Sen. Alan Hays, a Umatilla Republican in charge of budget talks with the House–which is already resisting more money for land-buying–says Florida already has enough land in public hands.
Economy
Florida House Pushes $690 Million Tax-Cut Package, Exceeding Gov. Scott’s Request
The proposed cuts include sales-tax holidays and eliminating taxes on gun-club memberships, college textbooks, materials purchased at book fairs and vehicles purchased overseas and brought to Florida by military members.
Wings Over Flagler Brings a Flying Fortress Of a Show At 3-Day, 50-Plane Rockin’ of Runways
The 50-some planes at the Flagler County Airport Friday through Sunday include the enormous B-17 Flying Fortress, the C-54 Berlin Airlift Flying Museum, a a CH-47 Chinook, and a Ford Tri-Motor, the first commercial plane in the U.S.
Obama Proposals Would End Tax-Subsidized Loans For Sports Stadiums
The proposal comes as many team owners, including Florida, are pressing cities and states for new facilities, with some threatening to move elsewhere if they don’t get them.
An Amazon Package Delivered To You in 30 Minutes Or Less: It’s Coming, On Drones
Amazon just got an FAA certificate to experiment with what will result in immediate deliveries by drone, or unmanned aircraft, as the drone industry’s potential continues to find new uses. UPS and others are also experimenting.
School Board Honors Cheryl Tristam With Power of One Award For Youth Orchestra’s 10-Year Triumphs
Cheryl Tristam stressed the importance of making music education accessible to every child regardless of background or ability as she received an award bestowed periodically on community members who have had a broad impact on students.
Chick-fil-A Phenomenon Camps Out in Palm Coast: If Grateful Dead Fans Loved Chikin
Chick-fil-A’s grand opening in Palm Coast brought with it what has become a near-cult following of groupies, overwhelmingly from out of town, who camp out for 24 hours to earn their 52 free meals. A profile of the phenomenon, and the company.
Flagler Auditorium Lights Up Its $86,000 LED Marquee, Boosting Visibility
The $71,000 Deltronics sign, plus $15,000 for its installation, was paid for through a $150,000 grant from county government’s Tourist Development Council and is part of a series of improvements at the auditorium designed to improve visibility and impact.
Flagler’s Unemployment, No Longer Leading State, Plummets Below 7% For First Time Since 2007
Flagler’s 6.9 percent unemployment rate sent the county down to 14th place among counties with the worst unemployment, ending years of Flagler sitting at or near the top of that chart.
Echoing Advocates, Flagler Commission Unanimously Approves Sea Ray’s Parking Lot Expansion
The vote was a victory for the Brunswick Corp.’s Sea Ray manufacturing plant, the unanimity of the vote was a victory for the county’s business establishment, though opponents had voiced concerns about the company’s existing pollutants and its future plans.
Plan to Extend Health Insurance to 800,000 Poor Floridians Crawls Against Steep Hurdles
The new Florida Health Insurance Affordability Exchange Program, or FHIX, would assist Floridians not eligible for Medicaid in purchasing health benefits coverage and gaining access to health services.
What Palm Coast Won’t Do, What Other Cities Are Doing: Synchronizing Traffic Lights
Transportation experts say that revamping the way signals work will reduce congestion, save fuel costs, cut down on air pollution and make the roads safer.
Sea Ray’s View: We Are Building a Safer Parking Lot, Not Expanding Production
Craig Wall, operations manager at Sea Ray’s Palm Coast plant, counters concerns about the company’s intentions by laying out precisely what the manufacturer intends to do–and not do.
We Don’t Oppose Sea Ray. We Oppose Pollutants and Debasing Flagler Beach’s Quality of Life.
Two Flagler Beach residents lay out the case against Sea Ray’s proposed land use change to accommodate a parking lot, a change opponents say paves the way for more pollution without compelling the company to take stronger toxic-emission control measures.
Before Going Golden, Girls Have Their Middle Age at Flagler Playhouse’s “Dixie Swim Club”
“The Dixie Swim Club,” now playing at the Flagler Playhouse, makes more demands on funny bones than cerebral cortexes as it explores what makes women tick and men wonder about women.
Palm Coasters Rate Their Town: Great Bedroom, Terrible Workplace, Measly Shopping
Palm Coast residents love their government services even as they attack them in a broad survey, but they also find work opportunities dismal and shopping and cultural opportunities not much better.
Don’t Privatize The Postal Service.
Build On It.
Blaming deficits created by a bogus retirement-fund requirement, the USPS is closing distribution centers, cutting worker hours, eliminating delivery routes, and slashing jobs. It needn’t be that way, argues Katherine McFate.
FPL Volunteers Power Vast Make-Over at Juvenile Justice Council’s Community Garden in Bunnell
Florida Power and Light’s “Power to Care Group” on Thursday helped rebuild the community garden in four hours–a project garden overseeers had expected would take a year.
Another Strong Month Adds 295,000 Jobs to Economy, Lowering Unemployment to 5.5%
Wages continue to sag, growing by just 3 cents over the month, and just 2 percent over the past year, not enough to overcome inflation, let alone give workers a sense that they’re getting ahead.
Buoyed by Turn-Around, County Approves $2.75 Million Loan To Buy 3 Buildings at Airport
Flagler County government is vastly expanding its role as a landlord as it approves buying three buildings totaling 58,000 square feet at the county airport in hopes of generating more cash for the airport operation.
Major Layoffs Hit News-Journal and Ex-Halifax Chain 3 Months After GateHouse Takes Over
Four newsroom employees lost their job and seven employees lost theirs in advertising. The Flagler Bureau, down to three reporters, is about to lose another as Natalie Kronicks leaves to join the Flagler County government’s communications office, coordinating marketing efforts.
Subsidies For 1.4 Million Floridians In the Balance: What You need To Know as ACA Heads Back to Court
Florida has the largest number of people enrolled in Obamacare, more than 1.4 million of whom will lose their subsidies should the court rule the provision illegal. The case is argued Wednesday.
YMCA May Return to Flagler As School District Considers Leasing Belle Terre Swim and Racquet Club
Facing a deficit that will exceed $200,000, the school district’s Belle Terre Swim and Racquet Club may find its savior in the Volusia Flagler YMCA, which has been in discussions with the school administration over a potential lease arrangement of the health facility.
Flagler Commission Signals More Culture Support Ahead as It Approves FBI Art Cop Grant For League
Flagler County government has never had a grants program for the arts, aside from its Tourist Development Council grants. Now, Administrator Craig Coffey is suggesting the county begin such a program.
Attention Homeowners: Now’s The Deadline For Homestead Exemption Applications
Today is the deadline to file for a Homestead Exemption in Flagler County. If you miss the deadline, the Flagler County Property Appraiser’s office may be able to work with you within a reasonable window of time.
Why Almost 1 in 4 Floridian Driver Has No Car Insurance: Poverty
Florida’s poverty rate is 17 percent and 23.8 of its motorists are uninsured. Uninsured drivers face stiff fines in many states, but some that have such penalties on the books often fail to enforce them.
Net Neutrality: If History Is Any Guide, The Battle Is Far From Over
The Federal Communications Commission voted 3-2 on Thursday to approve new rules that effectively barred Internet companies from prioritizing some Internet traffic over others.
From Harry Potter to Indian Trails Complex, Quidditch Tournament Snitches In on Brooms
Quidditch doesn’t exist. At least not officially. But for two days at Indian Trails, the United States Quidditch South Regional Tournament will feature 14 teams from four states competing in the game Harry Potter made famous, and that’s now played on thousands of college and university campuses.
Palm Coast Will Borrow $30 Million to Build New Sewer Plant, Pledging No Rate Increase For 5 Years
The new plant would be financed with a 20-year loan at less than 1 percent interest, and the city’s total debt load would rise to around $200 million. It also depends on steady growth in coming years.
1.6 Million Floridians, 6,000 in Flagler, May Lose Health Subsidies: Supreme Court Decides
Subsidies may be lost for 90 percent of ACA participants if the U.S. Supreme Court rules that residents of states like Florida, which have no health marketplace of their own, may not qualify for federal subsidies. The Supreme Court hears arguments in the case next week.
Gov. Rick Scott Heading Back to Paris Air Show in Hopes of Attracting Aerospace Jobs
In 2013, the every-other-year air show drew more than 315,000 visitors, 2,215 international exhibitors and delegations from 102 different countries. The effectiveness of Scott’s trips, however, remains suspect to some.
Palm Coast’s Public Access TV Changing Name and Bright House Channel, To 495
Palm Coast Municipal Access is moving from Channel 199 to Channel 495 for Bright House subscribers, and changing its name to Palm Coast Television.
City Hall Rising: Walls Go Up at Palm Coast’s Future Home
Walls built in place went up Tuesday morning on the site of the future Palm Coast City Hall in Town Center, marking a significant visual advance in the nearly $10 million project as it moves toward completion by fall.
As FAA Issues Rules, New Palm Coast Drone Company Beguiles Realtors and Others
CAVU Aerial Photography, a drone company in Palm Coast since August, has been showing Realtors, communications companies and others the many uses of drone technology, which is expected to boom with the FAA’s new, more permissive rules.
Obamacare Enrollment Will Re-Open From March 15 to April 30 For Penalized Tax Filers
The Obama administration will allow a special health law enrollment period from March 15 to April 30 for consumers who realize while filling out their taxes that they owe a fee for not signing up for coverage last year.
Florida Ports Want Government Help Luring Shipping From New York, Georgia and Texas
The Florida Ports Council calls for lawmakers to create an advertising effort to attract shipping, import-distribution centers as well as export-oriented manufacturing companies to Florida.
Lawmakers Punt to Full Legislature on Millions in Tax Subsidies for Speedway and Jaguars
A process intended to reducing lobbying may do the opposite now that the Joint Legislative Budget Commission moved any funding decisions regarding the stadiums to the full Legislature.
Ending Long Fight, County Approves Short-Term Rental Regulations–With Grandfather Clause
New rules limit short-term rental homes to 10 overnight occupants, and require inspections and a certification process, ending a three-year effort by the county to change state law and enable the commission to regulate the industry.
Fearful of Scaring Buyers or Undervaluing Property, School Board Haggles to $2.3 Million Price for Corporate Building
The Flagler school board now finds itself in the paradoxical position of attractively advertising the ex-ITT property for sale after it was essentially condemned as a school facility.
“Halleluiah Jesus”: From “Project Hot Dog” to Foreign Investors, Flagler Sees Commercial Real Estate Turn-Around
Ukrainian entrepreneurs, Chinese investors and local businesses looking to expand are resulting in robust new activity on Flagler’s long-dormant commercial real estate sector, the county’s economic development council learned this morning.
Publix Doesn’t Want You To Buy Liquor In Grocery Stores. Wal-Mart and Target Do.
A proposed law to end Florida’s 80-year-old prohibition on liquor in any but stand-alone stores cleared a House committee over the objections of Publix, some sheriffs and liquor store owners.
Flagler Does Its Growing Part as Florida Attracts Record 97 Million Visitors in 2014
Monthly tax collections from Flagler’s 4 percent surtax (or bed tax) on fees at hotels, motels and other short-term rentals were up 13 percent by the end of the 2014 fiscal year (it ended in September), after increasing 5 percent the previous year.
Radiology Associates Imaging
Palm Coast Imaging & Town Center Imaging
(386)446-5200
Radiology Associates Imaging’s two fully accredited centers in Flagler County (Palm Coast Imaging and Town Center Imaging) offer board-certified radiologists, the latest in state-of-the-art equipment, and skilled, caring staff to provide patients with the absolute best care in a relaxing, worry-free environment.
With “Venus in Fur,” Palm Coast’s City Rep Theatre Goes Fifty Shades of Dare
John Sbordone’s latest envelope-pushing offering at City Rep Theatre is a play within a play that mixes kinkiness, subtlety, and–as the lead character puts it–a little S&M porn.
Buddy Holly Story at the Flagler Auditorium: The Boundless Influence Of a Rock Legend
“The Buddy Holly Story,” at the Flagler Auditorium Friday, reflects the enduring influence and popularity of a rock-and-roller whose career spanned just 18 months before he died in a plane crash.
Third General Manager in 5 Years Takes Over Palm Coast’s Troubled Golf and Tennis Clubs
Six-figure deficits that taxpayers have subsidized year after year have riddled the budgets of Palm Coast’s Palm Harbor Golf Club and its tennis center since they opened.
Despite Obamacare Rules, Some Contraceptives May Still Require Co-Pay
Even though an unplanned pregnancy would cost an insurer a lot more than the contraceptives to prevent it, some insurers still try to limit what they cover.
Palm Coast Begins Conversion to LED Street Lights In Latest Push For Conservation
Palm Coast won’t retrofit its 3,000 street lights to LED just yet, but all new installations will be LED, and in a year or 18 months may consider a broader retrofit program if the investment shows solid savings over time.
Palm Coast Close To Suspending Red-Light Camera Program as Legal Challenges Mount
By all appearances from the council’s discussion this morning, the council is ready to end its program as it is now configured, with a final decision to be taken on March 3.
Ending Political Endorsements, Tallahassee Democrat Surrenders to Focus Groups
Jac Wilder VerSteeg says he mourns the end of an era in which editors and publishers instinctively understood what readers wanted to read and ought to read, as opposed to what focus groups told them they should print.
