Prices remain high: $4.79 a gallon along guzzlers’ alley in Palm Coast–State Road 100’s Wawa, Shell, 7-11, Circle K and two RaceTracs, with Mobil the usual exception at 6 cents higher–and $4.85-a-gallon gas or higher at stations along Palm Coast Parkway. It still costs around $72 to $75 to fill up the average gas tank.
Flagler, Palm Coast & Other Local News
Ron DeSantis Weaponizes School Board Races with Ideological Survey
Among the questions for survey respondents: Whether they support “workforce education,” the Governor’s “increases in teacher compensation,” or the concept of students being “locked out of school or subject to forced masking.”
Juneteenth Is Not a Legal Holiday in Florida or in Most States
Long celebrated in the Black community as Freedom Day, Independence Day or Emancipation Day, Juneteenth is a time for get-togethers, picnics, concerts and reflection. Establishing federal and state legal Juneteenth holidays guarantees attention to painful United States history that is still unknown to many Americans, an annual assessment of racism in society, and celebrations of Black culture, history and achievement.
Flagler Unemployment Remains Below 3% as 530 More Residents Find Jobs
Flagler County added more than 600 people to its labor force, yet again breaking a record and grazing the 50,000 mark, out of a population of more than 115,000. The figures don’t distinguish between full time and part-time work.
Covid Outbreaks Hit 4 Flagler Nursing Homes as Infections Rise and DeSantis Derides ‘Jabs’ for Children
As covid infections from the Omicron-21 variant continue to rise in Flagler County, with significant outbreaks at four nursing homes, Gov. Ron DeSantis and his administration were issuing conflicting statements about ordering vaccines for children under 5. DeSantis and his administration aggressively derided the option on Thursday, then backtracked somewhat on Friday.
South Bunnell Is Focus of Big Volunteer Clean-Up Saturday as Part of City’s Outreach Efforts
The Bunnell Police Department is leading a volunteer drive to help residents of South Bunnell clean up yards and properties in a show of support and pride. The initiative was conceived by Bunnell Public Safety Officer Rommel Scalf and is led by Police Chief Dave Brannon.
Terrell Sampson Is 4th Arrested as Details of Rash Impulse Emerge in Smith and Hall Murders
Terrell Sampson is the last of the four men charged in the murders of 16-year-olds Noah Smith and Keymarion Hall earlier this year. The sum total of the investigations as detailed in arrest reports paints a picture of young men involved less in anything like organized gang behavior so much as idiotic, impulsive, juvenile acts of tit-for-tat belligerence and thoughtless retaliation, damning the consequences.
Flagler School Board Will Consider Arming Teachers and Staffers in Addition to Sheriff’s Deputies
After declining to arm teachers in the wake of the Parkland massacre in 2018, the Flagler school district’s position may be shifting. The School Board last week agreed to hold a workshop to discuss whether the district should join the “guardian” program–not as a replacement of the sheriff’s deputies, but in addition to it.
More States and Districts are Arming Teachers, But Research Is Lacking on Strategy’s Effectiveness
There is data on where and how armed personnel are used in school districts across the nation. There is less data on how effective that armed presence has been. That’s not a result of partisanship but simply a matter of fact: little systematic and peer-reviewed research has been carried out on the subject, and what little there is tends to lack the sort of rigor that can be the basis for sound conclusions one way or the other.
FPC’s Jack Petocz, Suspended in March, Is President Biden’s Guest at White House Signing of LGBTQ Order
Flagler Palm Coast High School senior Jack Petocz was among President Biden’s guests today at a White House Pride event and signing of an executive order extending protections to LGBTQ+ people. Petocz caught the White House’s attention after leading a walkout at FPOC to protest a new law discriminating against LGBTQ people. He was suspended for three days after the walkout.
Flagler Palm Coast High School Student Michael Baskin’s Design Wins Scenic A1A Logo Contest
Flagler Palm Coast High School student Michael Baskin’s digital art design was selected from more than 20 submissions for the contest. The design will be sent to the Florida Department of Transportation for review and installation at strategic locations along the A1A Scenic & Historic Coastal Byway.
Another Cell Tower Plan Near Palm Harbor Golf Has Palm Coast Council Fearful of Public Reaction
The Palm Coast City Council is set to approve leases for two new cell towers–one off Royal Palms Parkway in Town center, one off Club House Drive, near the Palm Harbor Golf Course. But the Club House Drive tower is controversial, as was a similar proposal for a tower within the golf club in late 2020. Public opposition defeated that proposal. The council is worried about a replay.
3 Months in Jail for Travis Smith, Who’d Drunkenly Assaulted and Spat on Lyft Driver
Travis Schriever Smith, the 38-year-old Palm Coast resident a jury in May found guilty of assaulting a Lyft driver in his car and by the side of a road in 2020, was sentenced to three months in jail and six months on probation today by Circuit Judge Terence Perkins. The jury had acquitted him of a felony burglary charge that could have exposed Smith to prison time.
3 Arrested, 4th Sought in Murders of Noah Smith and Keymarion Hall by ‘Wannabe Badasses’
In a major break in two related murder cases, Flagler County Sheriff Rick Staly today announced the arrests of three of four individuals in the shooting deaths earlier this year of Noah Smith and Keymarion Hall, both 16, both in South Bunnell, both in drivebys resulting from a simmering feud between wannabe gangs in Bunnell and Palm Coast.
As Sheriff Staly Asks for 10 More Deputies from City and County, Alfin Floats Impact Fee Budget Model
Sheriff Rick Staly is asking for 10 more deputies from Palm Coast and the county and renewed focus on better salaries. Palm Coast Mayor David Alfin is proposing to shift law enforcement budgeting to an impact fee model, thus having new development shoulder a substantial part of the cost.
Arrested for Driving School Bus Severely Drunk, He’s Back in Jail for Showing Up to Court Drunk
Mark McNeill, 60, was arrested in February for driving severely drunk with 40 Buddy Taylor Middle School students aboard. He appeared before a judge on Monday for a plea deal. He was drunk. The judge sent him back to jail. The plea deal is in doubt.
Larry Cavallaro, 75, Says He’s Guilty of Raping Flagler Woman, But Evades Prison Time in Plea
Larry Cavallaro, 75, a former gallery owner in Flagler Beach, pleaded guilty today to raping a woman at his home in Beverly Beach in December 2017, but was sentenced only to two years’ house arrest and eight years of sex offender probation.
Still a Dime Short in Flagler and Florida, $5-a-Gallon Gas Swills Over 21 States
Share prices on Wall Street continued to tumble today, entering bear-market territory, meaning that share prices have lost 20 percent of their value since January, with one notable exception: Big Oil.
Flagler Pride: Local LGBTQ+ Community Celebrates Itself, with Activism, Avowals and 2 Mayors
The third annual Flagler Pride weekend held at Palm Coast’s Town Center and in Flagler Beach this weekend drew some 500 participants, featured musicians, comedians and a belly dancer on Saturday, a vigil on Sunday, and two mayors along the way–Palm Coast’s David Alfin and Flagler Beach’s Suzie Johnston–reflecting Flagler Pride’s growing local imprint and embrace.
Armed Car Jacker Who Stole Pick-Up in Daytona Beach Is Chased in P-Section, and Apprehended
An alleged car-jacker who’d stolen a work truck in Daytona Beach before dawn was apprehended after a two-hour search in Palm Coast’s P-Section, including the assistance of an emergency helicopter.
In Major Shake-Up, Bossardet Is New FPC Principal, Peacock to Wadsworth, LaShakia Moore is Deputy Superintendent
The district insisted the two former assistant superintendents, Bobby Bossardet and Paul Peacock, were not being demoted back to principalships, a claim that was far more credible regarding Bossardet taking over FPC than it was about Peacock, who is taking over Wadsworth Elementary School and whose tenure at the district had been problematic.
For Emma Stanford, an Odyssey on Behalf of K-9s Leads to Bill-Signing in Bunnell With Gov. DeSantis
Emma Stanford, 14, a Flagler County resident, has been advocating and fund-raising for local sheriff’s K-9 units for years. Today, she stood alongside Gov. Ron DeSantis at the signing of a bill at the Flagler County courthouse that will ensure the payment of medical expenses for retired K9s across the state.
Flagler Beach Kills Fireworks on July 4 Over Dissatisfaction With Vendor and Contract Changes
The Flagler Beach City Commission Thursday evening finally and irrevocably killed this year’s July 4 fireworks after further dissatisfaction with both the fireworks vendor and the administration’s handling of the matter, which means it’ll be the third year in a row that the pier will be dark the night of Independence Day.
In Flagler, Red-Flag Law and Therapy Dogs Begin to Impact Response to Domestic Violence and Other Crimes
Flagler County Sheriff Rick Staly hosted the latest domestic violence summit today at the Hilton garden Inn, where much of the discussion centered on changes that have taken place since 2016, and more especially since 2018: how the so-called red-flag law now plays a role in the gravest domestic violence cases, and how therapy dogs can be the difference between a witness cooperating, or opening up, and not.
Expect Lane Closures on SR100 as Work Crews Install Beams on Future Pedestrian Bridge
A new phase of construction for the soon-to-be pedestrian bridge that will cross over State Road 100 began today (June 9) as crews, using a crane, installed the first of several colossal, concrete beams across the roadway. The beams are being trucked in on oversize trucks.
Flagler Beach Mayor Declines to Sign Fireworks Contract, Citing Unapproved Cost and Shorter Show
Flagler Beach Mayor Suzie Johnston said she is not signing the city’s fireworks contract with a pyrotechnics producer, at least not until the city commission reviews them, because the commission had not approved the extra $1,000 cost and a diminution of the show’s length to 17 minutes, from 20. it is is yet another delay from yet another unexpected twist in what has been a drudging effort to secure a July 4 fireworks for the city.
A 45-Year-Old Woman Is Killed in 2-Vehicle Crash at U.S. 1 and Whiteview Parkway
A 45-year-old Palm Coast woman was killed Wednesday evening in a t-bone crash at the intersection of U.S. 1 and Whiteview Parkway. The crash resulted in the 16th fatality of the year on Flagler roads.
State Road 100 Will Be Repaved, Have New Sidewalks and Additional Crossing Points
The Florida Department of Transportation plan s a $11.6 million upgrade of State Road 100–or East Moody Boulevard–from just east of Old Kings Road and I-95 in Palm Coast to the edge of central Bunnell to the west, a 4.55-mile project starting in the fall of 2023.
Anti-Alabama Slurs Aside, Palm Coast Council Clears 251-Apartment Complex in Town Center
The Palm Coast City Council on a 4-1 vote approved the 251-unit Wilton apartment complex off Brookhaven Drive, but not before Council member Eddie Branquinho repeatedly took on the project’s Alabama-based investors, asking openly whether the council was “on the side of Alabama” or on that of Palm Coast residents.
The Live Profile | Raise High the Roof Beam: Kyle Berryhill Is Palm Coast’s New Fire Chief
Kyle Berryhill, 42, was named Palm Coast’s next fire chief when Jerry Forte officially retires on Oct. 14, though Berryhill has been gradually taking the reins for months. It is the culmination of a career that started in 2005 with his first job as a firefighter-EMT in Palm Coast, and that’s been defined by a combination of command and humility both as a union leader and a manager.
District Readied to Open Summer School Without Deputies. Sheriff ‘Wasn’t Going to Tolerate It.’
Sheriff Rick Staly said the Flagler district prepared to open summer school at Rymfire Elementary with 350 students and no deputy requested. Livid at the possibility in light of the most recent school shooting, he ordered that a school resource deputy be dispatched to the school regardless, and told the district he’d be billing it regardless. The district has since conceded the point.
15 Years in Prison for Angelo Antolino, 31, for Killing Indiana Kerns, 59, in Drunk Driving Crash
Angelo Antolino, a 31-year-old resident of Commerce Avenue in Deltona, was sentenced to 15 years in prison today for the death of Indiana Kerns, 59, in a head-on crash caused by Antolino’s drunk driving on U.S. 1 early the morning of April 1, 2020.
How Mud Muckers in West Flagler Bogged Down in Its Own Lawsuit and Wetlands Violations, and Lost
Mud Muckers for many years operated as a huge ATV park southwest of Bunnell, until it was found to be violating wetlands rules and required to move. Mud Muckers sued its landlord, and today lost its final appeal, four years after it said–inaccurately–that it had been unceremoniously shut down.
The Gardens, Now Veranda Bay, Clears Last Hurdle Before Construction of First 56 of 334 Homes
After innumerable public, regulatory and legal hurdles, including a lawsuit, Veranda Bay today won with another key vote from the Flagler County Commission–an almost-routine 5-0 vote this time approving the final plat for the first 56 lots of a development that’ll eventually number 334 homes.
Judge Won’t Revoke or Reduce $500,000 Bond on 16-Year-old Damari Barnes After Jail Incident
Damari Barnes is being held on $500,000 bond in the shooting death of 19-year-old Jamey Bennett. The prosecution wanted his bond revoked following an jail incident in which Barnes allegedly attacked another inmate and forced him to drink urine. The defense wanted the bond reduced to $100,000, so Barnes could go home. The judge denied both.
Flagler and Florida Gas Prices Hit New High, Relief Not Yet in Sight
In Palm Coast on Monday, regular gas was selling for $4.72 to $4.76 at gas stations on State Road 100 and Palm Coast Parkway, with the lowest reported price in the region at the Hess station on U.S. 1 south of Korona, where it was selling for $4.65.
‘Our Democracy Is At Risk’: FPC’s Jack Petocz’s Winning Essay in ACLU Contest
Jack Petocz, who will be a senior at Flagler Palm Coast High School next fall, won First Place in the ACLU of Florida Volusia/Flagler Chapter’s first Annual “Cary Ragsdale Future Voter’s Essay Contest.” The award carries a $500 prize underwritten by FlaglerLive, and publication of the essay here.
Tropical Storm Almost-Alex: No Direct Impacts for Flagler, But a Good Reminder to Prepare
While Flagler County’s Emergency Operations Center staff is keeping an eye on the storm, Emergency Management Chief Jonathan Lord says Flagler will see some wind and up to a quarter to half an inch of rain Saturday, but little else from the storm soon to be called Alex.
Mask-Up Again: Covid Patients Up to 13 at Hospital, Flagler Positivity Rate Above 21% as Cases Rise
Covid cases have increased for the 10th straight week in Florida, to just under 72,000 as of May 27, and have also increased in Flagler County, to 270 this week, up from 219 the week before, according to the Flagler County Health Department. The county’s positivity rate was 21.3 percent. Flagler is averaging 26 new cases per day. But there are glimmers that the surge is leveling off.
14-Year-Old Palm Coast Boy Arrested in Connection With Armed Robbery at Carver Gym
14-year-old Lawrence Fulmore was arrested and charged in the alleged armed robbery of a man sitting outside Bunnell’s Carver Gym on May 26. Detectives had arrested Keyshawn Davis, 19, of Bunnell, last week. The alleged victim had reported being held up by two individuals.
Bunnell’s Long-Awaited Commerce Parkway Survives Veto, as Does Barrier Island Sewer Project, But Not Ag Museum
Gov. Ron DeSantis issued $3.13 billion in vetoes Thursday as he signed a record $109.9 billion budget for the fiscal year that will begin July 1. For Bunnell, the $6.8 million allocated for long-awaited Commerce Parkway survived, as did an $8 million allocation for the barrier island’s septic-to-sewer project.
Travis Smith, Convicted in Lyft Driver Attack, Wants a New Trial and to Be Let Out of Jail
Travis Smith, the 38-year-old Palm Coast resident convicted of battery by a jury last week for attacking a Lyft driver, has filed for a new trial. Smith is challenging the jury’s findings. He has also filed a motion to get out of jail, challenging the judge’s decision to revoke his $5,000 bond immediately after the May 25 verdict.
Yet Another Felony Charge for Moultrie as He Awaits Trials on Rape and Murder Accusations
Kwentel Moultrie was charged with assaulting another inmate, adding a third-degree felony to a rap sheet that also includes a first-degree felony rape charge and a life-felony murder charge from separate incidents.
‘Shocking’ Ages: 4 Children, Youngest 12, Arrested on Felony Theft and Burglary After Joyride
Four Palm Coast children–12, 14, 15 and 17–with the 15 year old at the wheel, were arrested at gunpoint after allegedly stealing a Palm Coast resident’s car and joyriding through Flagler Beach and Palm Coast.
Bunnell City Commission Recognizes Matanzas Senior and Gold Award Winner Kadance Nickmeyer
The Bunnell City Commission last week formally recognized Kadance Nickmeyer, the Matanzas High School junior who won an essay contest sponsored by the Flagler County Sheriff’s Office and the Girl Scouts’ highest award for a domestic-violence initiative she launched.
“Be Prepared to Be Off the Grid”: Flagler Emergency Management Chief Decodes Hurricane Season
Flagler County Emergency Management Chief Jonathan Lord today prefaced the 2022 hurricane season, with 14 to 21 storms predicted, six to 10 of them expected to become hurricanes. There are some worrisome weather factors in play, but also improvements in preparation and infrastructure.
Person Killed in T-Bone Crash at Cody’s Corner, Where DOT Renounced Building Roundabout
A 32-year-old woman was killed in a two-vehicle, t-bone crash at the intersection of State Road 11 and County Road 304, also known as Cody’s Corner, south of Bunnell this afternoon.
Flagler 3rd Graders’ Reading Scores Fall Again, to Lowest Level in 7 Years, Yet Rank 12th in State
The percentage of Flagler County 3rd graders achieving a reading level of 3 (out of 5) or above–that is, reading at a satisfactory level–fell to 58 percent, the lowest level in at least seven years of comparable testing results, and down from last year’s 59 percent. Scores had peaked at 69 percent in 2017 and 68 percent in 2019, the year before the pandemic.
Another Unprovoked Attack at a Local Business Lands 35-Year-Old Palm Coast Man in Jail
Dustin M. Patrick, a 35-year-old resident of Breeze Hill Lane in Palm Coast, was booked at the Flagler County jail on a felony child abuse charge after allegedly attacking a teen employee Friday at Red Crab in Palm Coast. It was the second unprovoked attack by a stranger against another in six days at different Palm Coast businesses, in front of others.
Gas Prices Ease Off By a Few Pennies in Palm Coast But Oil Prices Again Rise Sharply on Embargo News
Prices had eased off somewhat in Palm Coast and Flagler County on Tuesday, but announced new sanctions on Russian oil sent oil prices sharply higher, matching the year’s record and portending further higher prices for gas ahead.