South Florida Sun Sentinel from Fort Lauderdale, Florida • Page 8

I ii ii I i i i I rm I'm i i I. 1 -P if Bulletin Board 4 Obituaries 17 Weather i Sun-Sentinel Florida SOUTH I mm. Hfe PAGE 6 Section Wednesday February 16, 2000 South Florida Deal reached in DCF suit I Some still skeptical JL settlement! i will work I 1 I I III i v. 1 5, I State doesn't always follow through, child advocates say By SHANA GRUSKIN staff Writer A STARTING BLOCK FOR CHANGE: At left, Phyllis Scott, of the Department of Children and Family 1 Services, and Howard plaintiffs' attorney, on Tuesday join hands in victory announcing a settlement in the foster-care lawsuit. Judge Kathleen Kearney, above, secretary of the Department of Children Family Services, describes the settlement.

Staff photosJudy Sloan Reich The legal battle on behalf of Broward Counl 's foster children is far from over. The ink might have dried on a 25-page settlement, but the state, some child advocates say, has a short attention span when it comes to following through. "Once the courts cease monitoring the state, the state goes back to business as usual," said Bernard Perlmutter of the University of Miami's Children and Youth Law Clinic. "It may not be because they're malevolent. Institutional memory is very short." High-profile class-action suits like the Youth Law Center's illuminate systemic crisis.

But ultimately, it takes a dedicated team of advocate-plaintiffs and government-defendants to get beyond their adversarial rote and overhaul a broken system, legal experts say. That's what the Department of Children Families and plaintiff's attorneys say Tuesday's settlement will do. But others like Karen Gievers, of Tallahassee, who recently established the Children's Advocacy Foundation aren't so sure. I Gievers filed a class-action suit in 1990 against the department for taking more than two years, on average, to determine whether a foster child-was safe to go home or should be placed for adoption. In those days, federal law gave states 18 months to make that decision.

Now, it gives them 12 months. Gievers settled the suit in 1992. She revived it ADVOCATES continues on 2B was a commitment to do what a court would have ordered in the first place," said Howard Talenf eld, one of the plaintiff's lawyers. That means designing a system that promises to keep children safe, secure and stable while they're being cared for by the state. But that might be easier said than done.

The Youth Law Center, a San Francisco-based nonprofit child-advocacy group, filed the suit in October 1998 on behalf of eight children who had been severely abused while in foster care. At SETTLEMENT continues on 2B Child advocates, state avoid trial By SHANA GRUSKIN Staff writer In a stuffy conference room lined with embossed law books, Department of Children Families Secretary Kathleen Kearney proudly declared a historic end to a 16-month legal saga. Flanking her on Tuesday morning were dark-suited lawyers for the virtually invisible plaintiffs: Broward County's 1 ,400 foster children! Both parties announced they settled a federal class-action lawsuit and avoided a Feb. 28 trial. They agreed to a unique relationship, in which they stop being adversaries and start being allies.

They plan to meet monthly, to discuss the crux of the district's crisis, as well as possible solutions. "In this settlement, we are partnering with the Youth Law Center to seek effective and real change in the child protection system here in Broward County and statewide," Kearney said from the podium. Not 20 feet away, a grim-faced moth- SOME OF THE DETAILS IN THE SETTLEMENT. 2B er shook her head in disbelief. Her son, 9, had been sexually abused by teens while in foster care.

"My son deserves a trial," she said. But trials are costly and ugly, attorneys said on Tuesday. They brew def en-siveness and take energy from trig prob-lems at hand. "Rather than spend the next two months preparing for trial and going to a federal courtroom, the most important thing we could get from the department Carollo sees growth, stability for Miami Financing woes plague Everglades restoration Mayor confident after win in court in reducing crime. "I would certainly hope they give me the opportunity that other mayors were given to be able to govern without one challenge after another," Carollo said Tues- Water district mulls raising property taxes By DAVID FLESHLER STAFF WRITER Handed a difficult job by Gov.

Jeb Bush, South Florida's water managers have found nearly half the money for the region's share of the bill for restoring the Everglades. The South Florida Water Management District has come up with about $45 million for the huge project to tear out levees, elevate roads, construct reservoirs and do other work to bring the marsh back to health, according to Frank million a year will be much harder. It was the main topic at a meeting on Tuesday between the district's board and the Broward County Commission. While various ideas have been floated, such as water-use fees and rental car taxes, several county commissioners said a property tax increase may be the best way for the district to raise the money. But the governor has urged the district to seek a tax increase only as a last resort.

And water district board members from the northern end of the water management district which stretches to Orlando said it would be unfair for their residents to suffer as much of a tax increase as South Florida. The Everglades restoration project, expected to last at least 20 years and cost about $7.8 bil- EVERGLADES continues on 2B Carollo By ELLIS BERGER Miami Bureau MIAMI With the prospects of an election next month all but put to rest, Mayor Joe Carollo is predicting unprecedented growth and stability for the city during the nearly two years remaining in his term. Carollo called on city commissioners, with most of whom he's had a stormy relationship, to support his efforts to expand Miami's economy and continue gains made day. AT A GLANCE The Everglades restoration project: Cost: $7.8 billion Who pays: Federal government and state of Florida will split the cost, paying about $100 million a year each. The problem: South Florida water managers must find a way to raise about $55 million a year for the project.

His remarks came in response to the mid-day ruling by the Third District Court of Appeals affirming a lower court's decision that can- Finch, the district's executive director. Finding the rest of the money about $55 I CAROLLO continues on 2B New witness in Collins case: He often visited his accuser I 1 capes. And, as pre-opening marketing strategy, a puppet of a nun with boxing gloves on was sent to reporters and critics. "It's all said Buca spokeswoman Allison Ward. Not funny, said 1 this morning by actors Ali 1 MacGraw and Ryan O'Neal.

Mother Love, still reeling from her replacement by the pixie-ish Robin Givens, sought solace on board at pre-christening festivities among the likes of Gavin McLeod, of Love Boat fame, TV stars Shari Belafonte, Sam Behrens and retired gymnast Nadia Comaneci. "Honey, I still have a broken heart," said Mother Love. "I thought we had a great show." So great, she said, a German tourist spotted her at Burdkies at the Galleria Mall on Monday and freaked. "She comes running, and she goes: 'You're der modder Mother Love said. 'I watch you all the time in So we shopped for shoes together." JOSE LAMBIET South Florida Insider Halcyon days for the Donald He opted to bow out of the presidential race, but The Donald didn't do that badly on other fronts.

For one thing, the king of Mar-a-Lago got his galpal back. Model Melania Knauss, 26, re-appeared in Palm Beach over the weekend. Just last month, she threw in the towel after finding Trump canoodling with a rival model. But this time, it was the svelte Slovenian doing some serious snuggling with Trump, 53, after Saturday's Donald J. Trump Pro-Am Invitational tennis tourney.

"They were hugging and kissing and being more affectionate than ever," said photographer Art Seitz. Then Trump won his own tournament for the first time in four tries. For that, he recruited Aussie pro Andrew Hie, more famous for his shirt-ripping antics than his passing shots. Trump and Hie beat disgraced financier Michael Milken and the "I believe Mrs. Garcia is mistaken," said Nolte's lawyer, Jim Lewis.

Collins, who's in jail waiting trial on burglary charges, defended his presence in her apartment at 5 a.m. by saying he routinely visited Nolte for sex. Nolte, whose husband chased Collins out, says the Diesel was stalking her. Dining at the Pope's Table This may enrage some folks. A restaurant set to open in shutdown Fort Lauderdale Hooters March 7 is using the image of the pope and priest garb as decor.

The Italian eatery Buca di Beppo, or Joe's Basement in Italian is offering the Pope's Table, where 18 people can sit with a life-size bust of John Paul II on the table. Decorations in the Cardinal's Room include cardinal's capes on the wall and undergarments such as the traditional red knee-high socks worn under ceremonial former Mr. Chris Evert, John Lloyd, to take the 5-f oot-tall silver cup. "He's been beside himself since the weekend," said his publicist, Norma Foerderer. Trump also got to rub elbows with royalty.

Britain's Prince Andrew put in a round of golf with The Donald at the latter's new WPB course Saturday before joining two blondes poolside at Mar-a-Lago. One of the blondes, Boca businesswoman and astrologer Christine Drangsholt, played coy about cozying up to the prince. "We're just friends," she said. "My girlfriend and I met him that day, and we just hung out." A little for Mother Love How's the recently fired hostess of TV talk show Forgive or Forget Mother Love taking forced retirement? With some on the shiny new Ocean Princess, Princess Cruises' newest super-ship scheduled to be christened Cecil Collins' defense team is turning up info to back up its claim that the Diesel and his neighbor accusing him of burglarizing her place may have been romantically involved before he was nabbed. According to a sworn statement to defense attorney Fred Haddad obtained by Insider, a neighbor of both Collins and his accuser, Tina Nolte, said she saw the ex-Dolphin go inside the married Nolte's Davie apartment several times in the weeks before his Dec.

16 arrest. "After seeing that, I'd never have imagined she Nolte was married," said the witness, Yolaidy Garcia. She told Haddad's investigators she didn't know who the "stocky, athletic-looking black man" was until she saw him on TV. Haddad, who wouldn't comment because a gag order was issued in the case, also obtained statements from footballers Kenny Mixon, Robert Baker and Joe Wong that Collins bragged about being with Nolte. Bishop Thomas Wenski, of the Archdiocese of Miami.

"Making fun of religion is like making fun of your mother-in-law," he said. "There could be hell to pay. Restaurants come and go; the church doesn't." The joint, located at Commercial and U.S. 1, is part of a national chain originating in Minneapolis. Insider appears Monday, Wednesday and Friday.

Call Jose at 954-356-4529, ore-mail jlambiet(3.