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.
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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.
Special Election Candidates Slog Through Only Local Forum, Except When Talk Turns to Guns
The largely plodding Q&A forum organized by three Flagler business groups held few surprises and featured Senate candidates David Cox and Travis Hutson and House candidates Adam Morley and Paul Renner.
Armed Car-Jacking in Bunnell Ends in Volusia With Arrest of Four Flagler Teens
All four suspects are from Palm Coast and Bunnell, the youngest being 15. They were arrested after a pursuit involving four police agencies and Volusia County’s Air One helicopter.
Days Before 11th Grade Language Test, Gov. Scott Issues Executive Order Suspending It
Union officials had pushed for suspending the entire school-accountability testing system for a year. The education commissioner wants a few more tests curtailed, but the bulk of the system would remain in place.
Palm Coast May Reduce Red-Light Cameras to 5, But Won’t Scrap Program For Fear of ATS
Fearful of a lawsuit from ATS, its red-light camera provider. the Palm Coast City Council says it would reduce the cameras from 43 to five, but not eliminate them, even if it means ending all its revenue from the cameras but preserving that of ATS.
County Attorney Al Hadeed Responds to “Extreme Allegations” in Ex-Supervisor Weeks’s Florida Bar Complaint
The Florida Bar complaint against Hadeed by Kimberle Weeks, never made public until the county administration released it Monday, was part of a series of similar maneuvers Weeks and an ally filed with the state ethics commission and the state elections commission.
Dustin Sims of Flagler Palm Coast High School Named Florida’s Assistant Principal Of the Year
For the first time in recent memory–and possibly in the district’s history–a Flagler County educator has won his category’s top honor in Florida.
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.
Special Election’s Final Four: Cox, Hutson, Morley and Renner in Tuesday Forum
This time the forum, at the Realtors building on SR100, will feature audience questions. All four candidates are scheduled to appear at the 6 p.m. event.
2015 Legislative Session: 10 Issues To Watch
Starting March 3, and for 60 days, the House and Senate will grapple with hot-button issues ranging from standardized testing in public schools to reforming the troubled prison system, plus the one must-pass bill of the session: a roughly $77 billion state budget.
When Your Armed Neighbor Comes
Knocking: Guns and Muslims in Chapel Hill
What kind of country do we live in, where it’s legal for a man to bring a weapon to a noise complaint? Or a parking dispute? Mitchell Zimmerman confronts the Chapel Hill killings of three Muslims.
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.
From His Flagler Beach Home Base: Ray Black Jr.’s Road to NASCAR’s Truck Series
Ray Black Jr., competing tonight in NASCAR’s Truck Series race at Daytona International Speedway, tells of his joujrney from Alabama to Flagler Beach, and the wisdom in not wrecking.
After Just One Arrest in 4 Years on Prostitution-Related Charges, Sheriff’s Detectives Arrest 4 in 48 Hours
Flagler sheriff’s detectives Wednesday and Thursday arrested two men for soliciting sex, a woman for prostituting herself, and a man for pimping another woman, to a group of men who turned out to be undercover detectives.
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.
Southwest Palm Coast Records a Low of 25 as Cold Snaps Power for Over 800 Customers
The lowest temperature in the county was reported at Eagle Rock, sinking to 24. Despite a cloudless sun, temperatures were still around 40 in Palm Coast at mid-morning, with winds strong enough to make it feel more like in the lower 30s.
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.
Education Commissioner Stewart Joins Calls For Eliminating Some High-Stakes Testing
Stewart recommended that the state get rid of a language-arts test students take in 11th grade, eliminating some final exams and making optional a college readiness test.
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.
Sheriff Manfre Agrees to $183,000 Settlement Over Wage Dispute With 155 Deputies
The settlement will award an average of $487 in back pay to 104 current and former road deputies, and an average of $1,670 to current and former corrections deputies, ending one of three major legal matters burdening the sheriff’s office.
Ex-Cop Is Charged With Torture of Daughter, 14
Stanley Wykretowicz, 38, and a 33-year-old woman, residents of Palm Coast, were jailed on a charge of willfully torturing Wykretowicz’s daughter. He faces an additional charge of battery by strangulation.
Florida Justices Halt Execution Until U.S. Supreme Court Rules on Lethal Injection
Saying it must “err on the side of extreme caution” or risk threatening the “viability of Florida’s entire death penalty scheme,” the Florida Supreme Court on Tuesday halted the Feb. 26 execution of a convicted killer until the U.S. Supreme Court rules on a lethal injection drug.
District Adopts School Calendar It Did Not Want, Starting Late and Shortening Thanksgiving Break
The Flagler School Board wanted to start school in early August to give students more time to prepare for exams, but state law forbids it, forcing a calendar of its own on local districts.
18-Year-Old Palm Coast Man Tased
And Arrested After Yelling Match
Qyontae Billy Sampson had been arguing with his girlfriend, but not physically, and did not comply when police tried to handcuff him, triggering a brief pursuit and arrest on three charges, including battery on a police officer.
Senate Panel Easily Clears Bill Granting Secrecy to Top College and University Job Applicants
The Senate Higher Education Committee voted 7-2 to approve the measure (SB 182), which would exempt information about applicants for the jobs of president, provost or dean from the state’s open-records laws.
Flagler Nears Solution For Marineland Acres Flood Woes, But at Steep New Tax For Residents There
To fix chronic flooding, residents of the Hammock’s Marineland Acres could see a new tax of up to $680 a year—more than five times the $11 monthly stormwater fee Palm Coast residents pay—added to their tax bills for the next 20 years.
On Flagler Roads, Cyclists Share Some Blame For Wrecks; Legislator Files Protective Bill
A proposed bill to strengthen protections for cyclists drew mixed reviews from a Flagler County commissioner and a Florida Highway Patrol homicide investigator, who both pointed at cyclists’ responsibilities on the road.
Guns on Florida Campuses: University System Says No, Citing Values and Protection
Florida’s university system wants state lawmakers to holster the idea of allowing guns on campus, saying it would jeopardize providing a safe and secure learning 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.
Is Your Facebook Account Private After You Die? Senate Bill Says Not So Fast.
Florida Sen. Dorothy Hukill wants to permit online account access after an account holder has died. The Act seeks to open the book on our digital lives, even after we have uploaded to the great cloud in the sky, writes Peter Schorsch.
Early Learning and Child Care Advocates Target Florida Legislature For More Money
Advocates are looking for higher health and safety standards for providers, better training for teachers and new money to cut the waiting list of 63,000 children for slots in the school-readiness program, which provides subsidized child care to low-income working families.
John Steele Sentenced to 5 Years in Prison in Hit-and-Run Death of Sean Lynn Ryan
Sean Lynn Ryan was 25 when he was killed by a vehicle John Steele drove in December 2012 as Ryan walked along U.S. 1 near Plantation Bay. Steele kept going.
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.
Buddy Taylor’s Tyler Irigoyen, 13, Gets Shining Award For Bravery on Day of Fatal Crash
Immediately after Elisa Marie Homen was fatally injured in a crash with a school bus last month,13-year-old Tyler Irigoyen went to work, ushering his 50-some schoolmates to safety and tending to the injured bus driver before first responders arrived.
Net Neutrality’s Biggest Deal: FCC Rules Would Keep Internet Open
If the FCC ignores big cable and communications companies’ pressure and approves the rules, it would be one of the greatest public policy victories in decades, argue Matt Wood and Candace Clement.
Back In Tallahasee, Jeb Bush Gets a Taste of Push-Back Against His Education Legacy
Appearing at an education Summit, Jeb Bush, who is preparing a run for the presidency, saw his common core, school voucher and high-stakes testing ideas challenged, as they would likely be on the campaign trail.
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.
Elderly Woman Strikes Cyclist on Florida Park Drive, Asks If He’s OK, Then Drives Off
Jordan Tyler, a 22-year-old resident of Ferdinand Lane in Palm Coast, was struck and injured by a sedan at Florida Park Drive and Farrington Lane. Authorities are looking for an elderly woman who was at the wheel of the car.
Resurrection: In 3-1 Vote, County Approves Lease of Old Courthouse to Baptist School
The vote also represents an unexpected, 11th-hour turn-around for a building most people, including some commissioners (and Bunnell’s city government, which briefly took possession of it before rejecting it), had written off as unusable.
Prospects Dim For Medical Pot in Florida As Senate Committee Signals Rejection
Proposals by two Republican lawmakers to legalize medical marijuana have a slim chance of passing this legislative session, based on the comments of a Senate committee chairman who helps control the fate of that chamber’s measure.
Large Majority of Floridians Satisfied With State’s Direction, But Scott Approval Still Sinks
Floridians are optimistic, with 67 percent satisfied or very satisfied with the state’s direction, but little of that credit goes to Gov. Rick Scott, whose approval rating is at 42 percent just three months after winning re-election.
Flagler Beach Mother Pleads Guilty In Minor Daughter’s Rape as Boyfriend Awaits Trial on Capital Charges
Allegations against Rhonda Wilkerson, 50, and boyfriend William Dillow, 28, tell an account of two young girls in the grips of harrowing brutality, torture, sadism, lies and threats over several months at the end of 2013 and the beginning of 2014.
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.
Parents Ask Judge To Disqualify Union From Challenging School Voucher Program
Lawyers for the state and parents whose children use Florida’s de facto school-voucher program argued Monday that groups including the state’s largest teachers union don’t have the right to challenge the program in court.
With Generous County Subsidy, Christian School May Be Next Tenant of Old Courthouse
County government will vote Tuesday on a proposal by First Baptist Christian Academy of Palm Coast to lease the old courthouse in Bunnell for $5,700 a month, and with an interest-free, 30-year tax-funded loan of $360,000.
For Second Time in Five Days, R-Section Houses Are Targets of Several Bullet Shots
A house at 7 Rolland Lane and another at 6 Roxboro Drive were each sprayed with five bullets within five days of each other, and in each case a bullet struck a vehicle inside a garage. No arrests have been made.