With hundreds of millions of dollars a year hinging on their decision, Florida Supreme Court justices Friday began deliberating about whether to uphold a 2011 law that requires government workers to chip in 3 percent of their pay to the state retirement system.
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Florida Fish and Wildlife Charts Next Steps For Expanded Panther Population and Range
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC), working in partnership with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, plans to document where panthers are roaming beyond south Florida and develop the best practices to help people and panthers coexist.
Follow the Lead of Flagler Beach’s Restaurants: Trash the Styrofoam
Restaurants in Flagler Beach, among them the Turtle Shack and the Flagler Fish Company, decided to drop the use of Styrofoam and adopt all-recyclable containers, taking a lead other local businesses should follow, Frank Gromling writes, given Styrofoam’s polluting and carcinogenic properties.
Flagler County Art League’s Color Splash Returns with Brash of Brush
The Flagler County Art League’s “Color Splash” exhibit, featuring some 100 works in numerous mediums, opens Sept. 8 and runs through September and parallels growing success for the league’s classes.
We’re All Vikings Fans Today: Chris Kluwe Kicks Emmett Burns’s Gay Marriage Bigotries
Maryland lawmaker Emmett Burns wrote a bullying letter to the Baltimore Ravens owner asking him to silence Brendon Ayanbadejo’s support for gay marriage. Chris Kluwe kicked back the most winning answer of the year.
Despite County’s Spike, Most Flagler and City Homeowners’ Tax Bills Will Fall in 2013
It’s been a familiar and recurring complaint, but also an inaccurate one: that property taxes keep going up. They don’t. For most people, property taxes fell this year. And for most people, property taxes will either stay flat or fall again in 2013. Here are the city-by-city details.
Florida DCF’s Answer to Welfare Recipients’ Unforwarded Addresses: Cut Off Benefits
The Florida Department of Children and Families has approved a change that would end public-assistance benefits for people who don’t report new addresses, drawing concerns that some low-income residents could unnecessarily lose food and medical aid.
Don’t Talk to an Empty Chair: Flagler Beach Museum Goes Boots and Bling for Bunnell
The Flagler Beach Historical Museum’s annual costume gala fund-raiser Saturday at the Black Cloud Saloon in Bunnell will be paired up with a 99th birthday bash for Bunnell, in preparation for that city’s centennial.
No Bounce: Economy Adds Only 96,000 Jobs in August as Unemployment Drops to 8.1%
The national economy added a meager 96,000 jobs in August, and the previous two months’ total was revised downward by 41,000 jobs. Nevertheless the unemployment rate edged down to 8.1 percent, from 8.3 percent, as the employment picture continues to zigzag between hope and anemia.
Car Overturns on U.S. 1; Injured, Fleeing Driver Is Caught and Booked on Several Warrants
Three people were sent to the hospital, one of them after he fled on foot and was caught and handcuffed about 500 yards south of the wreck scene. He had several warrants out on him.
For the Flagler Youth Orchestra’s 8th Season, 200 Students Join Before Recruiting Begins
A Flagler Youth Orchestra trio is visiting five Flagler County schools Thursday and Friday in the FYO’s annual recruiting tour, but a record number of students have already signed up for the increasingly popular program ahead of its open house on Sept. 12.
Should FPL and Progress Energy Charge You $300 Million for Distant-Future Nukes Plants?
The state’s largest electric utilities are seeking approval from the Florida Public Service Commission to collect money that goes toward upgrading already-existing nuclear plants and helps pay for early work on new reactors that may or may not be built years from now.
Woodlands Residents Hear More Promises Than Certainties About Looming Development
The Palm Coast City Council unanimously approved land-use changes that would open the way to a vast assisted living facility and commercial complex adjacent to the Woodlands, the old, rustic neighborhood, worrying residents that their subdivision’s character is in jeopardy.
Raped, Pregnant and 11 Years Old: The Problem with the “Right-to-Life” Movement
In Pinellas County, an 11-year-old girl, pregnant after her rape by her mother’s 42-year-old boyfriend, is a stark rebuke to the right-to-like and personhood movement, argues Mary Jo Melone.
State Attorney Files Charges Against Both Individuals in Odd Brittany Lane Shooting
Marc Barbee and Stephen Metcalf were involved in a strange confrontation on Brittany Lane when Barbee shot at Metcalf and accused him of trying to run him over with a truck–an accusation the sheriff’s office threw out after investigating the case.
The Downside of Tourism Jobs, and What North Carolina Can Teach Florida
Florida is adding jobs, but mostly in tourism and service industry, low-skilled work that has involuntarily forced people into part-time employment. North Carolina has seen more employment grow in the information technology and research sectors. These jobs tend to offer higher pay and more stability.
Split Flagler Commission Approves $900,000 Tourism Budget With Glaring Increases
The $100,000 budget increase over the current year led one commissioner to raise objections over a doubling in rent costs and a tripling in furniture costs, while another commissioner objected to the rebranding of tourism efforts to include Palm Coast on par with Flagler’s beaches.
Federal Judge Rejects Higher Tuition for Florida Children of Undocumented Immigrants
A Miami federal judge has found that Florida is violating the constitutional rights of American-born children of illegal immigrants by requiring them to pay higher tuition rates than other students at state colleges and universities.
On Garage Sales, Palm Coast Rejects $5 Fee But Preserves Registration Requirement
Facing almost unanimous public opposition, the Palm Coast City Council reversed plans to impose a $5 fee for garage sales but will still require a computerized permit and registration system to enforce a 2-sale limit per year.
S.E. Cline Lands $216,000 Contract With Flagler, Hold the Controversy
S.E. Cline was one of two bidders to out improvements to the River to Sea Preserve park in northeast Flagler. County commissioners approved the contract unanimously.
In Charlotte, Democrats Welcome Crist as Floridians Wonder Whether to Trust Him
As Charlie Crist takes the stage at the Democratic National Convention to embrace President Barack Obama, Florida Democrats are facing a question that could shape their party’s future: How much do they trust Charlie Crist? It’s part of a soap opera unfolding before partisans in two states.
John Melvin, 56, of Bunnell, Is Killed in a Motorcycle Wreck on U.S. 1
John Melvin, 56, of Bunnell, was riding his Honda motorcycle south on U.S. 1, just north of the Old Dixie Highway intersection., when he failed to navigate a curve that has seen its share of wrecks over the years.
Only 5 Candidates, Including 4 Incumbents, Apply for 4 Palm Coast Planning Board Seats
Appointments to the influential Palm Coast planning board by the city council can turn into perpetual re-appointments despite the city’s two-term limit, which the council can override with a super-majority vote.
Greg Rawls, Long-Time Face of Economic Development in Flagler, Opts For a New Tribe
Greg Rawls had been Enterprise Flagler’s executive director since 2007 before Palm Coast and Flagler County killed that economic development partnership, and Flagler formed its own, where Rawls worked as a manager. He’ll be working for Creek Indian Enterprises in Alabama.
A 21-Year-Old With Mental Health Issues is Tased, Twice, and Jailed Rather than Baker-Acted
The family of Cameron Anderson doesn’t understand why the 21-year-old, who had mixed medication with drink and threatened to kill himself, was jailed instead of being Baker-Acted, as people who threaten harm to themselves usually are.
Women of the Year: Cindy Dalecki And Rebecca DeLorenzo Take Flagler
Marketing 2 Go’s Cindy Dalecki got the United Way’s Women’s Initiative of Flagler County’s Outstanding Woman of the Year Award and the president’s Volunteer Service Award, while the Flagler Business Women named Flagler Chamber VP Rebecca DeLorenzo its 2012 Woman of the Year.
Ed Skellings’s Death Leaves Florida Without a Poet Laureate for the First Time in 32 Years
A memorial to Ed Skellings will be held at the City Island library in Daytona Beach on Sept. 6 as the Florida State Poets Association lobbies the Legislature and Gov. Rick Scott to formalize the poet laureate’s appointment and link it to Florida’s literary and literacy efforts.
When Lies Are Elevated to a Campaign Strategy
The lies of presidents could re-carve Rushmore by audacity alone, yet the lies of the Romney-Ryan campaign have taken the art of lying to new lows, but not without the complicity of voters, who, in the golden age of fact-checking, have no excuse to be misinformed.
Prodigal Turtle: Kemp’s Ridley, Smallest of the Seas, Digs First-Ever Nest in Flagler Sands
Once endangered, Kemp’s ridley turtles, usually nesting in the Gulf of Mexico, have flourished, and one made a landing in Flagler Beach, digging only the sixth documented nest in Florida, and the very first in Flagler County.
What Makes Us Exceptional
It is not that American Exceptionalism is being lost, it’s that those who want to “tabe back America” have lost sight of what has made America exceptional, argues Dan Gelber after watching the Republican National Convention.
Editorial Notebook: August 2012
Vagrant scratches and notes from FlaglerLive editor Pierre Tristam on issues of the day, fugitive quotes, hit-and-run readings, insurgent observations and reflections picked up from the cutting room floor.
After Two Incidents, Secret Service Warns Of Counterfeit Money Circulating in Flagler
At least two incidents involving large cash withdrawals from Bank of America and Prosperity Bank in the past two weeks, each including some fake $100 bills, led the Secret Service to issue the warning for Flagler County.
Romney-Ryan’s Voucher Plan for Medicare, Long the Third Rail of Florida Politics
GOP vice presidential nominee Paul Ryan said the nation must rethink Medicare as he and Mitt Romney propose changing the health-insurance program for 65-and-over Americans to a “fixed-amount” voucher that would essentially privatize the benefit.
Mitt Romney’s Faux Facts, Charlie Crist Explains Himself, Germany’s Assault on Google News
Mitt Romney’s and Paul Ryan’s fact-challenged fair in Tampa, Germany wants to charge Google for news, India opens a “Hitler” store, Delta bans a passenger for wearing a satirical shirt , and Alan Thicke has advice for his out-of-work son.
The Tea Party, Missing from the Republican National Convention’s Big Tent
Despite cluelessness by liberals and Democrats, those outside the tea party movement still don’t grasp that “people like me are the absolute last folks who would be invited to the RNC,” argues tea party leader Henry Kelley.
Conventional Wisdom: Florida GOP Dishes Up Victory Talk
Florida delegates to the Republican National Convention dined on French toast, Allen West, John Bolton, Chris Christie and Newt Gingrich Thursday morning, a prime-beef line-up that fired up the faithful for the November elections.
Rumble in the Jumble: Marking Territory, Flagler Republicans Just Can’t Get Along
John Ruffalo, a member of the Ronald Reagan Republican Assemblies, allegedly used force against a 72-year-old woman to keep her from going into Republican headquarters in the Staples shopping center Saturday, even though she is the wife of the chairman of the Flagler County Republican Executive Committee, and a member of the committee herself.
Almost 27% of Flagler Residents Under 65 Are Without Health Insurance; Reform Would Help
Obama’s health care reform would almost eliminate the proportion of uninsured, but Gov. Rick Scott’s refusal to join reform’s expanded Medicaid eligibility means that many of Flagler’s 16,774 eligible residents will be shut out of the benefit.
Population Explosion at Humane Society as Flagler Favors $200,000 Spay/Neuter Grant
For the Flagler Humane Society, the $100,000-a-year grant over two years would vastly expand a spay/neuter program and help Flagler aim to be a no-kill community, ending animal euthanasia.
Palm Coast Stormwater Fees Going Up 46%, Taxes Stay Level, Most Infrastructure Neglected
With the Palm Coast City Council’s refusal to raise property taxes , the city’s infrastructure will continue to deteriorate, Mayor Jon Netts and the city administration warned. But a majority of council members, led by Frank Meeker–who’s running for a county commission seat–refused to budge.
“Just Stop Acting Stupid,” Jeb Bush Tells Republicans Over Immigration Extremism
Worried about losing the Latino vote, Bush and other Republicans nevertheless brushed off questions about whether the still-extremist immigration plank of the Republican Party could prove to be too much of a hurdle for the presidential campaign of former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney.
The Tea Party as the American Taliban
Aaron Sorkin’s “The Newsroom” features Jeff Daniels as an anchor on a cable-news program, who here goes off on the fictions of voter fraud and the not-so-fictional nature of tea parties as America’s verion of the Taliban.
RNC Notebook: Wednesday
Republican National Convention quickies for Wednesday: the word on Alan Grayson, Republican lawmakers’ absence from delegate breakfasts, the Florida delegation’s buses can;t run on time, and big names, among them Newt Gingrich and Allen West, slated for Thursday’s breakfast.
Palm Coast Child Specialist at Rehab Center for Adolescents Arrested on Molestation Charges
Corey Hodges, 34, a resident of 36 Barrington Drive in Palm Coast, was arrested on charges stemming from interaction with teen-age girls at Stewart-Marchman-Act Behavioral Healthcare in Volusia, where Hodges worked. Stewart-Marchman fired Hodges. The charges are the result of a complaint by a 15-year-old girl, a client at the center’s Residential Adolescent Program, where Hodges had started working in February.
Palm Coast Will Require Garage Sales to Be Registered and Pay $5 Fee to Ensure Tracking
Palm Coast will impose a new permitting and fee requirement on garage sales to ensure that residents hold no more than two sales per lot per year, and to provide treasure hunters with a government-based database of garage sales by address and date.
What Six School Cops and $287,464 Buy: Mentor, Counselor, Law Enforcement Officer
A trio of school and sheriff’s officials described to the Palm Coast City Council the impact of six school deputies in Flagler County middle and high schools, but not without triggering questions about what “went wrong” to make the cops necessary on campus.
Jeb Bush, the Elephant at the Republican National Convention, May Be Thinking 2016
Jeb Bush, sought after for establishment Republican endorsements, appears ready to take his brand of policy-driven conservatism to a broader national audience, with the 2016 or 2020 presidentials in mind.
Rachel Corrie: Death, Court Case and Legacy of a Pro-Palestinian Activist
Rachel Corrie was a 23-year-old American pro-Palestinian peace activist crushed to death by a bulldozer driven by an Israeli army soldier as she protested the illegal demolition of Palestinian homes by the Israeli military in Gaza.
Snook Fishing Opening in Atlantic and Inland Waters
The recreational harvest season for snook opens Sept. 1 in Florida’s Atlantic coastal and inland waters, including Lake Okeechobee and the Kissimmee River. The season remains closed in all Gulf of Mexico waters.
A Few Florida Facts for Republican National Convention Delegates
Florida under the leadership of Republican icons like Bush, Scott and Rubio, and supported by proud and unthinking GOP legislatures for the last 15 years, has happily served as the grow house for Republican policies. The results are stunning, writes former lawmaker Dan Gelber.