A group of Lake Worth Beach residents seeking to block construction of a downtown museum and condominiums sued the city on Feb. 3, claiming it illegally used Palm Beach County sales tax to build the project.
The lawsuit alleges that city agencies violated state law by purchasing land downtown for public parking with more than $1.6 million in sales tax revenue and then selling the land to developers for $10 to build an art museum and apartments.
Lake Worth For All, a nonprofit group led by former city commissioner Kim Stokes, filed the lawsuit in Palm Beach County Circuit Court. Mayor Betty Resch and interim city manager Jamie Brown declined to comment on Feb. 4.
Lawsuit: Lake Worth CRA uses sales tax funds used for parking to buy land
Sales tax funding comes from a one-penny increase in the county sales tax approved by voters in 2016, which is set to expire at the end of 2025. The money is intended to repair or replace school buildings, roads and other public facilities across the county.
In 2018, Lake Worth Beach commissioners approved transferring funds the city receives from taxes to the city’s community redevelopment agency. The CRA used the money to purchase about 2 acres of land on Lake Avenue downtown from the city, mostly between South K and M Streets.
The centerpiece of the downtown Lake Worth Beach plan includes the city donating 1.7 acres of land to United Management, the Wiener Museum’s development company. The property, located on the southwest corner of Lake Avenue and South M Street, is valued by the city at approximately $3.3 million.
Lake Worth For All’s lawsuit says the CRA should build a parking lot at the site and if it can’t, the land must be returned to the city. CRA sold it to New York developer Anthony Wiener for $10 to build the Wiener Museum of Decorative Arts, a studio museum of ceramics and glass.
“This is a blatant misuse of ‘penny sales tax’ funds approved by voters solely for education and infrastructure,” Lake Worth For All attorney Robert Hartsell said in a prepared statement. “Voters had absolutely no idea that their hard-earned tax dollars would be used to fund the development of market-rate housing.”
Lake Worth For All wants court to invalidate museum land deal
Lake Worth For All wants the court to invalidate the agreement between the city, CRA and Weiner.
Stokes said in a prepared statement on Feb. 4 that the city’s elected leaders sidestepped voters by selling the land to the CRA. She said if the City Commission wanted to sell the downtown land directly to Weiner, the deal would be in front of city voters.
“The remedy is simple: Put it on the ballot,” Stokes said.
The WMODA project includes 110 apartments and $8.5 million in public parking on K Street, to which Weiner agreed to contribute $1 million.
Email news tips and ideas to Chris Persaud (cpersaud@pbpost.com).
This article originally appeared in The Palm Beach Post: Lake Worth Beach sued over sales tax at downtown museum
