The audit of the July 27 special election for Palm Coast mayor showed 100 percent accuracy, though partisans of Alan Lowe, one of the losing candidates, have continued to make baseless allegations of irregularities.
Flagler, Palm Coast & Other Local News
Back from Boys’ Camp, Palm Coast Council Adopts Tentative Tax Rate, But Policing Budget Is Contested
The Palm Coast City Council on Tuesday broke its impasse over a tentative tax rate, approving what for now is the same rate that’s been in effect since 2019, with council members’ pledge to look for ways to reduce it. But that may be difficult with a slew of competing demands in services, including additional sheriff’s deputies, street paving, and other administrative requests.
David Alfin, Making a Point of Facing the Public on a Level Plane, Is Sworn-In as Palm Coast’s 4th Mayor
David Alfin was sworn-in as Palm Coast’s fourth mayor this evening in a simple ceremony and a well-attended meeting in which he made a point of defining his tenure as a service to residents, but also as a mission to bring civility and consensus to a sharply divided council. There was pointed symbolism and a few pointed remarks during the meeting.
James Harris of Jimmy’s Hang 10 Will Remain in Jail Pending Trial as Judge Denies Motion for Bond
Circuit Judge Terence Perkins this afternoon denied a motion by James Harris’s attorney to release Harris from jail, on bond, pending trial on three charges of molestation involving his stepdaughter over what she says is a period of five years. She is 14. Harris is the 61-year-old owner of Jimmy’s Hang 10, the Flagler Beach restaurant, who was arrested on July 2.
Florida Covid Hospital Rate Tops the Nation, Taking Up 22% of All In-Patient Beds; ICU Occupancy at 86%
As of Monday, 11,863 inpatient beds in Florida were being used by Covid-19 patients, about 22 percent of all inpatient beds in the state, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services data show. No other state had as high of a utilization rate. The number of in-patients at AdventHealth Palm Coast on Monday was 80, more than double the January peak.
In ‘Baffling’ Votes, County Commission Rejects More Probing Meeting Schedule It Had Adopted Just 3 Weeks Ago
Not big on hard work: County Commissioners Dave Sullivan, Joe Mullins, Donald O’Brien and Greg Hansen aren’t interested in pre-scheduled workshops to vet and discuss county business, as Palm Coast and the school board do, and as Commissioner Andy Dance was recommending. After agreeing to such a schedule just three weeks ago, the commission, with Dance in dissent, rejected it on Monday.
Flagler Health Department Chief Bob Snyder Reveals He Was a ‘Breakthrough’ Covid Case, But Vaccine Kept Symptoms Mild
Bob Snyder, the Flagler Health Department chief, had managed to make it through a year and a half of the pandemic’s most viral trenches unscathed, even when he was unvaccinated for two-thirds of that time.
Today, Snyder revealed he was among the “breakthrough” cases, contracting the delta variant recently despite his January vaccination. The infection barely sidelined him.
Ahead of Its Planned Hospital on U.S. 1, Flagler Health+ Joins Palm Coast United Methodist in Health Village and Church Campus
Flagler Health+ and Palm Coast United Methodist Church celebrated the groundbreaking expansion of each institution on July 27 in North Palm Coast as Flagler Health+ openly competes with AdventHealth and the church will build a “North Campus” to reach more youth.
80 Hospitalized for Covid at AdventHealth Palm Coast as Infections in Flagler Continue to Soar: 900 in Last 7 Days
As many Flagler County residents got infected in the past seven days as did the total number of Flagler residents did in the first seven months of the pandemic last year, from January to Aug. 1, 2020. Two Flagler County commissioners today joined a very small number of elected officials who are asking residents explicitly to mask up and to get vaccinated, as the county’s vaccination rate remains below 50 percent.
A Man Is Killed in 2-Car Crash on Royal Palms Parkway at Point Pleasant Drive
A two-vehicle crash just past midday at Royal Palms Parkway and Point Pleasant Drive in Palm Coast resulted in the death of one of the drivers, according to authorities. The Palm Coast Fire Police shut down Royal Palms Parkway at Belle Terre Parkway to the west and Town Center Boulevard to the east.
Palm Coast Councilman Victor Barbosa Hospitalized with Covid 2 Days After Election Party
Victor Barbosa, the Palm Coast City Council member, announced in a terse Facebook post: “3 day in the hospital fighting covid and pneumonia.” Two days before his hospitalization he was at an election-night party for Alan Lowe where someone described him as “pretty wore out,” and where no one was masked.
Palm Coast Survives Its Own Big Lies. For Now.
The big lies lost. But Palm Coast isn’t out of the woods. Alan Lowe may have been rejected by 73 percent of the electorate, but David Alfin’s 36 percent win, with less than 10 percent of the actual electorate, is hardly a rousing victory for a campaign that won more by default than acclamation, with incendiaries like Ed Danko and Victor Barbosa still on the council.
Crisis at the Border: Sheriff Staly’s On-the-Ground Report on a ‘Failed Immigration Policy’ Affecting All Communities
Earlier this month Flagler County Sheriff Rick Staly took part in a fact-finding trip along the Texas side of the border with Mexico with several other law enforcement officials and U.S. Rep. Kat Cammack, R-Fla. “The border crisis,” he argues, “is coming to you whether you like it or not.”
Flagler Beach Mayor Suzie Johnston Is 1st County or City Elected Official To Call for Vaccines and Masks
The mayor was acting on her own, representing herself rather than the city of Flagler Beach. The statement was issued within hours of Gov. Ron DeSantis issuing an executive order banning masking requirements in public schools, and as he has continued to counter efforts by communities to institute more restrictive safety measures in the face of Florida’s (and Flagler’s ) unprecedented surge in covid cases.
An Uneventful Canvassing Board Meeting Pores Over 81 Provisional Ballots in the Palm Coast Election
The Palm Coast Canvassing Board had a quiet and uneventful session today, poring over 81 ballots that had to be judged valid or not. The absence of Alan Lowe partisans suggests their vague claims of a contestable election was nothing more than that.
Shrugging Off Science, Physicians’ Pleas and Overrun Hospitals, DeSantis Bans Mask Requirements in Schools
Gov. Ron DeSantis said Friday he will issue an executive order to prohibit school districts from imposing mask-wearing requirements as students return to classes in August. The order contradicts the recommendations of physicians, public health officials and the CDC and is issued as Florida is again the epicenter of the covid pandemic and its hospitals are being overrun.
‘Absolutely’: Health Chief Calls for Masks in Flagler Schools as AdventHealth Goes to Unprecedented ‘Black Status’
Flagler County Health Department Administrator Bob Snyder on Thursday said that whether vaccinated or not, students indoors should be wearing masks. Snyder’s unequivocal declaration stresses similar recommendations by the Centers for Disease Control, the American Academy of Pediatrics, and physicians at AdventHealth.
Covid Breaks Flagler Infection Records Daily, Filling Half Advent’s Beds; Community and Local Governments Are Indifferent
While the Flagler Health Department and AdventHealth Palm Coast are overrun with Covid cases and in-patients, local governments have gone silent, indifferent to the worst wave of the pandemic yet, making a mockery of their claim of a “partnership” with the Health Department or the hospital and amplifying community apathy that multiplies infections.
63-Year-Old Palm Coast Man Dies in 2-Vehicle Crash at West Hampton Drive and Pine Lakes Parkway
A 63-year-old Palm Coast resident died in a two-vehicle car crash at West Hampton Drive and Pine Lakes Parkway just past 3 p.m. Wednesday, according to the Florida Highway Patrol. The death, however, appears to have been the result of a heart attack.
17 Cats and Dogs Rescued from Near-Death in U-Haul Truck; Two Owners Face Animal Cruelty Charges
Jason Donellan-Sparks, 29, and Shawna Doud, 23, were traveling in a U-Haul from Tennessee when they parked in Palm Coast Wednesday morning and a witness noticed the condition of the animals in back of the truck, alerting sheriff’s deputies.
Seminole Woods Man, 26, Arrested on Aggravated Domestic Violence Charge After Beating and Terrorizing Mom
Oleksandr Podolskyy, a 26-year-old resident of Seminole Woods in Palm Coast, is at the Flagler County jail on two felony counts, including aggravated domestic assault, following a violent ordeal through which he allegedly humiliated, threatened and repeatedly beat his mother, days after firing off weapons in his yard.
Hours After Palm Coast Voting Ends, Conspiratorial Lowe Mutters and Weird Requests to Elections Office Begin
There have been no direct challenges to the election result that saw David Alfin beat Alan Lowe and four others, but a request for a “forensic audit” of the election and a vast public record request for information about anyone and everyone involved in the supervisor of election’s running of the election have been filed, suggesting more noise than reason.
Year-Long Cabal of Claims Against Holland Comes Down to Wrist-Slap Over 2 Errant Emails as Ethics Commission Rules
A 15-month drumbeat of sound and fury over allegations of corruption, cover-ups, cabals and criminal acts, a drumbeat that influenced two elections, a city manager’s career and the mayor’s own, among others, tarnishing the reputation of a leading private company in the county, came down to a minor rebuke over an email misuse Holland long ago acknowledged and apologized for. Nothing else.
Center Holds: David Alfin Is Palm Coast’s New Mayor as Voters Decisively Spurn Lowe and Politics of Abuse
Realtor David Alfin was elected Palm Coast’s fourth mayor this evening in a relatively strong win over five other candidates. Fellow-Realtor Cornelia Manfre and Alan Lowe were trading places for second. Alfin’s victory paired with Manfre’s showing is a decisive repudiation of scorched-earth politics represented by Alan Lowe and Council member Ed danko, who’d made his political fortune synonymous with Lowe’s campaign.
In Shift, Flagler Schools Embrace Rapid Covid Tests for Students and Staff as Back-to-School Protocols Are Released
The Health Department revealed the free, off-campus rapid-testing option for students and staff today as the district itself published its new, 2021-22 school covid protocols, a four-page guide updating last year’s safety procedures. In contrast with conditions in the community, the protocols reflect a pronounced push for normalcy, as if Covid were no longer a serious problem.
Tina-Marie Schultz and Robert Barnes Appointed to Bunnell City Commission for Next 8 Months
The Bunnell City Commission Monday evening appointed Robert Barnes and Tina-Marie Schultz to the commission for the next eight months to complete the terms of two commissioners, Bill Baxley and Donnie Nobles, who resigned in quick succession earlier this month.
Same Suicidal Teen Who Teetered on Palm Coast Parkway Overpass in June Tries Again, and Is Again Stopped
The 17-year-old girl who caught Palm Coast’s attention on June 20 when she walked outside the grille of the Palm Coast Parkway overpass above I-95 and threatened to jump was again on the overpass just past noon today, and was again rescued by firefighters and law enforcement after a 45-minute ordeal.
Flagler Records 99 Covid Infections Sunday, County Jail Outbreak Hits 37, AdventHealth Palm Coast Has 45 Hospitalized
The numbers across the community continue to point toward more gravity than relief, with infections still on the upswing, with few people and fewer organizations–including governments–returning to safety protocols essential to slowing the spread, such as masking and social distancing.
No Plans for Mandatory Masks in Flagler Schools as DeSantis Fights Possible Federal Mandate
Children under 12 are not yet eligible to be vaccinated, making them more vulnerable for infection–and transmission to adults, but DeSantis is fighting any mask mandate in schools and Flagler schools are not changing course from a mask-optional approach when school resumes on Aug. 10.
Flagler Breaks Weekly Record with 400 Covid Infections, Florida Deaths on Rise Again
Flagler County recorded 400 covid infections in the week ending Friday, breaking the previous weekly record set in January, and filling hospital beds as never before during the pandemic. The week’s increase represents a 346 percent increase over averages two weeks ago.
The Sleaziest Generation
This fourth wave of covid is ravaging the state. It was entirely preventable but for glib, “don’t Fauci my Florida” recklessness and the militancy, disinformation and poisonous selfishness of the unvaccinated. This is on them.
As Flagler Beach Grapples with Tawdry Pro-Trump Gatherings, City’s Wink to Surveillance Cameras Raises Questions
The weekly pro-Trump demonstrations featuring profane language in the heart of Flagler Beach has city commissioners concerned about the city’s image and the administration and police eying surveillance cameras they insist will not target the demonstrators, but be used as a tool in case of criminal activity. Others see a Pandora’s box.
Bunnell Commission Draws 7 Applicants for 2 Vacant Seats, But One Withdraws as County Invokes ‘Conflict’ Policy
The applicants for the two vacant seats on the Bunnell City Commission include two former commissioners, a planning board member, a former candidate for the commission and code enforcement board member, and an employee of county government’s emergency management division. The commission makes the appointments Monday.
Jamal Nejame, Ex-Flagler Beach Candidate, Arrested on Felony Charge of Shooting Into House With Children
Jamal K. Nejame, 72, a three-time candidate for mayor and city commission in Flagler Beach, where he was known as Jamie, was arrested on a felony charge of shooting into a dwelling. It is the third time Nejame has been charged criminally in Flagler in the last 12 years.
Palm Coast Will Close Parts of the Splash Pad at Holland Park as Rubber Surface Has Deteriorated
Filtering issues had hampered the initial opening of the $5.1 million pad. In mid-June, what appeared to be electrical issues later traced to a software problem developed, forcing the pad to close for a few days. There’s been other issues. The pad closed again today as cracks were detected in the soft padding.
Flagler Beach Swiftly Approves 240 Apartments and 112 Houses on Roberts Road, a Contrast With Gardens Brawl
The 240 apartments in eight buildings on one side of Roberts Road near Wadsworth Park and 112 single-family houses on the other have gained the Flagler Beach City Commission’s approval with hardly a peep from the public, while The Gardens and its planned 335 houses not far off, remains mired in a court battle.
Record Covid Surge in Flagler and at Hospital as Variant Slams Unvaccinated, Cleaving Community in 2 Camps
Palm Coast hospitalizations for covid broke a record Tuesday, with 32 people hospitalized (six in intensive care), and broke the record again yesterday, with 37, all among the unvaccinated, while Flagler County is recording an average of 52 new infections a day, with schools reopening in three weeks.
Palm Coast Utility’s Bond Rating Upgraded to AA-, Second Agency to Boost Indicator in 6 Months
Credit ratings play a key role in a local government’s ability to secure lower interest loans, or to refinance existing loans accordingly. They also signal a level of financial soundness that can sometimes get lost in the din of political rhetoric and misinformation about “debt,” especially in Palm Coast.
AdventHealth Signs Exclusive Marketing Deal in Flagler Schools in Exchange for Athletic, Flagship and Mental Health Services
The unprecedented marketing agreement gives AdventHealth broad visibility on all school campuses in exchange for underwriting athletic trainer services, physicals, some meantal health services and the district’s health-related flagship programs.
17-Year-Old Lifeguard in Flagler Beach Is Seriously Injured in Diving Accident While Training
A 17-year-old lifeguard was seriously injured during training on the beach around 2nd Street South in Flagler Beach Monday morning, injuring his spine. The lifeguards were practicing dolphin dives into the surf, running in from the beach, a routine exercise.
Palm Coast Mayor Branquinho’s Sarcasm Misfires, and Conspiracist Opponents Have a Field Day
Palm Coast Mayor Eddie Branquinho’s sarcasm can be difficult to detect behind a Portuguese accent. When he used it today to ridicule a fellow-council member’s bogus claims, opponents took it as an opportunity to deflect from the lie and attack Branquinho instead.
Fact-Check: At Palm Coast Mayoral Forum, 6 Candidates Hide Inexperience in Generalities, One Just Tells Lies
Helped by safe, general questions, the News-Journal forum at no point resembled the mud wrestling matches that the Palm Coast City Council meetings they want to arbitrate have become. But the six candidates revealed their personalities, their sincerity, their deep lack of familiarity with the job–or their contempt for fact or truth.
In Unprecedented Gridlock, Palm Coast Council Can’t Even Agree to Tentative Tax Rate, Skirting Legal Violation
The Palm Coast City Council was required today merely to set a tentative tax rate for next year, a routine step. It could lower the rate at will over the next few weeks. An ideological brawl prevented a vote, deferring the decision to August and effectively preventing the administration from refining the budget until then.
Milissa Holland’s Daughter Responds to Danko’s Fabrications: Stop Bringing My Family Into This Immaturity
“I am 25 years old and the amount of immaturity displayed in this campaign is embarrassing,” writes Tori Holman, former Mayor Milissa Holland’s daughter. “To Mr. Danko and his detractors, Stop bringing my family into this mess to try to boost your votes. Stop bringing my family into this at all. To the rest of you, thank you.”
Palm Coast at a Crossroad: Assassins of Civility or Governance
Ed Danko and Victor Barbosa since their election have turned the Palm Coast council into an embarrassment. The two are vying for a third vote in Alan Lowe and the mayor’s seat. That potential majority risks turning the city into a mirror of the toxic trio.
Palm Coast Council Defers Decision on Commercial Vehicles in Driveways to Next Mayor, Who’ll Break Deadlock
The Palm Coast City Council is split 2-2 on allowing commercial vehicles to park in driveways uncovered, in what has turned into one of the more contentious code enforcement matters on the council’s agenda. Council members Ed Danko and Victor Barbosa want the rule relaxed, Mayor Eddie Branquinho and Council member Nick Klufas are opposed.
Flagler’s Unemployment Rate Jumps a Full Percentage Point, to 6%, as Florida’s Only Ticks Up by Decimal
Flagler County’s unemployment rate jumped by a full percentage point in June, to 6 percent, from a revised 5 percent in May, reaching its highest level since August 2020. The rise appears to be a direct result of an economy unable to keep up with the return of people to the workforce.
For Palm Coast Little League, Years of Advocacy Culminate with Hosting State Championship, and a DeSantis 1st Pitch
Palm Coast Little League this weekend marked its 20th anniversary by hosting the state championship, featuring a first pitch by Gov. Ron DeSantis. Hosting the tournament is a remarkable turn-around from a time a decade ago when Little League and the city were at loggerheads. The relationship turned around several years ago, and has flourished since, culminating with the championship event.
Early Voting Begins in Election for Palm Coast Mayor, Shifting Contest’s Virulence to Voters’ Judgment
Early voting started today (July 17) in the special election for Palm Coast mayor, continuing until July 24. In-person Election Day is on July 27, when, based on recent-year elections, only a minority of voters will actually cast a ballot. By then, most will have voted either by mail or in early voting. That’s been the case even in recent elections pre-dating the pandemic.
Contrary to Viral Posts, Head Injury to 13-Year-Old Boy in Palm Coast’s R-Section Attributed to a Fall
A social media post that went viral about a 13-year-old boy getting severely hurt near Rymfire Elementary Friday was traced to an injury to Jacob D. Pelton, a resident of Palm Coast’s P Section, who told authorities he fell off his bike, but in murky circumstances.