Shooting at Shadowood – Scene: Videos

This morning we were alerted to a shooting with one person dead in Shadowood Square, at the European Auto Service Center at 9787 Glades Road.

•••WEST BOCA•••
SHOOTING
9787 Glades Rd
PBCFR & PBSO onscene of a subject that was shot in the head at a business, unknown circumstances or suspect information, Advising confirmed “Signal-7” dead at scene, Crime Scene units enroute

It is on the east end of the plaza by the traffic light and close to Einstein Bagel.

As you can see in the video below (on the right side in the background), paramedics attempted to enter the premises but were turned away. The victim had already passed away.

It appears this was a suicide rather than a violent crime. Police secured only the area inside the building, even allowing a pedestrian to walk through the parking lot. An anonymous source also confirmed this was a suicide.
Police and others were talking to one young man, wearing a Batman t-shirt, who may have witnessed the shooting or found the body.

A gentleman (in the grey shirt and red shorts) approached us and identified himself as the owner. He did not offer any comment.

He then went to the witness and, along with first responders, offered comfort.

First responders from PBSO and Palm Beach County Fire Rescue remained on scene for a substantial amount of time.

Before we left the scene we shot one final video:

Sweet Dewey’s Will Become “Boca’s Best BBQ & Smokehouse”

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Our favorite BBQ place is expanding and changing its name. The soon to be renamed Sweet Dewey’s is on the north side of Glades Road west of Lyons, between Stallone’s and Bamboo Wok. It will be renamed Boca’s Best BBQ & Smokehouse.

Image and map data by Google.
Image and map data by Google.

They are taking over the space formerly occupied by a nail salon adding about 1500 square feet. The new area will have seating for 60 customers. There will be a half-wall with a counter between the two spaces with an additional 10 or so bar stools to sit at the counter. This will more than triple the seating.
On the cooking side they will be adding a 10-foot smoker inside the existing space. This will allow them to prepare more types of food at the same time, quintuple the total amount they can cook, and will also include rotisseries.
The menu will expand. Most notably they will open for breakfast with omelets and more, and they are adding fried chicken to the lunch and dinner menus. Of course they will continue to feature the Sweet Dewey’s sauces.
The restaurant will close this Sunday through Wednesday for final remodeling, and will reopen on December 20th. They are hoping for a grand reopening on January 1st.

Benihana Coming to Westwinds of Boca


We’ve heard rumors for years now and it’s finally true. Benihana is coming to Westwinds of Boca (aka the Home Depot plaza) on the southeast corner of 441 and Glades. Originally we heard this what was going into the new building that now has Pei Wei and a few other stores.

The old Denny’s; photo by Warren Redlich

While we heard all those rumors, people also kept asking us “what’s going on with the Denny’s building.” Now we have the answer. There is a proposal pending before the county, titled “Benihana at Festival Shoppes of Boca Raton” (the old name of Westwinds). The essence of the plan:

The Applicant is requesting to reconfigure the Site Plan and add square footage. The Preliminary Site Plan indicates the existing Type II Restaurant (3,154 sq. ft.) to be demolished and a new (8,060 sq. ft.) restaurant to be constructed.

The zoning commission has scheduled a hearing for December 4th, and then it will go in front of the County Commissioners on January 7th. Sometimes these dates get pushed back, but it appears to be coming soon. One reader even tells us she saw workers at the building.
There are already a couple of Japanese steak houses in West Boca, with Tempura House at Clint Moore & 441, and Saito’s at Lyons and Glades. Benihana is may be a step up in quality, but we’ll see if and when they open.

Benihana to replace Denny’s in Westwinds of Boca, southeast corner of Glades and 441; image and map data by Google.

Overall the parking in that plaza can be a nightmare, though the worst of it is closer to Home Depot and Publix. Doubling the size of this building will bring in a lot more cars, but we think there’s room for it. Plus we’re excited to try it.
It’s always a good sign for the local economy when businesses want to open and expand.
The full zoning application is below:
[gview file=”https://westbocanews.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/1990-00024DOA-2015-01723_Benihana-at-Festival-Shoppes-of-Boca-Raton.pdf”]

Burglaries in Boca Falls & Boca Madera; School on Lockdown

Update: A homeowner in Bayberry (Boca Winds) said she saw two black males in a older white pickup “casing the neighborhood”. They were not young, perhaps in their 30s or 40s, and she saw them two or three times. The location is very close to the Boca Falls burglary in this story and the description seems to match what the homeowner saw when she walked in on the burglars.

Two burglary incidents attracted a lot of attention in the past 24 hours, one yesterday afternoon in Boca Falls and early this morning in Boca Madera.

Mystic Cove in Boca Falls; image by Google
Mystic Cove in Boca Falls; image by Google

Readers alerted us to an incident yesterday in and near Boca Falls at the west end of Glades Road and Palmetto Park Road. Several police cars were seen, some on Glades Road near the Boca Falls entrance with others on or near Palmetto. Readers also saw a police helicopter. We arrived on the scene about an hour later and saw one police car at Palmetto and Riverside along with the helicopter.
One of our readers described the incident as he heard it:

[The homeowner] walked into her house and her house was being robbed! She saw them and they saw her and then they ran out the back and she ran out the front. They did take items from her house. From what she said, they came in by piggybacking through the gate.
Hopefully word will get out and our neighborhood will take precautions and this doesn’t happen again!

Various sources tell us that police were looking for two black males in a white pickup; the pickup “piggy backed” through the gate near Waters Edge Elementary School; Waters Edge went on a “Code Yellow” lockdown for about an hour; and that Boca Falls was already considering measures to improve gate security and this incident is likely to accelerate changes.
The reference to piggy backing is when an unauthorized vehicle follows closely behind an authorized vehicle to get through a gate before it closes.
Another reader forwarded us this notice from Waters Edge Elementary:

Please know that for everyone’s safety, we were on a Code Yellow today from approximately 12:25-1:25 pm due to some unusual activity in Boca Falls– we are now “All Clear”. All students and staff remained in the building and they did a fabulous job following our expectations. We appreciate everyone’s support during this time.

So far there’s no indication as to whether the burglars were caught or not.
We should note that crime maps show incidents like this are rare in gated communities, and West Boca has one of the lowest crime rates in Palm Beach County and South Florida.

Boca Madera entrance; image by Google
Boca Madera entrance; image by Google

Early this morning there was a burglary in the Boca Madera neighborhood which is on the east side of Jog Road north of Glades near the St. Andrews School. It’s inside the city line but still what we consider West Boca (west of Military Trail). Boca Raton Police notified the community (via Facebook and Twitter) of the incident and warned residents to stay inside.
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Not too long after they followed up with an all-clear notice:
boca-madera-clear
WPTV reports that two men were arrested after a search was conducted by Boca Raton PD and a PBSO helicopter. We do not see any blotter entries that fit yet, but it was only a few hours ago and usually takes longer than that for them to show up.
Note that the correct spelling of the neighborhood is Boca Madera (Madera is Spanish for wood), not Madeira (a Portuguese wine).

New Comedy Theatre in West Boca: Boca Black Box

bbb-exterior
Conspicuously hidden behind the Dunkin’ Donuts on Glades Road (just west of the Turnpike, near the International Jewelers Exchange), is a new space for comedy, theatre, comedy theatre and more. Boca Black Box fills a space that had been empty for a while, and at some point years ago was a comedy club. There’s a new vision for the place driven by the partners behind it, especially Randy Singer.

Scott Levine and Randy Singer
Two of the partners, Scott Levine and Randy Singer

As local media we were invited to attend an event that included a local comedian named Sarge.
sarge
Sarge had the audience laughing hard and often. His material ranged from the deli counter at Publix to the chairs in the theater (allegedly harvested from a DMV office that closed in Deerfield Beach).
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The chairs were actually comfortable and laid out well so every seat has a good view. It’s a big room, with chairs in the back elevated a bit. There’s also a bar area in the back serving various drinks, though no food.
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At this particular event there was some food provided, from Jimmy the Greek and Armadillo Cafe, both in the same plaza. If you’re going to a show here these restaurants would be a good place to eat beforehand.
We look forward to more coming at Boca Black Box. This month they have 11 events scheduled and we imagine it will get busier as they grow and develop their shtick.
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