‘We want to help:’ D.R. Horton explains $650,000 payment

While the Rustic Lakes Property Owners Association took the money, many residents remain opposed to plan for 111 townhomes on Northlake Boulevard.

The lawyer for one of the nation’s largest homebuilders drew derisive laughter Thursday as he explained a $650,000 payment to a homeowner’s board at a Palm Beach Gardens City Council meeting.

Brian Seymour, attorney for D.R. Horton, said the developer had made many concessions to the Rustic Lakes Property Owners Association but in the end the association had needs that concessions just couldn’t meet.

“So, in addition … there is some monetary payment that goes to them being able to fix some of the problems that they have,” Seymour said. 

“We want to help our neighbors,” he concluded, drawing laughter from opponents who made up the bulk of a crowd of about 90 at the meeting.

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Gardens council heaps praise on City Manager Ron Ferris

Palm Beach Gardens City Council makes no mention of city manager’s open-ended contract, signed without public discussion in 2019.

To say that Palm Beach Gardens City Council members are happy with their city manager is an understatement. 

At their most recent meeting, all five council members evaluated longtime City Manager Ron Ferris in glowing terms.

They said nothing, however, about Ferris’ contract, which according to a recent Palm Beach Post survey makes him Palm Beach County’s highest-paid city manager, at $314,487. 

They don’t have to. His contract is open-ended. Unlike his past contracts, which if not extended would terminate after five years, Ferris signed a contract in 2019 that allows him to remain on the job “for an indeterminate term.

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