States like Florida that refuse to expand Medicaid are missing an opportunity to address racial disparities in maternal health and improve child health care, according to a report released Wednesday.
Economy
Amy Fulmer, FPC Teacher and Formality Singers Director, is New Flagler Auditorium Chief
FPC teacher and Formality Singers director Amy Fulmer replaces Lisa McDevitt, whose 16-year tenure at the auditorium was cut short by illness and her death in January.
FPL Will Use Tax Savings To Cover Hurricane Repair Costs Rather Than Lower Customers’ Bills
The issue involves hundreds of millions of dollars a year in savings from a federal tax overhaul and an estimated $1.3 billion in costs of restoring power after the 2017 hurricane.
81% of Voters Reject Denver Initiative That Would Have Given Homeless Camping Rights Anywhere
While supporters said the measure would shield Denver’s estimated 3,445 people experiencing homelessness from unfair citations and arrests, it faced fierce opposition from businesses and environmental and social service organizations.
Siding With Environmentalists, DeSantis Vetoes Bill Prohibiting Bans on Plastic Straws
In his first veto, Gov. Ron DeSantis on Friday rejected a bill that would have blocked local governments from banning plastic straws.
Florida Cities Sue State Over ‘Small Cell’ Wireless Law, Citing Home Rule Violation
The Florida League of Cities and three cities contend the 2017 law infringes on home-rule powers and leads to an unconstitutional “taking” of city property to benefit wireless companies.
FPC’s Epic Student Musical Energizes ‘Les Misérables’ With Song, Fury and Redemption
FPC’s $17,000 production of “Les Miserables,” the musical, opens tonight and runs through Saturday at the Flagler Auditorium, featuring a cast of 57, lavish costumes and music from one of the most enduring musicals of all times.
Faced With ‘Disgraceful’ Rent Increase at City Marketplace, Sheriff Will Move Palm Coast District Office to Old Sears Building
It’s only the latest example of the county’s largely self-inflicted and costly turmoil over land and building projects gone awry, going back to the Eden-gone-Hades of the old Memorial hospital and conversion into a sheriff’s operations center in 2013.
Latest 2 Proposals for Captain’s BBQ at Bing’s Landing Again Collapse as Sides Harden or Shift Positions
Captain’s BBQ says it won;t pay for a sewer extension even though the extension is needed only because Captain’s wants to expand, and the Hammock Community Association is no longer supportive of a new building site.
3.5% Unemployment Rate Is Lowest Since 1969 as Economy Adds 263,000 Jobs
Wages again increased by 6 cents. Over the year, average hourly earnings have increased by 3.2 percent, well exceeding the 1.6 percent rate of inflation, which means that the difference lifts the net standard of living.
Bill Pushing Underground Power Lines Passes, But Higher Utility Bills Are Likely
A key part of the bill would change the way underground power-line projects are financed, a change that could lead to more projects — but also higher bills for utility customers.
Senate Approves Vast Deregulation of Hospital Expansions and Opens Way For Canadian Drugs
Under longstanding law, hospitals have needed to seek certificates of need from the state Agency for Health Care Administration to build facilities or to add certain services.THat would be eliminated.
Palm Coast Songwriters Festival’s Reprise Brings a Dozen Musicians and Their Stories For 3 Days at 2 Venues
The Palm Coast Songwriters Festival’s innumerable live acts and workshops runs Friday through Sunday at the Daytona State College Palm Coast Amphitheater, and the Palm Coast Arts Foundation stage.
‘Right To Survive’ Initiative: This City Might Give Homeless People the Right to Camp Anywhere
Denver’s ballot Initiative 300, a first-of-its-kind “Right to Survive,” would allow the homeless to camp anywhere on public lands without risk of arrest, If approved supporters aim to copy it elsewhere.
Irish Company Studio Media Buys Palm Coast Data and Signals 10-Year Local Commitment
Studio Media Group, an Irish company, today acquired Palm Coast Data from Pennsylvania-based Amrep Corp., the third time in 17 years that one of Palm Coast’s largest private employers is changing hands.
Free Housing Fair Rich in Financial, Mortgage and Other Tips, This Saturday April 27
The 2019 Housing Fair – hosted by Flagler County, the City of Palm Coast, Flagler County Association of Realtors, and the Mid-Florida Housing Partnership – will be held from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. April 27 at the Flagler County Association of Realtors building, 4101 E. Moody Blvd., Bunnell.
Both County and Palm Coast Officials Question Whether Waste Pro Can Still Do The Job
County officials have been getting complaints about recycling and missed pick-ups, and Palm Coast got 300 complaints just last week, but Waste Pro said it was just one bad week and the company is on the mend.
Flagler Commission Will Build New, $12-15 Million Sheriff’s Operations Center by Palm Coast Library, Condemning ‘Mold Ops’
The Flagler County Commission this evening voted unanimously to build a new Flagler County Sheriff’s Operations Center–in Palm Coast, next to the county library on Palm Coast Parkway.
Old Dixie Roundabout Contractor Halts Work For Being ‘Considerably’ Ahead of Schedule, and of Utility Shifts
P & S Paving of Daytona Beach has halted work on the $4.1 million roundabout project at Old Dixie Highway and U.S. 1 because it is “considerably” ahead of schedule and utility companies have not caught up to move some utilities.
Ocean Palm, Flagler Beach’s 9-Hole Golf Course, Is Finally Seeing Green All Around as Disputes Fade
Ocean Palm Golf Club’s difficulties are in the past, with vastly improved the grounds, new equipment, and a restaurant that just got a full liquor license as well. Ocean Palm has been running tournaments and leagues, and it’ll be adding new events every week.
‘Tick Tick Boom’ Musical Brings ‘Rent’ Creator’s Artistic Anxiety to City Repertory Theatre
“Tick Tick Boom” is fueled by that tension between the food-on-the-table demands of everyday life versus one’s artistic ambitions, and all those struggles to make it work.
Seawalls and the Tyranny of Small Decisions
The seawall-construction project in Flagler Beach is problematic. Building living shorelines rather than concrete walls, is going to give us the best chance at ensuring a healthy beach for generations to come.
Congress Is About to Ban the Government From Offering Free Online Tax Filing. Thank TurboTax.
A bill supported by Democrats and Republicans would make permanent a program that bars the IRS from ever developing its own online tax filing service.
Time for $15 an Hour and a Union
After years of idling lawmakers, the idea now has more traction in Congress thanks to the recently introduced Raise the Wage Act, which would set a national minimum pay of $15 an hour by 2024.
Renner’s Panel Goes Jekyll and Hyde on Felons, Easing Punishments But Not Voting Rights
The House Judiciary Committee Palm Coast’s Paul Renner chairs on Tuesday passed a crime bill that eases some punishments and makes it easier for felons to reintegrate society but also passed a restrictive interpretation of Amendment 4 and felons’ right to vote.
Classrooms as Career Incubators: Flagler School District Showcases Students’ Paths to Local Jobs
The Flagler County school district showcased its 21 flagship programs at 10 schools, each designed to give students means to experience careers first-hand while completing academic requirements.
Mayor Holland Exults In City’s Innovation Centered Renaissance In State of the
City Address
Palm Coast Mayor Milissa Holland’s State of the City Address this afternoon at the Palm Coast Community Center was to focus on the city’s renewed energy, its innovative district in Town Center, and an unscripted introduction of new City Manager Matt Morton.
Mayor Milissa Holland’s 2019 State of the City Address: ‘We Are One Palm Coast’
The full text of Palm Coast Mayor Milissa Holland’s State of the City Address, presented at the Palm Coast Community Center Friday. The theme of the address is “One Palm Coast.”
Citing ‘Corruption’ Potential, Sheriff Turns Over Investigation of Tourism Director Matt Dunn to FDLE as Lukasik Takes Over Division
The Sheriff’s Office requested that the criminal investigation of Flagler Tourism Director Matt Dunn be conducted by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement. Amy Lukasik, the tourism bureau’s marketing director, is taking over Dunn’s duties for now.
Rebuilding Captain’s BBQ in Place Is ‘Off the Table,’ But Decision On New Lease and Location Is Delayed
Flagler County government is not willing to repair the existing Captain’s BBQ restaurant at its own expense. Rather, it is favoring building a new structure at Captain’s expense, but not necessarily on Captain’s more expansive terms.
House Prepared To Raise Threshold For Felony Shoplifting From $300 to $1,000
Efforts to raise the threshold amount for the first time since 1986 have stalled in the Legislature in the past. This year’s proposal (HB 589) has steadily moved forward in the House, as criminal-justice reform advocates say there is momentum to pass such measures.
The Florida Compact on Immigration: Recognizing Immigrants’ Value Without Demonizing Them
The compact is a set of key principles outlining the need for smart immigration policies at the state and federal levels to drive Florida’s economy forward, including a path forward for undocumented immigrants.
Palm Coast Issues 1st Building Permits for Apartments in Nearly 5 Years, For Palms at Town Center
The Palms at Town Center is one of two apartment complexes that will total more than 300 units in what Palm Coast is touting as its new “Innovation District.” The developments are getting tax breaks.
Flagler Watches as Vacation-Rental Bill That Would Eliminate Local Or Homeowner Association Regulations Advances
The House bill approved today would eliminate local control and all grandfather clauses in vacation-rental rules, including those in Flagler and Flagler Beach, but Flagler officials say they’ll prevail in the end.
‘A Pileup of Inequities’: Why People of Color Are Hit Hardest by Homelessness
Disparities, researchers say, are the result of centuries of discrimination in housing, criminal justice, child welfare and education. Cities and counties are beginning to take a hard look at how entrenched policy has served to perpetuate homelessness in black and brown communities.
Palm Coast’s Disappearing Canopy
Development in Palm Coast is back at a pace not seen since before the Great Recession. Lots are getting leveled, canopies lost. New homes are great., but must 11,000 square foot lots be entirely leveled to make room for 2,000 square foot homes? It’s not either or.
Flagler Beach Will Loosen Its Mural Rules, Allowing Businesses to Advertise Products Through Art
Flagler Beach is moving toward loosening its mural rules to allow for greater expression and even a little bit of extra advertising, all thanks to raining donuts on the wall outside Swillerbees, the craft donut and coffee shop on North Central Avenue.
It’s All About ‘Alignment’ Between Schools, Colleges and Jobs, Local Education Leaders Tell Flagler Businesses
The Flagler Chamber of Commerce roughly once a year devotes one of its Common Ground breakfasts to spotlight local education’s major players, as it did this morning at Palm Coast’s Hilton Garden Inn.
Flagler Claims School Funding Formula Has Unfairly Penalized the District for Years. A Controversial Bill Could Change That.
Flagler was receiving $300 less per student than the average $7,200 per-student share because of the so-called District Cost Differential, which takes a complicated set of “amenities” into account to divvy up state education dollars.
Palm Coast Approves Incentives for Mail-Order Firm to Merge California Operation Locally
CP Performance has been operating off Hargrove Grade and from near Santa Rosa, Calif., but will merge its operations at its Palm Coast facility, enlarging it and adding 20 jobs over the next five years.
Palm Coast Mayor Hails ‘Striking’ 10-Ft. Sculpture as Inaugural Symbol of Town Center’s Creative Future
Palm Coast Mayor Milissa Holland dedicated the first of five sculptures that will form a sculpture garden in Central Park, all privately paid for and donated to the city as a cultural component of Palm Coast’s emerging Innovation District.
For Use in Joints, Pipes or Bongs: Smokable Medical Pot Finally Hits Florida Market
In other states where medical marijuana has been legalized, smokable products comprise between 40 and 60 percent of sales. Florida voters in 2016 approved a constitutional amendment that broadly legalized medical marijuana.
In Rare Rejection of Its Own Staff’s Push, County Commission Rejects 54-Home Hammock Development
A Jacksonville developer wanted to rezone a 12-acre parcel at Jungle Hut Road and A1A and, to commissioners, cram in 54 homes. Commissioners, rejecting their own staff’s recommendation, said no.
Family of 5 and Off-Duty Cop Hospitalized in 3-Vehicle Crash at Roundabout
Construction on U.S. 1
A family of five riding in one car and an off-duty law enforcement officer riding in the other were injured, some of them seriously, and sent to three different hospitals, one of them by air, after a three-vehicle crash in the construction zone for the coming roundabout at U.S. 1 and Old Dixie Highway.
A Gated, Restricted Community For Palm Coast’s P-Section: 96 Apartments in 3 Buildings and 45 Single-Family Homes
The new development, called American Village, spreads along Pritchard Drive, its apartments and single-family homes intermingling in a gated community restricted to people 55 and over. The Palm Coast Planning Board approved a master site plan Wednesday.
How Flagler Government Bought the $1.1 Million Sears Building Nobody Wants, With Scarce Money Needed Elsewhere
The Flagler County Commission ended up buying the Sears building even though it does not need it and does not have money to spare to buy it. The deal was the work of then-Administrator Craig Coffey.
Stepping Over a Blurring Red Line, Palm Coast Councilman Klufas Wants To Hire a New Broadband Director
Though it’s not ina council member’s authority, the Palm Coast Council’s Nick Klufas is eager to hire Donald Kewley, a finalist for city manager, to be in charge of the city’s Broadband, or FiberNet, system, which he sees as a potentially money-making utility.
Flagler Beach Kills Paid Parking Proposal for the City: ‘We Don’t Have a Parking Problem’
The paid-parking proposal in Flagler Beach, the latest of many, would have generated money but not for the city: it would have paid for a company to run a complicated system.
Resurfacing of Flagler’s Portion of I-95 Begins Monday, With Lane Closures Through Fall of 2020
A year and a half of lane closures and likely delays are ahead for Flagler County drivers and residents as the complete resurfacing of I-95 begins on March 18 and will stretch through the fall of 2020.
Palm Coast Poised To Make the Arts Central To Its Innovation District as New Sculpture Garden Redefines Central Park
The Gargiulo Arts Foundation is making possible a new sculpture garden in Palm Coast’s Central Park and helping to redefine the city’s innovation district, with the arts playing a central role. More funding may be next.