Visit new exhibit at Cornell Museum (9) Dealing with pesky breakouts? (17) Shop at Greenlines downtown (26) Look at The Ray hotel (42) DELRAYNEWSPAPER.COM APRIL | 2018 Shopability study outlines ways to reinforce Atlantic Avenue as ‘world class shopping destination’ By: Marisa Herman Associate Editor Delray Beach has no shortage of tourists, shoppers and res- idents frequenting its downtown daily. But a new study by urban retail expert Robert Gibbs rec- ommends ways the city can turn Atlantic Avenue into even more of a “world class speciality shopping district.” “You are a world class shopping destination and you need to look like it,” Gibbs told city commissioners during a re- cent presentation of his 50-page study. Paid for by the Delray Beach Downtown Development Au- thority, which is responsible for marketing the city’s down- town, the study is the second part of an overview of the city’s downtown retail market. Gibbs of the Gibbs Planning Group identified the down- Cruise Bogle and his family and Cruiser Palooza volunteers at a previous Cruiser Palooza event. Photo courtesy of Kristi Vick. town’s potential for growth and ways for merchants to bring more money into their stores. He presented his find- ings of the first part of the study at the end of 2017 and the Cruiser Palooza returns for 10th year shopability study in February. When it comes to the city’s ability to market Atlantic Av- to support Delray local Cruise Bogle enue to people as a destination to visit, Gibbs said the city should follow its own rules when it comes to how store- By: Marisa Herman Associate Editor Lake Shore Drive. fronts look and offered ways the city can improve the over- all look of the downtown. Ten years ago Cruise Bogle caught a the chest down. Food will be provided by 3rd and 3rd. wave on his skim board like he had Musical entertainment will be per- He said the landscaping is not as good as it could be “for the The past decade has been a challenge thousands of times before. formed by Uproot Hootenany and the caliber of restaurants and shops you have here.” of overcoming adversity for Bogle. But Resolvers with headlining act Crazy “The mulch is made of shredded shipping containers dyed But this time wasn’t like all of the oth- the 28-year-old has managed to keep Fingers, and there will be a large silent red,” he said. “You wouldn’t have that in your yard. We rec- a positive attitude with help from his ers. auction. ommend you go to higher standards.” family and friends as well as the com- This wave was the one that would munity who supports an annual fund- The accident Other quick fixes include making the garbage cans more change the course of his life forever. raiser in his honor, Cruiser Palooza. uniform in appearance as well as the bike racks and light Bogle was home in Delray Beach on poles. His board slipped out from under- This year, the 10th annual event will winter break from his first semester at neath him and he hit his head hard on take place from 5 to 11 p.m. on April college in Tallahassee. “It sends a message that this isn’t a shopping district, this is the sand leaving him paralyzed from 21 at the Delray Beach Playhouse, 950 He and a group of his [CONT. PG 2] just a bunch of shopping centers,” he said [CONT. PG 2] Your stay includes private beach club 2 YOUR COMMUNITY NEWSPAPER | APRIL 2018 Cruiser Palooza returns for 10th year to support Delray local Cruise Bogle [FROM PG 1] friends attended a funer- al for a friend who died from a drug overdose. “We went to the beach to reminisce,” Bo- gle said. His friends went skim boarding to de- compress after the funeral. Bogle caught a wave, his board went one way he the other—falling in the sand. “I was knocked out for a second or so,” he said. “I remember waking up face down in the water. I immediately thought of my The “Palooza Gang” at a previous Cruiser Palooza event. Photo courtesy of Kristi The crowd gets into the live auction at Cruiser Palooza. Photo courtesy of Kristi friend who died. I was face down in the Vick. Vick. water and I couldn’t move.” surgery on his spine. His C4 vertebra was her sister called with the news. And Cruiser Palooza was born in her A wave flipped him over and he was able replaced with a titanium cage and four ti- Lake Ida home. to catch a breath before another wave tanium pins to stabilize his neck. Vick said she remembers turning to Bo- pushed him onto the beach. He said his gle’s mom, Billie Johnston and asking “We just hosted,” she said. “We invited He spent the next two weeks in the Del- friends thought he was joking around what she could do to help. everyone we knew. It was get people here until they realized Bogle wasn’t moving. ray ICU Trauma Unit, and then on Dec. and get them to donate.” 31, he was airlifted to the Shepherd Cen- “You don’t know what to do,” she said. Bogle wasn’t at the first event and neither “Boom, paralyzed,” he said. ter in Atlanta, GA for rehab. He remained “You want to help them.” there for the next 2 1/2 months where he was his immediate family. He was with He said he remembers his friend drag- learned how to live his new reality. When Johnston said she needed money, his family in Atlanta undergoing rehab. ging him onto the sand, and being rolled that is when Vick got to work. So people took pictures and called to onto the stretcher and exchanging a few Family rushes to help show Bogle that they were there for him. words with the EMTs. His cousin Kristi Vick remembers the She knew she had to throw a fundraiser, “It was a huge success,” Vick said. Bogle was rushed to Delray Medical phone call she received alerting her about but not knowing anything about how to Center where he underwent emergency Bogle’s accident. She was shopping when do so, she turned to her friends for help. The idea of Cruiser Pa- [CONT. PG 54] Shopability study outlines ways to reinforce Atlantic Avenue as ‘world class shopping destination’ [FROM PG 1] of the mis-matched down- in the downtown area,” he said. “As long parent glass in the storefront, he suggested tickets because the signs are confusing. town furnishings. “The as the storefronts are designed to look like implementing a grant program that helps “The average shopper has limited ability to trash cans are really below industry stan- specialty retailers. Don’t disallow them just owners pay for the cost of replacing the glass read and follow directions,” he said. “They dards. They are overflowing with garbage. make sure that they look really nice.” and requiring it be done by a certain date. are surprised to get a ticket. It’s too confus- This is just a turn-off for the local resident He said Delray can look toward places like The biggest area for improvement Gibbs i n g .” and for your tourists that are coming here.” Charleston, Nantucket and Carmel by the said is parking. Sea for ideas on how to balance a national Another area ripe for improvement is the Part of the study was geared toward address- “Parking is the No. 1 issue people said over- presence with a local flair. downtown parking garage, which can be the ing the topic of national chains opening whelmed them when they come down- first impression people receive when head- downtown. Gibbs said the city should look “You have a code that regulates store front town,” he said. ing to Atlantic Ave. During the study, he said at the one-third model for its retailers, one- designs,” he said. “You have some extraordi- He said the city needs to implement a com- the elevator in the garage was broken for five third local, one-third regional and one-third nary ones.” prehensive parking strategy, which is some- national. days in a row, the stairwells were dirty and For the buildings built before the code that thing the city has struggled with doing for the garage was poorly lit. He said that can “We are OK with you getting national chains requires a certain amount of clear, trans- the past several years. The city hired a con- leave a bad impressions on customers. sultant to look at a parking management Fine Art Shows in Delray Beach plan and strategy for downtown. Other areas that raised concerns for Gibbs included the uneven brick pavers that can be April 7-8 “Many of your adopted plans need to be as narrow as two feet in some places, worn April 21-22 April 28-29 implemented,” he said. “Follow what your down paint at pedestrian cross and too In Veteran’s Park, In Old School Square. Entrance plans already call for. A lot of recommenda- Atlantic Avenue on Pineapple Grove (NE 2nd Avenue much outdoor dining. He said the sidewalks west of the Intracoastal. off Atlantic Avenue). tions we are making have been recommend- ed by prior studies.” can feel clogged and too narrow for people in wheelchairs or pushing strollers. He said parking times and rates need to be more uniform and clearly displayed on bet- These areas can be fixed with enforcement ter way finding signage.