Charter schools that fail two years in a row should close by law. Instead, they reopen as private schools and use publicly funded vouchers to keep operating, with the state’s blessing.
Featured
The Bombing Begins Friday: 2 Planes Will Spray Entirety of Flagler To Kill Billions Of Post-Irma Mosquitoes
A pair of King Air planes will be sweeping and spraying over the entire county over the next two nights to kill an already rising swarm of mosquitoes bred from standing water left by Hurricane Irma.
Students Can Rejoice: Only 1 Hurricane Make-Up Day, No Disruption of Thanksgiving Week Off
The district will make up one day on Oct. 16, with three days already accounted for in the existing schedule and two days waived by the state.
Trying To Make Up For Mistakes, Florida Health Officials Seek To Speed Up Medical Pot Licensing
The Florida Health Department had until Oct. 3 to issue 10 medical pot licenses to producers, a deadline it will almost certainly miss even as it scrambles to ease the application process.
Duel Over Sklar’s Marina Continues Even as Divided Flagler Beach Commission Approves Latest Agreement
The Flagler Beach City Commission voted 3-2 to approve a settlement in the nearly 8-year-old dispute, but not before making still more changes to an agreement that now Howard Sklar may either approve or reject.
From “I Am A Camera” To Macbeth, City Repertory Launches Seventh Season Of Razor-Edged Theater
City Repertory Theatre continues to go where no other Palm Coast or Flagler theater dares to go, opening tonight its seventh season with “I Am Camera,” a work set in Weimar Berlin, and at the origin of “Cabaret.”
That Last-Ditch Effort By Republicans To Replace ACA: What You Need To Know
While the chances for this last-ditch measure appear iffy, many GOP senators are rallying around a proposal that would repeal most of the ACA.
Erin Vickers, 23, Found Guilty of Raping Her 1-Year-Old Daughter; She Faces Life In Prison
Erin Vickers was found guilty on two of 49 charges she faces in connection with rapes and the production of movies and pictures involving her daughter in sexual acts perpetrated by her mother. The case is not over.
2nd Attempt To Fire Landon Fails as Palm Coast Council Submits to Manager’s Retirement Timeline
The second attempt in two weeks to fire Palm Coast Manager Jim Landon in 60 days failed today, with the council rebuffing Steven Nobile’s push to replace the manager in six months rather than two years.
Irma’s Death Toll in Florida at 34 and Rising
Irma is credited with five deaths by drowning and four deaths involving carbon monoxide, including the carbon-monoxide deaths of a mother and two teenage children in Orange County.
Jury Selected With Unusual Swiftness In Trial of Erin Vickers on Charge of Raping Her Own Child
Erin Vickers, 23, of Palm Coast, is on trial on the first of 49 counts involving accusations of rape, videotaping and transmitting sexual acts involving children.
How Health Insurers Fuel Opioid Crisis By Denying Claims For Less Addictive But More Expensive Drugs
Insurers limiting access to drugs with a lower risk of addiction or dependence. Why? Opioid drugs are generally cheap while safer alternatives are often more expensive.
You Cannot Be Serious: Hurricane Maria Sniffs Around Irma’s Wake
Hurricane Maria is expected to become a major hurricane, with a global forecast seeing it veer away from Florida, but the more accurate European forecast seeing it come closer to the coast.
Uninsured Rate Falls To Record Low Of 8.8%, But Florida’s Rate Still 5th Highest in U.S.
Florida’s rate of uninsured would have been lower had Gov. Rick Scott and the Florida Legislature not prevented the federally-funded expansion of Medicaid.
FPL Lies
FPL’s response to Hurricane Irma in Flagler has been disgraceful and secretive, both at the expense of local emergency responses and at the expense of residents.
Humanitarian Needs Overtake Emergency Response in Flagler as Power Issues Compound Pain
Continued power outages affecting a quarter of Flagler County’s population are shifting needs to food and other basic necessities as county and other governments assess damages.
At Surfside Estates and Marineland Acres, Two Flagler Communities Feel Singled Out For Storms’ Wrath
Surfside Estates, the mobile home community in beverly Beach, and Marineland Acres north of the Hammock were both whacked by Hurricane Matthew and again by Hurricane Irma.
With a Third of Flagler Still Without Power, FPL Offers Little More Than Scripted Answers
Florida Power and Light is not telling customers when their power will be reconnected nor giving an idea of where the work is taking place next.
In Flood-Pummeled Flagler Beach, Mountains of Heartbreak, But Surges of Grit And Samaritans
No place was hardest-hit by floods than Flagler Beach, yet no place seems as vibrant with community support as neighbors have mobilized to help neighbors cope.
Flagler Schools Closed Through Monday; Flooding Complicating Homecoming Across Florida
As evacuees continued to struggle either to make it home or to contend with power cuts, Flagler Schools decided to remain closed until Monday for more clean-up.
As Emergency Yields to Recovery in Flagler, More Inconveniences Than Damages Or Troubles
More than 60 percent of Flagler residents were still without power Tuesday evening but recovery efforts were powering up and destruction from the storm was limited.
Spotty Cell and Internet Service in Flagler: “How Many Bars Do You Have?” Is A Post-Irma Refrain
The infuriating cell and internet signal failures residents in the Flagler-Palm Coast region are experiencing will parallel power failures and restoration.
Florida Shellshock: Blanket Outages, Floodwaters, and This: Irma Could Cost “Billions Upon Billions”
Millions of people continued to lack electricity as cleanup work expected to reach into the billions of dollars began in the wake of deadly Hurricane Irma.
Damages: 50,250 Lose Power, Flagler Beach, Beverly Beach Heavily Flooded, Less So in Palm Coast, No Systematic Devastation; Curfew Extended On Island, Schools Closed Wednesday
While Flagler and Palm Coast made it through Hurricane Irma without devastation, there was heavy flooding in homes in South Flagler Beach and the west end of the county.
Conditions Deteriorating Across Flagler: Waters Rise, 22,400 Out of Power, Irma Spins Further East
Hurricane Irma’s tropical-storm forces have already drenched Flagler well ahead of peak activity and now are slowing enough to cause worries that the damage will be more severe than anticipated.
FPL Says 10 Percent of Flagler Residents Expected to Lose Power, Millions More Across Florida
FPL is deploying nearly 17,000 line workers across the state and conducting repairs between Hurricane Irma feeder bands to minimize outages.
Three Charged With Curfew Violation and Fraud After Scoping Out Flagler Beach Properties
Two men and a woman had allegedly spent Saturday scoping out Flagler Beach properties to figure out which had been left vacant by evacuees.
Sheltering From Irma in Flagler: 4 Shelters, 3,000 Spots, Food, WiFi, Power And ♥ Left Behind From Students
Here’s what to expect at Flagler County’s four emergency shelters opening at 7 a.m. Saturday, who’s paying for all that food, and what you can stream on WiFi.
What To Expect in Flagler In Next 48 Hours on Shelters, Evacuations, Storm Effects and Hunkering Down
As Hurricane Irma approaches, a complete run-down of what you should expect from emergency responders and what you should do in the next 48 hours.
As Flagler Prepares For Irma: “We’re Anticipating A1A To Be Severed In Multiple Locations”
Law enforcement, first responders and local governments were in full preparation mode with evacuation orders policing planning going into gear. The details.
Palm Coast’s Big-Box Stores All Out of Water, Shipments Expected But No Promises
Aldi, Publix, Target and Winn-Dixie all show bare water shelves and few promises about when the next shipments are due, as supply lines are dependent on state conditions.
After Resisting Most of the Day, Flagler District Agrees to Close Schools Friday and Monday
The school district had wanted to keep schools open Friday, but by 4:45 p.m. today caved to health and county emergency officials’ pressure, who wanted to get a special needs shelter ready at Rymfire Elementary.
A Little Hurricane Greediness: Hammock Dunes Bridge Still Charging Tolls Until Tonight
Gov. Scott suspended tolls on all state bridges and roads Tuesday, but the privately-run and very profitable Hammock Dunes Bridge is still charging motorists $2 until Wednesday evening.
Armed Burglary at B-Section Home Forces Indian Trails and Belle Terre Schools on Lockdown
The attempted armed robbery at 15-B Bunker Knolls Lane, a duplex, forced Belle Terre Elementary and Indian Trails Middle School on lockdown.
Franklin D. Roosevelt’s Second Bill of Rights: For Workers
At the end of his last State of the Union message to Congress in 1944, Franklin Delano Roosevelt outlined an ambition plan for a “Second Bill of Rights” to ensure “”economic security and independence.”
Walgreens Employees Tied Up During Armed Robbery; Incident Connected to Car Arson in Woodlands
The Walgreens pharmacy at 1109 Palm Coast Parkway was the target of an armed robbery early Sunday morning. Hours later an intentional car fire in the Woodlands was connected to the robbery.
Behind Solar Shades Soon in Palm Coast, A “Voluntary” FPL Program of Limited Benefit But Ample Marketing
FPL’s SolarNow program bills willing customers $9 a month then uses the money to build solar-power installations like those coming to Holland Park, City Hall and the Community Center.
Unemployment Ticks Up to 4.4% as Job Creation Slows to 156,000 and Wages Lag
Where it matters most, in wages, workers are not seeing improvements even as the economy recorded its 83rd straight month of job growth. Corporate profits remain healthy.
In Flagler Beach, Palm Coast and County, More Contempt For Medical Pot
Elected officials in Palm Coast, Flagler County and Flagler Beach are still peddling false or misleading assumptions as they draw up more restrictive medical pot dispensary zoning.
Sheriff’s Deputies Going Under Cover This Weekend, as Laborers, To Catch Drunk Drivers
The National Safety Council estimates between 376 and 471 killed on American roads over Labor Day weekend, and between 43,200 and 54,200 injuries in traffic-related crashes.
Development and Disasters: A Deadly Combination Well Beyond Houston
Scientists warn of more and expanding “bull’s-eyes” as Americans build in parts of the country at ever greater risk because of climate change and severe weather.
Sheriff Seeks Public Help In Catching “Paint Bandits,” But Discounts Race or Gang Motive
For the third time this month the same seemingly random acts of vandalism by spray paint, using vague symbolism and vaguer racial undertones, have targeted homes, this time in Palm Coast’s E Section.
Two Palm Coast Firefighters Responding to Attempted “Chemical Suicide” Sent to Hospital
A man believed to have attempted “chemical suicide” or “detergent suicide” at a house on Black Bear Lane in the Woodlands was hospitalized as were two firefighters exposed to the fumes.
At Palm Coast Meeting On Elder Needs, Pleas For Senior Center, Better Information and Respect
Some 90 people turned out to speak their mind on what’s needed in Palm Coast for seniors, revealing long lists of needs but also gaps of awareness of what’s already here.
For David Snelgrove, Sentenced in Palm Coast Double-Murder in 2000, Execution Again In Question
The Supreme Court threw out David Snelgrove’s death sentence as unconstitutional because twice juries were not unanimous. A re-sentencing’s complicated road began today before Judge Dennis Craig.
Bunnell, Citing Iffy Crime Figures, Will Be Holdout Against Medical Pot Dispensaries
Bunnell will be the only local government that will ban medical pot dispensaries. Officials there, on little or flimsy evidence, claim dispensaries would attract crime.
White Supremacists Joked About Using Cars To Run Over Opponents Before Charlottesville
Leaked chat room conversations by white supremacists reveal expectations of violence — along with detailed planning and intelligence gathering on left-wing adversaries.
After Years of Resistance, County May Finally Absorb Bunnell Fire Department In Expansion
Bunnell government appears ready to cede its fire department’s property to the county, which is expanding its ambulance service from seven to eight 24-hour rigs, and would so so in Bunnell.
Graham Swamp, Magnet For Self-Abuse, Nets Two Arrests In Sting For Onanists
A Palm Coast man and a Tennessee man were the latest arrested for allegedly masturbating at Graham Swamp, in front of an undercover cop, the first such arrests there since 2013.
28-Year-Old Man Critical As Car Flips Into Pond at I-95 Palm Coast Parkway Exit
William Birch Jr., 28, was pulled out of his car with fluid in his lungs and in critical condition. His brother Aaron Gordon, 25, was not injured. The two had been arguing just before the wreck.