The school board’s unanimous decision ends a remarkable turnaround for the club, which just last September faced permanent closure, though its deficits have still not been entirely erased.
Featured
Florida Supreme Court Halts Executions Indefinitely; 389 Death Row Inmates In Limbo
The U.S. Supreme Court invalidated Florida’s death-penalty sentencing scheme on Jan. 12, forcing the state to rewrite its law but also putting in question whether the new law must apply to all 489 death row inmates.
“We Live Without My Son”: A Mother’s Story of Her Teen’s Suicide Frames Town Hall Meeting
Barbara Coxwell, who lost her 15-year-old son to suicide in 2013, and School Board Chairman Colleen Conklin, led the virtual town hall as a first step in a countywide effort to broaden attention to suicide-prevention across all age groups.
Celebrated Emergency Services Chief Kevin Guthrie Resigns, Jolting Commissioners
Kevin Guthrie headed the county’s emergency services division since late 2013 to mostly rave reviews, but frustrations with the county administration may have led to his decision to leave.
Flagler Beach’s Lt. Cox, Among 10 Winners, Is Countywide Public Safety Person of the Year
Aside from Cox’s top award, winners included the Sheriff’s Senior Cmdr. Mark Carman, Flagler County Fire Rescue’s Jon Moscowitz and Bob Pickering of Emergency Management.
In “Fair Sentencing” Push, an Attempt to Reconsider Florida’s Get-Tough-On-Crime Laws
Fair Sentencing seeks to change laws of the 1990s, such as 10-20-Life, mandatory minimum sentences for drug offenses and habitual-offender laws, as other states have done.
Flagler’s Family Life Center Now a Certified Rape Crisis Center, Ensuring Critical Services
Until Family Life took over the service in an arrangement with the sheriff’s office in March 2014, Flagler County had been without a reliable crisis center because the Children’s Advocacy Center had quit providing that service.
Florida’s “Pastor Protection Act” Seen as Defense of Clergy or Latest Bias Against LGBT
The proposal, which was approved this week by a Senate committee, would prevent clergy members from being forced to perform marriage ceremonies contrary to their beliefs.
The Future Is Here: Florida Wants Welfare For the Rich While Punishing the Poor
Four years ago Chris Timmons, now a columnist and fellow at a Florida think tank, lost his job and needed food stamps. “It did not make me feel like a moocher,” he writes. Yet Florida makes welfare recipients feel just that.
Conklin Will Lead Suicide Awareness Town Hall Sunday: #FlaglersuicideASK4HELP
In the wake of two recent and related suicides in Palm Coast, the town hall will feature Barbara Coxwell, whose son took his life in 2013. The Legislature is considering bills related to increased suicide awareness.
Bob Abbott, Ex-Flagler County Commissioner Who Straddled Downturn Years, Is Dead at 70
Bob Abbott had defeated long-time commissioner Hershel King to serve one term on the Flagler County Commission, from 2006 to 2010. He’d made the Flagler Beach pier his second home before his illness set in.
Diplomatic Bores in the Age of Blowhards
Ted Cruz, Donald Trump and Marco Rubio have strange and dangerous plans to stand tall against enemies, especially when they reach for their Ronald Reagan. Their version of history is mostly fiction.
Controversy Long Over, Flagler Beach Finally Gets Its $568,000 “Quint” Fire Truck
The truck purchase inflamed many a confrontation among Flagler Beach city commissioners and embroiled the city’s fire department in a nearly year-long battle to secure it.
Florida Lawmakers Urged to Require Unanimous Verdicts in Death Penalty Cases
Florida is the only state in the nation where a simple jury majority is enough for a death penalty recommendation, one of several problems at odds with a new U.S. Supreme Court ruling on Florida’s capital punishment system.
FPL Reports Profits of $1.65 Billion for 2015 But Still Seeks 15% Rate Increase by 2019
Despite the good news to FPL shareholders, FPL has asked for an $8.50-a-month rate increase in 2017, rising to $14-a-month by 2019. The Florida Public Service Commission must approve the rate increases after public hearings.
Bomb Squad Detonates Suspicious Package in Mailbox on Prattwood Ln. in Palm Coast
St. Johns County’s bomb squad was called in by the Flagler County Sheriff’s Office this evening after a suspicious package was discovered in a mailbox on Pratwood Lane in Palm Coast.
Case Against Man Accused of Animal Cruelty and Battery Starts Anew as He Reverses Plea
Shawn Higgins previously had agreed to plead no contest to charges of animal cruelty and domestic violence after allegedly forcefully throwing a dog on the floor and strangling an ex-girlfriend. He now has withdrawn his plea even though he faces potentially stiffer punishment.
Senate Looks to Boost Education Funding Beyond Scott Request, But Tax Burden Looms
The Senate is proposing spending $7,249 a student, against Scott’s $7,220, but the increase relies on rising local property taxes, which are part of the state funding formula.
Luigi and Filomena Camporeale Killed in a Wreck With Truck on I-95 Just South of Palm Coast Parkway
Palm Coast’s Luigi Camporeale, 85, and his wife Filomena Camporeale, 76, were killed around 9:30 p.m. on I-95, immediately south of Palm Coast Parkway as Luigi attempted a hard left turn into the lanes of traffic, strucking a semi truck.
Radical Change Ahead for Palm Coast Council as McGuire Won’t Run, DeLorenzo Opts for County and Netts Is Term-Limited
The Palm Coast City Council will see the biggest turn-over in its history this November as Bill McGuire says he won’t run again, Jason DeLorenzo is running for the county commission and Mayor Jon Netts is term-limited. The council will see a complete turn-over in two years, possibly heralding a sea change in the city’s direction.
Palm Coast Council Members Favor Giving Themselves Automatic Raises Tied to Inflation
Palm Coast City Council members are favoring giving the next council what would equate to a 14 percent base-pay increase followed by annual raises indexed to inflation.
Unfounded Threat Briefly Lifts Flagler Schools’ Status to Yellow, Increasing Cop Presence
An unfounded threat reported third-hand to Flagler school officials this morning and mirroring a threat in Florida’s Panhandle prompted the district to raise its security status to yellow before reverting back to normal.
Herculean Effort More Than Doubles Memberships at Belle Terre Swim Club, Dimming Talk of Closure
The Belle Terre Swim and Racquet Club’s supporters have managed to increase memberships to more than 300 and close an $80,000 budget gap ahead of a Feb. 2 deadline when the school board will decide the club’s fate.
Failed Condo Project in Ft. Lauderdale Lands Donald Trump in Florida Appeals Court
Investors have battled in court for years to get back hundreds of thousands of dollars in deposits from Donald Trump and associates. The 4th District Court of Appeal will hear arguments Tuesday in two lawsuits related to what was pitched as a swanky, Trump-branded hotel/condominium.
Man Sentenced to 6 Years for Palm Coast Home Invasion, Accomplice Pleads for Mercy
Daniel Hall was sentenced today to six years in prison and 10 years’ probation for the August 2014 assault and burglary at an older woman’s home as his accomplice, Carisa Hall, has been pleading with the court to lessen her sentence.
Term Limits for Supreme Court and Appellate Judges? Measure Moving Closer to Ballot
Under the proposal, members of the Supreme Court and district courts of appeal would be limited to two full six-year terms. Judges currently have to retire in the election cycle after they turn 70 years old.
Sanders Revives Talk of Single-Payer System, Contrasting Differences With Clinton
Sanders’ main rival for the nomination, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, has criticized the plan for raising taxes on the middle class and said it is politically unattainable.
Sheriff Manfre Proposes De-Criminalizing Pot Possession; County Officials and State Attorney Open to Idea
Following in the steps of three Florida counties and some 20 states, Sheriff Jim Manfre wants to replace criminal penalties for small amounts of pot with civil fines. State Attorney R.J. Larizza and county officials are willing to explore the new approach.
Flagler’s Unemployment Rate Falls to New Post-Recession Low of 5.5%, Florida at 5%
Flagler County’s rate is vastly improved since even a year ago, when it stood at 6.9 percent. There were 487,000 jobless Floridians out of a labor force of 9.7 million.
For One Rookie Deputy, 2 Totaled Patrol Cars and 2 Internal Investigations in 13 Months
A just-completed internal investigation found Flagler County Sheriff’s deputy Jonathan Kuleski had been speeding and imprudent when he crashed and totaled his patrol car on White View Parkway in September. It was the latest in a series of issues for the rookie deputy.
Two Young Women’s Suicides, In Close Proximity, Stun and Mobilize Community
Lindsay Brockhaus, 20, killed herself on Tuesday, a month after her friend Cora Ann Engel, 18, committed suicide by the same method, two years almost to the day after Dalton Coxwell, also a Matanzas High student, had killed himself the same way.
Opposing Open Carry, Sheriffs Instead Propose Immunity for Accidental Display of Guns
The Florida Sheriffs Association, which has opposed the open-carry measure, outlined proposed steps that would provide immunity to people who inadvertently or accidentally display firearms.
Fire Demolishes Family Home in Western Flagler After French Fries Are Left Unattended
A house belonging to Caprice and Stephan Williams and their two teen-age sons at 5881 Logwood Lane in Bunnell was consumed by flames Saturday after Caprice briefly left the stove unattended to help a neighbor.
As County Has Yet to Pick a Site, Flagler Library Construction May Not Start Before 2018
The Flagler County Commission has been talking about a library expansion for going on three years, but it may be five years before a new branch is actually built as various factors have yet to fall in place.
Florida Lawmakers Drilling the Way for Fracking Even as Need Is Questioned
The assault on Florida’s environment continues as a Senate committee last week approved a bill that would make it easier for companies to use fracking technology to drill for oil and gas in the state.
Ex-Cop Larry Jones Will Challenge Sheriff Manfre for Democratic Nomination
Larry Jones, who retired from the sheriff’s office in 2014, is the nionth candidate for sheriff in this year’s election, but only the second on the Democratic side.
Two Pit Bulls Shot Dead After Attacking And Killing Pony; Duane Weeks Cited
Two pit bulls in the care of Duane Weeks savaged a neighbor’s pony and killed it before the neighbor shot the two dogs. Weeks agreed to $1,000 in restitution and was cited for letting his animals run loose.
High Schools May Get Greater Autonomy From Florida Athletic Association Requirements
The proposals would allow schools to join the FHSAA on a per-sport basis and limit how much can be charged for some association-sponsored competitions. Currently, a school that joins the FHSAA in any sport has to be a member in every sport.
Vandalism Blamed for Emptying Plantation Bay’s Water Supply, Leaving Customers Dry
The 1,600-odd customers of the Flagler County-owned Plantation Bay water utility woke up to dry faucets today as vandals were believed to have emptied the subdivision’s water tanks overnight.
Starting With $8.50 Increase Next Year, FPL Seeks Monthly Rate Increase of $14 By 2020
The proposal would help cover the nearly $16 billion that the power company has been investing since 2014 to improve its electricity service.
At Salvo Art Project:
Rachel Thompson, Artist of the Year
“I am just art, I am art, I was born that way,” Thompson says. An opening reception sponsored by the Gargiulo Art Foundation at Salvo Art Gallery marks Thompson’s Artist of the Year honor Saturday.
Palm Coast’s $9 Million Scam at Taxpayers’ Expense
Since 2008, Palm Coast government has wasted over $9 million in taxpayer money to subsidize its privately run, money-losing golf and tennis operations, which serve a small group of people. It’s been a colossal scam perpetrated on taxpayers.
Florida House May Back Scott’s $1 Billion Tax Cut, With Minor Differences
The House intends to offer a $1 billion tax-cut package that includes Gov. Rick Scott’s call to reduce a tax on commercial leases and holding a back-to-school sales tax “holiday.”
Worrisome Numbers for Black Students Behind Flagler School District’s “Touting” of Graduation Rates
The graduation rate for black students has taken a nosedive, with just 63.3 percent of black students are graduating, down 4.6% in 3 years. The numbers are especially bad at Flagler Palm Coast High School.
Couple on Palm Coast Parkway Threatened With Handgun in Apparent Road Rage Incident
A 61-year-old Palm Coast resident and his wife were allegedly threatened with a gun in the culmination of an apparent road rage incident on Palm Coast Parkway Monday. Aggravated assault and battery charges are pending, but the perpetrator got away.
Bunnell Mayor Robinson Again Re-Elected Unopposed; 3 Vie for 2 Commission Seats
Bunnell Mayor Catherine Robinson was reelected without opposition for the third straight time. Incumbents Elbert Tucker and Bill Baxley will be joined by Jan Reeger for the March 15 contest. Two of the three will win election.
Florida House Wants to Prohibit Immigrants’ “Sanctuary” Communities
Despite emotional pleas from immigrant advocates, state House members Wednesday moved forward with measures aimed at cracking down on cities and counties that provide “sanctuary” for undocumented immigrants and increasing penalties for people who defy deportation orders.
Flagler Film Festival, Drawing on Works Near and Far, Flicks On For 3rd Year Friday
The Flagler Film Festival’s third edition features 47 films from 150 submissions this year, and starts Friday at Palm Coast’s Hilton Garden Inn, running through Sunday.
Kim Weeks (No, Not That One) Is Flagler’s Teacher of the Year, DeAndre Harris Takes Employee Honor
Kim Weeks is a media specialist at Old Kings Elementary School for 11 years, DeAndre Harris is a paraprofessional at Indian Trails Middle School where he works with Exceptional Student Education (ESE).
Familiar Priorities In Scott State of the State: Tax Cuts and Spending on Business Incentives
The governor has essentially staked his legislative session on the success of two initiatives: A $1 billion tax cut and devoting $250 million to a new “Florida Enterprise Fund” to help lure employers to the Sunshine State.