Daytona State College invited its thousands of friends and near-70,000 alumni to celebrate homecoming in a weekend packed with wide-ranging activities, Nov. 2-5.
Beyond Tweet Storms: What Trump Could Learn from Alexander Hamilton
Hamilton wanted a strong central government. He advocated taxation. He took these positions for practical reasons, not because he was a flaming liberal, argues Jill Richardson.
Monday Briefing: Flagler’s Wild Tourism Spending, Fame, Between Trumpism and Islamism, Kundera
New county commissioners will contend with expensive requests from the county’s tourism division, Fame: the Musical at the Flagler Auditorium, Slovakia-bound art and Milan Kundera words.
County’s Tourism Office Seeks a Blank Check Of $150,000, and No-Bid Award of $130,000
The spending authorizations depart in one way or another from county or tourism council policy and underscore to what extent the paper trail behind tourism office spending has been thinning out over the past two years.
Refinancing Pushes State Debt Down to $24.1 Billion, But Rising Interest Rates Loom
State debt has declined since reaching a peak of $28.2 billion in 2010 due to several factors. Since taking office in 2011, Scott has remained largely opposed to borrowing money or issuing bonds.
Why Trump Would Almost Certainly Be Violating the Constitution If He Continues to Own His Businesses
Even if he does sell his business, any retained residual interest, or any sale payout based on the company’s results, would still give him a stake in its fortunes, again fairly clearly violating the Constitution.
Court Ruling Mostly Favoring Developer May End Nearly 2-Decade Wrangle Over Flagler Beach Marina
Howard Sklar’s marina and boat-works on the Intracoastal in Flagler Beach has been mired in conflict with the city almost since its inception in the late 1990s. A circuit court ruling may finally clear the way for its operations.
Florida’s Death Penalty Law in Disarray, Supreme Court Throws Out Yet More Sentences
Signaling how it is likely to handle scores of Death Row cases, a majority of the Florida Supreme Court threw out death sentences and ordered a new penalty proceeding for a convicted triple-murderer.
Ex-Soccer Coach Sean Stern, Accused of Molesting 2 Teens, Turns Himself In, Held on $500,000 Bond
Sean Stern worked for the now-defunct Professional Sports Pathways Academy in Palm Coast, at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University and in other local soccer programs.
Economy Adds 178,000 Jobs in November, 4.6% Unemployment at Lowest Level in 9 Years
It’s the longest job-creation streak in the nation’s history, but wages dropped in October by 0.1 percent and the decline in the unemployment rate was due more to a decline in the labor force than because of job creation.
Weekend Briefing: Christmas Parade in Flagler Beach, Arts Foundation Takes the Stage in Town Center, Messiah and Candlelight
An eventful weekend of Christmas performances all over the place, with the Flagler Beach Holiday Parade, the Palm Coast Arts Foundation’s afternoon celebration of its new stage on Town Center, performances of Handel’s Messiah, and plenty more.
Sheriff Meets With FPC and Matanzas Students On Timely Issues But Again Gives Neither Public Nor Press Notice
It was the sixth time Sheriff Jim Manfre held “One Common Ground” meetings with community members, and the sixth time his office neglected to publicly notice the meetings or inform local media so they could be properly reported.
Flagler Circuit Judge Scott DuPont Faces Charges of “Recklessly” Spreading Baseless Claims About Opponent
Circuit Judge Scott DuPont may face serious disciplinary action from the Florida Supreme Court if the Judicial Qualifications Commission recommends it after finding probable cause that he violated ethical rules in his latest election campaign.
Not a Storm Too Soon, Worst Hurricane Season In 11 Years Ends as Flagler Continues Recovery
Florida ended its 2016 hurricane season Wednesday, marking the first time in more than a decade that the Sunshine State was hit by a hurricane–and the closest Flagler County came to a direct hit in decades.
Thursday Briefing: Fantasy Lights and Tree Lighting in Town Center, Vaccine Skeptics, That 60s Show, Flagler Audubon
The Rotary Club’s annual Fantasy Lights displays in Palm Coast’s Town Center open just after the 6 p.m. tree-lighting ceremony, where Santa and the mayor make an appearance. Vaccine skeptics like Donald Trump. The 60s at the Auditorium.
In Saint Augustine, A Dead Priest Pleads for the Life of His Killer
Father Rene Robert, who was murdered, signed the Declaration of Life in 1995: it is wrong for the state to take the life of a convicted criminal, no matter how vile the crime, and no matter how innocent the victim.
New Florida Senator Files Bill To Scrap 2014 Law Granting In-State Tuition to Undocumented Immigrants
The plan by Sen. Greg Steube, a Sarasota Republican, repealing the in-state tuition exception, could alter the higher-education plans of many students who have spent much of their lives in Florida.
Wawa Might Anchor Long-Sought Redevelopment Plan at Bulldog Drive, But Uncertainties Abound
The Palm Coast City Council is set to sell to a developer corner lots at Bulldog and SR100 for almost $600,000 less than it paid for them, as an incentive and linchpin for the redevelopment of the Bulldog Drive entrance.
Enormous Debris Pile from Hurricane Matthew Inadvertently Catches Fire Off U.S. 1
One of three of the nearly-20-foot-high piles of flammable debris collected over the past two months after Hurricane Matthew caught fire Tuesday morning and continues to burn today, though the fire consumed much of the pile.
Electric Rates Will Go Up 8% on Jan. 1, and 13% by 2018 as Regulators Approve FPL Settlement
FPL rates in Flagler County and across the state will go up substantially over the next three years, starting in January, as the Publci Service Commission approved an $800 million base-rate increase for the utility.
Wednesday Briefing: End of Hurricane Season (Good Riddance), Matthew Pile Burns, Gun Violence
The Palm Coast City Council goes on a field trip to its public works facility ahead of a workshop on the subject, the Public Service Commission discusses a settlement that would result in higher electric rates for FPL customers, Bob Graham at UF.
Sorry, I Can’t Give Trump a Chance
Our democracy is too important to play nice with a man who campaigned on undermining it, argues Jill Richardson: “We already have evidence that Trump does absolutely everything he can get away with.”
Lawyers Cut Trenches in Case Involving Kids’ Sexual Improprieties at Old Kings Elementary VPK
The case now in Flagler circuit court potentially opens a window onto a relatively new world of early childhood education, but one with little of the regulations or oversight that attends K-12 programs.
18-Year-Old Palm Coast Man Accused of Molesting Girl, 12, On Bike Ride in R-Section
Owen Parker, 18, faces a second degree felony charge of molesting a 12-year-old elementary-school girl as they were riding bikes near Rymfire Elementary earlier this month.
With an Election Looming, Bunnell Commission Rebuffs Request to Raise Its Salaries Back Up
Commissioner Bill Baxley’s proposal to raise salaries cut in 2014 back up to $9,600 a year got no support from a commission with two members–John Rogers and Bonita Robinson–running for re-election in March.
Nominating Commission Sends 3 Names to Scott for Next Supreme Court Appointment
Fifth District Court of Appeal Chief Judge C. Alan Lawson, appellate Judge Wendy Berger and Orlando lawyer Dan Gerber made the final cut of the Supreme Court Judicial Nominating Commission.
Tuesday Briefing: Palm Coast Council’s Public Works Field Trip, FPL Rates, “America: The Owner’s Manual”
The Palm Coast City Council goes on a field trip to its public works facility ahead of a workshop on the subject, the Public Service Commission discusses a settlement that would result in higher electric rates for FPL customers, Bob Graham at UF.
Florida Court Backs Notifying Minor’s Parent Before Abortion, But Waivers Are Easy Out
Judges rarely turn down requests for waivers. The decision cites evidence that 89.5 percent of petitions were granted in 2013, 90.5 percent in 2014 and 94.7 percent in 2015.
Monday Briefing: Bunnell Commissioners Want Their Full Salaries Back, We Are the 99%, Rorty’s Suggestion to Lefties
Two years ago the Bunnell Commission cut its own salaries by 10 percent, now it wants that 10 percent back. A relatively quiet day in local government, Richard Rorty on what the Left got right and how it could do better.
3rd Set of Human Remains Found in 4 Months as Dune Erosion North of Varn Park Uncovers Bones
For the third time since August, authorities in Flagler County have been led to what they believe to be human remains, this time apparently uncovered by beach erosion caused by Hurricane Matthew.
Staly Names Bisland Undersheriff as Transition Team, Including Big Donors, Gets to Work
Jack Bisland, an investigator at the State Attorney’s office, had been Jim Manfre’s chief of investigations briefly in 2013, but the two men quickly parted ways.
In Month of Spiking Violence Against Police, 2 Palm Coast Men Arrested Separately For Threatening or Battering Cops
Anthony Banks, 42, allegedly battered and threatened an FHP trooper following a car crash, and Jarret Register, 24, threatened to shoot a sheriff’s deputy in the chest after an altercation at Smiles bar. Both men were allegedly drunk.
Flagler Beach Holiday at the Beach Parade Set for Saturday: Late Participants Welcome
The Rotary Club of Flagler Beach is once again hosting the Holiday at the Beach parade this Saturday, Dec. 3, along resilient State Road A1A in the city and is welcoming last minute parade applicants this week. See the application below.
In An Ugly Election Result, Hate Surges Online as Trump Emboldens Extremists
Throughout Donald J. Trump’s ultimately successful run for the presidency, many worried that he had, willfully or recklessly, emboldened racists across the country. Evidence suggests Trump’s effect on rising extremism has been unmistakable.
Palm Coast Man With Long Criminal Record Charged With Arson at Fenimore Ln House Fire
Vitaly Tsabak is accused of spending more than an hour stealing televisions, computers and other items from the house on Fenimore Lane in Palm Coast before setting it on fire Friday morning.
Flagler’s Humiliated Democrats Try To Regroup, Only to Expose the Dysfunctions At Their Core
Some 60 people had turned up at the All Flagler Democratic Club eager for guidance and strategy only to hear vague and at times bewildering proposals that have little to do with finding local Democrats to run, or get them elected.
Surprised? Trump’s Advisor on Wall Street Regulations is a Longtime Swamp-Dweller
Donald Trump’s transition advisor for financial regulations works for a firm that is emblematic of the Washington revolving door: deregulation could serve Paul Atkins’ wallet as well as his political agenda.
Crime Scene Declared at Suspicious Dawn Fire at Fenimore Lane House in Palm Coast
A fire broke out at dawn in the living room of a duplex at 164 Fenimore Lane in Palm Coast this morning. Firefighters were able to contain the fire to the living room. But it was almost immediately termed suspicious.
How The Electoral College Mistrusts Voters
That flaw is the Electoral College. For the fourth time in our history, and the second in 16 years, it has given the presidency to the candidate who polled fewer votes — 2 million fewer in this case — than his principal rival.
Black and White: 11 Florida Supreme Court Applicants Contrast Starkly With Retiring James Perry
The exit of the liberal Perry — one of five jurists who make up a liberal-leaning majority — gives Gov. Rick Scott his first opportunity to shape a bench that has repeatedly vexed the Republican chief executive and the GOP-dominated Legislature.
New School Board Chairman Trevor Tucker Calls For, and Gets, Half As Many Meetings
Relying on a faulty analogy with Duval County schools, Flagler County School Board Chairman Trevor Tucker wants the number of meetings cut from four to two per month, but wants these to be meatier than they’ve been. The board gave its guarded approval.
Human Remains Found in Wooded Area of Hunters Ridge, May Have Been There 1 or 2 Years
A resident of Hunter’s Ridge, the sparse, isolated development straddling the Flagler-Volusia County line, found human remains while searching for his drone this morning, not far from his home on Ashford Lake Drive.
Democrats Try to Stay Relevant After Barely Adding to Their Diminished Numbers in Florida Legislature
Democrats’ 41-member caucus faces a 79-member Republican majority in the Florida House, with 15 Democrats facing 25 Republicans in the Senate.
Investiture Day: School Board and County Commission Members Old and New Sworn In
Charlie Ericksen, Donald O’Brien and Dave Sullivan were sworn-in at the county commission, Colleen Conklin and Maria Barbosa at the school board in a pair of ceremonies that marked the more pronounced changes in local government resulting from the November election.
Flagler Fire Rescue Battalion Chief Jamie Burnsed’s Family House Burns in Morning Blaze
Jamie Burnsed, one of three battalion chiefs at Flagler County Fire Rescue, and one of its longest-serving firefighters, had lived at the property with his family for just about 10 years.
School Board Chairman Colleen Conklin On the Trump Election: “Words Matter”
In light of the swastika incident at Palm Coast’s Imagine School and many other hurtful or vile statements during the election campaign, the school board chairman calls on local leaders to denounce messages that erode trust and respect.
Despite Orlando Massacre and Zika Virus, Florida Tourism Draws Record 27 Million Visitors in 3 Summer Months
The 5.1 percent increase from the same time last year came as Canadians, Florida’s top source of foreign tourism, have cut back on travel due to their nation’s weakened dollar.
For George Hanns, 24 Years As Commissioner End With a Long Goodbye and a Biting Roast
The county administration gave George Hanns a farewell reception Monday afternoon, with some 100 people in attendance and touching moments mixing with humor and a colleague’s roast.
Along Palm Coast Parkway, Yet Another Tattoo Parlor, and Yet Another Assisted Living Facility
The two businesses may add upwards of 50 jobs in the city’s core commercial center along Palm Coast Parkway—an assisted living facility for dementia patients, and at least the third tattoo studio along the Parkway approved in recent years.
Palm Coast Man Charged With Felony Child Abuse For Allegedly Knocking 6-Year-Old Girl to Ground
Richard Kenney, 33, was arrested after briefly resisting deputies, and charged with a felony count of child abuse and domestic battery after deputies learned he had allegedly slugged a 6-year-old girl hard enough to knock her to the floor, then slapping his wife or ex-wife.