My name is Ellen Negley. I'm a watercolor artist and my husband and I moved to Lake Worth Beach 7 years ago with the hope that all the creative energy in this town would one day find forward momentum and Lake Worth Beach would no longer be known for high crime and faulty electricity. Instead it would become all that it could be....unique, eclectic, artistic and most importantly, financially stable.

As an artist, my small business is completely dependent on new residents and tourism....people that vacation in Florida and want to take a piece of our heaven home with them. I'd like to open up a gallery in downtown Lake Worth Beach but for now I won't because Lake Worth Beach doesn't draw the kind of people that I would need to support my business. But you know who could change all that? The Gills and the Gulfstream Hotel.

The Gulfstream Hotel would bring a constant flow of visitors to our community that would support artists like myself. Every small business in the downtown corridor would reap the benefits of this project. The tourism generated by the Gulfstream would bring the needed stability to our downtown. How long do we have to watch the revolving door of businesses starting and then failing six month later?

My husband and I have put our hearts, souls and money into restoring our home. I was part of the Free Little Art Galleries initiative. My artwork filled the walls at the Hatch for Island Fest. We support our downtown businesses weekly. It feels like we've done our part. It's your turn to make a difference. The Gulfstream is that difference.

Thanks for your time.
Ellen