Our tax laws shouldn’t protect giant CEO retirement accounts when my coworkers and I can’t afford to save at all: even after 22 years of working for Walmart, our nation’s largest employer, I can’t afford to retire any time soon.
Economy
Daytona Area Home Sales And Prices Are Falling
Home sales continued to cool down across the Daytona Beach area during April, along with the median home sales price.
In Seminole Woods, 42 Acres of Greenbelt Are Converted to Allow 180-Home Subdivision
The Palm Coast City Council last week approved rezoning 42 acres of greenbelt-designated land to make room for a 180-home single-family residential development that will expand the built-out footprint of Seminole Woods.
Captain’s BBQ Trial Delayed to February as Both Sides Ask for More Time
The two sides asked for the delay jointly, but not necessarily because a resolution is pending. Rather, each side still has adversarial motions that have yet to be heard in court. Captain’s is also attempting to bring the county back to the mediation table. The county had been resisting. A trial would have been premature, the two sides agreed. The judge granted the delay two weeks ago.
Law Requiring Later School Start Times Is Causing Significant Push-Back from Local Boards
Several members of the Flagler County school board as elsewhere in Florida districts are not thrilled by the late start time for middle schools, or the earlier start for elementary schools. Opposition is focused on expected additional costs.
Debt Default Would Be Far Worse Than a Government Shutdown. Here’s How.
A U.S. default on its debt would have a significantly broader impact on federal operations, financial markets and the global economy than recent government shutdowns that have left ordinary Americans largely untouched.
Hang 8 Dog Surfing Brings Out Throng of a Thousand in Flagler Beach’s Zaniest Contest Yet
The second annual Hang 8 Dog Surfing contest in Flagler Beach this morning drew spectators in the low thousands, double or triple last year’s turnout, as big and small dogs surfed in rough waves then donned costumes for the red-carpet competition. Fifty dogs were registered in total.
At 2.9%, Flagler Unemployment Continues in Same Low Range for 13th Month, With More than 50,000 Employed
For 13 months running, Flagler County’s unemployment rate has remained steady, fluctuating by a few decimal points between 2.6 and 3.4 percent. In April, it was 2.9 percent in the seasonally unadjusted calculation the state’s labor department released today.
A Tattoo Studio Is Approved Off Old Kings Road in Palm Coast, But Outdated Stigmas Endure
The fact that Supreme Custom Tattoo on Old Kings Road required a special exception and planning board approval reflects enduring stigmas and stereotypes that still attach to tattoo and body piercing studios, though in studios’ cases, the city is far more accommodating than landlords, who often arbitrarily discriminate against them.
Palm Coast’s Population at 98,411 in Latest Census Estimate, 18th-Fastest Growing in U.S.
Palm Coast grew 10.3 percent between 2020 and 2022, to 98,411 people, according to the Census Bureau’s latest estimate, released today. The city is on pace to cross well past the 100,000 threshold this year, and based on the last two years’ trend, likely did so in February or March.
Covid’s Total Cost to US Economy: $14 Trillion by Year’s End
The economic toll of the Covid-19 pandemic in the U.S. will reach US$14 trillion by the end of 2023, a team of economists, public policy researchers and other experts have estimated.
Federal Judge Signs Order Releasing Flagler County Dunes Easement It Sought for 3 Years
A federal judge late this afternoon signed the order approving a settlement agreement between the county and Cynthia d’Angiolini, who for three years had held out from signing an easement that would allow the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to rebuild 2.6 miles of dunes south of the Flagler Beach pier.
750-Home Gated Community Called Coquina Shores to Rise North of SR100, Along Old Kings Road
Though a 750 single-family home development on 505 acres, Coquina Shores will be a vastly scaled back development from what JX Properties had planned there in 2006 and 2007–2,400 homes, most of them apartments, and 80,000 square feet of retail and office space. All of that will be reduced to the single family homes.
240-Unit Apartment Complex Planned Next to BJ’s Wholesale Club on State Road 100 in Palm Coast
The Flagler County Commission Monday evening unanimously approved rezoning 28 acres just east of what will be the BJ’s Wholesale Club shopping center, clearing the way for an eight-building, 240-apartment complex called Republic Palm Coast there.
Vidya Herbs Launches Its Manufacturing Plant in Bunnell, Promising 100 Jobs and Bounty of Extracts
Vidya Herbs, founded in India 24 years ago, launched its first American-based manufacturing operation in Bunnell today, where it projects 100 or more employees over the next four years as the plant manufactures a saw palmetto extract and other products.
Court Disputes Behind It, Community Cats of Palm Coast Set for Grand Re-Opening at City Marketplace
Community Cats of Palm Coast, which operates the City Marketplace adoption shelter at 160 Cypress Point Parkway, Suite B-110, and a thrift store there at Suite C-101 (upstairs and downstairs), has been in business for 10 years, helping rescue, trap and deal with feline problems in the area.
Hang 8 Dog Surfing Contest Returns to Flagler Beach in All Its Ridiculous and Timely Exuberance
This time the Hang 8 Surfing Contest’s organizers are better prepared than they were last year, when they expected 50 people, maybe 100 at most, and got overrun with about 500. Hang 8 since its first edition last year has caught waves of attention, and gives Flagler Beach a break from seriousness, polarization and mountains of challenges.
Flagler County Works with Agencies for Larger Combined Dunes Project from Pier to Gamble Rogers
Flagler County Engineering has been working with the Army Corps of Engineers and the Florida Department of Transportation to combine two projects to expedite restoration of a larger section of dunes south of the Pier in a more cost-effective manner.
Flagler’s Vacation-Rental Regulations Again Survive at Last Minute as Lawmakers End Session
For the ninth year running, local regulations of short-term vacation rentals in Flagler County and across the survived a legislative attempt at dilution and pre-emption by the state, though it came down to a last-minute escape as lawmakers finalized a $117 billion budget and ended the session.
Council Set to Approve 76% Stormwater Fee Increase Over 5 Years, With Annual Review to Possibly Lessen Impact
At the tail end of a five-year stretch doubled stormwater fees for Palm Coast residents, the City Council is set to yet again increase monthly fees by another 76 percent over the next five years. Council members pledge to review the stormwater budget annually and see if there’s room to lessen the impact of coming increases. But October’s 27 percent increase is all but certain.
YMCA, 3 Fire Stations, Road Projects: Palm Coast and Flagler Stand to Gain Nearly $100 Million From State
Flagler, Palm Coast, Flagler Beach and Bunnell may be at the receiving end of the largest appropriations of state dollars for local special projects, by far, in the county’s history–nearly $100 million for roads, fire stations, pier reconstruction, water projects, a substance abuse facility and other, smaller projects, according to the $116 billion budget the Florida House and Senate published Tuesday.
Army Corps Project in Flagler Beach Doubles to $33 Million as Dune Repair Costs Pile Up Faster Than Sand
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineer’s project to rebuild 2.6 miles of dunes along the south shore of Flagler Beach was to cost $17 million when it was first approved by Congress in 2017. It is now a $33 million project, with Flagler County responsible for $11.3 million of that. The project is set to start, while the county is on an ambitious plan to cover the remaining miles of shoreline either with emergency sand dunes or with more durable dunes the size of the Corps’.
Beach Front Grill Owner Buying High Jackers Restaurant at County Airport Just As He Tees Off at Palm Harbor
Jamie Bourdeau, owner of Beach Front Grille in Flagler Beach and Loopers at Palm Harbor Golf Club in Palm Coast, is buying High Jackers Restaurant at the Flagler County airport from Gail Holt for $700,000 and assuming the lease at the county-owned property for the next eight years, with an option to renew for another 10. He is partnering with Joseph Wright, owner of Quantum Electrical Contractors and Anthony’s Pizza.
Florida Legislature Is About to Repeal All Local Tenant Bill of Rights Ordinances
As rent costs rise dramatically in Florida, dozens of cities and counties have been passing ordinances — often called tenant “bill of rights” — to give some protections to renters. But the Legislature is now looking to eliminate those ordinances.
David Alfin Files Formal Request to Re-Name Community Center After Late Mayor Jon Netts
The Palm Coast Beautification Committee Thursday evening is expected to recommend renaming the Palm Coast Community Center after the late Jon Netts, a city founder and its longest-serving council member and mayor. The nomination was filed by Mayor David Alfin.
County Plan to Move Whispering Meadows Equine Therapy Ranch to Fairgrounds Collapses as State Says No
The state has rejected Flagler County government’s plan to move the Whispering Meadows Ranch–the equine therapy non-profit–to the county fairgrounds, saying it would privatize public land. The rejection is the latest setback in the ranch’s two-year effort to leave its John Anderson Highway property, where it has operated for 16 years, until neighbors started objecting to its presence.
Dreaded Franchise Fee and Public Service Tax Back on Table as Palm Coast Faces $52 Million Street Fix
Facing a $52 million backlog to resurface a deteriorating road system, the Palm Coast City Council is discussing adopting utility franchise fees and public service taxes that have previously drawn angry opposition from residents, as well as exploring raising a local sales surtax through the county.
With Travis Hutson Cheering, Bill Upending Flagler’s Vacation-Rental Controls Clears Last Hurdle Before Vote
The success of the vacation-rental bill sharply scaling back local regulation this year is a blow to Flagler County government, which was a leader in pushing for the 2014 regulations providing for local control, and has pushed back against attempts to weaken them since. The Flagler County Commission made preserving the 2014 law a legislative priority every year since.
Flagler Beach Re-Launching Limited Plastic Recycling Starting May 15
Beginning on May 15, Flagler Beach residents and businesses may recycle plastic bags and plastic film into several receptacles that will be placed around Flagler Beach. It’s not curbside recycling just yet. But it is City Sanitation Director Rob Smith’s latest effort gradually to bring back recycling of most materials the city had suspended in 2021.
Disney Monorail Is Next on DeSantis Hit List
The Republican-controlled Senate Fiscal Policy Committee, chaired by Travis Hutson, who represents Flagler County, on Tuesday amended a transportation bill (SB 1250) to apply Department of Transportation safety standards to monorail lines that connect Walt Disney World resorts and parks.
Josef Ghosn Named AdventHealth University’s New President
Josef Ghosn, Ed.D., MBA will become AdventHealth University’s third president and CEO on May 1, 2023. The university’s Board of Trustees selected Ghosn after a months-long, national search.
FPC Graduate Christian Romero, 23, Is Killed in Crash By 15-Year-Old Red-Light Runner
Christian Romero, 23, a Flagler Palm Coast High School graduate and the son of Dawn and Miguel Romero, owners of Romero’s Tuscany By the Sea restaurant in Flagler Beach, died in a two-vehicle crash caused by a 15-year-old driver’s inattention in Orlando early Sunday morning, according to the Florida Highway Patrol.
Enterprise Florida Elimination Moves Forward as DeSantis Plans Trip with Agency
A House plan to eliminate the business-recruitment agency Enterprise Florida and relocate tourism-marketing efforts also would lead to a change in the name of the state Department of Economic Opportunity.
Chinese-Americans Fear Hate Crimes as Discriminatory Bill Advances in Florida Legislature
A legislative proposal would ban the sale of agriculture land and property within 20 miles of military bases and other critical infrastructure facilities to interests tied to the Chinese government and six other “countries of concern.”
Coming YMCA Could Give Belle Terre Club a Few Years’ Reprieve. 2 School Board Members Won’t Hear of It.
After yet another round of hardened, inconclusive debate over the fate of the Belle Terre Swim and Racquet Club during the school board’s workshop on Tuesday, the board agreed to vote on the matter one way or the other at its May 16 meeting. But this time a new element is in play, with the very strong possibility of a YMCA coming to town in a few years.
Dune Restoration Will Extend from Beverly Beach to Varn Park Over Next 10 Weeks
Dune restoration work for the next 10 weeks – weather permitting – will extend from Beverly Beach to Varn Park as part of Flagler County’s ongoing emergency sand operations.
County Rejects Proposed 16-Home ‘Solitude’ Seaside Development on A1A, With Legal Threats Looming
With the possibility of facing a lawsuit from either side, the Flagler County Commission Monday evening voted 4-1 to deny the proposed Solitude at Matanzas Shores’ development of 16 single-family homes on 3.9 seaside acres along State Road A1A, at the north end of the county. The developer may still build 14 town homes, if that’s how he chooses to proceed, but with conditions previously negotiated.
Dominion’s Defamation Case Against Fox Is Not Easy to Prove
The statements against Dominion have already been proved false. The question now is whether the statements harmed Dominion’s reputation enough to rise to the level of defamation. But it is far easier to throw around as an accusation than it is to actually prove fault.
DeSantis Decrees that Legislature Will Void Disney’s Autonomy on Development Rights
The feud between Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and the Walt Disney Co. escalated Monday after the governor said that the state Legislature intends to void an agreement on Disney development rights for years to come.
With a $400,000 Loss in 5 Years, Flagler Beach Pier’s Bait Shop Will Close Permanently as a City Business
The bait shop that for decades burnished the Flagler Beach pier’s quaintness and served as gatekeeper to pier fishers and visitors, will close permanently as a city-run business on June 1. The city may consider leasing the small space to a private company, whether as a shop or as a different kind of business, but it won’t decide that until May.
Marketing Lab Opens at Matanzas High School, Giving Classroom a Real-World Vibe of Office Energy
Matanzas High School’s Marketing Lab is the newest addition to its marketing and finance program, a hands-on immersive experience for students to get the full workplace experience from conceiving products to pitching their marketability to developing advertising campaigns to selling. Superintendent Cathy Mittelstadt and Matanzas Principal Kristin Bozeman inaugurated the lab today.
Palm Coast Plan Proposes 102% Increase in Stormwater Rates in 4 Years. Council Is ‘Uncomfortable.’
A Palm Coast government consultant is proposing a 102 percent increase in homeowners’ stormwater rates over the next four years, what would equate to an annual bill of $542–more than what some homeowners pay in city property taxes. The City Council isn’t ready to go that far, but steeply higher rates are coming.
Fox News ‘Journalists’ Lied With Impunity. It’s Their Business Model.
Businesses exist primarily to make a profit and doing actual news isn’t essential. Adam Serwer, reporting for The Atlantic, wrote “sources at Fox told me to think of it not as a network per se, but as a profit machine.” Profit machines can hire anybody who falls off a turnip truck and label them journalists because the job has no standardized requirements.
Splitting from Palm Coast, Flagler County Stays With Waste Pro, at Rates 65% Higher Than 2017 Contract
After the County Commission signed on to a five-year contract valued at around $3 million annually, Waste Pro will remain unincorporated Flagler County’s trash hauler, but not Palm Coast’s, where FCC Environmental will be the trash hauler starting June 1. Waste Pro had picked up Palm Coast’s trash for the previous 16 years.
Volusia-Flagler YMCA and Mayor Alfin in Big Push to Open Y in Palm Coast in About 2 Years
The Volusia Flagler Family YMCA is working with Palm Coast Mayor David Alfin and a corps of local community members to bring a YMCA to Palm Coast, with a rough goal of having a local facility under construction or near completion in about two years.
Crumbl Cookies Opening Soon at Palm Coast’s Island Walk
Crumbl Cookies, the barely six-year-old company that started with one store in Utah and has since grown to over 600 bakeries in 49 states, is preparing to open its first store in Palm Coast, in the Island Walk shopping center.
Palm Coast Chamber’s Disinformation on Student Performance and Superintendent Draws Sharp Rebukes
Superintendent Cathy Mittelstadt and School Board Vice Chair Colleen Conklin both issued sharply worded rebukes to rankly misinforming statements by the Flagler Palm Coast Chamber of Commerce regarding Mittelstadt’s performance in the last three years. A 3-2 majority of the school board fired Mittelstadt Tuesday, as of June 30.
Dune Hold-Out Signed Documents Today After 3 Years, Clearing Beach Reconstruction
Less than two weeks from a scheduled trial date, Flagler Beach resident Cynthia d’Angiolini this afternoon signed the two easements the county has been seeking for three years and that will allow the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to rebuild and maintain 2.6 miles of dunes south of the pier, unimpeded, for the next half century.
AdventHealth Palm Coast COO Wally De Aquino Named President and CEO of New Hospital on Parkway
AdventHealth today named Wally De Aquino president and CEO for AdventHealth Palm Coast Parkway. The 100-bed, four-story hospital on Palm Coast Parkway set to open in August, alongside a new medical office building. It will be a 158,000-square foot, $167 million facility.
Chong, Furry and Hunt in 3-2 Majority Not to Renew Superintendent Mittelstadt’s Contract
Rebuffing an outpouring of public support for Superintendent Cathy Mittelstadt at this evening’s special meeting, the Flagler County School Board voted 3-2 not to renew her contract when it expires in June.