Jill Woolbright is the incumbent candidate in the District 1 race for Flagler County School Board, running against Sally Hunt. Seven candidates are running for three school board seats.
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Patti King Is Flagler Beach Historical Museum’s New Director
The Flagler Beach Historical Museum’s Board of Directors are pleased to announce that Patti King has accepted the position of Museum Director. Current Director Kathy Wilcox has been in the position since 2018 and will retire in December.
As Commissioner Andy Dance Again Cites ‘Lines of Decorum’ Getting Crossed, Don O’Brien Walks Off
Flagler County Commissioner Andy Dance today pointed to yet another crossing of “the lines of decorum” by fellow-Commissioner Joe Mullins, and again called for a retreat so commissioners could get on the same page of decorum and procedures, only for Don O’Brien to walk off the dais and other commissioners to ignore him. It was the latest example of a commission chronically enabling conflict and corrosion over respect.
John Wesley McNeeley Ph.D., Obituary
John Wesley McNeeley, of Palm Coast, Florida, longtime Daytona State College distinguished Professor of Psychology, passed away peacefully on Sunday, July 24, 2022.
Gas Prices Below $4, Big Oil Profits Set Massive Records, Flagler Commissioners Gripe of Higher Local Costs
Gas prices in Palm Coast are a shade under $4 and not far from the Florida average of $3.93 a gallon, though Flagler County Commissioners want an explanation from the agriculture commissioner as to why higher prices continue in the county. Oil company profits, meanwhile, again shatter records.
Open Enrollment for Flagler Youth Orchestra’s After-School Strings Program
The Flagler Youth Orchestra Strings Program, a special project of the Flagler County School District, is launching its eighteenth season, with ongoing open enrollment for all Flagler County students ages 8 and up. An open house and information session will be held August 31 at the Flagler Auditorium.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Monday, August 1, 2022
The Flagler County Commission meets and will once again neither censure Joe Mullins nor require him to step down at least from the chairmanship, following his abusive encounters with law enforcement. Kemal Belevi’s “Suite Chypre,” Francis Fukuyama on Soviet Man, not to be confused with Florida’s parental Bill of Rights.
What We Can Learn from Apartheid-Era Book Bans in South Africa
The rise in attempts to ban and censor books in America–and in Flagler County–in 2022 looks an awful lot like what South African censors did during apartheid. It’s as though would-be American censors have taken a page directly from the South African censors’ playbook, setting out to squash political dissent and silence social debate.
Recovery of 90% of Human Skeleton Ends Toscana Subdivision Dig for Mystery Remains
Sheriff Rick Staly announced that the dig was declared over after the effort recovered 90 percent of a human skeleton. The investigation now enters a different stage, with efforts focused on identification through the use of DNA technology. Staly said that every missing-person file at the Sheriff’s Office includes DNA samples against which the find at Toscana will be tested.
Dr. Larry Petker Honors Wife Sandi with $25,000 Endowment to Daytona State College
Ormond Beach chiropractor Dr. Larry Petker and his family have established an endowed scholarship fund with the Daytona State College Foundation in memory of his beloved wife, Sandi, who passed away last December.
Sheriff Staly Elected Vice-Chair of the Florida Sheriff’s Association Board of Directors
During the Florida Sheriff’s Association (FSA) semi-annual meeting of Florida’s Sheriff’s held in Orlando on July 26, 2022, Flagler County Sheriff Rick Staly was elected by his fellow Sheriff’s to Vice-Chair of the Board of Directors.
Suddenly, Florida Is a Haven for Abortion-Seekers in the South. But For How Long?
As of this week, most abortions are banned in Alabama, Georgia, Mississippi and South Carolina. Other states in the South also have strict abortion bans that are in flux because of court appeals. But on the geographical edge of this block of Deep South states, abortion is expected to remain legal in Florida and North Carolina, at least until the November elections.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Sunday, July 31, 2022
“Keep Palm Coast Clean” litter pick-up from 8 a.m. to noon, “Constellation” has its last performance at City Repertory Theatre, Milton Friedman, The Sewing Girl’s Tale.
Time to Debunk Stereotypes About Mobile Homes, Affordable Housing’s New Face
Over 20 million Americans live in manufactured housing – more than in public housing and federally subsidized rental housing combined. Yet many people, including urban planners and affordable housing researchers, see manufactured housing parks as problems, when they may be part of the solution to housing crises.
10 Years After 1st Built, Belle Terre Pedestrian Bridge Replacement Project Underway
Replacement of the pedestrian bridge on Belle Terre Parkway just south of Buddy Taylor Middle School is underway, with demolition and replacement efforts being conducted by Custom Built Marine Construction, with oversight from the City of Palm Coast’s Stormwater & Engineering Department.
Judge Upholds Osceola School Board’s Termination of Charter School Contract
Judge Lynne Quimby-Pennock issued a 65-page order backing the school board in the dispute with American Classical Charter Academy. The school board voted April 5 to terminate the contract, prompting the charter school to take the case to the state Division of Administrative Hearings.
Due to Redistricting, Senate Democratic Leader Lauren Book Faces Challenger in Re-Election Bid
Senate Minority Leader Lauren Book, a Plantation Democrat elected in 2016, is trying to hold onto her seat after the makeup of Senate District 35 changed earlier this year through the once-a-decade reapportionment process. A survivor of childhood sexual abuse, Book has made her advocacy for preventing child abuse a top priority.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Saturday, July 30, 2022
“Constellation,” at City Repertory Theatre, Puppapalooza at James Holland Park in Palm Coast, The Saturday Flagler Beach Farmers Market, reflections on Henry Ford.
The Independent State Legislature Doctrine Could Reverse 200 Years of Electoral Progress
In a case to be heard in the coming months, the U.S. Supreme Court could decide that state legislatures have control over congressional elections, including the ability to draw voting districts for partisan political advantage, unconstrained by state law or state constitutions.
As Flagler Records Its First Case of Monkeypox, Florida and U.S. Cases Keep Rising
Florida is closing in on 400 monkeypox cases as of Friday, with the largest number of cases in South Florida and other urban settings. Flagler County recorded its first case this week. The United States is nearing 5,000 cases, more than in any country outside of endemic zones.
Crista Rainey Is State Association’s Officer of the Year, Capping Near-Sweep for Flagler Sheriff
Flagler County Sheriff’s deputy Crista Rainey, a seven-year veteran, combined bravery, life-saving and compassion on duty as she was named the Florida Sheriff’s Association’s Law Enforcement Officer of the Year.
Possible In-Patient Facility for Addicts in Place of Former Sheriff’s ‘Mold-Ops’ Raises Some Eyebrows
An in-patient drug-treatment facility that closed in St. Augustine is planning to re-open at the former, once mold-plagued Sheriff’s operations center off State Road 100. The sheriff had to abandon the building in 2018. The for-profit facility would be run by Dr. Duke Vinson.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Friday, July 29, 2022
Willy Wonka, Jr. at the Flagler Playhouse Ken Burns on Ken Burns, Wendy Kaminer on atheism, the last taboo, another call for the Veterans Park Fountain Design Contest.
Are We Now in a Recession? Depends on Whom You Ask.
Some observers suggest the two quarters of contraction constitute a “technical recession” or the “unofficial start” of one, while others suggest it at least raises fears or signals it’s on the way. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell apparently thinks otherwise. On July 27, after raising interest rates 0.75 percentage point, Powell told reporters, “it’s a strong economy and nothing about it suggests that it’s close to or vulnerable to a recession.”
Sheriff’s 911 Center Director Christina Mortimer Awarded Public Safety Executive Designation
Communications Director Christina Mortimer graduated from the Association of Public-Safety Communications Officials Institute (APCO), Certified Public Safety Executive (CPE) program. The graduation ceremony was held at the Shores Resort in Daytona Beach Shores.
Paul Renner’s Stunning Attack on Green Energy Is Bad News for Florida’s Climate Change Challenges
Sea level rise is just the most obvious manifestation of our climate change peril. Yet Speaker-designate Renner has barely even mentioned that when talking about Florida’s future as he keeps raking in campaign cash from power and coal companies.
There Will Be No Inquisition of Flagler Beach Mayor Suzie Johnston
Three Flagler Beach city commissioners had called for a special workshop to discuss what they perceived as Mayor Suzie Johnston overstepping her role. After conversations with City Attorney Drew Smith, the commissioners pulled back on holding that workshop this evening.
FWC Investigating Boating Incident That Killed Palm Coast’s Thomas Daquila
FWC issued a report identifying the man who died in a July 2 boating incident just north of Marineland as Thomas Daquila, 52, a resident of Cherokee Court in Palm Coast since 2017. All four other occupants of the boat were from Palm Coast.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Thursday, July 28, 2022
The Flagler Beach City Commission may or may not hold an inquisition, Brooke Anna Lorenzen, accused of DUI manslaughter, pleads out, the Jan. 6 hearings and Shostakovich’s 10th symphony, fascism in the streets.
The Trouble with ‘Closure’
The language of closure can often create confusion and false hope for those experiencing loss. Individuals who are grieving feel more supported when they are allowed time to learn to live with their loss and not pushed to find closure.
DeSantis and the Mis-Education of Florida’s Schoolchildren. With Test for Extra Credit.
Ron DeSantis wants the young ’uns educated with no unfair criticism of the Greatest Country that Ever Was. To that end, he’s bringing in a curriculum from Hillsdale College, a righteous institution where they love the Lord, the flag, and capitalism — not necessarily in that order.
Palm Coast Mayor David Alfin Is Appointed to Regional Urban Transportation Panel
The River to Sea Transportation Planning Organization (TPO) carries out the urban transportation planning and programming process for all of Volusia County and the developed areas of eastern Flagler County including Beverly Beach, Flagler Beach, Palm Coast, and Bunnell.
Over a Decade in the Making, Water Oak Road’s Paving in West Flagler Is Driving to Completion
Then-Flagler County Commissioner Nate McLaughlin had promised West Flagler residents that Water Oak Road would start getting paved in 2012. It did, but it’s only next month that the project he’d pushed for then will finally be completed with state and federal dollars.
City Repertory Theatre Hopscotches Through Love’s Multiverse with ‘Constellations’
The play, running Thursday through Sunday at Palm Coast’s City Repertory Theatre, is a 2012 comedy-drama by British playwright Nick Payne about the romantic ups and downs of a beekeeper and a theoretical physicist. The couple in “Constellations” take a trip down the rabbit hole of the multiverse, that freaky theory that posits there are an infinite number of parallel universes which exist simultaneously, and may be quite similar to or radically different from the one you and I inhabit.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Wednesday, July 27, 2022
Panel Discussion of LGBTQ+ Issues and the Separation of Church and State at the Flagler County Public Library, Jules Verne and the Great Eastern, Teresa Carreño.
Coal Is Over. The Supreme Court Won’t Stop That.
At its peak in 2007, coal was responsible for almost 2 trillion kilowatt-hours of electricity generation in the U.S., equivalent to powering over 186 million homes for the year. By 2021, that total had dropped by 55%.
Four School Boards Sued Over Enforcing ‘Don’t Say Gay’ Law, Charging Violation of 1st Amendment
The lawsuit, filed Monday in federal court in Orlando, seeks to block the school boards in Orange, Indian River, Duval and Palm Beach counties from carrying out the law (HB 1557), which restricts instruction on gender identity and sexual orientation in classrooms. The lawsuit charges the law is unconstitutional.
Sheriff’s Employees Donate $20,670 to Florida Sheriff’s Youth Ranches
Flagler County Sheriff’s Office employees donated $20,670 to the Florida Sheriff’s Youth Ranches (FSYR) making FCSO employee’s total donations to the FSYR over $133,000 since 2017.
Man Faces Felony for Forcibly Removing from Home 11-Year-Old Trying to Protect His Mother
Charles Morgan Sanders, 42, faces a felony child abuse charge and a domestic battery charge after he forcibly removed an 11-year-old boy from a P-Section house. Sanders was in a confrontation with the boy’s mother when the boy tried to intervene, further angering Sanders.
Lance Alred, Flagler County School Board Candidate: The Live Interview
Lance Alred is one of seven candidates in three races for Flagler County School Board in the Aug. 23 primary election, one of three in the District 2 race. He faces Will Furry and Courtney VandeBunte. All Flagler voters, regardless of party affiliation and address, may cast a ballot in these races.
Unexpected Death of Dr. Bulic, Medical Examiner for Flagler and 2 Other Counties, Triggers Key Process
Dr. Predrag Bulic, the chief medical examiner for Flagler, St. Johns and Putnam counties–a position as low profile as it is critical to the justice system and families in the determination of the cause of death of thousands of individuals each year–died unexpectedly over the weekend of a severe stroke. His replacement’s highly political appointment will involve some of the top elected law enforcement and judicial officials in Flagler, St. Johns and Putnam counties.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Tuesday, July 26, 2022
The Palm Coast City Council talks utility, stormwater and other special funds, the anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act, On Barney Frank, this endemic stage of Covid.
Home-Buying Is Beginning to Stall: Blame Fed’s Inflation Fight
The average rate on a 30-year mortgage hit 5.81% in June, the highest level since 2008 and up from less than 3% throughout most of 2021. The rate currently stands at 5.54%. On a $200,000 mortgage, a 5.54% rate translates into over $400 in extra interest costs every month compared with 3%.
Flagler Judge Melissa Distler Named President-Elect of Florida Conference of County Court Judges
Flagler County Court Judge D. Melissa Distler, in her 10th year on the bench, was elected President-Elect of the Florida Conference of County Court Judges last week at the judges’ summer education conference in Bonita Springs. Distler will be sworn in in July 2024, presiding over the conferences 335 county judges from 67 counties.
Joe Mullins, Flagler County Commission Candidate: The Live Interview
Joe Mullins is a Republican candidate for Flagler County Commission, District 4 primary on Aug. 23. He faces Leann Pennington. Mullins has declined participation in the Live Interview.
Janet G. Jennings, Obituary
Janet G. Jennings, 75 of Palm Coast, passed away Thursday, July 21, 2022 at AdventHealth Daytona Beach.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Monday, July 25, 2022
The Bunnell City Commission meets takes stock of a $275,000 for a surveillance-camera system trained at South Bunnell, the County Commission meets to talk about goals, Bob Dylan at the Newport Folk Festival.
How a 1989 Poster Framed Front Lines in Battles Over Abortion Rights
For abortion rights advocates, Barbara Kruger’s iconic feminist image “Untitled (Your body is a battleground)” remains as relevant today as when it was first released in 1989.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Sunday, July 24, 2022
Cats and Dogs Alert: The Flagler Humane Society is at capacity and needs you help finding homes for cats and dogs, The Wacky Wonderful Oz, Toward the End of Time.
Why Donald Trump Can’t Be Prosecuted for ‘Dereliction of Duty’
The Jan. 6 House committee might find that Trump’s failure to ensure that rioters would not storm the Capitol and stay there for hours amounted to a dereliction of duty in an informal or colloquial sense. But this is not an actual crime that could be applied to a president.