Barely three years after cutting the ribbon on its $22 million, 73,000-square-foot Flagler Palm Coast Readiness Center on the south expanse of Flagler Executive Airport, the Florida National Guard today broke ground on a 37,000 square foot building that will consolidate truck and weapons maintenance operations from two other units into the Palm Coast facility and add 30 permanent jobs.
Economy
County May Remove Heather Haywood from Planning Board Over a ‘Lie’ and Refusal to Comply with Record Request
The Flagler County Commission Monday morning voted unanimously to “reconsider” Heather Haywood’s service on the county Planning Board, pointing to her possible removal, should she not comply with a public record request FlaglerLive filed on Nov. 21. Haywood on Nov. 20 stood before the commission and accused Commissioner Greg Hansen of writing to her inappropriately. She did not back-up her statement with evidence. She has so far not produced the alleged communication, nor any other requested.
Marineland Mayor Angela TenBroeck Invited to Address UN’s Climate Change Summit in Dubai
Marineland Mayor Angela TenBroeck is on her way to Dubai, where she’s been invited to address the United Nations’ climate change summit. The summit includes representatives from nearly 200 countries and thousands of businesses, non-governmental organizations and advocates for a cleaner, cooler planet. TenBroeck will be on on a series of panels addressing clean water, workforce, economic development, hunger alleviation and justice for indigenous people.
Craig Flagler Palms Hosts 19th Annual Candlelight Service of Remembrance
Craig Flagler Palms Funeral Home, Memorial Gardens & Crematory hosts the 19th annual Candlelight Service of Remembrance on Dec. 3 from 6 to 8 p.m. at the Garden of Memory Mausoleum. The event is held to help those that have lost loved ones cope with the loss during the holiday season.
Statewide Grand Jury Attacks Organizations That Help Migrants and Calls for Further Crackdowns
A statewide grand jury has issued a 146-page report that calls for taking a series of steps to try to curb illegal immigration. The report includes calling for further attempts to crack down on businesses that hire undocumented immigrants, probing non-government organizations and collecting fees on transfers of money from Florida to other countries.
County Approves Captain’s BBQ Settlement, Bringing Lawsuit’s Cost to $1 Million, and Big Changes at Bing’s Landing
The Flagler County Commission this evening unanimously approved a settlement with Captain’s BBQ, ending the restaurant’s breach-of-contract lawsuit against the county. The settlement would, in Commissioner Leann Pennington’s words, “stop the insanity.” The county administration’s attempts to happy-face the settlement notwithstanding, it is now clear, by the commissioners’ own assessments, that the county would have lost had the case gone to trial, and that accepting a costly, and in some ways humiliating, settlement, was the county’s only choice.
County Not Yet Stoked for Skate Park Improvements But Approves 4 Pickleball Courts at Wadsworth Park
Wadsworth Park, the 45-acre county facility on the mainland side of the Flagler Beach bridge, will soon see a tennis court converted to four pickleball courts, but county commissioners are not ready to approve a plan to renovate the skateboarding park: the county administration is proposing a band aid, while users of the park are advocating for a more ambitious, but also more permanent, renovation.
Florida Lawmakers Put Developers’ Interests Ahead of Residents’ Hurricane Safety
In a bill to supply aid to the victims of Hurricane Ian and Idalia, lawmakers told local governments in counties hammered by the storm that they were not allowed to make “burdensome” changes to their land-use or growth plan regulations for three years. No learning from their mistakes and trying to avoid repeating them.
European Village Business Leading Christmas Drive for Toys for Tots
AW Custom Kitchens Inc. is partnering with Toys-for-Tots for a non-profit Christmas toy drive. Donations to the Toys-for-Tots Foundation are accepted through December 23, and may be dropped off at AW’s showroom at 101 Palm Harbor Parkway Unit B113 at European Village.
9-Building, 216-Unit Apartment Complex Would Line Old Kings Road South of Palm Coast Parkway
The Palm Coast Planning Board in a 5-2 vote that reflected some sharp resistance to the project recommended approval of a master plan for a nine-building, 216-apartment complex lined along Old Kings Road’s two lanes, halfway between Palm Coast Parkway and Town center Boulevard. It would be by far the largest development visible from the road south of Utility Drive, changing the complexion of what had been one of Palm Coast’s last remaining greenways.