Ignoring leery voters and a building bust, the Flagler chamber’s tax for commercial construction is jeopardizing local governments’ own urgent tax referendums in 2011 and 2012.
Economy
Job Creation Soars by 431,000, Almost All Census-Driven; Unemployment Down to 9.7%
Despite the surge in employment, signs are grim for sustained job recovery as private-sector and construction jobs lag.
Feds, Not Florida, Will Pay for Medicaid’s 1 Million New Beneficiaries
Attorney General Bill McCollum’s claim that health reform forces Florida to shell out too much money for Medicaid is demonstrably false.
Palm Coast: Best Place to Retire Or
Real Estate Hell? Take Your Pick
One publication declares Palm Coast real estate gold for retirees, another declares Palm Coast a lost cause for home prices.
Taxable Property Values Plummet a Record 20%; Dire Numbers for Local Governments
The drop is the steepest of the last three years. Some $5 billion in taxable values have been wiped out since 2007.
Ego and Egoer
Two of Volusia’s giant egos, Daytona State’s Kent Sharples and ICI Homes’ Mori Hosseini, have turned the college board into their own little Khe Sanh. The NJ puts in some worthy war reporting.
Florida Legislature’s Spending Misleadingly Labeled as Pork
Most of the spending called “pork” (or “turkeys” by Florida TaxWatch is of immediate and necessary benefit to senior health, care for the poor and transportation.
Loner Palm Coast Drips Desal to Fraction of Original Plan; Water Costs Would Rise Sharply
The city is reducing its desal ambitions to a sixth the original size, but 1,000 gallons would cost five to six times more than current water.
Bunnell Approves Bypass Study as Part of Broader City Planning
Looking to capitalize on developers’ dollars funding the study, the Bunnell City Commission approved a broader look at the city’s road needs in the future.
Revenue Crunch Not Yet Sobering
Palm Coast City Council’s Ambitions
Palm Coast’s flush years are over, yet City Manager Jim Landon and the council are still high on a new city hall and a water desalination plant.