A fierce election fight shapes a city’s future

It’s been called the “most fun small town in the USA.” But “fun” doesn’t begin to describe Delray Beach these days.

The Village by the Sea is coping with a heightened level of intensity and meanness in its local politics. Residents’ social media pages are on fire. It’s a sign of how high the stakes are in shaping Delray’s future, especially on development.

Delray remains a desirable destination despite its many challenges. Plenty of people are eager to invest money to build more and bigger buildings. Drive by the huge $300 million Atlantic Crossing complex, and you can see a city’s character changing.

Development is driving the Seat 2 city commission race between incumbent Juli Casale and challenger Rob Long.

Casale, with roots in picturesque eastern Connecticut, is a champion of limited growth and is politically aligned with Mayor Shelly Petrolia, whose hardcharging style draws fierce supporters and critics.

Long is a former chair of the county Soil and Water Conservation Board and former city zoning board member who owns a business, Door 2 Door Strategies, that does grassroots organizing for candidates, causes, nonprofits and developers.

For whom specifically, you might ask. “I can’t tell you,” Long told me.

He said his clients insist that he sign NDAs, or non-disclosure agreements, keeping his work confidential. Because he’s usually hired as a subcontractor by a consultant, his fees aren’t listed on campaign finance reports, filed by candidates and interest groups, where voters can see them.

Long emphasized he has never worked on any project in Delray Beach, but you’ll have to take his word for it because of those NDAs. That’s a problem because Long talks often about his belief in transparency.

As questions intensify about Door 2 Door’s clients, Long shut down the website and made it a landing page, with no access to its content. He told us that a local political website took Door 2 Door’s work “out of context” and the site is being “updated.”

“I can’t have this campaign hurting my business,” Long told me.

Casale’s supporters speculated that the site is being scrubbed of pro-development content that could cost him votes.

Long received client referrals from Bonnie Miskel, a prominent land-use lawyer-lobbyist, whose projects in Delray sought Long’s vote as a zoning board member. Long disclosed the referrals during a July 2020 meeting where Miskel’s client, the 292-unit Aura Delray Beach, received Long’s vote. (Casale later voted against it.)

As detailed in a Sun Sentinel editorial, an assistant city attorney told Long he did not have a conflict of interest, so he voted for Miskel’s project that night, and many

more times. Casale said she found 16 yes votes by Long on projects represented by Miskel or her law firm, citing minutes of city meetings.

City Attorney Lynn Gelin told us she didn’t agree with how her office handled Long’s request. She has instituted a more detailed policy for future conflict of interest questions.

“Every time I can remember that an issue has come in front of me, I have disclosed it, either with an email, a phone call or during the meeting. I’ve always been transparent about that,” Long told the Sun Sentinel in a joint interview with Casale this week, posted on YouTube.

Long did polling work for a development firm called 13th Floor Homes, which is converting a Tamarac golf course to residential development. We know this because the firm praised Long’s work, which he posted on his web site until it was shut down.

According to city records, Long voted three times for a major project on South Congress Avenue called Parks at Delray, whose partners include 13th Floor Investments, which lists the same registered agent as 13th Floor Homes.

Long did not say when he worked for 13th Floor Homes but flatly denied any possibility of a conflict.

If Long defeats Casale, he will be in a powerful position. It’s a safe bet that many more clients will want to do business with Door 2 Door Strategies, which means those non-disclosure agreements will be a bigger deal.

Long and his allies have criticized Casale for voting for a big pay increase for commissioners and for breaking the city’s lease with the Old School Square cultural center. Those are legitimate issues.

But they’ve also attacked Casale for taking four contributions of $1,000 each from Seaside Builders, a Delray firm that’s owned by long-term residents who specialize in luxury single-family homes. Voters know that because Casale reported the contributions.

Long questions whether Casale has a degree from Harvard, as she claims, because a degree verification service did not confirm that she graduated from Harvard College.

In fact, Casale received a liberal arts degree cum laude in 2021 from Harvard’s Extension School of Continuing Education. Her diploma features the official Harvard insignia, and Harvard’s website says of its extension program: “We are Harvard.” Long remains unconvinced. “Ms. Casale’s claim is false,” he said in an email Thursday.

Casale says Long’s “pernicious campaign of lies” is about deceiving voters and distracting attention from his own record — anything to change the subject from overdevelopment.

What “fun” this all must be for Delray Beach voters — and to think that the election is still nearly a month away.

Steve Bousquet is Opinion Editor of the

Sun Sentinel and a columnist in Tallahassee. Contact him at sbousquet@sunsentinel.com or 850-567-2240 and follow him on Twitter @stevebousquet.