Nezwek, president of Bluewater Builders Inc. and a Coral Springs resident for 13 years, filed a formal protest with the city after his firm was not among the three companies prequalified for the project. City staff did not respond when he tried to find out from them why his firm was denied a chance to bid, Nezwek said.

“I own a business here. I am committed to the community,” Nezwek said. “This is a major project in our community. And here I have been denied an opportunity to at least bid for the project even though we are qualified to do it. Never once was the bid publicized. It is almost as if the process is being rushed through.”

Pirtle Construction Co., which has been awarded the contract for the project, did not present facts in a truthful manner, Nezwek said. “Every firm that wanted to bid for the project had to provide details of its legal history. Pirtle said it had no legal history. To me, that is fraud. Yet, they were allowed to bid for the project.”

Bluewater Builders Inc. did not meet the criteria that were established to prequalify builders, said Angelo Salomone, Coral Springs purchasing administrator. “We received 11 proposals and five were called in for interviews. The companies had to show they had completed a public safety building project of $5 million within the last seven years. They also needed to have experience with the LEED process.”

“Bluewater Builders constructed a community center in Coconut Creek. It does not house the fire or police department, Salomone said. “The center is operated by the Parks and Recreation Department. Nobody on the evaluation committee thought it was a public safety building.”

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Coral Springs is getting ready for an ambitious $13.5 million project that involves renovation of the public safety complex and construction of a new fire station.

"The public safety building we now have is antiquated," Vice Mayor Vince Boccard said. "It was built before the changes to the South Florida Building Code. We would be in dire straits if we had to deal with a bad hurricane; we need the renovation. Our residents are very much in favor of the new project."

Construction is scheduled to begin in the first week of January 2009, Larry Staneart, director of development services, said. “It is a complex project, as the facility will not close during renovation. The contract allows 480 calendar days for all construction of the project, which would mean a final completion date of March 30, 2010. The new fire station-80 will officially open in April that year.”

The renovated public safety building will have a new emergency operating center, which will serve as the command center for northwest Broward County during emergencies, Staneart said. “The facility will be hardened to withstand hurricane winds up to 145 mph. The building will have a new two-story 10,000 square foot addition constructed on the west face of the building. The bond for the project is $13.5m. Cost of construction is $8,874,819.”

“We are using recycled building materials throughout the building,” Staneart said. “The building will have reflective roofing while day lighting will be provided in all occupied spaces. High efficiency air-conditioning systems will be used while native landscaping will eliminate the need for irrigation. The new fire station will be an official LEEDS-certified green building.”

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Samantha Weix, a senior at J. P. Taravella High School in Coral Springs, is not very fond of dancing. However, she happily danced the night away on Nov. 14.

“I was up on my feet all night; even lost my voice,” the Coral Springs resident said. “But it felt awesome. The thought that we were doing it to help kids who were sick and couldn’t dance made the whole night special.”

Weix was among those who helped Brian Zakarin, a fellow student, organize the first annual dance marathon at the school to benefit the Miami Children's Hospital. About 65 students from the school danced for 12 hours from 8 p.m. to raise money for the hospital that is part of the Children's Miracle Network. The event was organized through the key club at the school.

The night was not all about dancing though. Three-year old Shannon Walsh, who was born without an esophagus, came to the event with her father who spoke about how the hospital helped correct the congenital condition. Brittany Lundi and Christina Bukata, who were also treated at the hospital, also talked about their experiences.

Students had to donate $50 to attend the event, Zakarin said. “We were hoping to raise $5,000; we ended up with $4624.23. I got the idea for the event when my sister told me about the dance marathon they have at FIU. I then contacted the hospital and told them about our plan. Local businesses helped us too.”

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