The clash has as much to do with the opaque minutiae of land-use regulations as it does with something anyone in Palm Coast and Flagler County can relate to: what kind of community do residents want for themselves, and how far should the city go to change zoning and land use designations that result in two vastly different subdivisions–one densely packed with homes, one not, with a rapidly increasing population adding its own pressures on diminishing green spaces.
Featured
Lawsuit Blames DeSantis for Wresting Control from FDLE to Keep Travel Records Secret
A legal battle has intensified about public records related to travel by Gov. Ron DeSantis, as The Washington Post accused the governor’s office of taking “control” of Florida Department of Law Enforcement compliance with the state’s Sunshine Law. A lawsuit about the records has roiled the FDLE, resulting in whistleblower complaints and the ouster of two high-ranking officials.
A Note To My Grandson
Well dear Felix, this is the day chosen for you–as so much has been since before your conception, as almost everything will be for the next dozen years, as most things will be after that–to be born into this, not quite our world: you arrived as scheduled a little after 7 this morning, your time.
Raising Alarms, Pontieri Calls for Moratorium on Flood-Prone Construction Until Regulations Are Rewritten
Palm Coast City Council member Theresa Pontieri unexpectedly called for a 60 to 90-day moratorium on construction on so-called in-fill lots, the traditional quarter-acre lots that ITT platted, or until until the city’s revised construction regulations are enacted. The regulations address issues that have caused flooding on existing lots. Pontieri’s proposal, to be considered for adoption on Jan. 16, drew a startled response from the Flagler County Home Builders Association and caution from some council members.
Face-Recognition Software Leads to Man Accused in Pair of Disturbing Incidents Involving a Woman and a Girl
Robert Elliot Goldstein, a 64-year-old Palm Coast resident, is at the Flagler County jail on felony charges stemming from a pair of disturbing assaults that took place within 72 hours, one involving a health care worker at AdventHealth Palm Coast, the other involving an 11-year-old girl Goldstein allegedly accosted and fondled at Walmart.
After Raucous Hearing, Palm Coast Votes Again to Limit Cascades Development in Seminole Woods to 416 Homes
Nearing midnight Tuesday the Palm Coast City Council voted unanimously again to limit development on the Cascades development in Seminole Woods to 416 single-family homes following an often raucous hearing before an overflow and untempered crowd. Much of the discussion–or arguments–hinged on whose fault it was that the issue required the extraordinary re-hearing, after the council had seemingly settled the matter in a pair of votes last September and November.
Judge Rules Migrant Held Responsible for Death of Deputy After Arrest Is Incompetent to Stand Trial
Circuit Judge R. Lee Smith ruled that Vergilio Aguilar Mendez, the 18-year-old migrant held responsible for the death of a St. Johns County deputy of a cardiac episode several minutes after Mendez was arrested, is incompetent to proceed to trial and is to receive “competency restoration” while held at the Volusia County Branch Jail. The order suspends further criminal proceedings, but may be abrogated over the next 60 days should the treatment restore competency to the court’s satisfaction.
Social Media Regulation, AI, ‘Deregulation’ of Public Schools and Child Labor: 10 Top Issues of Legislative Session
Florida lawmakers will start the annual 60-day legislative session on Jan. 9, with Gov. Ron DeSantis giving his State of the State address before shuttling back to Iowa ahead of the caucus there on Jan. 15, with a slate of proposals–on artificial intelligence, the elimination of numerous regulations in public schools, allowances for 16 and 17 year olds to work longer hours–crowding the legislative agenda.
School Board Attorney Kristy Gavin Still On the Job, With ‘Progress’ and Uncertainty on Resolution
School Board Attorney Kristy Gavin was still on the job this morning–as a School Board attorney. But uncertainty remains, even though the board has approved a new job description that would theoretically allow Gavin to step into a new role as staff attorney, or general counsel, answering to the superintendent.
Flagler Beach’s New Year’s Fireworks Celebration Draws 500 People and Hula Hoops of Raves
Flagler Beach may have ignited a new tradition for itself and the county as some 500 people turned up at Veterans Park and around the pier in the waning minutes of 2023 Sunday for the city’s inaugural surf board drop and New Year’s fireworks.
Can We Still Find Common Ground?
Many Americans today worry that our nation is losing its national identity. Some claim loudly that the core of that identity requires better policing of our borders and preventing other races or religions or ethnicities from supplanting white Christian America. But that is not what defines our national identity. It’s the ideals we share, the good we hold in common.
Lie of the Year: RFK Jr.’s Campaign of Conspiracy Theories
As pundits and politicos spar over whether Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s presidential campaign will factor into the outcome of the 2024 election, one thing is clear: Kennedy’s political following is built on a movement that seeks to legitimize conspiracy theories. His claims decrying vaccines have roiled scientists and medical experts and stoked anger over whether his work harms children. He has made suggestions about the cause of covid-19 that he acknowledges sound racist and antisemitic.
We Asked Flagler County Leaders to Tell Us About Their Favorite Book of 2023. Their Answers Are Page-Turners.
Twenty-one Flagler County leaders–in politics, culture, business, education, media–were asked to tell us about their favorite book of 2023. The very wide-ranging responses were always enlightening and often surprising, showing how minor our political or ideological differences can be, or ought to be, when we connect on a cultural and personal or literary level, which is to say: a human, or humanist, level.
Daytona Solisti Takes On Schubert’s Romantic Realms in January Concert
The Daytona Solisti concert “Romantic Realms – Music of Schubert” will feature the Rickman-Acree-Corporon Piano Trio performing a Franz Schubert work that was never played publicly during the Austrian composer’s brief lifetime. “Romantic Realms – Music of Schubert” will be presented at 3:30 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 14, at Lighthouse Christ Presbyterian Church, 1035 W. Granada Blvd., Ormond Beach, where Solisti is in residence again this concert season.
Students Are Not Showing Up for Class. Lawmakers Want To Do Something About It. But What?
In measuring student attendance, the department looks at students who miss 21 or more days and students absent for 10 percent or more of the academic year. The 2021-2022 data showed that 32.3 percent of students, or more than 1 million students, were absent for 10 percent or more of the year.
Suzanne Johnston, Flagler County’s Unchallenged Tax Collector Since 1st Election in 2004, Will Not Run Again
Suzanne Johnston, Flagler County’s Tax Collector since 2004 and one of its more colorful and unchallenged elected officials, will be stepping down at the end of 2024, when she will be 75. She announced her decision in an interview with FlaglerLive this afternoon, and said she’d be supporting her second-in-command, Shelley Edmonson, for the seat in next year’s election.
From Abortion to Disney, Guns, Pot, Trans and Social Media Law: 10 Florida Court Cases to Watch in 2024
High-profile Florida cases in state and federal courts in 2024 include a challenge to the 15-week abortion ban, Disney’s claim that the DeSantis administration illegally retaliated against it, a challenge to the state’s age-restriction on buying long guns, whether the wording of a constitutional amendment legalizing recreational pot can head for the ballot, and several more.
My Father’s Crèche
Taking down Christmas decorations can be difficult when they serve as buffers to memories as painful to remember as one is grateful not to have forgotten them, especially as we age: my father has been dead nearly 50 years, but that chasm of time disappears in the still-vivid hammer sounds of the crèche he built us every Christmas, and the joys of my mother’s New Year’s Day parties before lives became war zones.
‘That Was My Home’: The Homeless Are Being Purged Out of Their Encampments
More than 653,000 Americans are experiencing homelessness in 2023, a 12% increase from last year. Among the people experiencing homelessness, 64% are unsheltered. As tent encampments continue to dot urban landscapes — strewn around parks, along sidewalks, lining highways or sometimes abutting schools — many cities have increased their sweeps, some governors have announced funding to clear encampments, and several states have outlawed the tent communities altogether.
Night of the Pies: Christmas Eve, 1967
My after-school job my senior year of high school was in a bakery attached to a supermarket in my home town, a sort of Jurassic Publix setup. On the night before Christmas Eve, we had orders for a little over 400 pies. The baker asked if I would work with him through the night and, needing the money for my college fund, being locked in an empty supermarket to bake 400 pies for twelve hours at overtime rates seemed like a wonderful idea.
Florida State Sues Atlantic Coast Conference, Banking on $1 Million in Taxpayer-Funded Legal Coffer
Florida State University on Friday filed a lawsuit against the Atlantic Coast Conference, alleging the conference has “persistently undermined its members’ revenue opportunities” and damaged FSU. The Seminoles became the first undefeated champion of one of the Power 5 football conferences to be left out of the College Football Playoff. Gov. Ron DeSantis recommends the state offer $1 million for any legal action about the snub.
17-Year-Old Palm Coast Boy Killed in Mudding Crash in Flagler Estates When SUV Flips Into Waterlogged Ditch
A 17-year-old Palm Coast boy was killed and another injured in a mudding crash in isolated and unlit Flagler Estates shortly after midnight this morning, according to the Florida Highway Patrol and the Flagler County Sheriff’s Office. Four other youths in the vehicle escaped injuries.
Judge Mulls Trial Competency of Migrant Facing Manslaughter Charge in Sudden Death of Deputy After Arrest
Declaring it a “complex situation,” Circuit Court Judge R. Lee Smith at the end of a three-hour hearing today said he needed time to think before issuing a decision on whether Vergilio Aguilar Mendez, the 18-year-old migrant controversially charged with manslaughter in the death of a St. Johns County deputy Michael Kunovich last May, is competent to stand trial. Kunovich died several minutes after Mendez was arrested for resisting arrest after a stop-and-frisk encounter in St. Augustine.
Flagler Students Violated Limited Cell Phone Ban 1,300 Times This Year; Principals Caution Against Total Ban
There’s no recommendation from the administration to go further than the current cell-phone ban in schools, which still allows students to use their phones between classes and at lunch. If anything, Flagler’s middle and high school principals are cautioning the school board against imposing a stricter ban, finding the current balance effective and educational.
Taking On Artificial Intelligence, Florida Legislature Will Contend Unpredictable Scenarios in Coming Session
As access to artificial intelligence, or AI, continues to spread, state lawmakers are poised to consider ways to set up guardrails around a technology that one senator said has “outpaced government regulation.” Measures filed by Senate and House Republicans target issues such as potential defamation of people using AI in media, use of the technology in political advertising and the creation of a state council that would look at potential legislative reforms.
Cascades Development in Seminole Woods Back on the Table for a Re-Hearing, Putting in Question 416-House Limit
A part of the application for the 416-home Cascades development in Seminole Woods will be heard again by the City Council in January following an error in the application process, possibly reopening the way for the developers to push for a higher housing limit than the 416 the council agreed to, after much public opposition to the originally proposed 850 units.
Flagler County and New Florida State Guard Sign Lease on $10 Million Training Facility Near Sheriff’s Jail in Bunnell
It is no longer just a possibility. It is now a certainty. The Florida State Guard’s training facility will be located in Flagler County next to the Flagler County jail on Justice Lane in Bunnell. The County Commission on Monday approved a 30-year lease with the Guard. As with the National Guard armory on county grounds near the county airport, the State Guard will not pay rent.
Ban on Felons Owning Guns Survives as Florida Supreme Court Rejects Challenge
Florida Supreme Court Justices on Monday issued an order rejecting an appeal by William Edenfield, who was charged with possession of a firearm by a convicted felon after a 2020 shooting incident in Leon County. Edenfield went to the Supreme Court in August after the 1st District Court of Appeal rejected his Second Amendment arguments.
Approval of Carver Center’s Joint Agreement Is Upended as School Board Has Late-Breaking Changes
In the works since June, a new, joint agreement on management and oversight of the Carver Center in Bunnell will have to wait until at least January before it is enacted, because a misstep at the school district delayed a legal review of the agreement. That kept the School Board from seeing the revised proposal for the first time until the County Commission had already approved the original version.
Commissioners Votes Heather Haywood Off Flagler Planning Board Over Public Records Snub: ‘She Handled It Poorly’
On a motion by Greg Hansen, the Flagler County Commission Monday evening unanimously voted to remove Realtor Heather Haywood from the county’s planning board after Haywood falsely accused Hanse of “crossing a line” in a Facebook Messenger text he never sent, and after Haywood failed to take seriously a public record request. It was the second time in a month that the commission removed a planning board member. Haywood appeared to leave commissioners no choice.
Moore Overruled Panel to Name Cari McGee, Outspoken Diversity Expert and Advocate, Bunnell Elementary Principal
Superintendent LaShakia Moore’s choice of Cari McGee as Bunnell Elementary’s next principal says as much about Moore’s willingness to buck recommendations and trust her own instinct as it does about McGee, a committed and–like Moore, opinionated and socially conscious–leader who a few years ago signed her name to an open letter condemning “inaction in the face of oppression” and lambasting Nancy Pelosi for using the language of white supremacy.
Anti-LGBTQ Activist Wants Flagler Library System to Stop Paying $173 Membership to American Library Association
The Flagler County library system is hoping to fend off an attempt by a South Florida activist opposed to LGBTQ equality to sever library staff memberships in the American Library Association and its affiliates, though currently that entire cost amounts to $173. It is the latest flare-up of an ongoing push by the far right in schools and libraries to restrict or ban LGBTQ-related materials, themes or associations, particularly in connection with children’s access or programs, though in this case the connection–if there is one–is tenuous.
Palm Coast’s Tyler Perkins, 27, Dies in Single-Vehicle Crash on Old Kings Road
Tyler Perkins, a 27-year-old resident of Palm Coast, died in a single vehicle crash on Old Kings Road when his pick-up truck went off the road and struck a tree Sunday afternoon.
Winnie Oden, Peripatetic Educator In Flagler Schools With Foresight and a Passion for Security, Dies at 75
Oden–who was officially known as Juanita Winnie Oden–had a mind of her own, opinions to spare and the kind of foresight that led to champion safety and security well before the Parkland massacre. She was as outspoken as she was irrepressible, and did not mind ruffling a feather or two–going as far as suing her own school board when she was serving on it.
An Affair to Dismember: The Tawdriness of Florida’s GOP Chair and His Moms for Liberty Phony
Republicans cast themselves as the party of piety, traditional gender roles, and family values. This is at odds with reality. Florida GOP chairman Christian Ziegler is accused of rape. His wife Bridget, co-founder of Moms for Liberty and member of the Sarasota School Board who has vowed to bring “religious values” to education, also admits to having an affair with her. Gov. Ron DeSantis had said he wished he could put a Bridget Ziegler on every school board “in every county in Florida.”
Federal Judge Will Hear Arguments in Escambia Schools’ Book-Banning Case in January
The case is playing out amid wide-ranging debates in Florida and other states about school officials removing or restricting access to books. The plaintiffs in the Escambia County case contend that the school board’s decisions violated First Amendment and constitutional equal-protection rights. Attorneys for the school board argue the judge should dismiss the case because the board has authority to decide which books to purchase and keep on school shelves.
The Affidavit Behind Rape Allegation Against Florida GOP Chair Christian Ziegler
The release of Sarasota police’s sworn affidavit provides facts about the rape investigation of Florida GOP Chairman Christian Ziegler, writes investigative reporter Bob Norman. The facts are damning primarily to Ziegler, but also to his wife Bridget Ziegler, a Sarasota School Board member and cofounder of the right-wing, book-banning group Moms for Liberty.
Florida Court Rules Child Is Mature Enough to Be a Mother, But Not to Have an Abortion
A state appeals court Friday upheld a Calhoun County circuit judge’s ruling that blocked a minor from having an abortion without notification and consent of a parent or guardian. The decision’s implicit reasoning is that the child is nevertheless mature enough to carry the baby to term.
Heather Haywood’s ‘Inauthentic’ Records Fail to Prove Incendiary Accusation Against Flagler Commissioner Hansen
Flagler County Attorney Al Hadeed said Friday that Planning Board member Heather Haywood, who has made false and public accusations against Commissioner Greg Hansen, has not been responsive to a public record request, and what she has submitted about “Hansen” is deemed “inauthentic”–that is, either fabricated or part of a scam. The County Commission on Monday is to vote on whether to retain Haywood’s membership on the planning board or to remove her.
Flagler Airport Marks Opening of 42 New T-Hangars, But $6.5 million Project Barely Reduces Waiting List
County officials dedicated the opening of 42 T-hangars at Flagler Executive Airport, adding to the 56 existing T-hangars. The $6.5 million project was mostly financed by the Florida Department of Transportation. Despite the new addition, the waiting list for hangar space is still 158 people.
Should Flagler Beach Mayor Have a Vote and Chair All Meetings? Commission Is Split on Possible Ballot Proposal.
On a proposal fronted by Commissioner Eric Cooley and informally seconded by Mayor Suzie Johnston, the Flagler Beach City Commission will consider whether to ask voters to change the city’s form of government, reducing the commission to five members, giving the mayor voting power, making the mayor the [permanent chair of meetings, and increasing electoral terms from three years to four.
The Immoral Gamble of ‘Shopping’ for Health Insurance
Between high premiums, deductibles, co-pays, co-insurance, other out-of-pocket costs, and the enduring myth that Americans still get to choose their own doctor, health insurance has become a maze of forced costs and limited options based on impossible choices you shouldn’t have to make. Obamacare has failed. Private insurance is often an overpriced, over-subsidized racket. Medicare alone remains the only viable solution with universal application.
Grinchy Storm Raises Flooding Concerns and Cancels Palm Coast Starlight Parade, With No Make-Up Date
A low-pressure system in the Gulf of Mexico that will whirl across Florida over the weekend, from the Big Bend area to Jacksonville, is expected to churn up the Atlantic with up to 10-foot waves and significantly higher tides that may cause flooding, it is already kicking up wind gusts of up to 40 mph in places, and it is cancelling weekend plans such as the much-anticipated Palm Coast Starlight Parade.
Flagler School District’s Poison-Pill Offer to Save Attorney Kristy Gavin’s Job Draws Warning of Lawsuit Ahead
The Flagler school district’s negotiations with Board Attorney Kristy Gavin have soured following the district’s condition that Gavin should give up the right to sue in exchange for her keeping her job. School Board member Cheryl Massaro says Gavin, who is not likely to accept such terms, is likely to be fired by year’s end, and to sue the district on numerous grounds including breach of contract, wrongful discharge, hostile work environment, age and sex discrimination and defamation.
Jury Finds 47-Year-Old Palm Coast Man Guilty of Cyber-Stalking and Soliciting Girl, 14, for 18 Months
A jury found 47-year-old Jerome Byron Malerba guilty of cyber-stalking, soliciting a child for sex, and using a cell phone to criminal ends. He had been involved in what he termed a “mentoring friendship” with a girl when she was 14 and 15. He faces a maximum of 15 years in prison and will be designated a sex offender when he is sentenced early next year.
Proposal to Rollback Florida’s Child Labor Laws, Masked as Opportunities for Teens, Clears Its 1st Hurdle
A proposal that would eliminate restrictions on the number of hours that 16- and 17-year-olds could work received its first hearing in the Florida Legislature on Wednesday, where it passed on a party-line vote in the GOP-controlled committee. The measure limits restrictions that now prohibit 16- and 17-year-olds from working more than six consecutive days in any one week or working 4 hours continuously without a break.
School Board’s Cheryl Massaro Will Run Again, Saying Reign of Rookies Scares Her
When Cheryl Massaro was elected to the Flagler County School Board a little over three years ago, she intended to serve one term. The past year’s aberrations on the board by its three rookies and constituents’ pressures on her not to retire in the face of those aberrations changed her mind. Massaro is running again.
City Attorney Warns Palm Coast Away from Directly, Financially Aiding Flooded Property Owners
Palm Coast City Council member Ed Danko wants the city to more directly aid property owners whose yards have been flooded from adjacent, new construction, but the city attorney says funds may not be spent to benefit any single private property owners. The city administration will look at alternatives.
All Those Yards Flooding from New Construction? Blame ITT, Nature or Changing Codes, Not Builders, City Finds
More than 80 property owners have filed complaints about yards flooding as new construction has gone up in Palm Coast recently. Palm Coast officials say there are all sorts of reasons but builders and new construction are not among them. The city is working with property owners to analyze the issues and provide direction. It is also rewriting is technical building rules. But it’s stopping short of providing direct aid.
Brightline Rail from Orlando to Tampa ‘Making Tremendous Strides,’ With SunRail Spurs to Airport and Disney Ahead
What is known as the Sunshine Corridor Partnership seeks to connect the SunRail commuter-rail service in Central Florida to Brightline at Orlando International Airport, while linking the Orange County Convention Center, south International Drive and the Disney Springs areas. While Florida in 2011 turned down $2.4 billion in federal money for high-speed rail between Tampa and Orlando, the right-of-way along the I-4 corridor is reserved for passenger rail.