Three take-aways largely explain how the state is gradually emaciating traditional public education’s budget by lowering the tax rate, as it has almost every year since 1995, by diverting millions of dollars to subsidize families’ private, religious and homeschool education bills, and by causing an inevitable exodus of students from public school to privately subsidized education, but at public expense.
Economy
Flagler County Escalates Disclosure Pressure as Old Dixie Motel Owners Brazenly Defy Court Order to Pay Bond
As the old Country Hearth Inn on Old Dixie Highway continues to rot amid neighbors’ ire, the owners of the property are now in brazen defiance of a court order to put up a $250,000 bond in compliance with their contract with the county. County government has filed two motions that turn up the pressure for financial disclosures and accountability on the owners, even though it does not expect them to comply anymore than they have complied with all other contractual or court-ordered obligations so far.
Florida Schools May Not Return to Pre-Pandemic Enrollment for 10 Years, Economists Forecast
A state forecast indicates Florida schools will experience declining enrollment in five of the next six years, with the one positive year representing less than a 0.1% increase. The student enrollment forecast from the state Office of Economic and Demographic Research predicts that 12,379 fewer students will attend traditional public schools during the 2024-2025 school year, a 0.5% drop from 2.366 million to 2.354 million.
Florida Among 25 States Seeking Halt to Biden Rule Restricting Coal-Fired Power Plants
In Florida, coal is no longer a major factor in electricity generation. As 0f 2022, and coal-fired power plants supplied about 6% of the energy supply, down from 36% in 2001, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration. Attorneys argue that if the Biden administration’s rule is allowed to continue, it will mean that hundreds of megawatts will be forced offline, leading to power shortages during critical weather during the summer and winter.
Alarms Raised Over Beach Dredging Feared Close to Live Fishery Grounds, Endangering Soft Corals and Sea Life
Backed by GPS data, photographs, and eyewitness accounts from the ground and from a fishing vessel, four people–two of them key advocates of the beach renourishment project ongoing in Flagler Beach, two of them fishing-vessel owners–are warning in dire terms that the dredging of over 1 million cubic yards of sand from the sea bottom several miles offshore is raking up live sea life and getting dangerously close to damaging or destroying a unique fishing ground.
Flagler Beach Gets $745,000 TDC Grant for Boardwalk Rebuild That May Never Happen, Besting County and Palm Coast
After three bracing presentations by three local governments but tortuous debate by Flagler County’s Tourist Development Council members, the council on Wednesday approved a $745,000 grant for Flagler Beach to rebuild its boardwalk near the pier even though the city has none of the remaining $3 million to build it. Palm Coast and Flagler County were at the losing end of the three-way pitch for the sizeable grant, which the tourism board offers only every two years.
Florida High School Athletes May Now Cash In With Sponsors as State Board Approves ‘NIL’ Plan
While saying additional protections are needed, the State Board of Education on Wednesday ratified a plan approved last month by the Florida High School Athletic Association that will allow high school athletes to get paid through name, image and likeness, or “NIL,” deals.
Council Votes 7-2 to Deplete Tourism Fund’s $11 Million Reserves and Build Flagler Visitor Center on SR 100
It was as audacious a plan as any that Flagler County Tourism Director Amy Lukasik presented to the Tourist Development Council this morning: take out $10.3 million out of two tourism funds’ reserves, reducing those reserves to $1.2 million, and appropriate the money for construction of the Flagler County Visitor and Eco Discovery Center on State Road 100, near the metallurgic foot bridge. The council went for it, voting 7-2 to recommend moving forward with Lukasik’s plan.
Palm Coast Residents Will Pay 3.75% More in Garbage Fees as Hauler Adjusts for Inflation
Palm Coast residents’ monthly garbage cost will go from $32.32 to $33.53, a monthly increase of $1.21, an annual increase of $14.52. Palm Coast Mayor David Alfin said he was “troubled” by the increase but acknowledged there was nothing the city could do about it, since it is contractual.
Sawmill Branch Will Add 425 Single Family Homes in West Palm Coast as Planning Board Approves Latest Phase
The Palm Coast Planning Board cleared the way for 425 single family homes in the Sawmill Branch development’s latest phase on U.S. 1, a month after approving 320 town houses for a separate phase. The single-family home phase is on 213 acres west of U.S. 1, about half a mile south of Old Kings Road North. The town houses are on 65 acres, with lot size of 2,000 square feet.
Miller’s Ale House Preps Opening Aug. 5 Ahead of BJ’s Warehouse, With Luring Appetizer for First Guests
Miller’s Ale House is opening its 113th restaurant in Palm Coast on Aug. 5, in one of the five satellite businesses in front of BJ’s Wholesale Club, which opens a few weeks later. Miller’s Ale will host a ceremonial ribbon-cutting and offer recurring goodies to the first 100 guests that day.
The Solution to Homelessness Is Not Criminalization. It’s Housing.
With half of all renter households now spending more than 30 percent of their income on housing, millions are one emergency away from homelessness. Punishing people for our country’s failure to ensure adequate housing for all is inherently “cruel and unusual.” Widespread homelessness directly violates the human right to housing under international law, which must be recognized in the United States.
Florida Is Sitting on $198 Million in Federal EV Money That Could Provide More Chargers
Florida is one of 15 states that won’t allow any companies to apply for $198 million in federal money the state is receiving over the next five years the Biden Administration’s National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Formula Program. The state is doing so on purpose, citing a laundry list of culture-war complaints, such as “Covid tyranny,” as well as criticism of electric vehicles.
Alien Menace and Combustible Dancing Shake Up City Repertory Theatre with “The Guy Who Didn’t Like Musicals”
“The Guy Who Didn’t Like Musicals,” which opens tonight at City Repertory Theatre in Palm Coast, takes its cue from the body snatching school: After an extraterrestrial presence stealthily arrives via a meteor that crashes into a small-town theater and proceeds to uncork “some kind of blue” something, the townsfolk are suddenly and inexplicably breaking into song and dance routines in everyday life situations. Soon the infected townsfolk begin acting more and more like zombies.
Flagler County Library’s $14 Million South Branch ‘Nexus Center’ Breaks Ground in August, Ending 10-Year Wait
Almost a decade after Holly Albanese and the Library Board of Trustees first conceived it, the south branch of the Flagler County Library–to be called the Nexus Center–will break ground on Aug. 5 on the 7-acre parcel opposite the Flagler County Sheriff’s Operations Center, a short walk down from the future Bunnell City Hall now under construction. The 23,000-square-foot, one-floor library, combined with the county’s social services offices, will open at the end of October 2025.
‘I Don’t Want to Wrestle With Pigs’: Palm Coast Rejects Danko Push to Lock City Into $2.3 Million Budget Cut
Overcoming what Council member Nick Klufas called fellow Councilman Ed Danko’s “pontification,” the Palm Coast City Council today rebuffed an attempt by Danko to remove $2.3 million from the city’s proposed budget and adopted instead a slightly reduced tax rate for next year while preserving funding for the addition of nine new sheriff’s deputies and three new firefighter-paramedics.
BJ’s Wholesale Club Readies to Open as County Raises Traffic Concerns and Palm Coast Annexes
BJ’s Wholesale Club on State Road 1100 will open in a matter of weeks, its parking lot paved on Monday and its certificate of occupancy soon to be issued, Flagler County’s planning director said, while Palm Coast government today took the first step toward annexing the property. But county officials raised concerns about traffic lights and traffic patterns ahead. The 32-acre property will consist of BJ’s and its gas station, Miller’s Ale House, opening around Aug. 1, Longhorn Steakhouse and Chase Bank.
Tendentious ‘Statement’ on Florida Abortion Ballot Measure Sparks Controversy
A state panel late Monday finished revising a “financial impact statement” that will appear on the November ballot with a proposed constitutional amendment on abortion rights — with amendment supporters accusing the panel of a “dirty trick to mislead voters.” The statement makes several unsubstantiated claims about costs the abortion measures could impose on the state budget.
Reviled Daytona North Special Tax Will End as County Adopts Proposed 2025 Budget with Modest Tax Increase
The Flagler County Commission this afternoon adopted a proposed tax rate for next year that, absent further decreases before two September hearings, will be a hair lower than the existing rate. County Administrator Heidi Petito, in a shift from last year, is proposing suspending the increasingly reviled special tax in Daytona North (or the Mondex), eliminating $260,000 in revenue to the general fund that will be more than made up by tax collections.
Flagler Cares Partners With Re-Nu Mental Wellness Center, Formerly Known as Palm Coast Counseling
Flagler Cares, a one-stop health and social care organization, welcomed Re-Nu Mental Wellness Center to the Flagler County Village in Palm Coast, on July 1 as a community partner. Re-Nu Mental Wellness Center, formerly known as Palm Coast Counseling, was recently sold to Dr. De-Shaunah Dixon, who also owns Wellness Centers in Pompano Beach, Fla. and Myrtle Beach, S.C.
Promenade Breaks Ground at Town Center’s 1st Mix of 200 Apartments and Array of Shops After 20-Year Wait
When it opens in 22 months, Promenade will be Town Center’s largest–well, its only–mixed use development to date, and what so much of Town Center was imagined to be when it was conceived out of 2,000 acres of scrub 22 years ago. The developer, the architect, city and county officials gathered on the project’s 17 acres this morning for a groundbreaking and a few insights into what’s coming.
Flagler Beach Gush of Drainage Complaints Mirror Palm Coast’s as Commission Rebuffs Moratorium
The Flagler Beach City Commission tabled a proposal to stop construction in flood zones for six months. The administration was proposing the moratorium on using fill at work sites to give it time to rewrite the city’s building regulations, which the city engineer blamed for drainage issues on residential lot. Commissioners disagree, saying the problem is the city’s own non-enforcement of its existing regulations.
Judge France Rejects Latest Attempt by Old Dixie Motel Owners to Renege on $250,000 They Owe, Now Past Due
Circuit Judge Chris France this morning denied the latest attempt by the owners of the derelict Old Dixie Motel not to post a $250,000 bond with the county, as they have been contractually obliged to do for three years. They may face contempt proceedings next. The judge reminded the owners’ attorney that the money owed is past due, and the clock continues to tick.
Friday Food-A-Thon Aims for $200,000 for Flagler Food Bank, Underscoring Need Approaching 6,000 Families
Close to 6,000 families have registered with Flagler County’s Grace Community Food Pantry, 2,000 more than last year, as WNZF and Flagler Broadcasting launch the third annual Food-a-Thon in hopes of raising $200,000, money that can be leveraged into $1 million worth of food. The drive is aiming for a bounty of small donations this year.
4 Palm Coast Council Members Uninterested in Rolling Back Taxes Yet Still Inexplicably Defer to Danko’s ‘Starting Point’
Four of the five Palm Coast City Council members voiced opposition today to adopting the rolled-back property tax rate as they did last year, with one week to go before they have to vote on a tentative rate. Nevertheless, the fifth and lone dissenter, Ed Danko, inexplicably carried the day staving off a decision and keeping the rollback proposal alive.
Hurricane Forecast Ramps Up, Adding 2 Named Storms for Total of 25 as Beryl Is Termed ‘Harbinger’
A day after deadly Hurricane Beryl pounded Texas, experts at Colorado State University on Tuesday increased their storm forecast for what was already expected to be an above-average hurricane season. Including Beryl and short-lived tropical storms Alberto and Chris, the department’s forecast now calls for 25 named storms this season, up from 23 when the first forecast was released in April.
Florida Renewing Push for Nuclear Power, Starting with Military Installations
The Florida Public Service Commission has scheduled a Sept. 5 workshop as it begins carrying out a legislative directive to submit a report by April 2025 about the possibility of using “advanced” nuclear technologies. That includes the possibility of adding nuclear power at military bases.
Palm Coast Administration Proposing Flat Tax Rate to Pay for Increases in Sheriff and Fire Services
The $61 million general fund budget would include an increase of $5.6 million over the current budget but no increases in city staffing paid through the general fund. That staffing stands at 271. By far the single-largest line item increase in the budget would be for public safety, starting with policing through the city’s contract with the Flagler County Sheriff’s Office, and the addition of nine deputies to the city’s contract, for a total of 57.
July 4 Celebration from Flagler Beach Parade to Palm Coast Fireworks at County Airport
Flagler County Government and the Cities of Palm Coast, Flagler Beach, and Bunnell invite all Flagler County residents and visitors to the United Flagler 4th Community Celebration on Thursday, July 4, starting with the Independence Day Parade in Flagler Beah and culminating with a 15-16 minute firework show featuring 3,300 shells at the county airport. All events are free.
With Nod to ‘Slippery Slope,’ Palm Coast Will Ask Voters for More Borrowing Power Through Vague Ballot Measure
In an understated way that has so far drawn little public attention or interest, the Palm Coast City Council is hoping to convince voters to approve a momentous change in the way the city does business, clearing the way for more borrowing ahead. The council approved a proposed referendum that would go before city voters in November, asking them whether they’d be in favor of eliminating borrowing limits in place since 1999.
Palm Coast Will Draft a Vacation-Rental Ordinance as Din of Complaints Continue and Coalition Forms
The Palm Coast City Council on Tuesday directed its administration to draft an ordinance regulating short-term or vacation rentals in the city to address mounting complaints from permanent residents who say the fabric of their neighborhoods is fraying from the disruptions of such rentals turning single-family homes into party houses. Some 60 households, mostly in the C-Section, have formed the Canal Community Coalition to press the effort.
Drive Begins to Get Medicaid Expansion on Ballot as 653,000 Floridians Lost Coverage in Past Year
More than 653,000 Floridians who lost their Medicaid coverage over the past year because the state determined they were ineligible. Nearly 315,000 Floridians in the so-called coverage gap, ineligible for Medicaid or insurance through the Affordable Care Act. Florida Voices for Health, a nonprofit advocacy group that works on multiple health issues including expanding Medicaid, is pushing to get Florida to join the majority of states that have expanded Medicaid.
10 Years and 520 Shows Later, Toby Tobin and WNZF Cross a Milestone of Real Estate Matters in Flagler
WNZF and Don Tobin, better known to Flagler County and the world as Toby Tobin, today marked the 10th anniversary and the 520th show of Tobin’s Real Estate Matters, on the air weekly since 2014. The occasion was marked with a cake, vodka, a mini-reunion of past co-hosts and the introduction of Tobin’s latest co-host, Annamaria Long, executive officer of the Flagler Home Builders Association.
Law Still Blurry as Supreme Court Punts on Florida’s Social Media Law
The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday vacated appeals court decisions involving Florida and Texas laws designed to restrict the power of social media companies to curb content that those platforms consider objectionable, sending Florida’s case back to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit and the Texas case to the Fifth Circuit.
DeSantis to Farmworkers’ Need for Housing: Drop Dead
Pointing to concerns that it could provide housing for illegal foreign workers, Gov. Ron DeSantis on Friday vetoed an agriculture industry-backed bill that would have made it easier to build housing for farmworkers.
Data Company Seeking Easements Discovers Flagler Beach Commissioners Won’t Be Cowed Into Submission
The Flagler Beach City Commission will not grant a data-center company a perpetual easement over almost a third of Veterans Park in the heart of the city as a landing point for undersea internet cables. The company was attempting to save money at the city’s expense. City commissioners explicitly called out the scheme, tabling the proposal until DC Blox returns with a feasible proposal to use South 6th Street as a landing site, without disrupting the city-owned parking lot there or compromising its future value to the city.
DeSantis Veto of Vacation-Rental Bill Opens the Way for Palm Coast Regulations with Flagler’s as Model
Facing pressure, Gov. Ron DeSantis vetoed the measure a bill that deregulated local control of vacation rentals, saying the proposal would create “bureaucratic red tape” for local officials. Now, Palm Coast has another chance to write its own vacation-rental ordinance, or at least craft some city-specific regulations. City Council member Theresa Pontieri said this morning she intends to open the way for just such a proposal, with caution, as residents increasingly complain of rentals.
DeSantis Vetoes Occupational License Reform Bill Aimed at Broadening Opportunities and Reducing Recidivism
The bipartisan measure (HB 133) sponsored by Miami-Dade Democrat Kevin Chambliss and Seminole County Republican Rachel Plakon, would have reduced the time from five years to three years that the Barbers’ Board and Board of Cosmetology could use a criminal conviction as grounds to deny licenses.
In Latest Delay, Old Dixie Motel Owners Want a Stay on Judge’s Order to Pay $250,000 Security
The owners of the Old Dixe Motel appear still unwilling to pay a $250,000 deposit they’ve owed the county for three years and that Circuit Judge Chris France ordered them to pay last week. They have filed a motion through their attorney to stay the order, pending a July 11 hearing before France.
Secretive Data Company Getting Stiff Resistance from Flagler Beach Over Perpetual Easement at Veterans Park
DC Blox, the Atlanta-based data company working with Palm Coast to open a data center there, is about to face stiff resistance from some Flagler Beach City Commissioners as it seeks a permanent easement through Veterans Park, one of the city’s iconic treasures. Officials are not happy with the choice they’re being given at Veterans Park, the paltry, one-time compensation the city is being offered–$100,000 per cable landing–or the way DC Blox has attempted to keep negotiations out of the public eye, especially about money.
Sales Tax Is Lifted On Slew of Recreational Items For All of July
Sales taxes won’t be collected in July on many supplies for boating, fishing and camping and tickets purchased for live music events, sporting events, fairs, festivals, theater performances and movies. Last year, the state offered the tax holiday for three months, but it will be limited to July this year.
Some Hammock Residents Tell Flagler County: Tax Us for Beach Protection, and a Commissioner Sees Opportunity
Even as cities’ unhappy reactions have forced Flagler County quickly to retreat from a proposal to create a new tax for almost all residents and businesses in the county, Flagler County Commissioner Donald O’Brien is encouraging his colleagues on the commission to consider a special taxing district that would target just the northern 10 miles of the barrier island in the unincorporated part of the county.
Dr. Andrew Weinfeld Appointed Chief Clinical Officer for AdventHealth East Florida Division
The AdventHealth East Florida Division has selected Dr. Andrew Weinfeld to serve as Chief Clinical Officer (CCO), effective July 8. Comprising seven hospitals with a total of 1,397 beds in Daytona Beach, DeLand, Orange City, New Smyrna Beach, Palm Coast, and Tavares, the AdventHealth East Florida Division employs over 11,000 team members.
Palm Coast Council Approves Final Step for 51 Town Homes at The Hammock at Palm Harbor
The Palm Coast City Council last week approved the final plat for 51 town homes in The Hammock at Palm Harbor, a 15-acre subdivision on the south side of Clubhouse Drive, about 200 feet west of Palm Harbor Parkway. The new owners are marketing the town homes for $360,000 for a 1,181-square-foot three-bedroom and $427,000 for a 1,853 square-foot three or four-bedroom.
After 14 Years, Sam Perkovich Sells Parkside Realty to Lauren McPherson
After 14 years of serving homebuyers and sellers in Flagler County and beyond, Parkside Realty Group’s broker/owner, Sam Perkovich, has sold the company to Realtor Lauren McPherson as of June 1st. Sam will continue to contribute to the company as a broker/associate.
Flagler County’s Unemployment Rate Declines to 3.6%, But Growth in Working-Age Labor Force Stalls
Flagler County’s May unemployment rate was 3.6 percent, down from 3.9 percent in April, as the rate continues to oscillate within the same narrow band it has for a year and a half. Previously steady growth in the labor force, however, has stalled. After rising earlier this year, it declined for the second month in a row, to 51,383, almost exactly where it stood a year ago. The labor force reflects working-age adults with families as opposed to children or retirees, who account for 60 percent of the county’s population.
Court Rules Old Dixe Motel Owners Have 10 Days to Provide County $250,000 Deposit Owed Since 2021
The owners of the derelict Old Dixie motel have 10 days to provide the Flagler County Clerk of Court a $250,000 deposit they have owed county government for three years as part of an agreement on the rehabilitation of the motel, Circuit Judge Chris France ruled in an order issued today.
For 17th Straight Year, Flagler Schools’ Enrollment Fails To Grow Despite Continuing Population Surge
In spite of growth that added 16,000 new residents to the county in three years, in spite of Palm Coast, the county and Flagler Beach issuing certificates of occupancy for some 3,200 housing units in 2023 alone, and in spite of similar growth trends in 2024, Flagler County schools are simply not attracting enough students to reflect that growth.
Palm Coast Takes a Step Closer to Utility Tax, But Only If Voters Approve in a Binding Referendum
The Palm Coast City Council today took its closest step in 25 years toward a utility franchise fee, an additional levy that would raise your power bills by up to 10 percent. Public opposition has defeated such fee proposals four times since 2011. But the council is leaving it to the voting public to decide what the fee should be, or if there should be a fee at all. The fee must be contingent on a future referendum. And the referendum must be binding.
LongHorn Steakhouse Opening Later This Year Near Miller’s Ale House at BJ’s Warehouse Shopping Center
LongHorn Steakhouse is building a 5,780 square-foot restaurant in one of the three businesses opening along State Road 100 in Palm Coast, in the BJ’s Warehouse shopping center opening later this year. The other two are Miller’s Ale House and Chase Bank. Two remaining spots have not been filled. Miller’s Ale House may be the first to open as soon as next month.