If the 15,000 or so people who are younger than 15 are excluded, the proportion with vaccines in those between 15 and 65 rises to 38 percent in Flagler–still less than half the proportion considered in the range of herd or community immunity.
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Covid-19: Risk after Vaccination, Masks, and CDC Missteps
Many are concerned about starting “normal activities” after vaccination, the possibility of breakthrough infections, and the recent CDC guidance that fully vaccinated persons can go “maskless” in most situations. Here are answers to anxious questions from the Infectious Pharmacist.
This Year Floridians Get 3 Tax ‘Holidays’–for Hurricane Preparedness, Culture and Recreation, and School
The disaster-preparedness tax holiday will run from May 28 through June 6, the recreation-tax holiday runs for a week starting July 1, and the back-to-school holiday runs for 10 days in August.
Projecting 750 High-Wage Jobs, Council Approves 4-Story Hospital and Medical Building on Palm Coast Parkway
Wally de Aquino, the hospital’s chief operating officer, said he’s projecting an initial 400 to 450 jobs at the hospital initially, and up to 700 to 750 jobs when the medical office building is completed. The 100-bed, 155,000-square-foot, four-story AdventHealth hospital will go up on 11 acres along Palm Coast Parkway.
NOAA Predicts Up to 10 Hurricanes and 20 Named Storms as Flagler Emergency Chief Cautions Against Assumptions
For all the predictions, Flagler County Emergency Management Chief Jonathan Lord cautions that the numbers and forecasts may all be irrelevant, since a single storm can end up severely impacting the community in the quietest–or worst–season, making all else forgettable.
Palm Coast Council Approves Manager Morton’s $9,000 Raise With No Discussion, and With Morton Nemesis’ Vote
The Palm Coast City Council on Tuesday quietly approved a $9,135 raise for City Manager Matt Morton on the heels of his second-year anniversary with the city and a performance evaluation that netted him strong and slightly better marks than last year despite a blistering set of numbers from Council Member Victor Barbosa.
Florida Education Department Wants History Classes Strictly Sanitized of Content Critical of the United States
A proposed rule that will be weighed by the State Board of Education aims to control the way history is taught in Florida classrooms and not allow teachers to “indoctrinate” students, as part of what state Education Commissioner Richard Corcoran called a “constant, vigilant fight.”
School Board Wades Into Selling Belle Terre Swim Club, Or Closing It to All But District Students
The Flagler County School Board is considering selling the Belle Terre Swim and Racquet Club it’s owned since 1997, or closing its membership-driven club functions and restricting its use to students, whose high school teams depend on its 25-yard pool.
Palm Coast Council Sets Special Election for Mayor on July 27, Requiring Petitions or Fee to Qualify
The council agreed unanimously to require candidates to qualify for the election either by gathering 497 signed and certified petition or by paying a $1,140 fee. Petitions may be gathered between May 24 and May 28. Qualifying is set between June 1 and June 7.
David Alfin and Alan Lowe Announce for Mayor as Palm Coast Council Readies to Set July 27 Special Election
David Alfin and Alan Lowe, both Republicans who ran unsuccessful campaigns last November–Lowe for mayor, Alfin for a council seat–said they would run in the special election to replace Mayor Milissa Holland the Palm Coast City Council is expected to schedule at a hurriedly-called special meeting this morning. The proposed date for the election is July 27.
Milissa Holland Resigns, Adding to Palm Coast Council’s Convulsions and Uncertain Future; Special Election Will Be Set
Milissa Holland today resigned her seat as mayor of Palm Coast just six months into her second term, shaking up a city council convulsed for months by unruly meetings and restive public and setting up a special election that could shift the council–and the city–in a direction unrecognizable with the last 22 years.
County Authorizes Eminent Domain Action Against Second Property Owner in Quest for Dune Easements
Flagler County authorized its attorney to begin eminent domain proceedings against Leonard Surles, the homeowner at 2732 South Ocean Shore Boulevard in Flagler Breach, to secure an easement that would allow the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to proceed with a long-awaited dunes-rebuilding project.
Judge Orders 6 Dogs Permanently Seized from Bunnell Owner After They ‘Languished’ in Deplorable Conditions
The Flagler Humane Society seized eight dogs from a Booe Street home in early April as their owner was in jail for weeks in another county and had left the dogs with little or no care. One dog died. The owner abjured another, saying the dog had never belonged to her. The judge may ban the owner from ever owning dogs again.
Online Betting Is Out as Special Session Redefines $2.5 Billion Gambling Deal With Seminole Tribe
To ensure swift passage of the new compact, legislative leaders on Monday announced that DeSantis and the tribe had agreed to remove the provision requiring the state to negotiate with the tribe about online gambling.
At County Memorial for Lives Lost to Covid, a Solidarity of Grief Near and Far, and Thankfulness for Essential Workers
Eulogies personal and universal were among seven invocations that seven clergy members delivered in the county’s–or any local government’s–first memorial devoted to the losses of the 15-month-long covid-19 pandemic this afternoon in front of the Government Services Building in Bunnell.
In Josh Crews’ Memory, a Student Anthology of Writings That Keep Adding to Education Foundation’s Storied Legacy
The Josh Crews Writing Project, now in its 10th year, this week holds the annual launch of the anthology of stories and poems that bears the late bartender and writer’s name. The anthology of writings by students from every Flagler public school is a production of the Flagler County Education Foundation.
Tabling Tonight’s Hearing, Whispering Meadows Ranch and County ‘Very Close to an Agreement’ as Talks Continue
Prompted by an outpouring of support for Whispering Meadows Ranch and talks started this weekend, the county is delaying for at least a month the hearing that had been scheduled for this evening’s County Commission meeting, where the commission was to decide whether to grant the ranch a permit to keep its operation on John Anderson Highway or force it to end operations there.
Sheriff Gualtieri: Cop “Who Shoots and Kills Another Is Not a ‘Victim’” and Cant’ Invoke Marsy’s Law to Hide Name
Pinellas County Sheriff Bob Gualtieri and the Miami Civilian Investigative Panel last week said they plan to file friend-of-the-court briefs at the Florida Supreme Court in a dispute about whether a 2018 constitutional amendment known as “Marsy’s Law” can prevent the release of officers’ names.
Whispering Meadows Ranch’s Fate Hangs on a County Commission Vote Monday After 14 Years of Serene Service
On Monday, the Flagler County Commission will decide whether to allow Whispering Meadows Ranch to continue operating as it has for nearly 14 years, as an equine therapy retreat for disabled children and veterans, or whether it will be shut down. But none of the commissioners have visited the ranch. Here’s a profile of Whispering Meadows.
Palm Coast’s Opelka Is Having Career Week in Rome, and Faces Rafael Nadal Saturday Morning
The former Indian Trails Middle School student is in the midst of a career week at the Italian Open in Rome, reaching the semifinals of a Masters 1000 event (the biggest tournaments outside of the four Grand Slams) for the first time.
At Holland Park, Lush $5.1 Million Splash Pad Erupts Amid Cheers for Latest Free-Access Amenity
Some 75 people gathered for the opening of Holland Park’s 10,000-square foot splash pad Friday morning, the latest enhancement to Palm Coast’s marquee and most popular public park.
With a Nod to the Memory of a Special Agent, Sheriff Marks Fallen Officers Ceremony After a Year of Heavy Losses
Community members and law enforcement gathered to create a sea of blue-lit candles in memory of those lost in the line of duty at the Flagler County Sheriff’s Office’s annual fallen officers memorial Thursday evening in front of the county courthouse.
Palm Coast Resident Takes Issue With Councilman’s Code Enforcement Vigilantism on Social Media
After Palm Coast City Council member Victor Barbosa posted pictures and a video of a Seminole Woods property Barbosa considered unseemly, the property owner wrote the council to complain of Barbosa’s “abusive, conniving, and hypocritical” tactics.
You May Get Rid of Masks and Social Distancing If You’re Fully Vaccinated, CDC Says in Landmark Shift
Americans fully vaccinated against Covid-19 do not need to wear a mask in most situations, indoors and outdoors, federal health officials said in an updated set of recommendations Thursday that marks a major turning point in the pandemic.
Wanted Felon in 2-Hour Standoff With Deputies Had No Gun, But Was Very Concerned About His Phone’s Safety
Joshua R. Siedel, the 27-year-old Bunnell resident who took Flagler County Sheriff’s deputies and Bunnell Police Department officers on a brief chase down U.S. 1 then was at the center of a two-hour standoff, threatening suicide, surrendered peacefully but faces numerous charges from that encounter and four additional felony warrants that had caused his Buick’s license plate to trigger a fugitive warning in midafternoon Wednesday.
Countering Disinformation, AdventHealth Physicians Say Covid Vaccine ‘Highly’ Recommended for Children 12 and Up
As the Flagler Health Department prepares to order a batch of Pfizer vaccines, now that it’s been approved for children as young as 12, AdventHealth physicians today spoke of the importance of vaccinating children and the rarely spoken-of and unnerving complications from covid complications in infected children.
Flagler County Hosts Candlelight Vigil in Remembrance of 111 Residents Lost to Covid-19
Flagler County is hosting a candlelight vigil at 4 p.m. Monday (May 17) to remember those residents who lost their lives to Covid-19. The ceremony will take place in front of the Government Services. It is the first such commemoration by a local government in Flagler.
‘Precipitous’ Drop Down to Just 129 Vaccinations a Day in Flagler Raises Concerns About Hesitancy and Immunity
Average daily covid vaccinations have fallen from 480 in late February to 413 in the first two weeks of April to just 129 a day for the past two weeks from all locations, public or private, in Flagler County, while the proportion of the population that’s had at least one shot is at 46 percent, well short of herd immunity.
‘No One Is Alone’: FPC’s Thespians Return to Stage With Upended Fairy Tale World of ‘Into the Woods’
Flagler Palm Coast’s Thespians return to the stage with exuberant defiance this week, with Stephen Sondheim’s musical, “Into the Woods.” The production in many ways parallels the challenges and sorrows the students have endured in the year of covid.
Planning Board Refuses to Call 240-Boat Storage Facility in Hammock a “Marina” But Will Seek to Define the Word
The 240-boat storage facility proposed for a 4-acre parcel on the Intracoastal in the Hammock two years ago ran into its latest setback tonight as the county planning board refused to define the facility as a marina, as its developer wants to do–not yet, anyway. The board wants to craft an ordinance that would define the word “marina,” potentially reopening the door to the boat-storage facility.
DeSantis Signs Into Law Florida’s Largest Shift of Public Dollars to Private or Parochial Schools
The bill increases an income threshold to 375 percent of the federal poverty level, meaning a family of four making nearly $100,000 a year could qualify for vouchers. Also, it strips away current restrictions, such as a requirement of previous enrollment in public schools before students can receive vouchers.
Can Schools Require Covid Vaccines for Students Now that Pfizer’s Shot Is Authorized for Kids 12 and Up?
No state yet requires students to receive a Covid-19 vaccine, but how states manage other vaccines and exemptions, and how the rules can change during outbreaks, can help us think about how a Covid-19 vaccine requirement might work.
‘I Just Wasn’t Sure If There Was a Gun That Was Brought Into Chambers’: Council Members Take Stock of Jolting Incident
Palm Coast City Council members today renewed calls for keeping “the temperature as low as possible” in meetings after last week’s incident involving the mayor and a member of the audience, as the mayor today revealed that she had at one point feared that the man had a gun.
DeSantis Touts ‘Rights and Liberties’ in Ditching Covid Restrictions; Health Experts Say That’s Dangerous
For doctors, nurses, healthcare workers, and many Florida residents at large, DeSantis’s elimination of covid restrictions across the state as of July 1 is scary or reckless. The pandemic is not over, and health experts continue to advocate for maintaining safety measures to prevent further outbreaks.
For Operator of Flagler Beach’s City-Owned Golf Club, Criminal Trials He Faces Next Week Are Barely Half the Story
Terry McManus, who’s run Flagler Beach’s Ocean Palm Golf Club since 2016, faces felony fraud and DUI trials and a civil breach of contract suit, and is once again facing questions about the club’s financial state from the Flagler Beach City Commission.
Deputies’ Rapid Response Averts a Suicide After Man Had Gun to His Head, the Second De-Escalation in 7 Days
Flagler sheriff’s deputies on Friday afternoon faced a man with a gun to his head, intent on suicide, but with rapid movements and non-lethal weapon managed to disarm him and take control of the situation, the second time in seven days that they’d prevented a suicide by gun.
Siding With Landlords, Federal Judge Tosses Out CDC’s Eviction Moratorium
The CDC halted evictions at the height of the pandemic, saying that putting people out of their homes when state and local authorities had issued stay-at-home orders to stop the spread of covid-19 would be a public health hazard. But the court said a nationwide eviction moratorium was not under the health agency’s purview.
‘Enough’ Is Not Enough: Flagler’s Dangerous Leer at Extremism
What happened on Tuesday at the Palm Coast City Council is indefensible and dangerous. But it’s nothing new. We’ve simply not been paying attention to a perilous degradation of public discourse and behavior. We are slowly becoming a crueler community debased by primitive instincts, because no one in charge, or too few people in charge, are standing up and saying enough.
Flagler Playhouse Emerges Financially Solid from Covid Darkness with 2 Flagler Theatre Workshop Productions
With $243,000 in cash and savings and $1.4 million in assets, the Flagler Playhouse begins to light up its stage again in Bunnell with workshops and, come September, a new season starting with Neil Simon’s “Rumors.”
Man Who Rushed Mayor During Palm Coast Council Meeting Is Trespassed, and Says He Will Sue
Mark Phillips, a frequent presence at city and county meetings who aggressively rushed the dais during the Palm Coast City Council meeting Tuesday to confront Mayor Milissa Holland, was trespassed from City Hall the next day, records show. He has the right of appeal.
In Contrast With Flagler Beach, Palm Coast Will Go Ahead With Independence Day Fireworks in Town Center
The annual Palm Coast fireworks celebration of Independence Day will return this year on July 3 along with the traditional Central Park picnic, with no restrictions on attendance except for a recommendation of physical distancing.
Palm Coast Council Approves 240-Unit Apartment Complex Near Boston Whaler Plant on Colbert Lane
The developer of the Lighthouse Habor Luxury Apartments complex says the apartments will be marketed to “more affluent transitional folks” rather than workforce tenants, though Palm Coast is experiencing a shortage in workforce housing.
Flagler Sting and Arrest of 2 Catalytic Converter Thieves Highlights Widespread and Profitable Racket
Catalytic converters, the pollution-control devices on all gasoline-powered cars and trucks, can be more valuable contraband than drugs–easier to acquire, easier to sell, and less punishable if caught. The sheriff’s office arrested two men in a local sting operation targeting converter thieves.
DeSantis Signs Bill Retrenching Voting Rights on ‘Fox & Friends’ as Opponents Immediately File Suit
DeSantis, who will be on the ballot in 2022 as he seeks a second term as governor, signed the bill (SB 90) on the Fox News show “Fox & Friends” after an event with supporters in West Palm Beach.
Flagler Schools Will Keep Mask Rules In Effect, Making them Voluntary in Summer
Gov. Ron DeSantis’ order overriding local county and city masking regulations doesn’t apply to school districts. The Flagler district announced making rules will stay in effect for the next four weeks, becoming voluntary with summer session and the next school year.
Behind Palm Coast’s $5.7 million Push for a Regional Racket Center, a Big Bet on Players and Partnerships
Palm Coast’s bet on a vast expansion of the Tennis Center into the Reilly Opelka Racquet Center rests on hopes for a much larger population ahead that would be keyed into tennis and pickleball, but optimistic–speculative–figures don’t match up with current trends despite a surge in 2020 in racket-sport participation.
Almost 3 Years Late and $300,000 Over Budget, County Finally Opens Palm Coast Precinct for Sheriff
The Palm Coast Precinct at 14 Palm Harbor Village Way was originally supposed to open in 2018 but fell victims to delays and successive changes of plans before reverting back to its original intent.
A Tense Palm Coast Council Meeting Turns Menacing as a Man Rushes Dais to Affront Mayor Holland
An unnerving, and to Mayor Milissa Holland frightening, incident interrupted tonight’s Palm Coast City Council meeting as a man menacingly walked up to within a foot or two of the mayor before a Flagler County Sheriff’s commander quickly stepped between him and Holland and eventually directed the man away from the dais.
Palm Coast Doffs Mask Ordinance With a Few Theatrics and the Usual Disinformation
The Palm Coast City Council this evening revoked its year-long, never-enforced but influential mask mandate on the heels of the city administration lifting mask requirements in city facilities and county government doing likewise on Monday.
Lauryn Darnell, 19, Will Serve 3 Years in Prison for Role in W-Section Conspiracy and Shooting That Left a Man Disabled
Lauryn Darnell, one of four co-conspirators in the armed robbery and shooting of Carl Saint Felix on Palm Coast’s White Star Drive in 2018, pleaded today to conspiring to armed robbery and principal to armed robbery and will be sentenced to three years in prison followed by three years’ probation.