AdventHealth has selected Brent Davis to serve as vice president and chief financial officer for the company’s Central Florida Division – North Region, effective Feb. 3.
Economy
Frieda Zamba Featured at Flagler Beach Historical Museum’s New Surf Exhibit
Frieda Zamba and Haley Watson will be available for autographs and selfies featured in the Flagler Beach Historical Museum’s new Surf exhibit opening Friday, Feb. 7.
Critical Lack of Exhibit Space Hobbling Palm Coast Art Scene Even as Organizations Thrive
For the first time in 20 years, the Flagler County Artist of the Year will not have a show, for lack of space. The critical lack of exhibit space is on the radar of the Flagler County Art League, the fledgling Palm Coast Arts Foundation and the Grand Gallery at Grand Living Realty.
City Tells Anxious Matanzas Woods Golf Course Community ‘The Fix’ Is Not In, Nor Is a Proposal
Residents surrounding the Matanzas Woods golf course have been critical of the city’s silence on a proposed development of 300 homes there, but city officials say their hands are tied as long as they don;t have a concrete proposal to discuss–and none has been submitted yet.
Hack This: Palm Coast Is Onto Something With Tech Beach Competition
Palm Coast’s Tech Beach Hackathon last weekend points the way to a more useful form form of economic and innovative development, especially when contrasted with the enormous waste of dollars and resources over the past years at the county’s economic development department.
Marina del Palma Grand Opening Saturday
Marina del Palma is hosting a special grand opening event on the property Saturday, Jan. 25, Ken Belshe, senior sales director said.
Officials Project Better Days for Plantation Bay Utility But Re-Write History to Downplay County’s Role in Plagued Deal
County officials told Plantation Bay residents they’d have a more stable utility under new management, but County Attorney Al Hadeed re-wrote some of the history of the county’s plagued, $5.5 million acquisition of the utility from Mori Hosseini’s ICI homes in 2013.
Palm Coast’s Inaugural Tech Beach Hackathon Glimmers With Stress-Tested Innovations
Palm Coast’s first “Tech Beach Hackathon” at City Hall was a weekend cramming session of tech developers connecting their just-designed apps to local healthcare problems looking for a solution.
Palm Coast’s War on Dollar Stores and Their Customers Contradicts City’s Inclusive Plan
The Palm Coast City Council imposed a 120-day moratorium on new dollar-type discount stores, citing vague fears of “long-term effects” on the community, a decision that runs counter to free-market ideals.
AdventHealth’s Stuart F. Meyer Hospice House Receives $5,000 Donation from Weston Coatings Group
Professional painting company, Weston Coatings Group, has donated $5,000 to AdventHealth HospiceCare to support the Stuart F. Meyer Hospice House.
WNZF Sues County Commission Candidate Tommy LeGault Over Unpaid Bills; He Owes FPC’s Cheerleaders Money They Raised Months Ago
Tommy LeGault, running for a Flagler County Commission seat as a small-business advocate, owes WNZF nearly $5,000 for infomercials he aired, owes FPC’s cheerleaders $1,000, and twice faced eviction in the last three years.
Palm Coast Prepares for $20 Million Sewer Plant Expansion in Anticipation of Growth
The Palm Coast City Council is supporting the city’s next-largest utility expansion–a $20 million project that will add 2 million gallons a day of capacity to its second sewer plant on U.S. 1. The expansion will be financed through a loan and is not expected to affect customers’ rates.
Re-Emerging for 4th Year, Vacation-Rental Bill Restricting Local Authority Advances With Sen. Hutson’s Support
A Senate committee Monday approved a proposal that would take away power from cities and counties to regulate vacation rental properties. The 8-2 vote included Sen. Travis Hutson’s support. Hutson represents Flagler County.
Recreational Pot Proposal Won’t Make It to the November Ballot
Make It Legal Florida contended that a petition-gathering law passed year by the Legislature is unconstitutional and that problems with a Department of State database hampered petition efforts.
County Ends Low-Performing Economic Development Department, Citing ‘Fluffy’ Numbers and Poor Accountability
Headed by Helga van Eckert since 2012, Flagler County’s $500,000-a-year economic development department had been more successful with PR and taking credit for others’ work than producing much of its own.
How Wealthy Towns Keep People With Section 8 Housing Vouchers Out
Section 8 vouchers should give low-income people the opportunity to live outside poor communities. But discriminatory landlords, exclusionary zoning and the federal government’s hands-off approach leave recipients with few places to call home.
What You Need to Know About How Section 8 Really Works
The Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher program is a form of government rent assistance. In 2018, upwards of 5 million people across the country lived in a household that used a voucher to help pay some or all of their rent.
Florida Supreme Court Unanimously Rejects Constitutional Proposal to Deregulate Utility Industry
The ruling was a victory for state leaders, business groups and utilities that fought the amendment, which was proposed for the November ballot by a political committee known as Citizens for Energy Choices.
City Rep Theatre is Playing Neil Simon’s ‘Song’ in Bow to Broadway Romance
Palm Coast’s City Repertory Theatre stages Neil Simon’s “They’re Playing Our Song,” the popular, semi-autobiographical story of Marvin Hamlisch and songwriting partner Carol Bayer Sager–or of Simon and Marsha Mason.
New Rules Regulating CBD Products and Hemp in Florida Now In Effect
New rules regulating CBD products address issues such as pesticides, how packages are labeled and the inspection of products sold or produced in the state, and are derived from a federal law opening the door to CBD and hemp regulations.
Lubert-Adler Sells Hammock Beach Resort and Other Properties to Tampa Company For $18 Million
The complex deal included two undeveloped but well-positioned commercial properties and closed December 31. The total value of all recorded transactions is $18.26M. The buyer is Tampa-based KDG Capital, a private equity fund headed by Dr. Kiran Patel.
Inside Documents Show How Amazon Chose Speed Over Safety in Building Its Delivery Network
Amazon ignored or dismissed safety concerns about its delivery network to prioritize speed and explosive growth, according to new documents and interviews with insiders.
She Thought She Had a Cold. She Briefly Saw a Doctor and Got Antibiotics. Her Insurance Bill: $25,865
A woman, worried that her sore throat might be strep, got swabbed at her doctor’s office. The sample was sent to an out-of-network lab for sophisticated DNA tests ― with a price tag similar to a new SUV.
A Year-End Thank You To Our Readers and Supporters From the FlaglerLive Board of Directors
As you and your family make decisions as to which organizations will receive your charitable donations, please keep in mind that there are those who would like nothing more than to have aggressive news outlets like FlaglerLive disappear entirely.
Florida Unemployment Approaches Historic Low at 3.1%, Flagler’s at 3.3%
Flagler County’s rate remained steady at 3.3 percent, the same rate as in October but down from 3.9 percent a year ago. Flagler County’s labor force dipped somewhat, to 48,352, but is still about 1,200 people higher than a year ago.
Agriculture Commissioner Fried Rejects Canada and Mexico Trade Deal Over Absent Protections for Seasonal Growers
Fried, Florida’s only statewide elected Democrat, said she was “deeply disappointed” protections for seasonal growers were not included in the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement, which is intended to replace the 26-year-old North American Free Trade Agreement. The House approved the new agreement, known as the USMCA, on Thursday.
Love Is In The Air: Ten Tenors Return to Flagler Auditorium For One Performance
The Ten Tenors are among the most popular acts at the Flagler Auditorium, making what has been an annual pilgrimage to Palm Coast year after year. They’ll perform one night only, on Dec. 21.
Widespread, Heavy Rain and Coastal Flooding Bearing Down on Travel Weekend, Weather Service Warns
The most widespread, persistent heavy rainfall will overspread the local area Saturday night through Sunday night, the National Weather Service in Jacksonville cautions, with most areas expected to get 2 to 4 inches of rain.
Both A1A Lanes Reopen to Traffic in Flagler Beach in Big Relief to Businesses and Central Ave.
A little more than 300 days into the latest reconstruction of that storm-battered road, both lanes of State Road A1A reopened to traffic at 3:55 p.m. today. The full project won’t be completed until late January.
Flagler Cats Bingo Business Shut Down on Allegations of Operating as Illegal Gambling Parlor
Flagler Cats Bingo, opened last year in Flagler Beach as a fund-raising arm of Flagler Cats, was raided and shut down by the sheriff’s office after 48 gambling machines were seized. Owner Mari Molina says she was not aware of any gambling.
GOP Legislators Claim Restrictions on Medical Pot Keeps It From Ending Up In Recreational Hands
In a Florida Supreme Court case with major ramifications for the medical-marijuana industry, the Florida House contends a disputed 2017 law helps prevent “diversion” of pot to the illegal recreational market, minors and other states.
Save the Minor Leagues
These teams have provided a way for folks in rural and underserved areas to see baseball and future major leaguers for a fraction of the price of traveling to an MLB city. And they’re a way to boost the communities they play in.
6 Years Late, $13 Million in Debt, County Concedes Incompetence Running Utility as It Seeks Plantation Bay Bailout
Flagler County officials admitted to the catastrophic consequences of the Plantation Bay utility deal and to the county’s inability to manage the plant as they look for ways to extricate the county from a huge debt load.
Residents Near Flagler Airport Threaten Lawsuit Over Noise, and Get County’s Pledge to Examine Issue
A half dozen residents described intolerable noise from flight-school planes at the Flagler airport, and got the county administrator’s pledge of a workshop in January to examine solutions.
FWC Approves Changes to Spotted Seatrout Rules
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) approved several rule changes for spotted seatrout. Spotted seatrout are one of Florida’s most popular inshore fisheries.
Bistro Café and Mr. Pancho Mexican Grill on Palm Coast’s Utility Drive Targets of Overnight Burglaries
The burglars stole some $4,000 in cash from one business and $150 from another, causing about $600 in damage along the way and the loss of about $500 worth of food that had been stored in a fridge they’d left open. The burglars are at large.
3 New Cell Towers in Palm Coast Now Beaming AT&T’s Signal in Previously Dead Zones
Two cell towers recently built in Palm Coast went live with AT&T’s signal in the last eight days, and a third had gone live in September, significantly reducing dead cell zones in town.
Physician Assistants and Certain Nurses Could Practice Independent of Doctors Under Proposed Law
Bill sponsor Cary Pigman, R-Avon Park, said the proposal (HB 607) would go a long way toward improving patients’ access to primary-care providers, especially in medically underserved areas of the state.
City Rep’s ‘Actually,’ a #MeToo Whodunit Treading the Blurry Lines of Consent, Assault and Guilt
“Actually,” the newest production at Palm Coast’s City Repertopry Theatre opening this weekend, tells the tale of two Ivy League freshmen – a young black man and a young white woman — who become mired in a he said/she said, was-it-date-rape scenario.
700,000 Poorer People Could Lose Food Stamps Under Tighter Trump Work Requirements
The finalized rule just announced by the Trump administration, which will take effect in April, will make it harder for states to exempt adults without dependents from work requirements.
7th Annual Clays For A Cause Raises $158,000 For Three Northeast Florida Charities
The 7th annual Clays for a Cause sporting clay shoot, presented by St. Johns home builder MasterCraft Builder Group, was held on December 5, 2019 at Saltwaters Shooting Club in St. Augustine. It was the largest to date with over 340 registered participants raising $158,000 for St. Augustine Youth Services (SAYS), Seamark Ranch, and American […]
Cordone and Kilgore ‘Swing in the Holidays’ in Jazzy, Witty Palm Coast Show Dec. 10
Natalie Cordone and Shawn Kilgore bring their jazzy blend of wit, pop and vocal standards to the Palm Coast Community Center for one show only on Dec. 10. They’ve been touring nationally and internationally for five years.
Proposed 300-Home Development in Place of Matanzas Golf Course Draws Public Doubt and Ire
A neighborhood meeting about the planned developer of some 300 homes along the disused Matanzas golf course drew considerable protests and doubt from some 200 people Thursday evening.
Aimee Stafford Takes Over as Flagler Chamber President, Bringing Energetic and Laureled Experience to Burdened Organization
Aimee Stafford is a veteran in leadership of chambers and non-profits, especially in Kentucky, but with long-established established ties in Florida and Ormond Beach, where she’s lived since May.
Northbound Traffic on A1A in Flagler Beach Will Shift to Newly Completed Lane as Project Advances
Northbound State Road (S.R.) A1A traffic will be shifted onto the newly constructed southbound roadway between South 23rd and South 7th Street in Flagler Beach beginning sometime Thursday, Dec. 5. Southbound traffic will remain on South Central Avenue.
Public’s Advocate Contends Underground Power Line Rules Allow For Improper Utility Charges
An administrative law judge will hold a hearing this month in a dispute about how to carry out a new law that is expected to lead to more underground power lines in Florida — and higher costs for utility customers.
With Little Transparency, County Approves $250,000 to Redesignate 12 Miles of Dunes as ‘Preservation Facility’
The county commission today approved spending $250,000 for a project to which they had no written documentation, either for themselves or for public inspection, though it is the first step in a significant redefinition of the county’s beaches.
A Trump Tax Break To Help The Poor Went To a Rich GOP Donor’s Superyacht Marina in West Palm Beach
Wealthy donors Wayne Huizenga Jr. and Jeff Vinik lobbied then-Gov. Rick Scott for the lucrative tax break for the Rybovich superyacht marina in West Palm Beach — and won it. Poorer communities lost out.
Ethan Bortnick, Once a Prodigy, Now a Mere Teen Superstar, At Flagler Auditorium With Local Choirs
Ethan Bortnick, the pianist, songwriter-performer and one-time child prodigy who raises millions, packs houses but still can’t legally drink, is bringing his show to the Flagler Auditorium for one night only on Dec. 4 at 7:30 p.m.
A Florida City Wants to Ban Styrofoam. State Wants Court to Affirm Preemption Law.
Attorney General Ashley Moody’s office Tuesday urged the Florida Supreme Court to reject an appeal in a battle about the city of Coral Gables’ attempt to ban the use of Styrofoam food containers.