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Featured

Out of Her Control: Palm Coast Mayor David Alfin Explains Why He Fired City Manager Denise Bevan

March 20, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 67 Comments

david alfin denise bevan

In a 40-minute interview Tuesday afternoon, Alfin explained what led him to make his motion, threading a needle between lavish praise for Bevan in one sentence and sharp criticism of city management in the next, while explicitly conceding that Bevan may have been the victim of political circumstances. Bevan, in sum, paid a paid a price for election-year political currents she was not in control of.

Eric Cooley Wins 3rd Term on Flagler Beach Commission in Subdued Election as Trump Takes Presidential Primary

March 19, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 3 Comments

Flagler Beach Commissioner Eric Cooley and Mayor Suzie Johnston, who is stepping down, with their dog Wednesday--a celebrity in Flagler Beach--and with former Mayor Linda Provencher, late this afternoon near the polling station at City Hall. (© FlaglerLive)

Incumbent Flagler Beach City Commissioner Eric Cooley won his third three-year term today in a subdued municipal election framed by the Republican presidential primary, which former president Donald Trump–the only candidate not to have suspended his or her campaign–unsurprisingly won.

Palm Coast City Manager Denise Bevan Unceremoniously Fired Without Cause in 3-2 Vote on Mayor’s Motion

March 19, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 58 Comments

Denise Bevan was the Palm Coast City Mager for two years. She was fired without cause this morning. (© FlaglerLive)

In a stunning move, Palm Coast Mayor David Alfin this morning motioned to fire City Manager Denise Bevan, without cause. The motion carried, 3-2, with Alfin and Council members Ed Danko and Cathy Heighter in the majority.

Ex-Marine Offended By Jesus Joke Repeatedly Stabs One Man and Pummels Another at Palm Harbor Pkwy. Circle K

March 19, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 23 Comments

Hunter Detherow.

Hunter Detherow, a 22-year-old former U.S. Marine, is at the Flagler County jail on $300,000 bond following accusations that he repeatedly stabbed one man and beat up another after a discussion on religion took a bad turn at the Circle K at Palm Harbor near midnight Sunday.

Admitting to Role in Killing Him, Tyrese Patterson Called 16-Year-Old Noah Smith His ‘Dog’ and ‘Best Friend’

March 18, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 4 Comments

Circuit Judge Terence Perkins has denied a motion by 22-year-old Tyrese Patterson’s attorney to exclude a long confession from his upcoming trial on a charge of murdering 16-year-old Noah Smith in a crossfire in Bunnell two years ago. That confession includes details about what led up to the killing, and how Patterson described his relationship with Smith as “best friends” who hung out together frequently. Startlingly, he also said the killing had not changed him.

Superintendent ‘Would Be Surprised or Shocked’ By County’s Move Away from School Deputy Support

March 18, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 2 Comments

Superintendent LaShakia Moore at a recent workshop of the School Board. Her wristband reads: "You Are Enough." (© FlaglerLive)

Dampening the county’s hopes to reduce the $1 million it contributes to the School Board to pay for sheriff’s deputies in every school–and more in other “legacy” contributions, as the county calls them–Flagler Schools Superintendent LaShakia Moore says she does not see how the community would accept a retreat from the combined commitment by the School Board and the County Commission.

Florida Spring Break: Come for the Sunshine, Stay for the Measles.

March 17, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 23 Comments

Volusia County's tourism headquarters, combined with the local chamber of commerce, in DeLand, in 1937. (Florida Memory)

Too many dunderheads are buying what dangerous anti-vaxxers like Ron DeSantis and his pet quack Joseph Ladapo are selling, so the measles virus is roaring back in Florida as the governor basks in a series of retro-reactionary new laws, from the end of the DEI movement in state universities to the ban on local governments’ attempts to treat their workers humanely in the face of climate change–a pair of words disallowed in the governor’s administration.

Shooting in Bunnell Leaves a 20-Year-Old Man in Critical Condition

March 17, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 14 Comments

The area of the shooting on South Anderson Street in Bunnell. (Google)

A 20-year-old man is in critical condition after suffering gunshot wounds in Bunnell late Saturday night, according to Bunnell Police Chief Dave Brannon.

Cash Bail: Unfair, and a Violation of Due Process

March 16, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 8 Comments

cash bail due process injustice

When arrested on suspicion of committing a crime, everyone in the United States has the right to due process and to defend themselves in court. But in a cash bail system, when judges set bail amounts, those who cannot pay the full amount remain jailed indefinitely — a clear violation of their due process rights — while the rich can pay their way out of jail.

DeSantis Says Undocumented Immigrants Will ‘Regret’ Coming to Florida as He Signs Harsher Penalties Into Law

March 16, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 8 Comments

Gov. Ron DeSantis stages a press conference in Winter Haven on March 15, 2024. Source: Screenshot/DeSantis Facebook

One bill doesn’t mention migrants specifically but imposes a mandatory 10-day jail sentence for a third or subsequent conviction for driving without a license or with a license that has been suspended, cancelled, or revoked. Another bumps criminal penalties for people who commit felonies after having been deported and returning to the United States.

Paul Renner Vaunts His Tenure as Speaker and the Millions He Steered to Flagler, But Evades Saying What’s Next

March 15, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 12 Comments

House Speaker Paul Renner, who has represented Flagler County for the past eeight years but is term-limited this year, at a Humane Society fund-raising event in Flagler in October 2022. (© FlaglerLive)

House Speaker Paul Renner, the Republican who has represented Palm Coast at the Legislature for the last eight years, spoke for the first time at length about the record $150 million in appropriations he helped steer toward Flagler County while boasting of a successful session that increased money “across the board” for roads, schools, health care and green spaces. But he remained mum about his future as his term-limited tenure ends this year.

Flagler Beach Commission Authorizes Up to $22 Million in Loans for Pier Demolition and Reconstruction

March 15, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 20 Comments

The ruin of the Flagler Beach pier was backdrop to the city's Hang 8 Dog Surfing competition last May. The City Commission on Thursday approved a mechanism to cover loans to keep the pier project moving forward--and also approved the 2024 Hang 8 competition, through a special exception. (© FlaglerLive)

The Flagler Beach City Commission Thursday unanimously approved a measure authorizing the city administration to temporarily borrow money internally for pier demolition, design and reconstruction costs now estimated to be $18 million. The debt would be repaid by a tax-exempt financing note, itself to be reimbursed by the Federal Emergency Management Agency dollars.

City Rep Theatre’s ‘Vinegar Tom’ Explores the Psychology of Witch-Finding

March 14, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 1 Comment

Joan, played by Robin Davis, and her daughter Alice, played by Anna Hobbs, are accused of witchcraft in City Repertory Theatre’s production of “Vinegar Tom.” (© Mike Kitaif)

“ ‘Vinegar Tom’ uses the hunt for witches in the 17th century as a tool to investigate the subjugation of women in a male-dominated society,” says City Rep director John Sbordone. “The lessons of the past are reflected in many aspects of our own society.”

Census Bureau: Flagler County’s Population Was 131,500 Last July, an Increase of 16,000 in Three Years

March 14, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 10 Comments

Clearing the way for more housing in Palm Coast's P Section. (© FlaglerLive)

Flagler County is again among the faster-growing counties in the nation, but not among the fastest. The county added 16,000 residents between 2020 and 2023, a 14 percent increase beginning to resemble the population surge of the early 2000s that was halted by the housing crash. Put another way: the county has grown by a population equivalent to more than three times the size of Flagler Beach in that brief span. Just since 2010, the county has grown by 40,000 people.

Houston Had a Problem. Flagler Sheriff’s Deputies Solved It: Suspected Armed Robber Arrested in Palm Coast

March 14, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 7 Comments

rodriguez arrest

Asdrubal Rios Rodriguez, 35, was arrested amid a swarm of deputies, Glocks and rifles drawn, Tuesday on Palm Coast Parkway after authorities received an advisory from Houston police that the Tahoe Rodriguez was driving was connected with an armed robbery at a jewelry store. Some $79,000 in cash and several pieces of gold jewelry were found in the Tahoe.

After Torrent of Drainage Complaints, Only 2 Have Applied for Palm Coast’s New Advisory Committee So Far

March 13, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 18 Comments

Jesena-Wuerth's property is essentially ground zero of this particular flooding issue.

Considering the throngs of complaints about drainage problems caused by new construction and the way they upended city priorities, it would not have been unreasonable for the council to expect that there’d be a flood of applicants to serve on the newly created Residential Drainage Citizens Advisory Committee meant to explore solutions. Three weeks into the application process, it hasn’t happened yet. Only two people have applied.

Wrongfully Arrested Migrant To Be Freed on Immigration Bond as Civil Rights Suit Is Filed Against St. Johns Sheriff

March 13, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 19 Comments

A one-man protest of Virgilio Mendez's arrest and detention, outside the St. Johns County courthouse the morning of a hearing in Mendez's case last December. (© FlaglerLive)outside the Sty

Virgilio Aguilar Mendez, the Guatemalan migrant who had been wrongfully arrested outside his motel in St. Johns County last May and charged with manslaughter after the sudden death by heart attack of his arresting deputy, is to be released from federal custody on an immigration bond this week. On Tuesday, one of his attorneys filed an amended federal lawsuit accusing St. Johns County Sheriff Robert Hardwick of violating Mendez’s civil rights.

Thieving Trio Leads Cops on Chase From Target Shopping Center Before Crashing into Retention Pond

March 13, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 16 Comments

The three individuals arrested after an alleged shoplifting spree and a chase east on State Road 100. From left,

A thieving trio wanted on numerous warrants from other counties or on probation allegedly got away with $1,837 worth of merchandise from two Palm Coast businesses before leading police on a chase along State Road 100 and crashing into a retention pond near the intersection with I-95 Tuesday afternoon.

As DeSantis Crows, Opponents of ‘Don’t Say Gay’ Law Say Settlement Rectifies Some of the Damage

March 12, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 5 Comments

anti lgbtq cheap shots

Gov. Ron DeSantis was quick out the door with a claim that a settlement in a legal challenge to his Parental Rights in Education Act— or Don’t Say Gay — vindicated his efforts “to keep radical gender and sexual ideology out of the classrooms of public-school children.” In fact, the settlement agreement’s terms also limit enforcement of that law which the governor pushed through the Legislature two years ago to bar public school instruction about sexual orientation and gender identity.

Imagine 2050: Residents Fear Small-Town Tranquility Is History as City Plans for Its Long-Term Future

March 12, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 14 Comments

The Palm Coast City Council this morning held a 90-minute session on its Comprehensive Plan, which is undergoing its first re-write since 2004, a process that started in October and won't end until next October. (© FlaglerLive)

Preserve the city’s greenery, temper growth, manage roads, bring in more businesses and arts and culture choices: those are some of the major themes gathered from thousands of interactions with Palm Coast residents and synthesized for the Palm Coast City Council today as it heard a mid-point update in its year-long rewrite of the city’s Comprehensive Plan, the long-term blueprint for growth and how the city imagines itself at half century.

Rights-Of-Way Ban on Realtor or Any Signs Will Remain as Palm Coast Moves to Adopt New Ordinance

March 12, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 6 Comments

Rights of way in Palm Coast must be kept clear of signs at all times. The only exception is government signs. (© FlaglerLive)

Nine years after its attorney said it would have to change its sign ordinance to comply with a new Supreme Court ruling, the Palm Coast City Council appears ready to adopt those new rules and maintain a long-standing ban on Realtor or other signs in rights-of-way, except for government signs.

Legal Or Not, Only Immigrants Can Save America

March 11, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 35 Comments

Mexico, across from the Rio Grande, seen from near McAllen, Texas. (© FlaglerLive)

The United States avoided a recession largely because of a surge in immigration, and its economic output is expected to be $7 trillion higher over the next 10 years largely because of immigration–legal or not: the Congressional Budget Office doesn’t distinguish between the two. As native-born fertility declines and Americans age, the country cannot afford to close its borders. Those immigrants at the border aren’t an invasion. They’re not a crisis. They’re a lifeline: theirs and ours.

Defamation Revamp, Flag Bans, Limits on Local Tax Authority, ‘Unborn Child’ Bill All Dead Issues for Now

March 11, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 2 Comments

dead issues of 2024 florida legislative session

When Florida lawmakers went home after ending the 2024 legislative session Friday, they left behind hundreds of bills that did not pass, including a bill that would have allowed public figures easily to sue journalists, one that would have banned the flying of certain flags on public property, a proposal to lower the minimum age to buy rifles, and one that would have made it harder for local governments to raise property taxes.

Flagler County’s Unemployment, at 4.1%, Registers Second-Highest Total of Unemployed in Over 2 Years

March 11, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 8 Comments

Flagler County's unemployment rate is a little less healthy than Florida's or the country's. (© FlaglerLive)

Flagler County’s unemployment rate again crossed the 4 percent threshold, for the fourth time in six months, registering at a not-seasonally adjusted 4.1 percent in January, up from 3.7 percent in December and 3.6 percent a year ago. The more telling average of the last 12 months was 3.7 percent, compared to 3.3 percent for the previous 12 months, underscoring a small but perceptive trend upward.

To An Increasingly Hysterical Right, Women and Their Bodies Are a Danger To the Republic

March 10, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 17 Comments

women's rights in regression

What’s America’s biggest problem? Not catastrophic climate change; not income inequality; not systemic racism. It’s women. OK, also communists. They’re everywhere, but the Florida Legislature means to nip that in the bud. But even the threat of a worker’s revolt pales in comparison to the Woman Problem. To the increasingly hysterical Right, women — and their unruly bodies — are a danger to the Republic.

As Supreme Court Takes on Florida Law Forcing Social Media’s Hand, Maybe It’s Time to Reinterpret the First Amendment

March 9, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 2 Comments

marketplace of ideas first amendment magritte golconde

Florida is in the middle of an epic legal battle over concepts of free speech, press freedom and unimpeded commerce. It’s a clash between internet publishers, who want the government to leave them alone, and Republican leaders who insist that social media platforms are too powerful to be run by giant, faceless corporations that can — and do — impose their tastes on all of us.

Flagler County and Cities Net Record $151 Million of Half Billion Requested as Budget Heads to DeSantis

March 8, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 10 Comments

Gov. Ron DeSantis, Senate President Kathleen Passidomo and House Speaker Paul Renner discussed the 2024 legislative session Friday. (Mike Exline/NSF)

The budget includes $151 million in appropriations for Flagler County, Palm Coast, Flagler Beach and Bunnell, a record besting last year’s haul by about $45 million. Palm Coast’s future, western expansion drew $80 million for the loop road the city is planning, but existing residents’ needs for a better Old Kings Road were stiffed. Flagler County is facing a funding cliff next year as Paul Renner and Travis Hutson will be gone.

Five 11-Year-Old Indian Trails Students and Community Problem Solvers Experience Alzheimer’s ‘Through Their Eyes’

March 8, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 1 Comment

Anabella Glasco, Anthony Demaio, Katelyn Castello, MacKenzie MacDonald and Priya Vargas.

Five Indian Trails Middle School sixth graders–Anabella Glasco, Anthony Demaio, Katelyn Castello, MacKenzie MacDonald and Priya Vargas–put themselves through experiences replicating Alzheimer’s disease and interviewed dementia patients as they developed a Community Problem Solvers project called “Through Their Eyes.” The team, one of several from Flagler County, is showcasing its project in state competition this weekend in Orlando.

‘Reading Is My Passion’ Sums Up Read Across Flagler Literacy Celebration Bookmarked by Media Specialists

March 8, 2024 | FlaglerLive | Leave a Comment

Author Amir Shah shows the crowd the title of the second of his planned trilogy of his "Play the Game Series," the first of which was published this week, at Thursday's Literacy Night at Town Center. Standing next to him is Lukas Notaras of Matanzas High School, who conducted an off-the-cuff interview with Shah in front of the audience. (© FlaglerLive)

Read Across Flagler Literacy Night at Palm Coast’s Town Center was as much a celebration of reading as it was of the school district’s media specialists who, pound for pound, have been the single-most besieged group of professionals in the district in the last couple of years of book bans, disrespect and ignorant rhetoric from the very school board members who should be championing them.

Renner Power: Lawmakers Curb Local Regulations of Vacation Rentals, But Protect Flagler’s Ordinance With Carve-Out

March 7, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 12 Comments

His legacy outlasts lawmakers' attempt to abrogate it: Flagler County Attorney Al Hadeed, seen here in front of a wall of historic displays at the Government Services Building, authored the county's 2015 regulations of vacation rentals, and spent the last decade, with the County Commission, fighting against its repeal. Today lawmakers repealed local vacation-rental regulations--except for the Flagler County and Broward County ordinances. Broward County's was modeled after Hadeed's. (© FlaglerLive)

The bill would preempt regulation of vacation rentals to the state while allowing local governments to have short-term rental registration programs that meet certain parameters. The bill would “grandfather” in regulations adopted by counties before 2016. During floor debate Thursday, Senate sponsor Nick DiCeglie, R-Indian Rocks Beach, said the exception applies to Flagler County — home to House Speaker Paul Renner, R-Palm Coast — and Broward County.

‘Long Road Ahead’ for Flagler Sheriff’s Deputy Benjamin Stamps After Severe Motorcycle Crash on I-95

March 7, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 26 Comments

Flaglerr County Sheriff's deputy Benjamin Stamps was on his motorcycle when the blue car swerved into the emergency lane Stamps was riding, provoking a collision that left the deputy with severe injuries. (FCSO)

For Flagler County Sheriff’s deputy Benjamin Stamps, it’s going to be “a fairly long road to recovery” after his motorcycle crash Tuesday morning on I-95, as Stamps was riding the emergency lane to investigate a possible incident ahead that had slowed traffic to a crawl, Sheriff Rick Staly said on Wednesday.

After DeSantis Veto, Lawmakers Pass Watered-Down Social Media Ban Awash in Loopholes

March 7, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 7 Comments

social media ban bill renner

The bill, in part, would prevent children under age 16 from opening social-media accounts — though it would allow parents to give consent for 14- and 15-year-olds to have accounts. Children under 14 could not open accounts, but the revamped plan does not include age-verification requirements, making the ban moot but for the state’s vague threat of lawsuits.

Bomb Squad Explodes Suspicious Bundle of 40 Palm Coast Observers After Delivery Misfire at Courthouse

March 7, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 8 Comments

The St. Johns County Sheriff's bomb squad was dispatched to the Flagler County courthouse this morning to take delivery of the suspicious package that turned out to be a bundle of newspapers. (FCSO)

A suspicious package found at a door of the courthouse this morning, before the day’s proceedings began, forced a lockdown of the building and restricted access to law enforcement. The St. Johns County Sheriff’s Office’s bomb squad has been summoned, leaving the courthouse empty for now. No one had to be evacuated from the building since no one had gone in yet. But three judges were set for hearings at 8:30 and 9.

Council Votes 4-1 to Keep Current Palm Coast Water and Sewer Rates While Raising Development Fees 30%

March 6, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 24 Comments

A control panel at one of Palm Coast's water plants. (© FlaglerLive)

As it had signaled two weeks ago, the Palm Coast City Council voted against a water and sewer rate increase, choosing instead to limit increases to development impact fees, the one-time fee builders pay on new construction to defray the cost of new residents and businesses on the city’s infrastructure. Impact fees will increase from a combined $9,435 for water and sewer hook-ups to $12,221 by 2028, a 30 percent increase. The city administration had recommended an 18 percent base and usage rate increase over four years.

Palm Coast Opts for St. Augustine’s Douglas Law Firm as Replacement for City Attorney, at $30,000 a Month

March 6, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 1 Comment

The three Douglas Law Firm attorneys who will represent the Palm Coast City Council, with Marcus Duffy, right, as the principal attorney, Jeremiah Blocker, center, and John Preston. (Douglas Law Firm)

Its 17-year relationship with the same law firm ending, not of its own choice, the Palm Coast City Council on Tuesday unanimously opted to negotiate a contract with the Douglas Law Firm of St. Augustine, a 12-attorney firm established 10 years ago, with offices in several northeast Florida counties but just now expanding to Flagler Beach. Douglas is proposing a $30,000-a-month fee, or 120 hours of work at $250 an hour. Extra hours are billed additionally.

Sally Hunt and Christy Chong Suggest Locking School Board Meeting Doors for Security and ‘Buzzing’ In People

March 6, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 15 Comments

What board members attended in person Tuesday--Cheryl Massaro, Christy Chon, Will Furry--listen to Sally Hunt by phone as Hunt speaks of her security concerns at workshops. (© FlaglerLive via Flagler Schools Youtube)

Sally Hunt made her evasive comment during a workshop after Board member Cheryl Massaro proposed that the board reevaluate the need for a $48-an-hour school resource deputy at each of its workshops. Hunt and Board member Christy Chong suggested locking the board room door during meetings, until they were told the meetings had to be kept accessible to the public at all times.

A1A May Lose Its Name, at $1,800 a Sign, as It’ll Become Jimmy Buffett Memorial Highway By August

March 5, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 46 Comments

The A1A signs have something of an iconic look in Flagler Beach. (© FlaglerLive)

Lawmakers approved legislation (HB 91) to rechristen all 340 miles of State Road A1A as “Jimmy Buffett Highway” from its tip in Ferdinand Beach to Mile Marker 0 in Key West. The change affects signs in 13 counties, including Flagler County. It won’t be chap: a legislative analysis puts the cost to the Department of Transportation at $1,800 for each pair of signs at any given location ($900 for each sign in each direction).

Seniority Pork: Hutson Filed Staggering $475 Million in Requests for Flagler, Including $309 Million for Palm Coast

March 5, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 12 Comments

travis hutson paul renner

Outdoing last year’s requests by far, Hutson filed 34 special funding requests on behalf of Flagler County governments and agencies, totaling a staggering $475.8 million–or 0.4 percent of the size of the current state budget. Seven of the requests are for Flagler County government, totaling $92.5 million. Fourteen requests were for Palm Coast, totaling a third of a billion dollars.

Federal Appeals Court Stops DeSantis’s ‘Stop Woke’ Restrictions on Workplace Training Against Bigotry

March 4, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 7 Comments

The 'Stop Woke Act' could make it difficult to discuss Bull Connor's response to civil rights. (© FlaglerLive)

The workplace-training part of the law listed eight race-related concepts and said that a required training program or other activity that “espouses, promotes, advances, inculcates, or compels such individual (an employee) to believe any of the following concepts constitutes discrimination based on race, color, sex, or national origin.”

Bunnell Brawl Involving Up to 60 People Ends with 6 Arrests as Even Corrections Deputies Are Summoned to Help

March 4, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 15 Comments

A late-night brawl involving 40 to 50 people–and up to 60, according one sheriff’s report–on South Anderson Street in Bunnell Saturday ended with the arrest of four adults and two juveniles, including one, Andrea Armster, 41, on a felony charge of battering a law enforcement officer.  The incident involved so many people, and so many law enforcement officers, that detention deputies from the jail had to assist. 

County Issues Demolition Order for Old Dixie Motel as Attorney Describes ‘Dilatory Tactics in Bad Faith’

March 4, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 19 Comments

The Old Dixie Motel during debris removal two years ago. (© FlaglerLive)

The Flagler County chief building official has issued a demolition order for the long disused Old Dixie Highway motel that, through a succession of opaque owners who promised the moon but delivered only low-orbit cosmetics, has gone from an eyesore to a hazard to a haze of hope and back to an infuriating thorn in the side of Flagler County government. 

DeSantis Thinks He’s Abolishing the Homeless by Banning Them from Sight. He’s Wrong.

March 3, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 31 Comments

florida homeless

DeSantis and lawmakers are likely reacting to a shift in the way communities across the U.S. view homelessness from compassion to penalties and restrictions. Unfortunately, but true to form, DeSantis didn’t offer a palette of humane solutions to the homelessness problem. Instead, he spoke of the issue in stark, unsympathetic, self-absorbed terms characterizing homelessness in purely negative terms, blaming them for contributing to the erosion of the quality of life of others lucky to not be sleeping on the street.

Citing Efforts Against ‘Indoctrination,’ House Approves Bill Broadening Censorship in Teacher Prep Courses

March 2, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 8 Comments

The way the Florida Legislature sees its teachers: a classroom at the Florida State College for Women in 1949. (Florida Memory)

The Florida House on Friday passed a measure that supporters say is designed to keep “identity politics” out of teacher preparation programs that lead to educators getting professional certificates — as Democratic members likened the bill to academic censorship.

Tom Joad, the Voice of a Better America, Has Been Silenced

March 2, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 13 Comments

I’ll be all around in the dark. I’ll be everywhere--wherever you look. Wherever they’s a fight so hungry people can eat, I’ll be there. Wherever they’s a cop beating’ up a guy, I’ll be there.

From the Book of Ruth to Eugene Debs to Tom Joad in Steinbeck’s “Grapes of Wrath,” the voice of solidarity spoke a communion with needs and pains greater than one’s own, a willingness not only to walk in the other’s shoes, but to be the shoes–to be the soles–when the other has none. It was once the voice of America. We have lost that voice as blame and judgment have replaced solidarity and grievances about what we think we’re losing snuff out protest on behalf of those not lucky enough to have something to lose. 

State Attorney Dismisses Charges Against Virgilio Mendez, 18, Migrant Accused of Manslaughter in Deputy’s Death

March 1, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 26 Comments

Attorneys Jose Baez, at the lectern, and Phil Arroyo this afternoon during a press conference streamed on Instagram. (© FlaglerLive via Instagram)

The State Attorney’s Office today dropped the charges against Virgilio Mendez, the 18-year-old migrant arrested last May in St. Augustine over a dubious encounter with sheriff’s deputies prompted by nothing apparent, then charged with aggravated manslaughter in the death of one of the deputies, who had died of a heart attack the medical examiner ruled was of natural causes from heart disease. The charges drew widespread public outrage.

Florida House Passes Ban on Homeless Sleeping In Public Despite Added Burdens to Local Governments

March 1, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 7 Comments

homeless ban florida

The Florida House on Friday approved a controversial proposal that would prevent homeless people from sleeping in public, despite concerns about increased costs for local governments. The Republican-controlled House voted 82-26 along almost-straight party lines to pass the bill (HB 1365), which is backed by Gov. Ron DeSantis. It also would make it easier for residents and business owners to challenge local officials over how homelessness is addressed.

No Back-Up Plan: Palm Coast Hip-Hop Artist Devante Collins Is Working for His Big Break

March 1, 2024 | Michael Lewis | 3 Comments

Devante Collins

Devante Collins, whose stage name is Devante, The Artist, graduated from Flagler Palm Coast High School in 2015 and has been on a trek to breakthrough as a hip hop artist, writer and producer since in Los Angeles, Columbus, Ohio, Philadelphia and now back in Florida. He performs tonight at a Justice for Hip Hop music festival in Jacksonville, at the Justice Pub at 315 East Bay St.

Palm Coast’s Wishful 20-Field, $93 Million Sports Complex Rests on a Far Future of Dubiously Rosy Speculation

February 29, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 28 Comments

Palm Coast is imagining its next fields of dream, but the projected complex may be more dreamy than realistic. (© FlaglerLive)

The Palm Coast City Council is embarking on an ambitious plan to explore and perhaps develop and finance, in a private-public partnership, an enormous sports complex on the west side of the yet-undeveloped city. A consultant encouraging the project is projecting rosy figures that would not mortgage tax dollars yet yield ample profits while drawing up to 250,000 athletes and spectators a year. The figures are speculative and do not easily stand up to scrutiny.

More Sound and Fury Than Broad Problems as 3 Residents Complain to City of Ralph Carter Park’s Popularity

February 29, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 17 Comments

The lights at Ralph Carter Park, illuminating two fields of play, have been generating complaints from a new neighborhood residents. (© FlaglerLive)

When the Palm Coast City Council gets its administration’s latest report on the state of Ralph Carter Park in the R-Section, it’ll have to decide how much of the sound and fury again hemming the popular park is the grousing of a few people signifying nothing or a reflection of a broader problem. Judging from a community meeting the administration hosted at City Hall Wednesday evening, there is no broad problem.

Renner and DeSantis Trying to Ward Off Veto Over Social Media Ban for Children Under-16

February 29, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 5 Comments

renner desantis faceboook ban

With a Friday deadline looming, House Speaker Paul Renner said Wednesday that he and Gov. Ron DeSantis are trying to work out differences on a bill aimed at keeping children under age 16 off social-media platforms. Renner is keeping silent on alternatives.

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