Retiree Jacob Rosengarten gets early start on Juno Beach Town Council, serving as interim

Maya Washburn, Palm Beach Post
·3 min read

JUNO BEACH — Even before the March elections arrive, the face of the Town Council has begun to shift.

The five-member council headed into election season with four seats on the council up for grabs. Then, sitting council member, Elaine Contronakis, due to end her term in March, opted to exit early, creating a vacancy until the election.

Faced with the need to appoint an interim council member to replace her, the council turned to Jacob Rosengarten. Rosengarten is seeking to land a different seat on the council this year — Seat 3 — and is running unopposed.

At a meeting Jan. 24, the council agreed to appoint Rosengarten fill Contronakis' vacant seat as an interim council member.

Elaine Cotronakis, candidate for Juno Beach council seat 2
Elaine Cotronakis, candidate for Juno Beach council seat 2

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Rosengarten, a 68-year-old retiree, can learn the ropes of the job as he serves his interim term. Because qualifying has closed and Rosengarten was the unopposed candidate for Seat 3, he is the winner of that race and will be sworn in to that seat after the elections. Rosengarten could not be reached for comment.

“We already have an elected individual just waiting to be seated,” Mayor Alexander Cooke said Wednesday. “It seems like the logical way to go is to allow that person to be seated, so we don’t have any stalemates up here.”

Seat 3 became open when Vice Mayor Peggy Wheeler — the council member who currently holds it — announced she would be running for the mayor's seat instead.

Council members previously chose a mayor among themselves, but that changed during this election cycle. The title now is attached to Seat 2. So in March, Wheeler faces Cooke as both vie for Seat 2.

Incumbent DD Halpern is running unopposed for Seat 4 with a three-year term. Candidates Dean Anthon and Diana Davis are competing for Seat 5 with a one-year-long term.

Council member Marianne Hosta will stay in Seat 1. Her current three-year term ends in 2026.

The council moved to appoint Rosengarten Wednesday, Jan. 24, in the wake of Contronokis' announcement. She said she chose to leave before her term is up due to "personal obligations" and to accept an opportunity that requires travel.

Vice Mayor Peggy Wheeler faces Mayor Alexander Cooke as both incumbents seek election to Seat 2, that comes with the title 'Mayor.'
Vice Mayor Peggy Wheeler faces Mayor Alexander Cooke as both incumbents seek election to Seat 2, that comes with the title 'Mayor.'

“I am honored to have served the residents of Juno Beach and have enjoyed every minute on this dais,” said Cotronakis at the December meeting. “I’ll miss you all. While it saddens me to close this chapter of my life, I'm excited to see where the next chapter takes me. Juno Beach is truly a gem.”

Cotronakis resigned before she would have been expected to fill out Form 6, which asks local officials to report details of their net worth and is required by a new state law. Dozens of elected officials across Florida have resigned over this.

Cotronakis, who served roughly three years on the council, saw this as an added bonus of leaving the seat early, according to a spokesperson.

Rosengarten has a master of business administration degree from the University of Chicago. He is a certified public accountant and previously worked as the chief enterprise risk officer for XL Group, an insurance company.

“We are looking forward to working with Jacob,” Cooke wrote in a statement Friday. “He brings an impressive background that rarely steps up to take these positions.”

Maya Washburn covers northern Palm Beach County for The Palm Beach Post, part of the USA TODAY Florida-Network. Reach her at mwashburn@pbpost.com. Support local journalism: Subscribe today.

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Juno council seat shuffle: Rosengarten in for exiting Contronakis