Broward County Commission

DeGroot DePants DeSentinel

Gonzo Gets Noticed

Did John Gotti Do Anything Right?

DeGroot On The Big Pump Thump

In The News: Airport, BSO Shooting, & Naugle

Undercurrents

Undercurrents

Undercurrents

Florida Alliance for Patronage

A group dedicated mainly to its own business interests is getting taxpayer bucks from Broward County commissioners

Best Scandal

Josephus Eggelletion's credit card

Best Politician

Dean J. Trantalis Readers' Choice: US Rep. Clay Shaw

Personal Best

Ben Graber

Hollywood Mayor Bober: Fort Lauderdale, Give Us Our Sand!

Beach erosion has been a problem in South Florida at least since the Army Corps of Engineers created the Intracoastal Waterway last century.  Under natural circumstances, winds and waves push sand down the coast, gently and perpetually southward.  But wherever there's a man-made jetty that ... More >>

Mold? Rats? Yikes! Tear the Place Down!

The courthouse must be replaced! says an unholy alliance of judges and downtown landlords

When a Newspaper Shills

The Sun-Sentinel brass steps over the line on airport expansion

Mayor Al Engineers Another Deal

Turns out Deerfield Beach's honcho is into more shenanigans than we detailed last week.

The Lobbyist

Broward Commissioner Josephus Eggelletion quietly pulls political strings in Lauderdale Lakes -- and personally profits in the process

Broward Shell Game

It wasn't Elections Supervisor Miriam Oliphant who done the county wrong but the County Commission itself

Out of Touch

You press the screen. The machine tells you that your vote has been counted. But how can you be sure?

Poke-Mondo

Norton's going Japanese

Clock that Rocker

The South Florida version of The Chair

Print and Politics

The Broward Times delivers unconventional, often shrill journalism to an unsuspecting town

Broward Still Putting the "Ick!" in "Ethics" Reform

We're supposed to be happy that public officials in Broward are getting a primer on ethics. U.S. Attorney Alex Acosta will pay a visit to the Broward County Commission to stage an ethics tutorial (You had better be taking actual notes, Ritter, not doodles or love letters to a certain lobbyist). The ... More >>

Broward May Throw Bone to Private Sector

broward.org/animalRomeo: An orphaned mutt leery of the private sectorOne year ago, a study by a national consulting firm found that Broward County's Animal Care and Regulation Department was woefully short-staffed, making it impossible to guarantee service required by law for control of the local pe ... More >>

Petition Circulating to Support Dragon Boaters

Flickr User: Newfie BulletMore than a hundred people have signed on to support the Blazing Paddles.There's still no word on when the Broward County Commission will discuss the fate of the Blazing Paddles dragon boat team in West Lake Park. But for those who have been following the boaters' saga--the ... More >>

Bitchin' Car, Al! But How Will You Explain It to Stacy?

​The Broward Sheriff's Office is rolling out a fleet of 2009 Dodge Challengers, but if this is the first you've heard about it, that's probably because they arrive amid a fierce round of budget slashing in other county agencies. Not exactly a climate for bragging about muscle cars.It's a little li ... More >>

Another Judy Stern-Backed, Born-Again Democrat Launches Campaign in Broward

Barbra Stern, the daughter of Democrat strategist Judy Stern, today followed through on her long-rumored campaign for Florida House district in Fort Lauderdale vacated by Ellyn Bodganoff, who's running for Florida Senate. Barbra Stern was originally a Democrat but she had a fling with the Republican ... More >>

Broward Commissioners Silent on Dragon Boats

Flickr user: Newfie BulletThe commissioners chose lunch over dragon boats.​Members of the dragon boat team fighting to keep practicing in West Lake Park finally made their pitch to the Broward County Commission this week. But they were met with resounding... silence. The commissioners, who allowed ... More >>

Morning Juice: Two Men From Broward With Radically Different Stories, Both Feeling Lucky

​Today everybody will be talking about 9/11 -- because we haven't talked about it enough these past eight years. Screw that. Let's talk about the local news.Congratulations to Sen. George LeMieux, a lesson to all you Broward schoolchildren that sometimes you only need one vote to win a major polit ... More >>

Honey, I Rigged the Vote: Broward Power Couples Screw Each Other; Then They Screw Us

Can Ritter and Klenet hold on to the top spot on our corruption watch list?​In light of the explosive findings Bob Norman's been posting over at Daily Pulp, it's time we identify a trend in Broward corruption: power-mad married couples, ruling the region like a king and queen, carving up our publi ... More >>

The Art & Culture Center's Exhibition of Public Art May Piss Off More People Than It Pleases..

Can Ritter and Klenet hold on to the top spot on our corruption watch list?​In light of the explosive findings Bob Norman's been posting over at Daily Pulp, it's time we identify a trend in Broward corruption: power-mad married couples, ruling the region like a king and queen, carving up our publi ... More >>

New Pompano Beach City Manager Has to Make Condo Bust Go Boom

The Plaza at OceanSide at Atlantic and A1A in Pompano Beach.​"What is today -- Friday?" asks Pompano Beach City Manager Dennis Beach. "This is my fifth day on the job." Indeed, an eternity. Which is why Juice called to ask whether he had finally gotten 'round to addressing the massive condo vacanc ... More >>

Morning Juice: Stage Fright at Sun Life; Broward Commissioners Give Voters No Choice on Courthouse

​As the weather slowly warms for the big game, let's see what the local headlines have to say:Sun Life Stadium had a mighty scare last night when a stage collapsed during a Super Bowl rehearsal, injuring four people. Not exactly the publicity that the folks at Sun Life had in mind when they ponied ... More >>

Morning Juice: Nova Professor Murdered in Home; FBI Agent Shows Salesman the Money

​The news in Broward and Palm Beach:A Nova Southeastern University science professor is believed to be dead following a home invasion early Tuesday morning. Police say a man and his wife were tied up by an intruder, who shot the man -- believed to be homeowner Joseph Morrissey -- and then set the ... More >>

Pompano City Manager Making Changes Following Corruption Charge Against City Official

Photo: City of Pompano BeachDennis Beach​Dennis Beach, city manager of Pompano Beach, wants to put prospective volunteers through a more rigorous training course before allowing them to volunteer on city committees. He hopes that it will help to prevent arrests like the one that occurred Monday, w ... More >>

Morning Juice: Oil Will Ride Current to South Florida Coast; Circle K Killings an Isolated Event

​Here's what's in the local news this morning:If crews don't fix the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico soon, then scientists say it's "inevitable" that an ocean current will bring that contaminated water up Florida's east coast, through Broward and Palm Beach. [Palm Beach Post]Two forensic psycholog ... More >>

Morning Juice: Ethics Reform on Track in Broward; Marlins Lose Heartbreaker

​Let's see what's happening in South Florida:Faced with two terrifying evils, members of the Broward County Commission appear ready to pass an ethics reform package they aren't sure they can work within, but it's still better than the other option of scrapping the reform package and facing the wra ... More >>

It Was a Good Day for Ethics in Broward County (Especially Deerfield Beach)

Slowly, the county's darkest, most ethically challenged corridors are allowing the light in. The Broward County Commission's giving grudging support Tuesday to an ethics reform package may have the most far-reaching impact on Broward residents. But right now, the city that's a shining example of how ... More >>

Morning Juice: Lamberti Stung by Minority Report; Miami Archdiocese Installs New Leader

​The news in Broward and Palm Beach this Tuesday morning:An internal report concludes that Broward Sheriff Al Lamberti's agency has neglected measures meant to increase diversity. The sheriff is already being criticized for steering layoffs toward jail staff, which is dominated by minority deputie ... More >>

Morning Juice: Heat Hit a Free Agent Lotto; Thief Lived by Gun, Died by Gun

​A look at the local news for Wednesday morning in South Florida:Within hours of announcing her resignation from the Broward County Commission, Diana Wasserman-Rubin was arrested and charged with unlawful compensation, based on her casting votes on grants for Southwest Ranches that were written by ... More >>

A High Schooler's Guide to Broward County Commission Politics

Photo: C. StilesKristin Jacobs had a score to settle with Sue Gunzburger.​I know that sometimes the politics behind Broward County Commission decisions can seem complex, but trust me: Anyone who has been to high school can understand the social dynamics at work on the county's legislative body.The ... More >>

UPDATED: Did Judge Lazarus Violate Judicial Canons?

The recent ridiculous "Convicted Criminal" mailers targeting Broward County Commission candidate Chip LaMarca is indeed tied directly to Broward Mayor Ken Keechl's campaign. Another egregious Keechl mailer​Turns out that the address of the "Broward Good Government Commi ... More >>

Ilene Lieberman Is Back in the Building!

Lieberman is second from left ​Ilene Lieberman, after months of no-shows and call-ins to Broward County Commission meetings, has finally returned to public service. She's on the dais now -- after fellow Commissioner Chip LaMarca made it an issue last week and m ... More >>

$610,000 for Courthouse Art? Better Be Good

An example of public art at the Broward County Jail on the New River. It's a 32-foot high coral circle (or rice cake, as some call it). Cost to taxpayers: $480,000. ​So the Broward County Commission is going to discuss putting $610,000 worth of public art  ... More >>

Coffee Art: Osama Bin Latte

Ron Gunzburger's Facebook PageThis is the fine work of Rob Negron at the Brew Urban Cafe on Himmarshee.​Al Qaeda put out a statement on the internet today about Osama Bin Laden's death: "It [Bin Laden's blood] will remain, with permission from Allah the Almighty, a curse that chases the Ameri ... More >>

Broward County Passes Model Ordinance to Regulate "Pill Mills" That Don't Actually Exist

neglectedwar.comA pain management clinic, which doesn't exist in unincorporated Broward County​The Broward County Commission unanimously passed a new zoning and regulatory ordinance yesterday for pain management clinics in unincorporated areas of the county.This new ordinance requires all of the s ... More >>

Broward County Commission to Oppose Everglades Drilling (Which Already Exists)

Flickr/boggerthelogger​In next Wednesday's meeting, the Broward County Commission will move to adopt language in its state and federal legislative programs "opposing any oil drilling or exploration in or around the Everglades."The legislative programs are a set agenda of issues that the County Com ... More >>

Broward County Commission Drops the Bong-Hammer on Youngsters

superstoned.net​Thanks to the Broward County Commission, youngsters under the age of 18 now have to get permission from Mom or Dad to buy a "smoking device."All hope is not lost for the young potheads of Broward -- the commission didn't ban kids from buying apples.The ordinance, sponsored by Commi ... More >>

Are You a Lobbyist? Maybe, According to New Broward County Ethics Ordinance

A potential lobbyist​A town council member in Southwest Ranches has refused to talk to his constituents about town matters, citing a new ethics ordinance that was approved last Tuesday night by the Broward County Commission.Bill Di Scipio, a Southwest Ranches resident, had been trying to set up a ... More >>

Who's Proposing New Broward County Commission Districts?

​Tuesday saw the first of two public hearings at the Broward County Commission about redistricting in the wake of the 2010 Census -- deciding how the county's nine commissioners will split up their constituencies in an attempt to meld geographical equity with a little well-intentioned gerrymanderi ... More >>