In the first six months of 2016, deaths caused by fentanyl increased by nearly 140 percent, deaths from heroin overdoses jumped by 25 percent, compared to the same period in 2015.
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Flagler Again Takes Vacation-Rental Case To Tallahassee as New Battle Lines Are Drawn
Willing to deal and compromise, County Administrator Craig Coffey and County Attorney Al Hadeed addressed a Senate committee workshop today in Tallahassee, ahead of what’s expected to be another fierce battle over vacation-rental regulations.
Charged As Adult, Devaughn Anderson, 17, Now Faces 1st Degree Felony Over Armed Robbery
Devaughn Anderson, 17, was arrested two hours after he allegedly robbed a Circle K at gunpoint on Oct. 3. The 1st degree felony exposes him to up to 30 years in prison if convicted.
Tuesday Briefing: Development Worries at Matanzas Shores, Palm Coast Data’s Pink Army, NRA’s Guns, FPC Chorus
Residents from the Matanzas Shores area plan to jam a county planning board meeting to oppose proposed developments there, the FPC chorus is in concert, exploring for oil in the Everglades.
Why Lakeside By The Sea Residents See a Pair of Proposed Developments Turning Their Properties Into “Little Lakes”
A developer plans to build 185 homes at the north and south ends of Lakeside By The Sea, the subdivision in the Matanzas Shores area at the northern end of Flagler County, on the barrier island.
Flier With Allusion To Vegas Massacre Slipped in W-Section Mailboxes; Alleged Machete Attack in R-Section
The fliers make strange claims about a pedophile alert then mix incoherent conspiracies with equally strange images while referring to local and other landmarks.
In Boost To Flagler, Committee Approves Bills Including $50 Million a Year For Beach Repair
If the bills survive the coming legislative hurdles, there may be new money for Flagler County to tap into to repair its severely eroded beaches.
Palm Coast Drops Lobbyist of 17 Years To Hire Southern Strategy, Mayor’s Former Employer
Southern Strategy Group is one of Tallahassee’s most powerful lobbying firms. Mayor Milissa Holland worked there from 2013 to 2015.
State Awards Flagler Sheriff’s Office $158,000 To Pay For Three Victims’ Advocates
Victim advocates work as a support system to victims, survivors, and their families following traumatic events. These professionals give emotional support and guidance during traumatic events.
Monday Briefing: Magritte in Bunnell, Heat Index Up to 102, How Dan Davis Is Doing, Dutton’s DUI Blood Test
The county commission holds a special meeting on tax revenue, the Bunnell commission discusses the performance of its city manager, FWC holds a workshop on goliath grouper.
Pride In “Our Country”? Count Me Out.
There’s no contending with a president who speaks of his pride in this country in serial tweets even as his every other pronouncement is a cleave, a slur, a boast, a lie or a disgrace.
Florida Opens Its Schools to Puerto Rican Students; Irma Death Toll in State at 69
Florida is waiving rules and regulations to let public schools and higher-education institutions admit students from Puerto Rico on an emergency basis.
What You Should Know About Trump’s Rollback Of Contraception Coverage
The rules will make sweeping changes to the law’s requirement that most employers provide coverage of birth control with no out-of-pocket costs to women.
Felon Accused of Stealing a Gun Then Texting Its Owner To Sell It Back To Him
Palm Coast’s Charles Swindell, convicted of felonies four times before, is accused of stealing a gun then texting its owner for $250 to give it back.
Soggy Princess Place Forces Popular Creekside Festival To Be Rescheduled To November
There are two to three feet of standing water in what would have been the main festival area at the Princess Place Preserve, forcing the postponement.
Sewer Water Bubbling Out At Bus Stops Alarming Parents and School District
Palm Coast and school district officials are attempting to get a handle on street locations overcome with sewer water, to caution parents and children, as yet more rain may swell the system.
Stonework Company From Former Soviet Republic Opening 30-Job Distribution Hub in Palm Coast
Kamara Stone USA is based in Georgia, the nation in Southwest Asia, and plans to create 30 jobs over the next four years, distributing granite, marble and mosaics from its Hargrove Grade location.
White Supremacist Scheduled for UF Speech On Oct. 19, Costing University $500,000
University President Kent Fuchs initially balked at a proposal for Spencer, a lightning-rod figure, to speak on campus in September. The threat of a federal lawsuit forced him to reverse course.
Irma Snaps Record 83 Straight Months of Job Gains as Employment Falls By 33,000
Nevertheless the unemployment rate fell to 4.2 percent, a rate not seen since February 2001–lower than the lowest rate reached before the Great Recession.
Weekend Briefing: First Friday in Flagler Beach, Access Flagler, Maze Dayz, NAACP Freedom Fund Awards, Turtle Palooza
Too many events to enumerate this weekend, from First Friday in Flagler Beach to the NAACP’s awards to art openings, Corvette show and a fall festival.
After Fierce Backlash, Council Kills $200,000 “Palm Coast” Sign on I-95 Overpass Landon Planned
City Manager Jim Landon wanted to “brand” the Palm Coast Parkway overpass with the sign but he’d failed to fill in the council on the cost having doubled or quadrupled since he’d first proposed it in 2016.
Judge’s Order Calls For Kim Weeks and Others To Pay Flagler Officials $312,000 Over Frivolous, Malicious Complaints
The orders are a remarkable victory for county government and for County Attorney Al Hadeed, who led the charge to recoup fees from Weeks, Dennis McDonald and Mark Richter Jr.
Cattle, Citrus, Nurseries: Florida Agriculture Faces $2.5 Billion Hit From Hurricane Irma
Citrus growers, already struggling, see losses to crops and trees approaching $761 million, followed by the nursery industry at almost $624 million.
Thursday Briefing: FEMA Town Hall in Flagler Beach, Audubon Society, Conan on Vega,s Indian Trails Band Concert
FEMA and Flagler Beach team up in a town hall meeting to answer residents’ questions and concerns about recent flooding, Conan O’Brien’s monologue on the Vegas shooting.
Yet Another Tropical Storm With Potential Florida Landfall Brews Up Concern
Eventual Tropical Storm Nate has the potential to become a hurricane and impact the Florida Panhandle this weekend, and families must be ready, the governor said.
Palm Coast Charturbation
Breaking its own charter, the Palm Coast council is pretending to be conducting a review of that charter, but the process is a farce and an insult to residents’ intelligence.
Flagler’s Emergency Manager Resigns as Allegations Fly In Latest Shake-Up At Troubled County Division
Steve Garten says he was pushed out after less than two years on the job, claiming micromanaging by County Administrator Craig Coffey, who defended his role in the shake-up.
Wednesday Briefing: Fire Police Heroes, Charter Review, Walk To School Day, Einstein’s Socialism
Palm Coast Fire Police members are honored by the sheriff, Rymfire Elementary has Walk To School Day, Palm Coast holds another one of those charter review meetings.
Flagler Kills Pot Decriminalization Proposal, But Approves Medical Marijuana Zoning
The end of the de-criminalization proposal is a reflection of a much harsher approach by the county commission and a new sheriff on marijuana matters.
FEMA Registrations Tuesday Through Thursday at Wickline in Flagler Beach, Friday at County Fairgrounds
Flagler County continues to recover from flooding caused by the hurricane, especially in Flagler Beach and the rest of the barrier island, as well as in western Flagler County.
Tuesday Briefing: Suzanne Johnston’s Gift, Palm Coast Pot, Palm Harbor, Half-Assed Half-Masts
The school board discusses a troubled charter school, Palm Coast council sets marijuana dispensary zoning rules, the latest mass shooting, the latest inaction.
Doubling Down on Scott, GOP Senator
Asks for $100 Million For Florida Forever
Florida Forever in the past received as much as $300 million a year but for nearly a decade has fallen out of favor among lawmakers and been almost ignored by Gov. Scott.
An AK-47 Assault Rifle in a Child’s Closet Among Weapons Seized in R-Section Drug Raid: 2 Arrests
Shawn Crawford, 35, and Tariq D. Khawaja, 27, were arrested this morning at 6B Ryall Lane in Palm Coast after a search allegedly uncovered illegal weapons, marijuana, cocaine and ecstasy.
Up to 14 Inches of Rain Fall on Already Drenched Flagler, But Damage Is Limited
Weekend rains dumped from 4 to 14 inches on already-saturated Flagler County, flooding streets, overcoming swales and ditches and soaking some areas more than others.
At Flagler’s Pink Army Flag-Raising, Eloquence of Grief and Hope No Matter the Gender
Florida Hospital Flagler’s Pink Army launch of Breast-Cancer Awareness Month with the County Commission was a mostly male production, but no less moving in message and aims.
Monday Briefing: Pink Army Flag-Raising, Decriminalizing Pot, For Puerto Rico, PSC Report
The Pink Army launches the year’s breast-cancer awareness and fund-raising campaign, a report on how utility rates are set, a $15,000 economic incentive package.
`Where the Hell Is the Cavalry?’ As Puerto Rico Suffers, Florida Prepares for Influx
From schools to shelters, Florida is readying for an influx of people struggling for food, water and power in hurricane-damaged Puerto Rico.
Palm Coast Will Spend $200,000 To Add “Palm Coast” Sign On I-95 Overpass, Double Original Estimate
The cost is two to four times more than a previous council was told in 2016, and the money comes out of a fund that pays for street improvements.
Exhaling Excuses, Florida Health Department Will Miss Deadline to Issue Medical Pot Licenses
An official is blaming the delay on Hurricane Irma and a pending challenge to a recently passed law that ordered the Department of Health to expand the number of medical marijuana licenses.
Flagler Sheriff’s Detective Hristakopoulos Honored With Greatest Save Award For Closing Child-Sex Case
The Greatest Save is a national award that recognizes police work that protects children from exploitation and trafficking. George Hristakopoulo’s investigation led to the arrest of a 51-year-old man accused of raping a 16 year old.
Sheriff and Bunnell Police Team Up With ATF In Illegal-Guns Sting: Half a Dozen Arrested
Drive-by shootings spurred the Flagler Sheriff’s Office to instigate a four-month federal-state-local operation connecting drugs to illegal guns.
Weekend Briefing: Evita, Family Fun Festival, Ballerina’s Tale, Farm-To-Table Dinner, Disaster Recovery
Evita’s final weekend at the Flagler Playhouse, St. Thomas Episcopal’s annual Family Faith Fun Festival, the story of the first black principal ballerina at the American Ballet, Schiff’s French Suites.
State Agency Seeks $50 Million to Replenish Florida Forever, the Land-Preservation Fund
Florida Forever funding is expected to help the state “acquire rare and sensitive lands that will benefit our communities and environment.” But Florida Forever has been an afterthought in the Scott Administration.
How Palm Coast Manager Landon Used a Director’s Departure To Save His Own Job
When Jim Landon claimed to the city council that uncertainty about his future would cause directors to leave, he already knew that one of them was leaving–but for a $17,000 raise.
Unidos Por Puerto Rico:
Palm Coast’s Hispanic American Club Organizes 2-Day Drive For Devastated Island
The Hispanic American Club of Palm Coast is organizing the two-day drive to fill a container that would be shipped to Puerto Rico from Jacksonville for an increasingly desperate population on the American island.
Thursday Briefing: Recovery Center Opens in Flagler Beach, Sisco Deen in Bunnell, Soderberg in Daytona
A recovery-help center opens for Flagler Beach for three days, Sisco Deen signs his new book, Nancy Soderberg speaks in Daytona, school open houses and curriculum night.
Only a Handful Turn Up at Palm Coast’s 1st Charter-Review Workshop; Public Input Limited
Just 13 or 14 people turned up for the first of four city charter-review workshops, and that public’s chance to weigh in was severely constrained by rules that leave the process largely in the council’s control.
“A Major Disaster Has Taken Place Here”: Flagler Beach Pleads Amid Crisis Affecting Up to 400 Homes
Mold is the growing, silent enemy in hundreds of flooded homes in Flagler Beach, making them potentially unlivable and creating new crises for residents with nowhere to go.
Palm Coast Will Buy Property From Troubled Mosquito Control; $317,000 Cost Rises By $24,000
Palm Coast government had sought to buy the old headquarters for the financially troubled Mosquito Control district for $293,000 just a few months ago, before the district sought a re-appraisal.
Wednesday Briefing: Charter Workshop, Cmdr. Ferris Retires, Dads Take Your Child To School Day, FEC Rail
Commander Sam Ferris retired after 21 years at the Sheriff’s Office, Palm Coast holds first of four charter review workshops, a Florida East Coast Railway executive speaks to the economic development board.