Flagler County’s justifications for holding a Spartan extreme-sport race at Princess Place Preserve fails the smell test on all counts and raise questions about how tourism chief Matt Dunn and County Administrator Craig Coffey got the deal so far to start with.
Nearly Condemned, Old Courthouse in Bunnell Gavels Back to Life as Christian School
First Baptist Christian Academy opened its doors today before throngs of celebrants marking the rejuvenation of the old county courthouse, now as a viable business in the heart of Bunnell.
Lawmakers Can’t Get It Done: Redistricting Session Collapses, Leaving It Up to Courts
The end of the session without agreement on the shape of Florida’s 27 congressional districts likely means the final decision will be made by the courts, though some lawmakers held out slim hopes for a resolution in the coming days that could avoid such an outcome.
Bill Would Ban All Confederate Flags on Public Grounds as Question of “Security” Is Raised Over Ag Museum Civil War Reenactment
Bill McGuire, a tourist council and Palm Coast City Council member, is concerned about the Confederate flag display at an upcoming Civil War reenactment at the Agricultural Museum. He spoke as a bill was introduced in Tallahassee to ban all such displays on public grounds.
Matanzas Woods Construction Forces Temporary School Bus Routes For Nearby Students
As school resumes Monday, transportation changes are afoot in the Matanzas High area, while the sheriff’s office has issued a series of cautions and tips to parents and students.
Weekend Briefing: A New Day at Old County Courthouse, School Orientations, Adopt a Precinct, Donuts With Doughney
The old county courthouse reopens as a Christian school today, non-profits can make money adopting a voting precinct, the friendly side of Flagler Beach Capt. Matthew Doughney, Bach’s St. Matthew Passion in full.
Gene Spaulding Is Named Florida Highway Patrol Director
Spaulding replaces Col. David Brierton, who retired in May. He’d overseen Troop G. the northeast Florida FHP district that includes Flagler County.
With YMCA Talks Dead, District Looks For Belle Terre Swim Club Savior in Final Effort
With the YMCA, Palm Coast and the county uninterested in supporting it, the days of the Belle Terre Swim Club as a public facility will end this fall if no bidder is found by early October.
House and Senate at Odds Over Congressional Map, But No Disagreement Over Flagler District
The 6th Congressional District would be redrawn southward, losing most of St. Johns County and all of Putnam, and taking on all of Volusia and a segment of Lake, thus pushing the district more to the center than it’s been.
Trump Leads Rubio and Bush in Florida, Would Beat Clinton But Not Biden
If Trump were to run on a third-party platform, he would make it easier for Hillary Clinton to win–or for Joe Biden to win, should the vice president decide to run, as he would bleed votes away from either Rubio or Bush.
Thursday Briefing: 8 Year Old Tells of Dog Bite, School Orientations, Policing Panties
The week of student orientations and open houses continues with Matanzas High and Imagine on today’s slate, arguing against a pantie law, Marco Rubio’s slow-going.
Princess Place Preserve Slated for Extreme-Sport-Type Endurance Race, and 6,000 Racers
The Spartan extreme-sport race in March will cover 8-10 miles and feature nearly 30 landscape-altering obstacles, with 6,000 racers and 2,000 spectators expected. The county is subsidizing the race.
Scott Administration Intensifies Battle Over Planned Parenthood Clinics in Florida
State health officials say three clinics can continue to operate but remain under investigation for allegedly performing illegal second-trimester abortions.
Entrapments of Color Blindness: Harper Lee’s “Go Set a Watchman,” Chapter 10
There’s a bit of vomit to start off Chapter 10 of Harper Lee’s “Go Set a Watchman,” much of it from our contributing writers, who have a hard time understanding how it takes Scout 25 years to discover what her father is about.
Michael King of the Mondex Sentenced to 10 Years in Prison For Soliciting 3 Under-Age Girls on Facebook
Michael King had created a fake Facebook account and solicited girls in the same neighborhood. He’d refused a plea deal that would have kept him in prison only three years.
Despite Same-Sex Marriage Ruling, Gay Adoption Rights Remain Restricted in Florida
While same-sex couples have long been able to adopt from private, gay-friendly adoption agencies, adopting children from the foster care system has proved more difficult in some states, among them Florida.
Wednesday Briefing: County Seeks $150,000 for Preserve Cottages, a New Joan B. King Park, Women’s Libido Pill
County government is seeking–from itself, in effect, by way of its tourism board–a $150,000 “grant” from bed sales tax revenue to help build cottages at Princes Place Preserve.
FPL Faces Renewed Opposition to Higher Rates For Nukes Plant Construction Years in the Future
The request, if approved by the Florida Public Service Commission in October, would place the cost for new nuclear power at 34 cents on a typical residential customer’s monthly bill in 2016.
For Fire Chief Don Petito, a Family Matter Escalates Into Confrontations and Complaints
Don Petito was seeking to help his father move out of a house when a deputy forbade either to enter the house, causing the fire chief to become “very animated,” in his own words.
A Man Can’t Remember Who Shot Him or How, Another Insists On Being Arrested
Florida Hospital Flagler’s emergency room was the scene of two odd and unrelated incidents that resulted in the arrest of one man and the investigation of a suspicious shooting that injured a man’s foot but that led to no arrests.
Tuesday Briefing: Your Kids’ Vaccines at Health Department, Free Speech’s New Frontier, Big Band
You can still get all your child’s vaccinations through Friday at the Flagler County Health Clinic, a Supreme Court free speech ruling’s havoc on cities, Berlin in 1936, in color.
Before Going Neolithic on Unwed Moms, Bush Could Bone Up on Economic Reality
Here’s what conservatives like Jeb Bush don’t want to acknowledge: Marriage rates are inextricably linked to America’s economy.
Clashing Again, Florida House and Senate Are on Collision Course Over Redistricting
The House and Senate seemed unconcerned about whether they could reconcile their differences before the scheduled conclusion of the special session on Friday. They all but ruled out forming a joint House-Senate conference committee to hammer out a compromise.
County Government Will Take Over Flagler Tourism Office From Chamber in Latest Expansion
The tourism office’s four employees have been under contract through the Flagler chamber of commerce. By next fall, they’ll be county employees, but their budget will still be underwritten by the 4 percent surtax on short-term rentals.
Boat-Dock Permits Revoked, Flagler Re-Ignites Urgency to Finish Manatee Protection Plan
Federal officials have revoked all boat-dock permits for non-residential homes in Flagler because a manatee protection plan and an additional speed zone are not in place.
Getting Past Cheap Praise: Superintendent Challenges Teachers to Adopt More Perceptive Mindsets
Speaking to 1,000 faculty members in a packed Flagler Auditorium this morning, Superintendent Jacob Oliva outlined the coming year’s objective the way savvy tech companies roll out new products.
Monday Briefing: Welcome Back Teachers, $76,000 To Revamp County’s Economic Development Website, Gore Vidal Echoes
Flagler County is getting set to spend $76,000 on its economic development website, Superintendent Jacob Oliva welcomes faculty and staff back to school, dual enrollment at Bethune-Cookman, and Gore Vidal from the grave.
“Defunding” Planned Parenthood: Beyond GOP Posturing, It Wouldn’t Be Easy To Do
Jeb Bush claims he defunded Planned Parenthood while governor in Florida. Other GOP presidential candidates make similar claims or promises. They’re being dishonest.
Falling Out of a Pick-Up, Palm Coast Man Is Critical After Being Run Over on Seminole Woods Boulevard
Conner Patrick Anderson, 22, Ronald Lewis Stedman, 20, were taking the victim home after a night of drinking when they decided to put him in the bed of their truck because he was acting belligerent.
Florida’s Tax Revenue Expected to Grow by Modest $462 Million By June 2017
At least some of the extra money is likely to be eaten up by increasing enrollment in the state’s public schools, changes to health-care spending and the like.
The Population Bomb Reloads: How Humans Cause Mass Extinctions
The world’s expanding human population is in competition with the populations of most other animals. Our population bomb has already claimed its first casualties. They will not be the last, argue Paul and Anne Ehrlich.
Flagler Beach Manager Want Ad Draws Just One Internal Applicant, With Little Experience
The lack of heftier applications suggests that the city commission may be forced to go to Plan B, which means opening the application process to a statewide and nationwide search, as was the case five years ago.
21-Year-Old Palm Coast Man, in Prison for Burglary, Now Faces Child-Rape Charge
The girl, 14 or younger at the time, was impregnated, and told her grandmother and her aunt of the alleged rape, only to be brushed off, she told her father and authorities.
Weekend Briefing: Tantalizing New Show at Salvo Art Project, Medical Pot Nears Florida Ballot, Guns and Cop-Killings
Salvo Art Project’s new show Saturday features the enigmatic installations of Laura Mongiovi, the medical marijuana amendment is approaching the 2016 ballot.
House Committee Approves District Joining Flagler, Volusia, Drips of Lake and St. Johns
The shift may be reflective of the weakness of the region’s legislative delegation: neither Sen. Travis Hutson nor Paul Renner, rookies both, has pull in his respective house, neither has bargaining chips to deal with.
3 Weeks After Announcing His Resignation, Airport Director Roy Sieger Says He’s Staying After All
Citing personal and professional reasons, Flagler County Airport Director Roy Sieger told his airport advisory board this afternoon that he was staying in Flagler County after all, three weeks after announcing his resignation to take a job with the Hillsborough County Airport Authority.
School Bus Depot Building Behind FPC Briefly Evacuated After Worker Reaction from Mysterious 55-Gallon Drums
The large hangar at the school bus depot behind Flagler Palm Coast High School was briefly evacuated shortly after noon today when an employee there was indisposed after catching a whiff from an undetermined liquid in one of nine barrels behind the hangar.
Another Wave of Break-Ins and Car Thefts in Palm Coast Targets Mostly Unlocked Vehicles
Some of the break-ins could not be properly investigated because the vehicle owners had disturbed the vehicles before the arrival of police. None of the break-ins yielded any arrests.
Thursday Briefing: Holland Park Renovation at 26%, A Vigil for Corey Tanner, GM Foods, ISIS Rape Culture
US Marshals gunned down Corey Tanner a year ago, allegedly mistaking a bottle of cologne for a gun. How ISIS claims raping girls and women is a religious reward.
New Congressional Maps Proposed in Face of Criticism, One Restoring Flagler’s Right Tilt
Changes to a proposed map of Florida’s 27 congressional districts emerged Wednesday, a day before key hearings in the House and Senate about how to comply with a court order finding the current map violates the anti-gerrymandering “Fair Districts” requirements.
Citing High Costs and an Arrest, Council Says No to a Fence Around Ralph Carter Park
An arrest in spring and the $70,000 to $160,000 cost of a fence dissuaded council members from giving in to Richardson Drive residents demanding a fence around Ralph Carter Park.
Sen. Travis Hutson Joins Chorus of Opposition to New Congressional Map, Objecting to Split
Sen. Travis Hutson opposes changes to the congressional district that include Flagler because they would split St. Johns, Hutson’s base, while taking in all of Volusia.
Palm Coast’s $2 Million Training Facility: Old Buildings Turned Over to Firefighters Before Demolition
Properties on Bulldog Drive the city acquired for $2 million are the scenes of firefighter training for the Palm Coast Fire Department this week before the buildings are demolished and the properties placed on the market for commercial developers.
Wednesday Briefing: Student Schedules at Indian Trails Middle, David Alfin, Benefactor, Obama on Voting Rights Act
Big day for students at Indian Trails Middle School, Realtor David Alfin becomes a Chamber of Commerce benefactor, Barack Obama responds to revelations of the undoing of the Voting Rights Act.
Report on Active-Shooter Exercise at FPC Points to Serious Flaws in Command, Communications and Cooperation
The unvarnished after-action report paints a troubling picture of sheriff’s and fire rescue operations that worked poorly as a coordinated, cooperative and unified response, though they worked well in their individual parts.
Florida League of Women Voters Targeting New Campus Concealed Weapons Bills
The goal is to make the opposition stronger than during the 2015 session, by uniting with students, professors, administrators and the national organization Campaign to Keep Guns Off Campus.
Flagler Beach Man Accused of Burglarizing Shell Station After Hiding in Bathroom Ceiling
John Dugent Jr., a 20-year-old resident of 5906 John Anderson Highway had snuck into the Shell station on A1A in Flagler Beach before closing time.
Raise the Gas Tax Already
The federal gas tax has been stuck at 18.4 cents a gallon since 1993, lowest among advanced countries. Yet Congress just adopted a three-month stopgap measure, kicking the gas can down the road for the 35th time since 2009.
To Battle Nit-Pickers, Palm Coast Will Make Anonymous Code Enforcement Complaints More Difficult
In an attempt to fight back against harassing and nit-picky neighbors, the Palm Coast City Council will require names and email addresses from people filing code violation complaints electronically.
Tuesday Briefing: Flagler Firefighters Head West, Palm Coast Talks Code Enforcement, Ann Beattie Returns
Flagler firefighters are sent to help battle wildfires in California, the Palm Coast council gets a better understanding of how code enforcement enforces.