Page 15 - Lifesyles in Palm Beach Gardens - October '21

Lifestyles in Palm Beach Gardens, Page 15
Commissioner’s Update

Rail Connects Our with business, educational, retail and recreational venues stretch of the Florida East Coast (FEC) Railway corridor
in the Tri-County region for a reasonable fare. Fares
between downtown Miami and Jupiter, connecting the rail
Communities run from $1.25 to $17.50 based on zones traveled and networks. Transit-oriented developments (TOD) at stations
discount eligibility. Frequent riders may choose to preload along the eastern Coastal Link corridor are in the study
By County Commissioner an EASY card (similar to a SunPass card) with fares phase. Development at locations where SFRTA owns land
Maria Marino validated as passengers board and exit the train. Passes would result in a revenue stream for the agency. One of
Tri-Rail, the commuter and paper tickets are available at Tri-Rail stations and the proposed new stations for which I strongly advocated
rail service linking Palm not sold onboard the train. Information on calculating while serving as mayor and councilmember for the City of
Beach, Broward, and your fares in order to plan for your trips is located at Palm Beach Gardens, would be located at the southwest
Miami-Dade counties https://www.tri-rail.com/pages/view/fare-information- corner of PGA Boulevard and Alternate A1A and would
re c e nt l y re a c he d a calculating-your-fare. likely include a significant development of hotel, retail,
significant milestone – 100 Daily weekday ridership on Tri-Rail is approximately office and residential uses with convenient access to the
million riders. 15,000, and is currently operating at 92 percent of pre- train. The station could potentially serve both Tri-Rail
You may wonder how COVID service. Compared with other cities’ rail services and Brightline, the private high-speed-rail train service
that affects you, particularly around the U.S. that have experienced a slower recovery, currently constructing tracks to provide service from Miami
if you are not currently a Tri-Rail is a service, tourism and construction industry- to Orlando and from Orlando to Tampa.
rider. Consider this: for every person who takes Tri-Rail, based ridership that cannot telework. With Tri-Rail There is also heightened interest in conducting a
that is potentially one less vehicle on the highway. Taking connecting to all three major airports in the region, the feasibility study for a Tri-Rail station at the Veterans
the train can save you wear and tear on your vehicle, help SFRTA anticipates that airport ridership will return to Administration Medical Center in Riviera Beach. This
reduce the carbon footprint, and afford you a window of 100 percent by the end of 2021. would enhance transportation options for veterans to
time to perhaps read the news, catch up on work or studies, The three counties connect rail riders with their access services as well as present an opportunity for
and avoid the aggravation of crowded highway driving. respective bus services, light rail and people movers to residents in the western communities to access the train.
Tri-Rail commenced operations on Jan. 9, 1989. It take riders to their final destinations and back. For stations Additionally, Palm Tran is working with SFRTA on plans
covers a service area of 73.4 miles between the three in Palm Beach County, Palm Tran – the public transit bus to achieve fare collection interoperability between the
counties, with 18 stations. The hours of operation are 4 system – provides shuttle service from Tri-Rail stations to transit systems in all three counties, to promote a seamless
a.m. to 11:35 p.m. on 50 weekday trains and 5:17 a.m. destinations, along with taxis and transportation network fare system in the region.
to 11:45 p.m. on 30 weekend and holiday trains. See the companies such as Uber and Lyft. With road networks reaching capacity, a multimodal
following link for schedules: https://www.tri-rail.com/ South Florida is the fifth largest urbanized area in the transportation system is essential to maintaining our
pages/view/reduced-service-weekday-schedule. U.S. with more than five million residents, projected to economic competitiveness, high quality of life, and
The service, operated by the South Florida Regional grow by another three million people within the next 20 protecting our environment. This is the vision of the SFRTA.
Transportation Authority (SFRTA) on which I serve as years. Planning for this future growth, SFRTA is embarking As always, please contact me if I can be of assistance
the Palm Beach County Commission’s representative, on large-scale projects, including Coastal Link, which to you by calling (561) 355-2201 or send an email to
provides a comfortable, safe commute to connect you will reintroduce passenger service along an 85-mile mmarino@pbcgov.org.
Northern Notes

Owls – Silent And Effective are the smaller species and measure are offset on the sides of their head
only about 6 to 10 inches tall. All
in order to pinpoint location of
Predators but the burrowing owl prefer to live prey, the ability to control feathers
high in trees, in either tree cavities or on their dish-shaped face to direct
By Katie Roundtree, nesting boxes. Burrowing owls live in sounds into their ears, and comb-like
Finance Director, Northern areas with wide-open spaces and little structures on their feathers to silence
Palm Beach County vegetation and spend most of their them in flight.
Improvement District time on the ground or in burrows. Owls cannot move their eyes
Florida is home to five Each of the species have their in their eye sockets like humans
resident species of owls, own distinctive characteristics, but and most other animals. Instead,
including the barn owl, they all have one thing in common, they can rotate their heads up
barred owl, burrowing they are voracious eaters and can to 270 degrees (not 360 degrees
owl, eastern screech owl consume thousands of small rodents like sometimes believed) in order
and great horned owl. The in a year. Because of this, they are to view their surroundings. The
largest of these owls is the a welcome addition in most farms and neighborhoods. unusually high number of light-sensitive cells in their
great horned owl, which is Owls are mainly nocturnal creatures and have developed eyes, their large pupils, and a reflective layer behind the
generally 18 to 25 inches tall, followed by the barred owl some amazing adaptations to be successful hunters, such retina give them excellent nocturnal vision, useful when
and barn owl. The eastern screech owl and burrowing owls as the ability to rotate their heads 270 degrees, ears that hunting at night or navigating dark forests.
Their ability to locate prey by sound alone is the most
accurate of any animal that has ever been tested. Owls can
catch mice in complete darkness in the lab, or find prey
hidden by vegetation or snow out in the real world. Their
ears are placed unevenly on their head and point in slightly
different directions, giving the ability to hear where a
sound is coming from without moving their heads. Owls
can also funnel sound toward their ears by manipulating
Upscale Resale different types of feathers around the ears and face.
They are silent predators. Both primary and secondary
Experience The Difference feathers have comb-like structures at the edge of the feather
that are responsible for muffling the sound of the air going
over the wing – this essentially makes an owl virtually
New and consigned furniture, unique lighting, accessories and gifts. silent in flight. In addition, an owl’s feathers can separate
Complete wallpaper and fabric library for all your design needs. from each other on the same wing; therefore, the air flows
over each of the individual feathers and their comb-like
structures, which maximizes how silently owls fly.
Most of these species of owls are fairly common,
however, the burrowing owl is Florida’s only state-designated
threatened species of owl. Florida Atlantic University’s Boca
Raton campus was designated as a burrowing owl sanctuary
in 1971 and even though the campus has expanded, breeding
pairs still exist on the grounds.
Next time you’re outside in wooded areas around dawn
or dusk, look up; or if you’re in an open area, watch your
Call us to sell. See us to buy. step and keep an eye out for ground burrows. You may be
lucky enough to catch a glimpse of one of nature’s most
Over 16,000 sq. ft. in 2 locations to serve you! accomplished predators.
NPDES tip: Please pick up after your pet. When pet
PALM BEACH GARDENS: Promenade Plaza waste is washed into lakes or canals the waste decays,
9810 Alternate A1A • 561.694.0964 using up oxygen and sometimes releasing ammonia.
Low oxygen levels and ammonia combined with warm
WELLINGTON: Wellington Marketplace temperatures can kill fish. Pet waste also contains
13857 Wellington Trace • 561.798.5222 nutrients that encourage weed and algae growth. Perhaps
myconsignanddesign.com most importantly, it is considered a significant source of
Nanci Smith, CEO pathogens like fecal coliform, a disease-causing bacteria.
Source: Cornell University Cornell Lab of Ornithology