Frank's Plantation

It was envisioned as a well-planned community in a rural setting. Too bad long-time mayor Frank Veltri couldn't make it happen.

Comments (0) By Bob Norman Thursday, Apr 1 1999

With these problems Plantation is hardly the model of growth it was meant to be. As development begins to cover western Palm Beach County -- an area that Gulfstream said 26 years ago would "inevitably" become connected to the urban grid rooted in Miami -- some there are hoping the same mistakes won't be repeated. If there must be growth, they say, let it be strictly controlled and planned, so that people will have decent yards and space to breathe when it's done.

"I'm afraid this area is going to look like Plantation in a very few years," said former Palm Beach County commissioner Ken Adams in a Sun-Sentinel article. "It's six-lane intersections with traffic waiting two changes of the light."

Veltri doesn't like to hear such complaints that urban sprawl can be defined by his city and reminds us that people rarely get their way. The former strong mayor of Plantation says he didn't have the power to save Plantation from the inevitable.

"Do you think I wanted them to build houses to the north of me?" Veltri asks at his kitchen table, twisting his wrapper. "No. I didn't want that, and I didn't know they were going to build them when I moved here. Nobody's got it perfect."

Contact Bob Norman at his e-mail address: Bob_Norman@newtimesbpb.com