Bill Amador
Palm Beach fire chief
Why: After serving several months as acting chief following the resignation of Ed Moran, Amador won the position permanently in August. A member of the Palm Beach Fire-Rescue Department since 1994, Amador has made it a priority to improve communications within and among the town's three stations. The department is developing a safety program geared toward the older population in condos and Amador plans to create a Fire Corps team, similar to the Police Department's Volunteers in Police Service organization. Amador also said the department will create a strategic plan as part of a self-evaluation required for accreditation.
William Benjamin II
Mayor of Manalapan
Why: Developer of much of the Point Manalapan neighborhood. Supporter of the Norton Museum of Art, Community Foundation for Palm Beach and Martin Counties and the Kravis Center for the Performing Arts. Since 2002, Manalapan's top elected official has used a wry sense of humor and gentlemanly manner to help build consensus on issues of importance. Last year, Benjamin took a strong stance against big redevelopment proposals in Briny Breezes and elsewhere, citing the potential negative impact on Manalapan.
Bill Brooks
Palm Beach Town Council member,
former general manager of WPTV Channel 5
and a former priest
Why: Although facing opposition for re-election, at press time Brooks was still a council member, as he has been since 2000. A three-time council president, the outspoken Brooks says he prefers a businesslike approach to council matters. He has supported the beach renourishment and burial of utility lines. Brooks has been on the board of the Palm Beach Fellowship of Christians and Jews, and served as chairman of the Urban League and chairman of the United Way of Palm Beach County.
Denis P. Coleman Jr.
Palm Beach Town Council member
Why: Coleman, a former Wall Street senior executive, was re-elected without opposition to a two-year term in 2007. He was U.S. consul general to Bermuda from 2002 to 2004 and an executive and director of The Bear Stearns Cos. from 1967 to 1989. He is a member of St. Edward Catholic Church, the Palm Beach Fellowship of Christians and Jews, and the finance committees of the Norton Museum of Art and the Quantum Foundation. He is a former board member with the Palm Beach Civic Association.
Peter Elwell
Palm Beach town manager
Why: Elwell is responsible for all day-to-day operations of the town, including management of a $62.6 million budget and more than 400 employees. In the past year, he oversaw the creation of a 407-page comprehensive budget review now in the hands of the Town Council, implemented a hiring freeze, saw the town through a weeklong boil-water alert and months of watering restrictions and pressed for beach renourishment. Elwell advises Mayor Jack McDonald and the Town Council, and implements the council's policy decisions. He is a past president of the Palm Beach County City Management Association and a member and former chairman of the Palm Beach Countywide Beaches and Shores Council. Elwell also is co-chairman of the Business and Professional Campaign Committee of the Town of Palm Beach United Way, a member of the Palm Beach Flagler Rotary Club and a youth league basketball coach.
Alec Flamm
Retired corporate executive from Union Carbide,
other companies
Why: Flamm has been vice chairman, treasurer and secretary of the influential Palm Beach Civic Association. He helped draft the town's 10-year strategic plan. Flamm is a trustee of the Town of Palm Beach United Way and vice president of the board of directors of the Kravis Center for the Performing Arts.
William Guttman
Former general counsel and a senior executive
of Time Inc.
Why: CEO and co-chairman of the Palm Beach Civic Association from 1995 to 2007. Now chairman emeritus of the Civic Association and a member of the executive committee of the Citizens' Association of Palm Beach. Guttman also is chairman of the town's Planning and Zoning Commission. He is known for being knowledgeable, articulate and forceful in expressing his viewpoint on a wide range of planning, zoning and other government issues. He is largely responsible for leading the Civic Association into a think-tank approach to town issues.
Richard Kleid
Palm Beach Town Council president
Why: Re-elected without opposition to a second two-year term this year, as council president for the past year, Kleid steered the council meetings and set agendas. A member of the Palm Beach Civic Association board of directors, he is a former chairman of the Planning and Zoning Commission. He is a former Eastern regional real estate counsel and assistant secretary of J.C. Penney Co. Kleid is a volunteer at the Legal Aid Society of Palm Beach County and an alumni interviewer for Columbia College.
Susan Markin
Palm Beach Town Council member
Why: Markin was re-elected without opposition to a second three-year term this month. She has carved out a reputation as an outspoken and consistent proponent of reducing town expenses and taxes. She makes a point of listening and responding to individual residents who contact her with concerns. She advocates more town financial support for PB Cats, the private, nonprofit program sanctioned by the town for feral cat care and management. She is a member of PB Cats' advisory board. She served for three years on the Planning and Zoning Commission. Markin is a former IBM regional director of marketing and later was regional director of staff and operations for Wang Laboratories.
Jack McDonald
Mayor of Palm Beach, real estate attorney
Why: A town councilman from 1995 to 2005, and council president for two years, McDonald was elected mayor in 2005 and re-elected without opposition in 2007. He serves as the town's chief elected officer and official ombudsman. Earlier this year, McDonald donated a bronze fountain in the new Ibis Isle Park in memory of his late wife, Yong Ash McDonald. McDonald is active in Palm Beach Crime Watch, the Citizens' Association of Palm Beach, the Palm Beach Fellowship of Christians and Jews, Palm Beach Chamber of Commerce and the Preservation Foundation of Palm Beach.
Michael Reiter
Chief, Palm Beach Police Department
Why: Reiter keeps a high community profile, attending a host of business association and civic meetings. After an 11-month investigation of part-time Palm Beacher Jeffrey Epstein resulted in an indictment on just one count of solicitation of prostitution, a third-degree felony, Reiter asked the FBI to look into the case. A plea deal is reportedly near. In 2007, the Palm Beach Ocean Rescue unit, part of the Police Department, was named 2007 Beach Patrol of the Year by the Florida Beach Patrol Chiefs Association. Reiter promotes communication with residents through Palm Beach Crime Watch, Volunteers in Police Service, the Citizens' Police Academy and Teen Academy. Reiter is a member of the Palm Beach County Law Enforcement Planning Council, the South East Regional Domestic Security Task Force, the International Association of Chiefs of Police; Florida Police Chiefs Association, FBI National Academy Associates and Association for Intelligence Officers. A well-known expert on Palm Beach history, he also is the coordinator of the town's upcoming centennial celebration.
John "Skip" Randolph
Palm Beach town attorney, partner in the law firm
of Jones, Foster, Johnston and Stubbs
Why: Randolph possesses a historical perspective of Palm Beach gained by his lengthy service to the town, where he has been town attorney since 1979. He represented the town in its successful court defense of the deed restrictions governing the Royal Poinciana Plaza and theater and was part of the team that negotiated a settlement with Donald Trump about the 70-foot flagpole Trump erected at Mar-a-Lago and then defended with a $25 million lawsuit. Randolph has a comprehensive knowledge of municipal law in general and the town code in particular. Randolph is chairman of the Royal Poinciana Chapel, former chairman of the Palm Beach Fellowship of Christians and Jews, past president of the Rehabilitation Center for Children and Adults, and past president of the Florida Municipal Attorneys Association. He was named 2006 Florida Municipal Attorney of the Year.
Stanley M. Rumbough Jr.
Palm Beach Civic Association chairman
Why: In more than 30 years as a member of the Civic Association, Rumbough helped build the 2,000-member organization into an influential and proactive citizens group. He is a life trustee of the Kravis Center for the Performing Arts, and a life trustee of International House in New York City. He has served on the boards of many other organizations, including what is now Planned Parenthood of Greater Miami, Palm Beach and Treasure Coast Inc.; the Young Presidents Organization (which he helped found); the Foreign Policy Association and the Population Resource Center in New York.
Lesly Smith
Former mayor of Palm Beach
Why: Though Smith left office in 2000, she has not retired from the public eye. She is a member of the new steering committee for the Royal Poinciana Planning Area Study and in 2007 the Palm Beach Chamber of Commerce gave her its "Pride of Palm Beach" award. She is president of the Fortin Child Care Foundation and the Fortin Foundation of Florida, philanthropic organizations named for her late mother, Mary Alice Fortin. Smith is active in the Preservation Foundation of Palm Beach and the Garden Club of Palm Beach.
