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.
Flagler
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.
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.
Flagler County Airport Will Restrict Operations in May and Close For a Few Days in June to Accommodate Runway Work
A full closure at the Flagler Executive Airport will be required from 7 a.m. Friday, June 4 to no later than 7 p.m. Monday, June 7. The scope of work for this phase includes milling, paving, and airfield electrical work within the intersection of Runway 11-29 and Runway 6-24.
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.
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.
‘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.
Fire Rescue, Emergency Management and Growth Management Departments Hold Open House June 17
The open-house style event scheduled from 6 to 8 p.m. June 17 at the Hidden Trails Community Center in Daytona North will provide information about the various programs and services available to residents.
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.
‘Warehouse’ or ‘Marina’? Battle Lines Are Drawn Again Over Dry Boat-Storage Facility Along Scenic A1A
A developer wants to turn an old boat-manufacturing facility into dry storage for 240 boats along with a restaurant on 4.3 acres next to Hammock Hardware. He calls it a “marina.” The Hammock Community Association calls it a warehouse and says it’s not allowed in the Scenic A1A overlay area.
County Sends Stronger Signals that It’s Finally Getting Serious About Getting Broadband to West Flagler
Flagler County government is looking to the $1.9 trillion Covid relief package, a separate federal fund through the Federal Communications Commission and potential subsidies for money that may finally underwrite expansion of broadband internet service to some 400 West Flagler households that have been clamoring for service for years.
Flagler Government Lifts Masking Rules But Flagler Beach Commissioner Warns Mullins: ‘Don’t Tell Us What To Do’
Flagler Beach Commissioner Jane Mealy twice told county commissioners this morning, specifying Joe Mullins, “don’t tell us what to do,” reasserting why the city is not holding July 4 festivities even as a county commissioner has been harping on it to reverse course.
Flagler County Makes a Little History With Its First Aerial-Ignition Prescribed Fire at Princess Place
A successful prescribed fire, sometimes also referred to as a “controlled” fire, removes the hazardous level of fuel in a given area. Unplanned wildfires have a greater risk of being destructive, because the accumulation of vegetation serves as the fuel for these hotter, faster moving fires.
Flagler’s Population Increases at Fastest Pace in 13 Years as Housing Inventory Shrinks Despite Construction Boom
Flagler County in 2020 added 3,538 residents, after an almost equally strong gain in 2019. The gains are still less than half what they were at the peak of the county’s boom years, but they are remaking the landscape. The boomlet is reflected across other indicators–property values, the shrinking available inventory of single-family homes, and the sharp rise in permitting for new single-family homes.
Flagler County Human Resources Director Pamela Wu Adds Feather to Leadership Cap
Flagler County government Human Resources Director Pamela Wu has added a feather to her leadership cap, as earlier this month she graduated from the National Association of Counties (NACo) High Performance Leadership Academy.
Contrary to Commissioner’s Claim, Flagler County Is Not at Herd Immunity, Health Officials Warn, Only Nearing It
Local health officials cautioned against ending covid-19 precautionary restrictions in response to a false claim by Flagler County Commissioner Joe Mullins that herd immunity has been reached, and that he would call for an end to restrictions at the next county commission meeting. Mullins often writes or speaks falsehoods or makes misleading statements about covid-19 and numerous other matters.
Stop Trash-Talking the Unemployed
Misinformation and distortions by businesses and some politicians, echoed by media, are blaming the unemployed for staying home to live on government checks. The evidence says otherwise, though belittling workers and lampooning government is part of the continuing war against better wages and stronger worker-safety protections.
Prospects Dim, Higher Fees Loom for Belle Terre Swim Club as Long-Shot Investor’s Demand May Be a Road Too Far
An investor is interested in taking over the Belle Terre Swim and Racquet Club but only if he can cut a new road through the P-Section, a very unlikely possibility, leaving the club facing mounting deficits and no interests from other governments to help.
Joe Mullins Faces $2.4 Million Federal Lawsuit Alleging He Defrauded Company of Augusta Masters Golf Tickets
Joe Mullins, the Flagler County Commissioner and business owner, faces a $2.4 million federal lawsuit over allegations he defrauded a golf vacation-package company by delivering either invalid tickets to the 2018 Augusta National Masters tournament or failing to deliver tickets in 2018 and 2019, costing the company hundreds of thousands of dollars and lost customers and ruining the company.
There Are No Transgender “Issues” in Flagler Schools. A Small, Noisy Group Is Fabricating an Issue Anyway.
There are no transgender bathroom issues in Flagler schools, no issues with transgender athletes, no issues with a student of one birth sex supposedly using their transgender status to leer at students of the other. But to hear it from some, it’s a crisis warranting a reversal of policies and procedures. The School Board hears a presentation on the current state of the law and procedures Tuesday. A crowd is expected.
‘Don’t Be a Holdout’: Flagler Aims for 1st In State in Vaccinations, With 40.7% Inoculated So Far and Youth Shots Ahead
Flagler County’s vaccine supply is now exceeding demand as health officials step up their outreach to restaurants, local businesses, schools and children 16 and 17 to get vaccinated in hopes of vaulting the county’s vaccination rate to the top of the state’s chart. Flagler is 7th or 8th best in the state in vaccinations.
Flagler and Florida’s Unemployment Rates Flat As DeSantis Amplifies False Claims About Unemployment Benefits
Some local officials, members of the business community and, today, Gov. Ron DeSantis, are without evidence other than anecdotal, attributing a dearth of job-takers to the claim that workers are staying home to cash in on unemployment benefits. The claim is largely false.
Covid-19 Daily Data for Florida and Flagler: Cases, Testing, Locations, Hospitalizations and Deaths
Florida’s and Flagler’s complete daily reports by the Health Department of Covid-19 data including county-by-county infection numbers, testing, people monitored and deaths.
Key Victory for Venerated Whispering Meadows Ranch as County Board Recommends in Its Favor in Emotional Hearing
Whispering Meadows Ranch on John Anderson Highway survived a key vote this evening as the Flagler County Planning Board recommended approval of a special zoning use of the grounds, enabling the ranch to keep operating. That’s assuming the County Commission follows suit when it considers the matter in coming weeks. Absent the special exception, the ranch will face closure.
Flagler Airport Will Delay Building Its New Terminal Another Year to Build More Money-Making Hangars
The Flagler County Commission agreed to delay building the long-awaited $6.5 million terminal at the county airport, agreeing instead to a $560,000 project to build 42 new hangars, which the airport director says will make the airport $212,000 a year.
Attention Flagler: Your County Commission Wants You To Know That It Believes in (Most of) the Constitution.
A Flagler County commissioner wants the commission to approve a resolution affirming support for the Constitution, but in his enumeration of rights, he excluded the right to free speech and a free press.
A Carefully Contrite Kim Weeks Offers $20,000 Settlement, But Commissioners Don’t Buy the Act–or the Trifle
Facing a judgment of well over $130,000 owed Flagler County government in reimbursements over her reckless ethics complaints, ex-Elections Supervisor Kim Weeks offered a $20,000 settlement, only to hear commissioners ridicule the offer and the sincerity of her contriteness, and reject it unanimously.
Affordable Housing Under Attack: Flagler Realtors Join Opposition to Decimation of Housing Trust Fund
Flagler County Realtors are joining forces with state counterparts to oppose a proposal that would gut the amount of money the state will spend on affordable housing, by limiting Sadowski trust fund expenditures to that end to 33 percent of the fund’s total.
Dog Found Agonizing in a Ditch, Possibly Victimized as Bait Dog, Has Died; Answers Sought and Reward Offered
Grace, a 7 or 8-year-old pit bull, was discovered Sunday in a ditch in Espanola in agony and bearing signs of being a bait dog. By Monday morning she had died, but galvanized efforts to find her abusers. A fundraiser before she died raised $8,000 for her care.
Sheriff’s Detectives Had Friday Shooting Suspect Brenan Hill, a Fugitive, in Custody Within Hours
Brenan Robert Hill, 32, wanted on felony charges from Pennsylvania, was the man who drove the woman who was shot Friday near the Microtel in Palm Coast, and is a suspect in the shooting, though the Sheriff’s Office is not yet saying so.
Bike Week, Spring Break and Doffed Masks Blamed for Latest ‘Worrisome’ Covid Spike Even as Vaccinations Spread
Local public health officials and physicians are imploring residents not to relax their covid-safety measures and warning of stubbornly persistent infections even as vaccinations have made large inroads in the local population.
Calling Mullins ‘Pied Piper of Hate, Deception and Fraud,’ School Board’s Conklin Rips His Latest Attack on LGBTQ and GOP
Joe Mullins combined attacks on transgender people and local Republicans in an extended screed filled with falsehoods and mischaracterizations as he spoke to a local far-right Republican group, prompting the School Board’s Colleen Conklin to issue a severe condemnation and called him a “narcissistic beast.”
Joe Mullins Falsehoods, Mischaracterizations, Misleading and Baseless Statements: A Fact-Check
Joe Mullins’s problem with facts is not new, pre-dating his election. We fact-checked his latest statements from that March 25 appearance point by point as he discussed Flagler schools’ transgender students, local Republicans allegiances, the massage parlor murders, immigration, why people move to Flagler, guns and other matters.
Flagler Beach Again Cancels July 4 Parade and Fireworks, Wrapping Hopes for a Big Event Around Christmas
For the second year in a row, Flagler Beach will not host its traditional July 4 parade and fireworks, the city commission decided tonight, nor will the event be postponed to Labor Day. Doing so would be too “risky,” the commission agreed with Flagler Health Department Chief Bob Snyder. Commissioners are placing their hopes on a big event and parade around Christmas, including fireworks.
House Committee Postpones Debating Vacation Rental Bill That Would Have Stripped Local Authority
Flagler County has kept preservation of regulatory authority among its legislative priorities year after year, as the vacation rental industry has–year after year–attempted to scrap the 2014 law and “pre-empt” local control to the state.
Employee Ranks Double at Flagler’s Own Coastal Cloud as Company’s Vaccine and Testing Platforms Go Viral
Hammock-based Coastal Cloud’s testing and vaccine platforms, adopted by the Florida Division of Emergency Management, placed the company at the center of the state’s battle against covid and resulted in a doubling of the company’s ranks to 280, despite the crisis.
Draft Report on Flagler County Fire Department Finds Low Morale, Lack of Pride and Internal Dysfunctions
The report, underscoring internal dysfunctions and a lack of leadership, has been circulating within the administration for weeks, eliciting questions from administrative and elected officials, and may be ready for the commission in about two months.
How Flagler Was Far More “Staly Country” than Trump’s in 2020, and How Grand Haven Saved Milissa Holland
An analysis of Flagler County’s precinct-by-precinct vote last November reveals a few surprises, among them how Grand Haven powered incumbent Palm Coast Mayor Milissa Holland to her win and how Flagler was not so much “Trump Country” as “Staly Country” as the incumbent sheriff won his second term with 70 percent of the vote, with no discernible weaknesses across precincts.
Flagler Sues Inspection Company in Hopes of Recovering Up to $400,000 Lost in Sears Building Fiasco
Flagler County government on Friday filed suit against Universal Engineering, the inspection company that the county claims misled it about the soundness of the former Sears building on Palm Coast Parkway that the county bought for $1.125 million and had to sell at a huge loss.
County Takes Extraordinary Legal Step to Demolish Derelict Motel on Old Dixie as Owners Stop Responding
Flagler County government has filed suit to condemn and demolish the long-derelict, yellowed Country Hearth Inn motel that’s vexed law enforcement, residents and county code enforcement officials for years near Dixie Commons along South Old Dixie Highway, not far from the interchange with I-95.
Two-Thirds of Flagler’s 65 and Over Have at Least One Shot of Vaccine, Minority Outreach Expands
As the CDC issues mask guidelines that provide some relief for those fully vaccinated, Flagler County nears the 25 percent mark for those who have at least one shot, but new cases of covid have spiked for the third straight week, signaling a still-raging pandemic.
Flagler County’s Unemployment Rate Rises Back to 5.1%, Florida’s Falls to 4.8%
While 595 more Flagler residents qualified for unemployment in January, an unusually sharp one-month rise in part reflecting retail’s post-holiday layoffs, almost 200 more people were employed in January than in December, and the labor force grew by 788, a strong indication of confidence in the local economy.
Lysenko, Stalin and Trump
On the one-year mark of the coronavirus pandemic, Trump’s malicious, politically motivated anti-science handling of a calamity that has killed more than half a million Americans so far recalls the alliance between fake Soviet scientist Trofim Lysenko and Stalin, which led to the death of millions.
In-Person Trials Will Resume in Flagler, With High-Profile Murder Cases On Deck
The cases of Keith Johansen, who faces a first-degree murder charge in the death of Brandi Celenza, and Benjamin Allen, who was 16 when he was charged as an adult in the first-degree murder of 17-year-old Elijah Rizvan in Palm Coast, will see trial dates later this year.
In a Victory for Flagler Government, Key Local Vacation Rental Regulations May Survive Yet Again
A Florida Senate panel today in a surprise shift voted to preserve local regulatory authority of short-term vacation rentals. If that version of the bill survives and overrides a different House bill, as appears likely, then local regulations will remain in place unscathed, surviving attempts to scrap that local authority for the seventh straight year.
Almost a Quarter of Flagler Is Vaccinated, But Cases Rise; CDC Says Fully Vaccinated May Unmask In Some Cases
As the CDC issues mask guidelines that provide some relief for those fully vaccinated, Flagler County nears the 25 percent mark for those who have at least one shot, but new cases of covid have spiked for the third straight week, signaling a still-raging pandemic.
Now Florida’s Only 2nd All-American Road, Storied A1A Has Long Navigated Between Quaint and Crass
State Road A1A is now an All-American Road, adding to the road’s paradoxes of beauty and history on one side and and relentless commercialization and development on the other, though the same people who applaud its scenic designation are also those who endanger it most.
County Attorney Raises Prospect of Jail for Dennis McDonald Over Protracted Contempt of Court
County Attorney Al Hadeed on Monday raised the prospect of jail for Dennis McDonald, the former candidate for various offices, if McDonald remains in contempt of court over a charge of $80,000 plus interest in legal fees he owes Flagler County government.
It’s a County Priority, But Quest to Bring Broadband to Flagler’s West Side Runs Into County Hurdles
County Commissioner Joe Mullins is seeking county staff’s help with an informal broadband “task force” he leads to land a grant that could improve internet services on the west side, raising questions about the extent to which the county can get involved in a group it has not formally recognized or knew much about even though broadband access is now a county priority.