June 27, 2024

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In this newsletter:

What Gregg's Been Up To
Free Guide Explorations of the Great Outdoors
Food Prep for Hurricane Season
AI Outlook
Gregg in the News
Commish in the Community
Elections 2024

What Gregg's Been Up To

In our last newsletter we talked about housing and traffic, both topics that are front of mind for residents and elected officials. How we develop, where we build, and how we move around are very much related to one another. Palm Beach County initially developed when there was lots of land, allowing for low density development. Car was king and there was little need for planning. This resulted in what’s called urban sprawl. As the county continues to develop, land is becoming scarcer, lot sizes smaller, and roads more crowded. There’s a need for more thoughtful planning. How can we continue to accommodate the growth of our population without overburdening our infrastructure? That’s a tough nut to crack, but an issue we’re all grappling with.

Over the years, county planners have come up with several tools to direct the growth where it is most suitable. At the June 18 workshop, county staff presented the board with an overview of these tools. One of them has to do with something called Transferable Development Rights (TDR). Here’s how it works: the county is divided up into parcels of land. In most cases owners of these parcels can build something on it. That’s called a development right. TDRs allow for the transfer of development rights from certain "sending" areas into certain "receiving" areas. In other words, you’re moving density from areas that aren’t suitable for development - such as natural areas - to places that are better suited for development because they have the location, infrastructure and services that can handle the additional development. "Density" refers to how much an owner of a parcel is allowed to put on the piece of land (one home or two). The county can grant someone additional density. That’s called a density bonus. Density bonuses make redevelopment of certain Urban Redevelopment Areas more attractive. The Workforce Housing Program works on the same idea. In exchange for additional density for developers, the county gets much-needed housing that’s affordable for working persons and families. Staff addressed several of the commissioners’ questions and concerns that have come up over the years, and talked about ways to improve the program. If you’re interested in learning more, watch the workshop here.

Finding a suitable and affordable place to live is hard for many essential workers in our county, so much so that a large number of them are living in Saint Lucie County, where prices are lower. Making this move results in a long commute, essentially adding more hours to a work week while also spending more on gas and car maintenance. To help these commuters, many of whom are county employees, PalmTran is experimenting with a new option called the Port Saint Lucie (PSL) Express. On June 18 the board approved this pilot program that's funded through a grant from the Florida Department of Transportation. On weekdays, the PSL Express will travel north and south on I-95 between West Palm Beach’s TriRail station and Gatlin Park in Port Saint Lucie. There will be two morning trips and two evening trips, taking about 50 minutes one way, and costing 3 bucks for a one-way ticket. The Palm Beach Post’s Mike Diamond wrote about it.

At a conference of the Florida Association of Counties (FAC) in Orlando, Gregg was recognized for his service. On June 26 he received the FAC Presidential Advocacy Award for his contributions to policy development.

Have a safe and happy Fourth of July Holiday - and thanks for being a reader!

Free Guided Explorations of the Great Outdoors

Join Palm Beach County's Environmental Resources Management team in exploring the natural side of the county! These FREE naturalist-led events that will provide a one-of-a-kind learning experience while getting outdoors hiking, photographing nature, paddling, cycling, and much more! The events are open to the public on a first come, first serve basis. Reservations are required (click on the button below) and events are subject to change due to weather conditions.

Click For a Schedule of All Events

Food Prep for Hurricane Season

In the event of a hurricane it’s recommended to have at least a week's worth of nonperishable food items and 1 gallon of water per person per day for up to 5 days. Not sure what else to include? Palm Beach County has a list of food items to include in your hurricane preparedness kit.

AI Insights

Artificial intelligence (AI) Used to Predict Parkinson's Up to

Seven Years Before Onset of Symptoms

Researchers from University College London and University Medical Center Goettingen have developed an AI-based blood test that can predict Parkinson's Disease (PD) up to seven years before symptoms appear, with 100% accuracy. The researchers aim to continue monitoring patients for further validation and hopes to create a simpler blood spot test for even earlier PD prediction.

Click to Read More

AI You Can Use

How to Spot Fake AI-Generated Content (Deepfakes)

Hey everyone! Jana here. I'll bet you've come across an image that looks off or heard an audio recording that doesn't sound authentic. If so it's likely that the image or sound is a deepfake - something that's been manipulated or generated entirely by AI. To arm yourself against these phonies, this article has tips on how to spot them in photos, videos, and audio. It also highlights a tool called DeepFake-o-meter, a free and open-source tool that can help to detect AI-generated content (though it's not always accurate). Don't have time to read the article? Read the Key Points here. To watch a video that's been manipulated, click the Play button below.

AI Calendar

Note: Not all events listed are open to the public.

7/10/2024 @ 12:00 PM: AI Lunch and Learn at the The Buena Vida Community in Wellington. Contact Pamela Avalos for more information.

8/6/2024 @ 6:30 PM: AI presentation for Radio Aficionado Club (Zoom presentation). Contact Henry Seidner for more information.

8/7/2024 @ 12:00 PM: AI presentation for the West Palm Beach Kiwanis Club at Hilton Airport Hotel. Contact Dan Ayers for more information.

If you would like to invite Commissioner Weiss to give a presentation in your community on artificial intelligence or any other topic, contact our office at district2@pbc.gov or 561-355-2202.

Sun Sentinel:

First came the payout from opioid settlement. Now, how will millions be used in South Florida?

Palm Beach Post:

Commuter St. Lucie Express $3 bus trips to West Palm Beach coming in September

Commish in the Community

Celebrations, anniversaries, meeting with agencies, recognizing community leaders, joining neighbors' festivities and going to neighborhood meetings ... Commissioner Weiss spends a lot of time in the community.

"As an elected official, I want to be part of the community I represent," said Commissioner Weiss. "I want to understand the issues in my district, and that's why I spend many evenings attending events to listen and learn."

If you'd like to invite Commissioner Weiss to your event, let us know.

Demystifying AI For County Leaders

Gregg got to moderate a workshop on his favorite topic at the Florida Association of County Conference on June 27th. Titled, "Demystifying AI For County Leaders," the workshop offered practical demonstrations of AI applications relevant to county governance. Several experts talked about how AI can enhance decision-making processes, streamline administrative tasks within local administrations.

Harold Grimes Park Renovation

The City of Lake Worth Beach celebrated the Harold Grimes Memorial Park Pavilion Renovation with a ribbon cutting event on June 20th. Gregg was delighted to be a part of this impactful project that was made possible by an ongoing collaboration between the City of Lake Worth Beach and Palm Beach County. More on the park upgrades here.