The bait shop that for decades burnished the Flagler Beach pier’s quaintness and served as gatekeeper to pier fishers and visitors, will close permanently as a city-run business on June 1. The city may consider leasing the small space to a private company, whether as a shop or as a different kind of business, but it won’t decide that until May.
Flagler Beach
Flagler Beach Rotary Buys City Police a $10,000 Emergency Response Trailer
The Rotary Club of Flagler Beach is pleased to announce that the club has purchased a new Emergency Response Trailer for the City of Flagler Beach.
Much-Touted App Swiped Off as Flagler Beach Re-Focuses on Clunky Website to Communicate
Flagler Beach’s year-long attempt to launch an app that would improve engagement and communication with residents is flickering out. The City Commission Thursday evening voted unanimously to end development of the app and shift money allocated for it back to improving the city’s website. There was little indication that the city was interested in further app development, though that door remains ajar.
Andrew Mintz, Man at Center of Head-On Crash at Flagler Beach Pier, Faces Felony Charge
Andrew Mintz, the 34-year-old Palm Coast man at the origin of a three-vehicle crash near a crowd of officials and others by the Flagler Beach pier on April 1, has been charged with aggravated fleeing and eluding police while causing injuries or property damage, a second-degree felony with a penalty of up to 15 years in prison if convicted.
Dune Hold-Out Signed Documents Today After 3 Years, Clearing Beach Reconstruction
Less than two weeks from a scheduled trial date, Flagler Beach resident Cynthia d’Angiolini this afternoon signed the two easements the county has been seeking for three years and that will allow the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to rebuild and maintain 2.6 miles of dunes south of the pier, unimpeded, for the next half century.
Head-On Crash at Flagler Beach Pier Narrowly Misses Mayor, Her Child, Former Mayor and Commissioner
A speeding car was in a head-on crash in front of the Flagler Beach pier this morning, just as a beach clean-up involving children and other volunteers was starting. The collision took place within a few feet of the city’s mayor, her child, a former mayor, a city commissioner and the city’s parks and recreation director.
Reclusive, 15-ft Beaked Whale, Likely Sick, Strands in Flagler Beach Near Water Tower
For the second time in only 10 weeks, a rarely seen whale beached on Flagler County’s sands and was put down hours later before it was to be removed from the surf and transported by truck to Orlando’s SeaWorld for a necropsy.
The Winner of a Historic Landslide and Prodigal Everyman Get Busy on Diverse Flagler Beach Commission
The Flagler Beach City Commission reconstituted with Scott Spradley and Rick Belhumeur Thursday. As a group, and with Jane Mealy still its reigning dean, the commission combines experience and youth, business, law, academia, real estate, labor and Belhumeur’s Everyman.
Scott Spradley Wins Big in Flagler Beach, Belhumeur Is ‘Re-Commissioned,’ Defeating Incumbent Phillips
Attorney Scott Spradley won election to the Flagler Beach City Commission by a large margin Tuesday, an unsurprising result from an electorate looking for the analytical cool-headed approach Spradley represents, after a turbulent year in the city and the recent firing of a city manager.
In Flagler Beach, 5 Commission Candidates Play Forum Softball Ahead of March 7 Election
There were no surprises at the only forum for Flagler Beach City Commission Candidates. The questions–at least the nine that were asked–were generally un-challenging, unspecific and at times corny. The candidates are Rick Belhumeur, Bob Cunningham, Doug Bruno O’Connor, Deborah Phillips and Scott Spradley.
For 4th Year in a Row, Flagler Beach Will Have No July 4 Fireworks
Flagler Beach ruled out an Independence Day fireworks show again this year, opting to partner with the county and Palm Coast instead, but there will be better-funded entertainment downtown to keep the celebration from being just “a drunk day at the beach.”
Former DeLand City Manager Mike Abels Will Lead Flagler Beach as Interim for Up to 6 Months
Two weeks after firing City Manager William Whitson, the Flagler Beach City Commission this evening hired Mike Abels, the city manager of DeLand for a decade until 2008, as its interim manager for the next few months. The commission had no choice. But based on his broad experience, it also could scarcely have secured a better interim manager.
Flagler Beach Commission Narrows Interim Choices to 3, Eliminating Cameron
The Flagler Beach City Commission this evening opted to narrow down a list of five candidates to three and pause before making a decision on hiring an interim manager to fill the seat of William Whitson, whom the commission fired last week.
Ex-County Administrator Cameron Has Been Lobbying for Flagler Beach Job Since Before Whitson’s Firing
Former Flagler County Administrator Jerry Cameron had conversations or meetings with four of the five Flagler Beach City Commission members about stepping into a job at the city well before City Manager William Whitson was fired last Thursday.
Deborah Phillips, Flagler Beach City Commission Candidate: The Live Interview
Deborah Phillips is one of five candidates for two seats on the Flagler Beach City Commission in the non-partisan municipal election that will be decided on March 7.
Scott Spradley, Flagler Beach City Commission Candidate: The Live Interview
Scott Spradley is one of five candidates for two seats on the Flagler Beach City Commission in the non-partisan municipal election that will be decided on March 7.
Bob Cunningham, Flagler Beach City Commission Candidate: The Live Interview
Bob Cunningham is one of five candidates for two seats on the Flagler Beach City Commission in the non-partisan municipal election that will be decided on March 7.
Doug Bruno O’Connor, Flagler Beach City Commission Candidate: The Live Interview
Doug Bruno O’Connor is one of five candidates for two seats on the Flagler Beach City Commission in the non-partisan municipal election that will be decided on March 7.
Rick Belhumeur, Flagler Beach City Commission Candidate: The Live Interview
Rick Belhumeur is one of five candidates for two seats on the Flagler Beach City Commission in the non-partisan municipal election will be decided on March 7.
Flagler Beach Commission Fires City Manager William Whitson After Withering Criticism
The Flagler Beach City Commission this evening fired City Manager William Whitson in a 4-1 vote, capping a rocky year and a withering night for the manager. The commission will choose an interim manager on Monday.
Judge Criticizes Low Bond and Denies Lowering it Further on 18-Year-Old in Flagler Beach Assaults
In a case that’s drawn outsized attention from the Flagler Beach community, Circuit Judge Terence Perkins denied lowering Gabriella Alo’s $18,500 bond on charges of running over a 29-year-old woman who’d come to the aid of a 15-year-old boy Alo and her brother are accused of beating up on jan. 11 at Wickline Park in Flagler Beach.
Lawyers to the Rescue: County Ratifies Agreement Clearing Historic Dunes Project in Flagler Beach
The Flagler County Commission this morning ratified the final agreement clearing the way for a historic dune-rebuilding project on 2.6 miles of shoreline in Flagler Beach, starting in April 2024–almost a quarter century after the federal government started considering the stretch for long-term safeguarding from erosion and rising seas.
In Major Shift, Flagler Beach Residents Appear to Favor Sea Walls, But Misconceptions Abound
A majority of Flagler Beach residents now appear to favor so-called secant sea walls, according to 58 responses gathered by FDOT and obtained by FlaglerLive. But that support rests on a fundamental misconception–that sea walls would not only protect State Road A1A behind them, but the beaches in front of them as well.
‘We Have a Deal’: Dune Hold-Out in Flagler Beach Concedes, Clearing Path to Renourishment
A property owner’s three-year stand-off with Flagler County that has delayed a long-promised beach renourishment in Flagler Beach is over. Cynthia d’Angiolini through her lawyer today agreed to sign a pair of easements, clearing the way for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ dune-rebuilding project–and ensuring that the south side of the city will finally get a major new protective buffer against rising seas.
Flagler Beach’s New Concrete Pier Will Be 10 Feet Higher to Account for Sea Rise and Violent Storms
Flagler Beach’s new, bigger, higher pier could be completed by the end of 2025 and will be designed to withstand the realities of more violent storms and rising seas, its designer told a large crowd at the Wickline Center Tuesday evening.
Sea Walls, Granite, Dunes: FDOT Options to Strengthen A1A Are Nothing Flagler Hasn’t Seen Before
Some 150 people, including numerous Flagler Beach and county officials, turned out to see the state Department of Transportation’s four options to more permanently strengthen State Road A1A, with sea walls taking precedence over dune rebuilding. But a combination of the four options is likely ahead.
Flagler Beach Rejects Realtor’s Odd Bid to Run City Information Website Only He Would Own
Increasingly troubled by a perceived if amorphous failure of communication between the city and residents, the Flagler Beach City Commission considered then rejected the possibility of contracting with a local Realtor to run a city-related website, then opted to develop a new Facebook page and launch a new app on Monday.
‘You’re Killing My Husband,’ Flagler Beach City Manager Whitson’s Wife Tells Commission
Becky Whitson, Flagler Beach City Manager William Whitson’s wife, publicly accused the city commission of tormenting and killing her husband. She spoke late this evening during a workshop on the city administration’s communications with the public, and on meeting the commission’s priorities.
Brother and Sister Face Several Felony Charges in Beating and Hit-and-Run at Wickline Park
Gabriella Hope Alo, 18, and her brother Nicholas Dean Alo, 21, face several felony charges stemming from an alleged beating of a teen-age boy, running over a 29-year-old woman and leaving the scene at Wickline Park in Flagler Beach last week.
In Bunnell, Rogers and Gordon and, Finally, Pete Young All Elected Without Opposition
Commissioner John Rogers was re-elected for his fifth term, uncontested for the first time. Incumbent Commissioner Tonya Gordon ran in the special election to fill the seat Bob Barnes vacated last year, what will be a two-year term.
Divided Flagler Beach Commission Will Require Inspections of Street Golf Carts Every 2 Years
A divided Flagler Beach City Commission agreed Thursday evening to change the frequency of required inspections of golf carts used as street vehicles from every year to every two years. Some commissioners and the mayor wanted only one inspection, and none after that. The city has a few hundred residents using golf carts as street vehicles.
Army Corps Must Redesign Entire Flagler Beach Dunes Project, ‘Substantially’ Delaying It Again
Because of years of delays and further erosion, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers must redesign the entire project to rebuild 2.6 miles of dunes on the critically eroded shoreline south of the Flagler Beach pier, now that the current design is out of date. That will further delay for at least a year or more a project 20 years in the works. Meanwhile, the coast continues to erode, threatening or damaging A1A.
One Term In, Flagler Beach Commissioner Ken Bryan Decides to Pull Out of Re-Election Run After All
Ken Bryan, a one term Flagler Beach city commissioner and currently the chairman of the panel, has decided not to seek re-election after all. His decision still leaves five candidates, including incumbent Deborah Phillips, running for the two seats in the March 7 election.
Rob Smith and Flagler Beach Take an Environmental Stewardship Award for ‘Big Blue,’ the Glass Recycling Crusher
Flagler Beach’s “Big Blue” recycling program, created by Sanitation Director Rob Smith, won the stewardship award from the Northeast Florida Regional Council.
DOT Will Seek Public Input on More Permanent Protection for A1A, But Options Are Limited
After two months of closed-door sessions involving state, federal and local officials on how to more permanently secure State Road A1A in Flagler and Volusia counties from storm damage and rising seas, the Florida Department of Transportation will seek public input in two sessions later this month–one in Flagler Beach, one in Volusia County, and present a half dozen options or so.
Gratitude on Christmas Eve
For long-time Flagler Beach attorney Scott Spradley, an image he took of the moon above the pier’s A frame not long ago provoked a range of feelings and emotions and led him to reflect on the meaning of gratitude even in an age of stresses and sorrows.
Yes, There May Be Hope in Breakthrough Over Dune Hold-Out, Attorney Seeks to Reassure County
Scott Spradley, the attorney Flagler County retained in a bankruptcy case against Cynthia d’Angiolini, the lone hold-out against a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers project to rebuild dunes in the city, sought to reassure county officials that she now has “incentive” to sign the necessary easements.
April Groundbreaking for 100-Room Margaritaville Hotel in Flagler Beach, With Opening in Fall of 2024
Large-scale construction for Flagler Beach’s 100-room Margaritaville Hotel in place of the former grounds of the farmer’s market will take place at the same time as the construction of a new pier and the dune-rebuilding project on 2.6 miles of beach.
Ending Green Lion Era, Palm Coast Readies to Sign 5-Year Lease With Loopers at Palm Harbor Golf Course
The Palm Coast City Council at a meeting Tuesday is set to approve a five-year lease with Loopers at Palm Harbor Golf Club, replacing the Green Lion after five years. Loopers is owned by Jamie Bourdeau, who has owned Beach Front Grille in Flagler Beach since 2014.
Flagler County Accuses Dune Hold-Out of ‘Bad Faith’ and ‘Abomination,’ and Wants Property Seized
Flagler County government is accusing the lone hold-out in a planned dune-rebuilding project along State Road A1A in Flagler Beach of “bad faith,” “fraud” and deception, and is asking a federal court to revoke her discharge from bankruptcy and enable the government to seize all but her homesteaded assets. Cynthia d’Angiolini, the 71-year-old property owner, today countered that “Flagler County is not a creditor in this case and has no standing.”
Flagler Beach Raises Water, Sewer, Garbage and Stormwater Costs $12 a Month for Average Household
A divided Flagler Beach City Commission voted 3-2 to raise the cost of all city-provided utilities–water, sewer and garbage–by 8.5 percent, to match inflation, and the stormwater fee by 42 percent.
Withering Criticism of Flagler Beach City Manager Divides City Commission Over Claims of Toxicity
Flagler Beach City Manager William Whitson got hit with yet another storm Thursday evening, this time from waves of witheringly critical residents, business owners and some members of his own commission who spoke of low morale, poor communications, lack of urgency on some projects, a “toxic work environment” and an instance of Whitson hanging up on a resident who was reporting a flooding issue. The criticism inevitably spread to commissioners by association.
What About Flagler Beach’s One Hold-Out Against Dune Fix? County Says December Deadline Will Be Met.
Almost three years after Flagler County sought property owners’ permission to start a dune rebuilding project on 2.6 miles of beach in Flagler Beach, and despite more recent ravages to the shore, one property owner is still holding out, but County Attorney Al Hadeed stresses that her permission will be secured by December 31 and the Corps project will be on by June.
State Transportation Department to Flagler Beach: Simply Rebuilding A1A Again Won’t Do
John Tyler, the Florida Department of Transportation’s District 5 secretary, told a special meeting of the Flagler Beach City Commission this evening that simply rebuilding A1A until the next storm won’t achieve a different result: it’ll be demolished again. DOT is creating a task force to devise a more durable solution, with all options on the table, including sea walls and moving A1A.
Flagler Beach City Election Already Shaping Into Most Contested In 19 Years, Signaling Disquiet
At least five, possibly six, candidates are running for the March 7 Flagler Beach City Commission election, including two incumbents. The number of candidates may be a reflection of unsettled times in Flagler Beach, with recent embarrassments still fresh and mounting challenges ahead.
Devastation on Flagler’s Coastline: Houses and Roadbeds Hanging on Sand Cliffs, Vanished Dunes, Yards Turned Beach
Flagler County generally survived Tropical Storm Nicole well. The coastline did not. Out of sight, it has been devastated even more than by Hurricane Ian, with houses left teetering on cliffs of sand, A1A’s roadbed left defenseless for most of its length, a dune system now entirely vanished the length of the county, and coastal residents left wondering why officials are not reacting. A documentation of the damage in photographs and video.
Nicole’s Damage to A1A ‘Much Worse’ Than Matthew, Over Longer Stretch; Parts of Flagler Beach Flood
An assessment of Tropical Storm Nicole’s damage of the shoreline from the north end of the county to South 25th Street in Flagler Beach left county officials disheartened at the flooding and the recurring destruction of State Road A1A, which is severe in many places and may require the road to be closed for weeks or months at least in one direction.
Nicole Lashes at Flagler’s Coast, Severely Damaging Parts of A1A as Officials Advise to ‘Hunker Down Today’
The 500-mile-wide Nicole made landfall as a hurricane near Vero Beach around 3 a.m. Thursday, battering Florida’s east coast with damaging waves that have wrecked parts of State Road A1A in Flagler Beach, while swathing parts of the state in tropical storm conditions.
Tropical Storm Nicole Took a Toll Along A1A Wednesday, With ‘Devastating’ Beach Impacts Still Ahead
The center of Tropical Storm Nicole was about 300 miles southeast of Flagler Beach in mid-afternoon today, but the vastness of its strength and impacts was apparent up and down Flagler County’s coast, with most pronounced damages to dunes south of the Flagler Beach pier and toward the Flagler-Volusia County line.
Tropical Storm Nicole Took a Toll Along A1A Wednesday, (Redirected)
The center of Tropical Storm Nicole was about 300 miles southeast of Flagler Beach in mid-afternoon today, but the vastness of its strength and impacts was apparent up and down Flagler County’s coast, with most pronounced damages to dunes south of the Flagler Beach pier and toward the Flagler-Volusia County line.
