Fines continue to pile up against a Palm Beach couple who replaced all of their grass with artificial turf, now that the Architectural Commission has delayed a vote on the merits of a new landscape plan.
The code-violation fine totaled $79,000 as of Jan. 28, the date of the commission meeting.
Homeowners Desmond and Cristina Keogh installed fake grass without Town Hall’s approval on their property at 241 El Dorado Lane on the near North End. Desmond Keough has told town officials he is severely allergic to grass.
The commission’s review marked the project’s second time before the design board, after commissioners voted in December to defer the project.
Commissioners at that time tasked Keogh’s landscape architect, Andres Paradelo, with designing a plan to replace a significant portion of the artificial turf with low-growing plants, known as groundcover, rather than grass.
Desmond Keogh, who owns Haifa Limestone in West Palm Beach, told the commission during its Dec. 18 meeting that the fake grass had been installed around 2020 after he was hospitalized twice due to bouts of pneumonia caused by his asthma and allergy to grass.
Town code allows homeowners to have fake grass on their properties but only if the Architectural Commission greenlights it.
The Keoghs’ installation of the artificial turf would also require the Town Council to approve two variance requests to the zoning code, because the amount exceeds the overall minimum threshold for green space as well as specific limits on front-yard green space.
During the Jan. 28 meeting, Paradelo presented plans that would replace the fake grass along portions of the north and southern lawn with greenery and stone walkways.
Those adjustments would change the property’s percentage of green space from 19.5% to 31.3%, which would still be below the town’s minimum threshold of 40%, according to a staff memo.
Keogh said the couple wished to keep large sections of fake grass to give their children space to play.
While his health is the primary reason for the fake turf, Keogh said he couldn’t find a ground cover that would allow his kids to play on the lawn.
The commission has a history of denying property owners’ request for fake grass, often criticizing it as unsightly and unsustainable.
Some commissioners were sympathetic to Keoghs’ plight and argued that the board should approve the new landscape plan.
Commissioner Ken Karakul said the board could make an exception by noting Keogh’s health concerns in their decision.
“I think we are a village, and I think we need to pay attention to our residents and to their particular needs,” he said.
Commissioner K.T. Catlin concurred and noted that when she took a tour of the property, she noticed that the fake grass was hidden from the view of the street. She said the town needs to rethink its reluctance to authorize fake grass, noting advancements made in recent years in the appearance of artificial turf.
“I think that one of the things we need to do is take a good hard look at the products” when artificial turf is proposed, she said.
But Town Attorney Joanne O’Connor emphasized that the board is solely tasked with reviewing the design of projects, so commissioners were prohibited from making a health-related exception as part of an approval.
The rest of the commission was reluctant to approve a proposal that would retain a landscape comprised predominantly of fake grass.
Commissioner Betsy Shiverick said that if the board were to approve Keogh’s request, the commission would soon be inundated with proposals to install artificial turf on properties.
“We asked for ground cover, and we didn’t really get (a design with) groundcover back,” she said, referring to the conditions expressed as part of December’s deferment.
One commissioner also expressed concerns that the property is for sale.
“I saw your house is for sale, so are we just OK’ing this for the next person who buys it, which is kind of soon,” Commissioner Elizabeth Connaughton said.
Keogh said the house has been on the market for years, but the family doesn’t plan on moving.
The house was on and off the market between 2009 and 2011 and then listed again in July 2024, with the latest asking price at just under $20 million.
Adding some confusion was an additional landscape plan that Paradelo distributed to commissioners during the meeting. He described the plan as the most recent proposal for the property.
That plan retained the artificial turf on the north yard, while adding greenery south of the pool deck and on the lawn west of the property’s garage.
Paradelo said the latest plan would have been included in the proposal sent to Town Hall staff in preparation for the meeting but was delayed during the holiday season.
O’Connor responded, telling commissioners they couldn’t officially review the plan Paradelo gave them, because it had not been vetted by Town Hall staff and the Keoghs’ neighbors had not been notified about it.
Noting that the handout contained the actual plans the Keoghs wanted to propose, commission Chair Jeff Smith called for the project to be deferred by one month.
That motion passed unanimously.
Homeowners’ fines continue to rack up
While the commission’s deferral will give the Keoghs’ time to submit their latest landscape plan through the proper channels, it also means the fine levied against the unpermitted fake grass will keep escalating.
The Keoghs’ latest landscape proposal comes months after the Code Enforcement Board voted in March to levy a $250-a-day running fine for the illegal turf. As of Jan 28, the fine stood at $79,000.
That daily fine will cease once the Keoughs bring the property into compliance under town rules. In this case, that would mean getting a sign-off from the Architectural Commission and Town Council.
The only other way the Keoghs could come into compliance would be to replace artificial turf with a grass lawn.
Diego Diaz Lasa is a journalist at the Palm Beach Daily News, part of the USA TODAY Florida Network. You can reach him at dlasa@pbdailynews.com.
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Daily News: Palm Beach board delays vote involving illegally installed fake grass
Reporting by Diego Diaz Lasa, Palm Beach Daily News / Palm Beach Daily News
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
