Lawmakers approved legislation (HB 91) to rechristen all 340 miles of State Road A1A as “Jimmy Buffett Highway” from its tip in Ferdinand Beach to Mile Marker 0 in Key West. The change affects signs in 13 counties, including Flagler County. It won’t be chap: a legislative analysis puts the cost to the Department of Transportation at $1,800 for each pair of signs at any given location ($900 for each sign in each direction).
Economy
Embry-Riddle Graduate and Frontier Airline Recruit Freud Jeantilus Is Teens in Flight’s Newest Flight Instructor
Originally from Haiti, Freud Jeantilus was 8 when he moved to the United States with his mother to reunite with his father, who was in New Jersey. A recent graduate from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University (ERAU) with a degree in Aeronautical Science and a minor in Business Administration, Freud is currently enrolled in a cadet program with Frontier Airlines.
Seniority Pork: Hutson Filed Staggering $475 Million in Requests for Flagler, Including $309 Million for Palm Coast
Outdoing last year’s requests by far, Hutson filed 34 special funding requests on behalf of Flagler County governments and agencies, totaling a staggering $475.8 million–or 0.4 percent of the size of the current state budget. Seven of the requests are for Flagler County government, totaling $92.5 million. Fourteen requests were for Palm Coast, totaling a third of a billion dollars.
County Issues Demolition Order for Old Dixie Motel as Attorney Describes ‘Dilatory Tactics in Bad Faith’
The Flagler County chief building official has issued a demolition order for the long disused Old Dixie Highway motel that, through a succession of opaque owners who promised the moon but delivered only low-orbit cosmetics, has gone from an eyesore to a hazard to a haze of hope and back to an infuriating thorn in the side of Flagler County government.
DeSantis Thinks He’s Abolishing the Homeless by Banning Them from Sight. He’s Wrong.
DeSantis and lawmakers are likely reacting to a shift in the way communities across the U.S. view homelessness from compassion to penalties and restrictions. Unfortunately, but true to form, DeSantis didn’t offer a palette of humane solutions to the homelessness problem. Instead, he spoke of the issue in stark, unsympathetic, self-absorbed terms characterizing homelessness in purely negative terms, blaming them for contributing to the erosion of the quality of life of others lucky to not be sleeping on the street.
InvisaCook, the Bunnell Manufacturer, Is Highlighted at JaxUSA State of the Region
As part of its continued strategic focus on increasing exposure for Flagler County businesses, the Flagler County Economic Development Office spotlighted local appliance company, InvisaCook, LLC during a panel presentation at the annual JAXUSA Partnership’s State of the Region in February.
Florida House Passes Ban on Homeless Sleeping In Public Despite Added Burdens to Local Governments
The Florida House on Friday approved a controversial proposal that would prevent homeless people from sleeping in public, despite concerns about increased costs for local governments. The Republican-controlled House voted 82-26 along almost-straight party lines to pass the bill (HB 1365), which is backed by Gov. Ron DeSantis. It also would make it easier for residents and business owners to challenge local officials over how homelessness is addressed.
Palm Coast’s Wishful 20-Field, $93 Million Sports Complex Rests on a Far Future of Dubiously Rosy Speculation
The Palm Coast City Council is embarking on an ambitious plan to explore and perhaps develop and finance, in a private-public partnership, an enormous sports complex on the west side of the yet-undeveloped city. A consultant encouraging the project is projecting rosy figures that would not mortgage tax dollars yet yield ample profits while drawing up to 250,000 athletes and spectators a year. The figures are speculative and do not easily stand up to scrutiny.
More Sound and Fury Than Broad Problems as 3 Residents Complain to City of Ralph Carter Park’s Popularity
When the Palm Coast City Council gets its administration’s latest report on the state of Ralph Carter Park in the R-Section, it’ll have to decide how much of the sound and fury again hemming the popular park is the grousing of a few people signifying nothing or a reflection of a broader problem. Judging from a community meeting the administration hosted at City Hall Wednesday evening, there is no broad problem.
2024 Million Dollar Food-A-Thon Kicks Off with Food Truck Palooza at FPC on March 16
The Third Annual Million Dollar Food-A-Thon kicks off Saturday, March 16, with “Food Truck Palooza!” at Flagler Palm Coast High School, from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Over 40 food trucks, live entertainment, a kids fun zone, street vendors and a muscle/collector car show will take over the Flagler Palm Coast High School parking lot on Bulldog Drive. The Food-A-Thon’s goal is to raise $200,00 in cash, which can then be leveraged into $1 million worth of food.
‘Three Amigos’ Who Shepherded Flagler Through Covid Return as Vigilante Philanthropists. But Don’t Tell Anyone.
For two years, Dr. Stephen Bickel, then-Health Department chief Bob Snyder and Flagler Broadcasting President David Ayres shepherded Flagler County through the Covid pandemic on WNZF’s airwaves. The three have teamed up again as a group that calls itself Vigilante Philanthropy, but they’d prefer to do their work outside the limelight.
SR100 Pedestrian ‘Faith’ Bridge Gets Somewhere After All: To an Award, But Ex-County Engineer Is Snubbed
The Flagler Greenways Pedestrian Bridge over State Road 100 earned the “National Recognition Award” from American Council of Engineering Companies in the 2024 Engineering Excellence Awards. The award will go to Kisinger Campo and Associates, the engineering company that designed the bridge for the county. At the county, the bridge was overseen by engineer Faith al-Khatib, whom the county unceremoniously pushed out last year.
Snuffed Out for 4 Years, Commission Debate Continues to Smolder Over July 4 Fireworks in Flagler Beach
It’s as if a stash of July 4 fireworks keeps smoldering somewhere under Flagler Beach, looking for a burst skyward–and getting snuffed out at every turn. Some Flagler Beach city commissioners and members of the business community are not happy with the uncertainty. So the commission will hold a workshop on the matter for still more talk, to hear from the public and to figure out of fireworks could return to the pier for the first time in five years come July 4.
The Rent Is Still Too High
Housing prices are spiraling alongside homelessness. Last year, homelessness hit an all-time national high of 653,100 people. To solve this crisis, we need to recognize housing as a human right.
Tucker Carlson, Propaganda and Journalism
Tucker Carlson’s work provides an opportunity for public education in distinguishing between propaganda and journalism. Some Americans, primarily Carlson’s fans, will view the videos as accurate reportage. Others, primarily Carlson’s detractors, will reject them as mendacious propaganda.
Palm Coast Marks Grand Opening of Southern Recreation Center
The City of Palm Coast announce the successful grand opening of the highly anticipated Southern Recreation Center and new Lehigh Trailhead. The grand opening ceremony took place on Friday afternoon, drawing in hundreds of excited residents who gathered to celebrate and explore the new facilities.
Palm Coast’s $13.7 Million Southern Recreation Center: A Facility Designed for Way More than Pickleball and Tennis
Between its gathering and lounging areas, its food concessions, its trailhead, dog park, community garden and other amenities, the most important thing you should know about Palm Coast’s new Southern Recreation Center is that you don’t have to be a tennis player or a pickleball player to go there. That’s why the emphasis on that happily open-ended word: Recreation. You can fill in your own kind of fun. Here’s a tour.
Vacation Rental Bill Scaling Back Local Control, Opposed by Flagler County Government, Heads to House Floor
The House Commerce Committee today approved a bill on a 10-4 vote pre-empting most vacation-rental authorities to the state. The bill heads to the House floor for a vote and reconciliation with the Senate’s version. It is the closest a pre-emption proposal has come to enactment in the dozen years that the vacation rental industry has pushed them.
Three School Board Members Are Champing at the Bit to Close Belle Terre Swim and Racquet Club to the Public
If they could have voted on it Tuesday, Flagler County School Board members Will Furry, Christy Chong and Sally Hunt would have closed the Belle Terre Swim and Racquet Club to the public. They would have turned the 11-acre club gifted to the school board by ITT in 1996 into a facility for students and school programs only, with the exception of swimming pool rentals to other clubs or parties.
Florida Moving To Ban References to Reducing Greenhouse Gas Emissions
Florida lawmakers are moving toward approving an overhaul of state energy laws, including eliminating references to reducing greenhouse gas emissions and imposing a ban on offshore wind-energy generation.
Palm Coast Council Postpones Water Rate Increase in Face of Opposition, But Raises Utility Impact Fees on Builders
There will be no water and sewer rate increase in Palm Coast for now: the Palm Coast City Council today voted 4-1 to postpone a rate increase, while significantly raising “capacity,” or utility impact fees, the one-time levy on builders of new homes and businesses. That revenue is used to defray the cost of growth on the city’s utility infrastructure.
Feral Hogs Are Trampling Residents’ Properties, But County’s Containment Capabilities Are Limited
As feral hogs continue to trample all over private property in what residents say are increasing numbers spurred by development and a diminishing habitat, the Flagler County Commission is proposing to increase traps, encourage more volunteer to join a corps of hog-hunters, repair fencing along county roads, and work with homeowner associations on their own hog-management plans. But a solution remains elusive.
Palm Coast P-Section’s Last 35 Acres of Trees Leveled to Make Room for 74-Home ‘Ponce Preserve’ Gated Community
The 74-home gated community of Ponce Preserve will be built by in a 35-acre expanse–the last undisturbed expanse in the P-Section–between Point Pleasant Drive, Ponce de Leon Drive, Pony Express Drive and Port Royal Drive. Because it’s under 100 homes, the development did not need to go before either the planning board or the City Council.
Palm Coast Has No Money to Pave Your Neighborhood Streets. It’ll Apply a Cheap Sealant and Hope for the Best.
Facing a $10 million deficit in road repairs and no new revenue identified, the Palm Coast City Council approved a diminutive $1 million plan to “microsurface” 29 neighborhood roads and $2.7 million to resurface a few arterial roads. Microsrufacing is not traditional paving. It’s more like a tooth sealant, but for roads: cavities aren’t fixed. They’re covered up. The tentative approach points to the consequences of a council deferring infrastructure needs while rolling back the tax rate.
Immigrant Activists Rally Against ‘Consistent Dehumanization’ in Florida as They Face More Bills Targeting Them
Seven months after one of the strictest immigration laws in the nation went into effect, dozens of immigrant rights activists gathered in the state Capitol building on Thursday to speak out about what one person called the “never ending attacks on immigrants” in Florida.
Palm Coast Council Still Not Thrilled by Proposed Utility Rate Increases Near 18 Percent Over 3 Years
As in November, the city’s utility consultant was again tasked with drafting an amendment to a study recommending sharp water and sewer rate increases, on the heels of a 20 percent increase in the last four years. Council members want to know what the consequences would be if certain capital projects were delayed, since they drive a lot of the need for the rate increases through 2028.
Florida House Moves Toward Banning Local Governments from Regulating EV Charging Stations, and Banning ‘Cultivated Meat’
The Florida House on Monday continued moving forward with a wide-ranging bill that includes banning sales of lab-grown meat in the state and preventing local governments from regulating electric-vehicle charging stations. Florida has 3,230 public charging stations in 44 of the 67 counties, and a staff analysis of the bill said electric vehicles made up nearly 3 percent of cars sold in Florida from July 2020 to July 2021.
Lab-Grown Meat Companies Push Back Against Florida Lawmakers’ Attempt to Ban Their Product
Two California companies can now offer lab-grown meat in restaurants and eventually supermarkets following approval of their products by the U.S. Department of Agriculture last June. But those same products would be banned in Florida if lawmakers approve a proposal moving through the Legislature. The bill by Tampa Bay-area Republican Jay Collins (SB 1084) would make it unlawful for anyone to manufacture, sell, hold or offer for sale, or distribute “cultivated” meat in Florida. A violator could be charged with a second-degree misdemeanor.
City Invites Residents to Grand Opening of Palm Coast’s Southern Recreation Center
The City of Palm Coast is thrilled to announce the grand opening of the long-awaited Southern Recreation Center and the new Lehigh Trailhead, adjacent to the current Palm Coast Tennis Center, on February 23rd from 4:30 pm to 7:00 pm at 1290 Belle Terre Parkway, Palm Coast, FL 32164. These projects are pivotal steps in aligning with the priorities outlined by the community during the recent countywide Parks and Recreation Master Plan.
Palm Coast Clears Way for $31 Million Connector to Loop Road Through Vacant West of the City, With a Warning to FPL
The Palm Coast City Council on approved four related measures that will advance the opening to development of 12,000 acres on the west side of U.S. 1, from the Matanzas Woods Parkway area, including a $25 million state grant contributing to the cost of a $31 million connector road, dubbed a “flyover,” that will cross above the Florida East Coast railroad corridor. But FPL drew withering criticism from council members over the manner in which the company is charging the city for an “estimate” about moving its infrastructure as part of the Matanzas Woods project.
County Gives Its Constitutional Officers Extra Month to Prepare Budget in a Year of ‘Uncertainties’
The Flagler County Commission on Monday voted to give its constitutional officers an extra month–until June 1–to turn in their proposed budgets for the fiscal year beginning Oct.1, ahead of what County Administrator Heidi Petito described as a year of “uncertainty.” The commission also appeared to agree, without a formal vote, to reduce the tax rate next year, though that may end up being more of a symbolic than an substantial reduction.
Roundabout Will Be Built on Old Kings Road by Bulow Plantation, at Entrance to Radiance Development
The Flagler County Commission approved spending roughly $2.5 million to build a roundabout on Old Kings Road, at the intersection with the entrance to Bulow Plantation and what will be the entrance to the Radiance development–what used to be known as Eagle Lakes.
Law Restricting Chinese People From Owning Property in Florida Doesn’t Pass Smell Test, Court Rules
A federal appeals court said a Florida law restricting people from China from owning property in the state likely is trumped by federal law and blocked its enforcement against two plaintiffs who have been in the midst of real-estate transactions.
Vacation Rental Bill Weakening Local Control Passes Senate and Now May Depend on Renner in the House
While one bill passed the Senate on a 27-13 vote, the House version may depend on House Speaker Paul Renner, R-Palm Coast, on whose authority the bill may–or may not–eventually come to a vote on the floor. Sen. Travis Hutson, who represents Flagler County, voted against Flagler County priorities opposing deregulation, and in favor of the Senate bill last month.
Flagler County Lands $4 Million Grant for South Branch Library, Nearing $16 Million Needed for Construction
Drawing on federal funds channeled through Florida–and the strength of a grant application by Holly Albanese, the county’s library director and chief of special projects–Flagler County today was awarded a $4 million grant for its planned $16 million south-branch library in Bunnell, known as the “Nexus Center.” It is a major win for the county, all but securing the necessary funding for the library, which has been a dream of the library Board of Trustees for a decade.
Palm Coast Mayor Spotlights State of City’s Heroes and Names Flagler Cares’ Carrie Baird Citizen of the Year
At Palm Coast’s State of the City Thursday evening, Mayor David Alfin awarded David Lydon the Public Service Award for his work with veterans. Erik Libby and The To-Do-Dudes got the Next Generation Award, and Flagler Care’s Carrie Baird received the Citizen of the Year Award for her dedication to “building a robust social safety net for our community.”
Flagler Beach Breathes Sigh of Relief as Beach Front Grille Announces It’s Here to Stay
After days of uncertainty when Beach Front Grille owner Jamie Bourdeau had publicly announced that the business was over half a million dollars short of the money needed to buy out the location, Bourdeau today announced that the deal had worked out, and that the restaurant, which opened in 2014, would remain at its A1A location.
Judge Dismisses Disney Lawsuit That Claimed DeSantis Had Retaliated Against the Company
In a win for Gov. Ron DeSantis, a federal judge Wednesday dismissed a lawsuit alleging that the state unconstitutionally retaliated against Walt Disney Parks and Resorts because of the company’s opposition to a controversial education law.
Flagler Pride Installs Its New Board as It Looks To Be a ‘Beacon of Support and Empowerment’
Flagler Pride, the non-profit Eryn Harris established four years ago as the county’s first LGBTQ+ advocacy organization, and the organizational muscle behind the annual Pride Fest, installed its new, four-member board at Coquina Coast Brewing on Jan. 12. It’s led by President Tyler Jones, with Skyler Loder as vice president, Margaret “Maggie” Potter as secretary and Calvin Vincent Neugent as treasurer. The organization’s founding board members–Harris, Erica Rivera and Garrett Marinconz–have taken on advisory roles.
Ending Speculation, Palm Coast Mayor David Alfin Announces Re-Election Run and Joins Crowded Field
Palm Coast Mayor David Alfin, first elected in July 2021 to complete the term of Melissa Holland, will run for a full four-year term in an Aug. 20 primary that has drawn four other candidates so far. In 2021, Alfin won in a six-way race, taking 36 percent of the vote. His absence from the list of declared candidates had begun to draw speculations about his intentions, though he left no doubt about those in an interview on Tuesday.
The New York Times v. ChatGPT
On Dec. 27, 2023, The New York Times filed a lawsuit against OpenAI alleging that the company committed willful copyright infringement through its generative AI tool ChatGPT. The Times claimed both that ChatGPT was unlawfully trained on vast amounts of text from its articles and that ChatGPT’s output contained language directly taken from its articles.
Contrary to Flagler Beach’s Impressions, Palm Coast Is Not Pursuing Veranda Bay for Annexation
Palm Coast is not pursuing the annexation of Veranda Bay, the 335-home development formerly known as The Gardens on John Anderson Highway, nor would it pursue an annexation: that would be the land owner’s prerogative. And in veranda Bay’s case, the developer has not filed any kind of formal document suggesting he’d want to annex into Palm Coast.
Targeting Homeless, Lawmakers Want to Forbid Local Governments from Allowing Sleeping on Public Property
A Senate committee Monday backed a proposal that would prevent counties and cities from allowing people to sleep or camp on public property without permits. Bill sponsor Jonathan Martin, R-Fort Myers, called his proposal (SB 1530) a way to address a mental-health crisis in the state and to assist the “chronically homeless.”
Veranda Bay Courtship: Flagler Beach Swiftly Changes Its Annexation Rule In Defensive Move Against Palm Coast
Flagler Beach is in an annexation race with Palm Coast to win over Veranda Bay and its hundreds of homes along John Anderson Highway. To that end, Flagler Beach changed its annexation rule. By convincing it to annex into Flagler Beach, the city is hoping to limit development impacts on its rim. It fears that under Palm Coast standards, Veranda Bay could be an intense cluster of high rises and high-density developments.
This Hyper Talk of a Border ‘Invasion’ Is an Old American Playbook
With persecution, poverty, and climate change driving large numbers of migrants to the southern border, some in politics and the media are again pushing the panic button and purposely but inaccurately using words like “invasion” to describe problems at the border.
County Commissioners Plan to Develop 4 or 5 New Economic Development Incentives to Diversify Tax Base
The Flagler County Commission is looking to step up its incentive programs for economic development, focusing on certain approaches more than others, as it looks to diversify the local tax base and expand on the availability of local jobs in a county where nearly half the working population of 51,000 people commutes out of county.
Flagler Beach Will Sign 3-Year, $94,000 Deal for New Year’s Eve Fireworks, But With an Escape Clause
The Flagler Beach City Commission will approve a three-year, $94,000 deal with My Three Sons, the fireworks company, to produce New Year’s Eve fireworks through 2026, assuming there’s a place from where to set them off. The deal stems from last New Year’s Eve fireworks display, the first in the city on that date, which My Three Sons produced to local acclaim.
At Joint Meeting of Local Flagler Governments, Homelessness Draws a Vague Pledge to Seek Funding
A joint meeting of Flagler County’s cities and the county again took up homelessness and again mostly deferred to non-profits and churches to pick up the pieces. But officials also agreed at least to explore state funding possibilities. More firm commitments to tackle the issue are still lacking.
Flagler Receives $15.7 Million from State for Beach Project, Making Dip Into Reserves Unnecessary
Flagler County will not have to dip into its reserves for $15.7 million after all. The county administrator said late this morning that the Florida Department of Transportation had just wired money pledged to the county to cover the county’s share of the cost of the long-awaited U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ beach-reconstruction project in Flagler Beach, which begins in late spring.
Cell Towers Behind FPC’s Football Field Is Not a Health Problem, School Board Is Told, and May Be There Years
A consultant the Flagler school district hired to survey and analyze the health hazards, if any, of the monopole cell tower behind the bleachers at Flagler Palm Coast High School had a simple conclusion today: the tower is not a problem. It’s not close to being a problem. And the School Board’s options with it are limited to none as it is leasing space at least until 2046.