February 2, 2026 • 15 mins
Wenroth is one of three candidates running for the seat being vacated by Councilmember Andy Thomson, who is running for mayor.
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Hey, Joel, Malcolm four WJ and O dot com and
my election spotlight on the City of Boca Ratone, which
is going to be very busy on March tenth, at least,
you know, we hope, because we like to make sure
that local voters are getting out and voting for the
municipal their municipal elections. There are actually four races in
(00:21):
the city of Boca Ratone. You have a mayoral race,
and then you have three city council races, including the
one for seat D. These are open city wide and
we have one of three candidates on the line with us,
Robert Weinroth. Thank you for joining me.
Speaker 2 (00:37):
It's my pleasure. Joel, thank you very much.
Speaker 1 (00:39):
Now you are a name that many of our listeners
who've been here for at least three years, I would say,
I'm trying to remember when it is your name would
be recognizable, but I do want to, you know, for
the other folks, make sure we give some background on you.
I know you are a former Palm Beach County commissioner.
I believe you serve the full two terms.
Speaker 2 (00:59):
Correct, Actually I only served one term. I served four
years up there.
Speaker 1 (01:04):
Wow, see how quickly I forgot all right, so give
us just start from scratch here. I know by the
accent you weren't born in Boca Ratone.
Speaker 2 (01:16):
No. Actually, I've been here for thirty years and we've
been raising the family down here. And as you mentioned,
I was on the city council in twenty fourteen. Spent
four years on the city council, then graduate to the
County Commission. I spent four years up there, and now
(01:37):
I'm looking to return to the city council in what's
going to be a special election for CTD.
Speaker 3 (01:46):
What is your trade? I believe you're an attorney.
Speaker 2 (01:50):
No, actually, you're right. I am an attorney by license.
But in business, my wife and I had a small
business about fifteen years. We had a medical supply company
that we grew and eventually sold.
Speaker 1 (02:08):
And nowadays, besides running for office, are your work days over?
Speaker 2 (02:15):
Well, no, my workdays. My wife will let me call
it a day. Yet she says that I'm too young
to retire. So I have a consulting practice where it's
called both South Florida Business Services, and what I do
was help people understand how they can get their entitlements
(02:37):
to do construction of new projects without throughout the County a.
Speaker 1 (02:42):
Lot of red tape with that too, So that's provide
a good service, I'm sure for folks that need it.
Speaker 2 (02:48):
Yeah, well, again, like you said, it just takes a
little bit of understanding of the process so that you
can get your project reviewed and hopefully get it go vertical.
We in a short amount of time.
Speaker 1 (03:03):
Now we're going to get to some of your priorities
and whatnot. And I but first, I know that our
local municipal races here in Palm Beach County are nonpartisan.
But people, it did become news. I guess it was
a couple of years ago you were running for it
might have been last No. Twenty twenty four, right, you
(03:24):
were running for Congress. And when you were a county commissioner,
you were registered Democrat and you switched to Republicans. So
I just wanted to again, it's nonpartisan, but just are
you Are you still a Republican?
Speaker 3 (03:35):
Have you gone back to Democrat?
Speaker 2 (03:39):
I am a registered Republican and again I've always been
center right as far as my political feelings, and after
the election for County commission I had made the decision
to change parties. But like you said, this is non
(03:59):
par artisan. I always tell people potholes don't have a party.
Speaker 3 (04:04):
That's a good point. They sure don't. You know, these
are the these are the races, that's to your point.
Speaker 1 (04:10):
These are the races that people you don't have droves
going to to the to the to the polls because
they're not what I call, you know, the sexy ones.
You know, there's no This isn't the presidential and the
you know, even congressional races. These are the local municipalities.
But we always say here at w J and O
that the elections closest to you have the biggest effect
(04:33):
on you day to day.
Speaker 2 (04:33):
You agree with that absolutely all. You know, they say
all politics is local, and you can't get any more
local than municipal or county elections. And the fact is
the things that affect you the most again, potholes, garbage delivery,
police and fire, those are the things that are controlled
(04:54):
by your local representatives on the municipal and the county board.
So you know, notwithstanding the fact that, like you said,
the turnout for those local elections tends to be smaller
than we see in the state and federal elections, it's
really something that people need to pay more attention to.
Speaker 1 (05:16):
That is exactly why we do the election spotlight page.
So all right, let's your first priority list on your
website is smart balanced growth.
Speaker 3 (05:26):
And I would have to bring up with one of
the mayoral.
Speaker 1 (05:30):
Candidates referred to as the elephant in the room when
she brought it up, the one Boca project. This is,
you know, the thing that's been in the news lately.
And also, of course there's a referendum on the ballot
along with the four races that folks will ultimately have
the final say in this public private partnership.
Speaker 3 (05:50):
What are your thoughts on this?
Speaker 2 (05:52):
Well, let me say this. First of all, we are
a large city and this is one very small part
of epically of our city. But like you said, it
is an elephant in the room. We have had a
lot of discussion as far as meeting a new city
Hall and a new community center. And even when I
(06:13):
was back on the city Council back in twenty fourteen,
we were talking about the fact that the city Council,
i mean the city Hall really wasn't adequate. It was antiquated.
And right now the city Council doesn't mean to meet
in city Hall anymore because it just isn't adequate as
far as space to accommodate the number of people that
(06:36):
want to come in and speak to the council. So
no one is really saying that we don't need to
upgrade the municipal campus. I think what's happened is that
maybe there was really too big a project bitten off
without bringing the community along, and as a result, there
(06:57):
was a lot of discontent. We had a group that
was formed called Save Boca, which really was trying to
bring a spotlight onto the issue of the redevelopment that
the city council had envisioned, which included over thirty acres
of land, and as the project has been debated and discussed,
(07:21):
it's been reduced to less than eight acres of redevelopment.
So the project has really been discussed and it's at
a point now where it's much more tolerable to a
lot of the people within the community.
Speaker 1 (07:38):
Now with the referendum on this, because I know that
the city council has now approved their portion of it.
If voters ultimately say no, does nothing happen. Does that
mean that none of the project gets done or how
does that work?
Speaker 2 (07:53):
Well, what's going to happen is the city council now
has approved a contract with Terin Frisbee. That contract is
what's going to be before the voters, along with a
bond issue for a new police station. So the voters
are going to have actually four places that they are
going to be looking for candidates, like you said, Mayor CDC,
(08:15):
B and CD and then they'll have two questions. If
the voters did not want to approve the Terror Frisbee contract,
then the new board that will be taking the office
after the March tenth election would then take a look
at the opportunity to look beyond what was the original
(08:39):
contract figure out how to rebuild the city Hall and
the community center in a different fashion. And I'm sure
that there would be quite a bit of debate on
whether to continue discussions with Aran Frisbee, whether it open
it up to different developers, whether to continue in a
public private partnership, or whether just to go it alone
(09:02):
with our own tax space to try and you know,
take care of the redevelopment of those buildings.
Speaker 1 (09:11):
How do you feel about the current council under outgoing
Mayor Scott Singer, who's who's termed out and and running
for Congress, reaching out to new York tech firms directly,
and actually, I guess what's successful with at least one.
Speaker 3 (09:29):
Of them that that we know about now.
Speaker 1 (09:31):
The the da UH helped me with the name the
quantum company that just announced officially that they are the
one that's moving there. But anyway, how do you feel
about that? I asked one of the candidates who is
not currently on the council, one of the candidates for mayor,
and they they were against that that plan because they
(09:53):
they don't agree with the monetary incentives for these companies.
Speaker 3 (09:58):
So I wanted to get your thought.
Speaker 2 (09:59):
Well, you know when we say when we say monetary incentives,
we don't put any money in their pocket. We really
are giving them tax incentives. And we do that in
coordination with the Business Development Board U Palm Beach County.
Kelly Smallridge is the person who runs that. And to
answer the question, I think that we need to do
(10:20):
something to nurture those relationships. And the fact is that
there are other states that are out there buying for
the relocation of companies that are coming down here from
the Northeast, and so I have no problem with offering
tax incentives. And these incentives are not paid out or
(10:43):
offered until they demonstrate that they have met the criteria
that is in their contract so that we get a
good thing for our book. We are looking to really
attract high paying jobs here to South Florida so that
our children and our grandchildren are able to stay here
(11:04):
and not have to relocate to Los Angeles or New
York or Chicago. So I am very much in favor
of anything we can do to attract these companies to
our community.
Speaker 1 (11:15):
And I also should say it's the company I was
referring to is actually not out of New York. They
are reaching out to New York now the city, but
this was actually a Palo Alto, California headquartered California company,
d Wave Quantum, Inc. And they're the ones this week
that we found was the mystery company as the media
was reporting, that is going to be moving by the
(11:37):
end of this year. And to your point, the salaries
they agreed to provide average salaries. I believe it's a
one hundred and twenty five grand annually or more, so
that should be good for the city. And I believe
it's one hundred jobs. Let's go to another one of
your you know, I'm gonna let you pick we've got
(11:59):
time for one more of your priorities.
Speaker 2 (12:01):
We've got three of the Let's talk about public safety. Sure, Obviously,
public safety is the first thing people think about when
they're looking for a community to live in, and we
are very, very fortunate we have a tremendous police and
fire department here. We don't take advantage of the county
Fire or the count or the Sheriff's department to a
(12:25):
great degree, although they certainly offer us a mutual aid
in situations where we need it. But people will move
into a community and the first thing they're looking at
is public safety, and usually the second thing they look
at is educational opportunities for their children. And I think
we will be the first to understand that this is
(12:45):
a very safe community and we are very privileged to
have these men and women protecting us.
Speaker 3 (12:53):
All right, and let me ask your final question.
Speaker 1 (12:55):
You know, and we've done these interviews before, not for
Boca City Council, but for other races, and so you
probably know what's coming. But my final question is always
three candidates in this race, what makes Robert Weinroth the
best choice for voters.
Speaker 3 (13:11):
In a nutshell?
Speaker 2 (13:12):
Well, I thank you for that question. Joel. I happen
to think that I have the best qualifications. Obviously I
wouldn't be running if I didn't think that, But to
be honest, I think that I bring. I bring my
legal backgrounds. You know, I'm a lawyer by education. I'm
a businessman. I've been very successful with my wife. We
(13:33):
had a very successful business which we ultimately sold. And
my biggest qualification I've been there. I've set at the
table as the city council. I understand the process. You
have to be able on the City Council to count
to three, which means you have to work with your
colleagues and be able to get two of them to
side with you on the issues or you're not going
(13:55):
to get anything accomplished. On the County Commission, you have
to count a little bit higher to since it's a
seventh person body, and again you have to work with
people that are put on that body by the voters
and you really don't have any opportunity to select them.
But you have to work with your colleagues and be
able to shape decisions that are for the community and
(14:19):
making sure that you don't forget that the constituents out
there are looking for your leadership to move the community forward.
Speaker 1 (14:28):
All right, well, I do appreciate you taking the time
to speak with us. More importantly, the voters of Boca
ratone again, four races in the City of Boca March tenth.
Speaker 3 (14:37):
There's no early voting for this either, I understand correct.
Speaker 2 (14:41):
No, there's no early voting, but there is vote by mail,
and I would encourage anybody who has not applied for
a vote by mail since the last general election, who
may be unavailable on March tenth, to police secure a
vote by mail ballot from the Supervisor of Elections. And
remember that this is an at large election. All of
(15:02):
the seats the mayor, Ctact, B and CD are for
the entire city to vote on.
Speaker 1 (15:10):
All right, Robert Wineroth, CD, candidate for Boca Ratode City Council,
thanks again for coming on with me on the election spotling.
Speaker 2 (15:19):
Thank you, Joel. I appreciate the time
Hey, Joel, Malcolm four WJ and O dot com and
my election spotlight on the City of Boca Ratone, which
is going to be very busy on March tenth, at least,
you know, we hope, because we like to make sure
that local voters are getting out and voting for the
municipal their municipal elections. There are actually four races in
(00:21):
the city of Boca Ratone. You have a mayoral race,
and then you have three city council races, including the
one for seat D. These are open city wide and
we have one of three candidates on the line with us,
Robert Weinroth. Thank you for joining me.
Speaker 2 (00:37):
It's my pleasure. Joel, thank you very much.
Speaker 1 (00:39):
Now you are a name that many of our listeners
who've been here for at least three years, I would say,
I'm trying to remember when it is your name would
be recognizable, but I do want to, you know, for
the other folks, make sure we give some background on you.
I know you are a former Palm Beach County commissioner.
I believe you serve the full two terms.
Speaker 2 (00:59):
Correct, Actually I only served one term. I served four
years up there.
Speaker 1 (01:04):
Wow, see how quickly I forgot all right, so give
us just start from scratch here. I know by the
accent you weren't born in Boca Ratone.
Speaker 2 (01:16):
No. Actually, I've been here for thirty years and we've
been raising the family down here. And as you mentioned,
I was on the city council in twenty fourteen. Spent
four years on the city council, then graduate to the
County Commission. I spent four years up there, and now
(01:37):
I'm looking to return to the city council in what's
going to be a special election for CTD.
Speaker 3 (01:46):
What is your trade? I believe you're an attorney.
Speaker 2 (01:50):
No, actually, you're right. I am an attorney by license.
But in business, my wife and I had a small
business about fifteen years. We had a medical supply company
that we grew and eventually sold.
Speaker 1 (02:08):
And nowadays, besides running for office, are your work days over?
Speaker 2 (02:15):
Well, no, my workdays. My wife will let me call
it a day. Yet she says that I'm too young
to retire. So I have a consulting practice where it's
called both South Florida Business Services, and what I do
was help people understand how they can get their entitlements
(02:37):
to do construction of new projects without throughout the County a.
Speaker 1 (02:42):
Lot of red tape with that too, So that's provide
a good service, I'm sure for folks that need it.
Speaker 2 (02:48):
Yeah, well, again, like you said, it just takes a
little bit of understanding of the process so that you
can get your project reviewed and hopefully get it go vertical.
We in a short amount of time.
Speaker 1 (03:03):
Now we're going to get to some of your priorities
and whatnot. And I but first, I know that our
local municipal races here in Palm Beach County are nonpartisan.
But people, it did become news. I guess it was
a couple of years ago you were running for it
might have been last No. Twenty twenty four, right, you
(03:24):
were running for Congress. And when you were a county commissioner,
you were registered Democrat and you switched to Republicans. So
I just wanted to again, it's nonpartisan, but just are
you Are you still a Republican?
Speaker 3 (03:35):
Have you gone back to Democrat?
Speaker 2 (03:39):
I am a registered Republican and again I've always been
center right as far as my political feelings, and after
the election for County commission I had made the decision
to change parties. But like you said, this is non
(03:59):
par artisan. I always tell people potholes don't have a party.
Speaker 3 (04:04):
That's a good point. They sure don't. You know, these
are the these are the races, that's to your point.
Speaker 1 (04:10):
These are the races that people you don't have droves
going to to the to the to the polls because
they're not what I call, you know, the sexy ones.
You know, there's no This isn't the presidential and the
you know, even congressional races. These are the local municipalities.
But we always say here at w J and O
that the elections closest to you have the biggest effect
(04:33):
on you day to day.
Speaker 2 (04:33):
You agree with that absolutely all. You know, they say
all politics is local, and you can't get any more
local than municipal or county elections. And the fact is
the things that affect you the most again, potholes, garbage delivery,
police and fire, those are the things that are controlled
(04:54):
by your local representatives on the municipal and the county board.
So you know, notwithstanding the fact that, like you said,
the turnout for those local elections tends to be smaller
than we see in the state and federal elections, it's
really something that people need to pay more attention to.
Speaker 1 (05:16):
That is exactly why we do the election spotlight page.
So all right, let's your first priority list on your
website is smart balanced growth.
Speaker 3 (05:26):
And I would have to bring up with one of
the mayoral.
Speaker 1 (05:30):
Candidates referred to as the elephant in the room when
she brought it up, the one Boca project. This is,
you know, the thing that's been in the news lately.
And also, of course there's a referendum on the ballot
along with the four races that folks will ultimately have
the final say in this public private partnership.
Speaker 3 (05:50):
What are your thoughts on this?
Speaker 2 (05:52):
Well, let me say this. First of all, we are
a large city and this is one very small part
of epically of our city. But like you said, it
is an elephant in the room. We have had a
lot of discussion as far as meeting a new city
Hall and a new community center. And even when I
(06:13):
was back on the city Council back in twenty fourteen,
we were talking about the fact that the city Council,
i mean the city Hall really wasn't adequate. It was antiquated.
And right now the city Council doesn't mean to meet
in city Hall anymore because it just isn't adequate as
far as space to accommodate the number of people that
(06:36):
want to come in and speak to the council. So
no one is really saying that we don't need to
upgrade the municipal campus. I think what's happened is that
maybe there was really too big a project bitten off
without bringing the community along, and as a result, there
(06:57):
was a lot of discontent. We had a group that
was formed called Save Boca, which really was trying to
bring a spotlight onto the issue of the redevelopment that
the city council had envisioned, which included over thirty acres
of land, and as the project has been debated and discussed,
(07:21):
it's been reduced to less than eight acres of redevelopment.
So the project has really been discussed and it's at
a point now where it's much more tolerable to a
lot of the people within the community.
Speaker 1 (07:38):
Now with the referendum on this, because I know that
the city council has now approved their portion of it.
If voters ultimately say no, does nothing happen. Does that
mean that none of the project gets done or how
does that work?
Speaker 2 (07:53):
Well, what's going to happen is the city council now
has approved a contract with Terin Frisbee. That contract is
what's going to be before the voters, along with a
bond issue for a new police station. So the voters
are going to have actually four places that they are
going to be looking for candidates, like you said, Mayor CDC,
(08:15):
B and CD and then they'll have two questions. If
the voters did not want to approve the Terror Frisbee contract,
then the new board that will be taking the office
after the March tenth election would then take a look
at the opportunity to look beyond what was the original
(08:39):
contract figure out how to rebuild the city Hall and
the community center in a different fashion. And I'm sure
that there would be quite a bit of debate on
whether to continue discussions with Aran Frisbee, whether it open
it up to different developers, whether to continue in a
public private partnership, or whether just to go it alone
(09:02):
with our own tax space to try and you know,
take care of the redevelopment of those buildings.
Speaker 1 (09:11):
How do you feel about the current council under outgoing
Mayor Scott Singer, who's who's termed out and and running
for Congress, reaching out to new York tech firms directly,
and actually, I guess what's successful with at least one.
Speaker 3 (09:29):
Of them that that we know about now.
Speaker 1 (09:31):
The the da UH helped me with the name the
quantum company that just announced officially that they are the
one that's moving there. But anyway, how do you feel
about that? I asked one of the candidates who is
not currently on the council, one of the candidates for mayor,
and they they were against that that plan because they
(09:53):
they don't agree with the monetary incentives for these companies.
Speaker 3 (09:58):
So I wanted to get your thought.
Speaker 2 (09:59):
Well, you know when we say when we say monetary incentives,
we don't put any money in their pocket. We really
are giving them tax incentives. And we do that in
coordination with the Business Development Board U Palm Beach County.
Kelly Smallridge is the person who runs that. And to
answer the question, I think that we need to do
(10:20):
something to nurture those relationships. And the fact is that
there are other states that are out there buying for
the relocation of companies that are coming down here from
the Northeast, and so I have no problem with offering
tax incentives. And these incentives are not paid out or
(10:43):
offered until they demonstrate that they have met the criteria
that is in their contract so that we get a
good thing for our book. We are looking to really
attract high paying jobs here to South Florida so that
our children and our grandchildren are able to stay here
(11:04):
and not have to relocate to Los Angeles or New
York or Chicago. So I am very much in favor
of anything we can do to attract these companies to
our community.
Speaker 1 (11:15):
And I also should say it's the company I was
referring to is actually not out of New York. They
are reaching out to New York now the city, but
this was actually a Palo Alto, California headquartered California company,
d Wave Quantum, Inc. And they're the ones this week
that we found was the mystery company as the media
was reporting, that is going to be moving by the
(11:37):
end of this year. And to your point, the salaries
they agreed to provide average salaries. I believe it's a
one hundred and twenty five grand annually or more, so
that should be good for the city. And I believe
it's one hundred jobs. Let's go to another one of
your you know, I'm gonna let you pick we've got
(11:59):
time for one more of your priorities.
Speaker 2 (12:01):
We've got three of the Let's talk about public safety. Sure, Obviously,
public safety is the first thing people think about when
they're looking for a community to live in, and we
are very, very fortunate we have a tremendous police and
fire department here. We don't take advantage of the county
Fire or the count or the Sheriff's department to a
(12:25):
great degree, although they certainly offer us a mutual aid
in situations where we need it. But people will move
into a community and the first thing they're looking at
is public safety, and usually the second thing they look
at is educational opportunities for their children. And I think
we will be the first to understand that this is
(12:45):
a very safe community and we are very privileged to
have these men and women protecting us.
Speaker 3 (12:53):
All right, and let me ask your final question.
Speaker 1 (12:55):
You know, and we've done these interviews before, not for
Boca City Council, but for other races, and so you
probably know what's coming. But my final question is always
three candidates in this race, what makes Robert Weinroth the
best choice for voters.
Speaker 3 (13:11):
In a nutshell?
Speaker 2 (13:12):
Well, I thank you for that question. Joel. I happen
to think that I have the best qualifications. Obviously I
wouldn't be running if I didn't think that, But to
be honest, I think that I bring. I bring my
legal backgrounds. You know, I'm a lawyer by education. I'm
a businessman. I've been very successful with my wife. We
(13:33):
had a very successful business which we ultimately sold. And
my biggest qualification I've been there. I've set at the
table as the city council. I understand the process. You
have to be able on the City Council to count
to three, which means you have to work with your
colleagues and be able to get two of them to
side with you on the issues or you're not going
(13:55):
to get anything accomplished. On the County Commission, you have
to count a little bit higher to since it's a
seventh person body, and again you have to work with
people that are put on that body by the voters
and you really don't have any opportunity to select them.
But you have to work with your colleagues and be
able to shape decisions that are for the community and
(14:19):
making sure that you don't forget that the constituents out
there are looking for your leadership to move the community forward.
Speaker 1 (14:28):
All right, well, I do appreciate you taking the time
to speak with us. More importantly, the voters of Boca
ratone again, four races in the City of Boca March tenth.
Speaker 3 (14:37):
There's no early voting for this either, I understand correct.
Speaker 2 (14:41):
No, there's no early voting, but there is vote by mail,
and I would encourage anybody who has not applied for
a vote by mail since the last general election, who
may be unavailable on March tenth, to police secure a
vote by mail ballot from the Supervisor of Elections. And
remember that this is an at large election. All of
(15:02):
the seats the mayor, Ctact, B and CD are for
the entire city to vote on.
Speaker 1 (15:10):
All right, Robert Wineroth, CD, candidate for Boca Ratode City Council,
thanks again for coming on with me on the election spotling.
Speaker 2 (15:19):
Thank you, Joel. I appreciate the time
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Betrayal Season 5
Saskia Inwood woke up one morning, knowing her life would never be the same. The night before, she learned the unimaginable – that the husband she knew in the light of day was a different person after dark. This season unpacks Saskia’s discovery of her husband’s secret life and her fight to bring him to justice. Along the way, we expose a crime that is just coming to light. This is also a story about the myth of the “perfect victim:” who gets believed, who gets doubted, and why. We follow Saskia as she works to reclaim her body, her voice, and her life. If you would like to reach out to the Betrayal Team, email us at betrayalpod@gmail.com. Follow us on Instagram @betrayalpod and @glasspodcasts. Please join our Substack for additional exclusive content, curated book recommendations, and community discussions. Sign up FREE by clicking this link Beyond Betrayal Substack. Join our community dedicated to truth, resilience, and healing. Your voice matters! Be a part of our Betrayal journey on Substack.