Faith al-Khatib, for 18 years the Flagler County engineer and public works director repeatedly praised for securing millions in state and federal dollars for county projects, is suing the county for wrongful termination and retaliation, citing favoritism, illegal acts she refused to perform for the administration, and racism. Al-Khatib is of Palestinian extraction. It is the second lawsuit filed against the county by a former employee alleging discrimination in the past year.
Flagler County Commission
At ‘Monumental Groundbreaking’ for Beach-Rebuilding, Shovels of Praise, But Not a Word About Climate Change
Federal, state and local officials gathered at veterans Park in Flagler Beach under a broiling sun this morning for the groundbreaking of the $27 million beach-rebuilding project by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, a project 20 years in the making. Officials exchanged heaps of praise, but a principal reason behind the project–climate change–was left unspoken in a state where the words are now banned.
Historic Sweep: Flagler’s 5 Constitutionals Elected Without Opposition as Shelly Edmonson Wins Tax Collector’s Seat
Clerk of Court Tom Bexley, Tax Collector-Elect Edmonson, Property Appraiser Jay Gardner, Supervisor of Elections Kaiti Lenhart and Sheriff Rick Staly were elected without opposition today, the first time an entire slate of constitutionals managed the feat in memory. Edmonson will take over for Suzanne Johnston, who decided to retire after 20 years as the tax collector.
Amendment 5: I’m Homesteaded. I Don’t Need Another Perk To Deepen Inequalities and Hurt Local Governments.
A yes vote on Florida’s Amendment 5 on this November’s ballot means that every year, the second of two $25,000 exemptions will increase according to the previous year’s inflation rate. The indexing is not only unnecessary–the Save Our Homes cap on taxes already does that–but it’s another pander that will deepen disparities at the expense of local governments, businesses, renters and agricultural properties, all of whom will have to make up for lost revenue.
Humbling Flagler, DeSantis Vetoes Almost a Third of Local Projects, Including YMCA, Tourist Center, and All Bunnell’s Asks
Gov. Ron DeSantis on Wednesday signed a $116.5 billion budget for the upcoming fiscal year, after vetoing close to $950 million in spending approved by lawmakers in March. The vetoes include $46.52 million from what had been a record $151 million in appropriations for Flagler County, Palm Coast, Bunnell and Flagler Beach, a heavy loss that dampens earlier hopes for a big haul.
Beach Dredging and Rebuilding Project Will Take 4 Months, Not 9, and Flagler Beach Will Be Spared Detours
In a boon for a city besieged by construction, the contractor starting work on Flagler County’s first-ever beach-renourishment project within days informed Flagler Beach officials that the dredging will start at the south end of town and move north, will not use Veterans Park as an equipment staging area, and will not require traffic detours downtown, as had been previously planned.
In Sharp Retreat, Flagler Rejects Countywide Beach Tax to Focus on Barrier Island Only, and on Informing Public
A week after approving a plan in principle that would have imposed a new tax on almost all residents countywide to raise $7 million a year for beach protection, the Flagler County Commission today stepped back sharply from that plan, acknowledging that it had not done the necessary “outreach” to the public or to other local governments to ensure its success.
Sheriff: Increase School Board’s Cost Share of Campus Deputies to 60%, Lower County’s Share to 40%
The Flagler County Sheriff is recommending to the County Commission that the 50-50 cost share for school resource deputies, or SRDs, between the School Board and the County Commission be changed. Staly is recommending that the School Board shoulder 60 percent of the cost, adding $300,000 to the district’s budget, while lowering the county’s responsibility an equal amount.
Flagler County’s Beach Protection Tax: Right Idea. Wrong Execution.
The county has the right idea: we need a new tax to pay for expensive beach protection, or we’ll lose the beach. But the county’s execution is hurried, the plan is poorly thought-out, it is riddled with holes and inconsistencies, and it has included zero public participation and zero preparatory discussions with other governments. That’s a recipe for failure, deservedly so: the county is taking the public and its sister governments for granted, if not punting to the cities to do the heavy lifting.
‘It Can Happen Here’: Emergency Management Director Warns Against Hurricane Complacency in Flagler Ahead of Busy Season
There’s a dangerous myth in Flagler County, and the longer people have lived here, the more they start believing the myth, and spreading it: that Flagler County is immune to hurricanes. Jonathan Lord, Flagler County’s emergency management director, says ahead of what has been predicted to be the busiest hurricane season in memory that Flagler County is at risk of getting a direct hurricane hit, even a Category 5 hurricane, as any other coastal community in the state.