Kim Carney, the county commissioner who played a significant role in defeating the proposed sales tax increase to finance a comprehensive beach-protection plan, went to the Flagler Beach City Commission Thursday with five options from which the city could choose to protect its own beach.
“It is going to take a team effort, and we are here to help in any way we can,” Carney said.
Four of the options would require Flagler Beach to impose a new tax or fee on its residents. The fifth would have the city supporting a 2026 referendum to raise the sales tax–the very option the County Commission could have approved by vote, and that Carney opposed.
The options and Carney’s appearance alongside top county administrative staff created a strange dynamic, leaving some commissioners perplexed. The County Commission had neither drafted nor agreed to the four options. Nor had it delegated Carney to Flagler Beach or directed the county administration to present them.
The lack of clarity is illustrative of the disarray in county beach policy following the defeat of the sales tax proposal–a disarray the county administration had little to do with, and to which Carney’s appearance in the city was contributing for lack of her commission’s official imprint. She addressed the city commission only briefly. She let Deputy County Administrator Jorge Salinas carry the water.
“So which one of these options has your board said to move forward on?” Commissioner Eric Cooley asked Salinas.
Salinas deflected. Cooley tried again. “So you were given direction from the board to come to Flagler Beach and say you all got to pay for that portion. Your board had a consensus on that?” Cooley asked.
“The board hasn’t, as a board, said, Go to Flagler Beach. This is what we as staff have calculated and wanted to share with you,” Salinas said. What he did not say was that this was Carney’s push, not the board’s. “This is the numbers that if you want to participate, and since we don’t have all the funding, this is what’s up, what’s needed in order to complete this project.”
“Am I correct in understanding that the cost for our beach renourishment is now shifting 100 percent to our city for reach one in our portion of reach two?” Mayor Patti King, who has a habit of pithily cutting to the heart of the matter, asked. Reach one and Reach two are the two segments of beach fully or partially in the city.
She was correct. Salinas again deflected at first, but eventually said: “You need to participate in providing the funding for the portions that you are responsible [for] from the Flagler Beach perspective,” Deputy County Administrator Jorge Salinas said.
Cooley had trouble squaring the presentation or “options” with the county so recently refusing to endorse the sales-tax approach that had won Flagler Beach’s support and the support of many municipal officials elsewhere. The options left him cold, and suspicious.
“I view this program as quickly becoming disproportionate and unequitable, because that does not align with who is on the beach,” Cooley said, repeating his contention, backed up by county tourism data, that the majority of visitors to the beach in Flagler Beach are from Palm Coast. “I can get behind a plan that is fair and equitable. I can get behind that, but I can’t get behind a plan that doesn’t accurately represent and spread out costs of who’s actually using the beach.”
Faced with the options, Commissioners Rick Belhumeur and Scott Spradley both said they were not really options, except for the sales tax proposal. “There’s one option, and there’s four that fall away by the wayside, from my perspective, with the one option being the referendum,” Spradley said.
As perplexity piled up, Deputy County Attorney Sean Moylan finally addressed the matter, summing it up succinctly, and putting it back on Carney (who had also played a key role in causing Moylan’s withdrawal from contention for the county attorney job.) “We weren’t intending for you to make any sort of decisions, or we weren’t also preferring one option over another,” Moylan told the commissioners. “Everything is up in the air. This was an initial outreach from Commissioner Carney. This is her district in the county commission. We wanted to engage in initial conversation. Nothing’s decided. We are struggling ourselves with funding the other parts of our coastline and how to fund that. And we’ve been struggling through this for several budget cycles now, and things are very much up in the air.”
He said the county “cobbled together” just over $8 million in beach-management money for the coming year. Salinas’s presentation outlined further needs, now that there is no sales tax in place. Those needs added up to an annual $1.387 million a year the city would have to put up for its share of beach management and maintenance.
“We weren’t coming here to surprise you or ambush you or anything,” Moylan continued. “It’s just an initial outreach to you. Keep in mind, the projects that have been done in your town so far, that is, the Army Corps and the non-federal tapers on either side, have been done without any payment from your residents. It’s been the federal government, different agencies of the state government, and some local funding. And I think everyone agrees it’s been a tremendous success so far.” More beach reconstruction is ahead, he said, north and south of the Army Corps zone, again without contributions from Flagler Beach. As for the $1.387 million, it’s just “brainstorming,” he said.
Commission Chair Andy Dance had been watching the meeting on YouTube. “Sean summed it up perfectly, they should have started with Shawn and ended with Sean,” he said. But the failure of the sales tax vote does amplify the county’s beach-management challenge ahead, Dance said. “Each year moving forward, it’ll be significantly more difficult.”
The presentation, he said, was intended “not to be heavy-handed from the commission but to reach out to the municipalities and show them the options we have, and this one was specific to Flagler Beach.”
One member of the public who addressed the commission stressed that the beach is a countywide amenity, not just a city amenity. Another wanted Carney to “explain why she doesn’t support the half-cent sales tax.”
Marek says
Half-cent sales tax is a perfect solution. Carney is just creating a mess.
Robin says
I think Carney has egg on her face for opposing the sales tax for continued beach replenishment. It’s that or a dedicated county-wide property tax mileage. Not these fiscally flimsy cobbled together “options”.
It will take one hurricane to blow those options out to sea.
Mort says
Did Commissioner Carney respond to the question why she won’t support the 1/2 sales tax? It would be shared by all, including visitors and vacationers, and provide an ongoing funding source.
And why is she touting solutions which the County Commission and residents have not heard? Does Ms. Carney understand she is one of five and that she represents us all and not just the citizens of Flagler Beach?
Can you spell KEYSTONE COPS?
Steve says
I am still trying to understand how Flagler County with a budget in excess of 300 million cannot spend 2% on the beach which is the main driver of a revenue, either directly or indirectly. The most important asset we have. The beach has never been included in a budget that grows every year! We supposedly have 10% plus increase in revenue this year and have no money for the beach?
Kim Carney says
The County needs a funding source in order to continue construction of beach nourishment along 18 miles. It is funny how the slide from the presentation never made it to this story. $8.1M of the funding is set aside in 2025-2026 from TDT, ad valorem (paid by the entire county) and current 1/2 cent sales tax (paid by the county) and we are working on an MSBU for the unincorporated Flagler County. Not to mention the current USACOE project was fully funded with out one cent of Flagler Beach or Flagler Beach residents paying a dime. The proposed Reach 2 (north 7th to N23rd) will not be constructed without a way to maintain it. This funding source is no different than what was present when the Northern 10 miles agreed to the MSBU. With no funding source and no agreement for the county to maintain and renourish from time to time there will be no permits, no project, no protection for infrastructure and homes in Flagler County. Flagler County has jurisdiction over the unincorporated coastal area. We do not have jurisdiction for Flagler Beach. Beverly Beach or Marineland. They need their own plan or participate in a countywide plan through an interlocal agreement. No one wants to pay for it. The unincorporated northern 10 miles has a resolution to fund through a MSBU (Municipal Services Benefit Unit). The municipalities in Flagler County do not need to participate; however, if there is no source of future funding money cannot be spent to construct the project. I believe more education is needed and discussions have just started. All state funding is required to have a maintenance plan and future funding source so no funding equals no project. The original additonal 1/2 cent sales tax would not have covered what we need because the other municipalities will split the revenue with County. I’m sorry to see Flagler Beach take this position; because just like the 1/2 cent sales tax that was suggested months ago, this referendum will not pass without a massive educational element and all municipalities participating through an interlocal agreement. BTW, all of the allowable tourism tax money is already allocated in the plan presented to Flagler Beach.
Mothersworry says
“We weren’t coming here to surprise you or ambush you” Exactly what you guy’s did!! How about you folks at county get your act together, then put a leash on Carney and try again. It is true that when one try’s to explain that what they were doing wasn’t what it appeared to be it usually is.
I truly think that a fee should be assessed to non residents that want to use the beach. Set a fee for non resident parking as well, like most cities have done.
Mothersworry says
I gotta tell ya, I’m liking Cooley more and more!
MITCH says
No matter how much of other people’s money you spend – MOTHER NATURE – “”always wins””!
Andy Montgomery says
Good job Kim
Here’s the problem. Here’s the choices. Now let’s focus on solutions no distractions
I believe it’s called transparent empowering consensus building servant leadership that has served commissioner Kim Carney well in her life and those she cares for.
Such a community, not self supporter, you are protecting and serving (not lip serving) your constituents.
You model what you say.
Ain’t it great most of our community leadership is just like you, servant empowering leaders.
All communities are so blessed as to see the seeds of Matt Morton’s leadership grow, flourish and blossom in this current season of Flagler.
May the coming together of Palm Coast gel as we continue to flourish as a forever family of care in a suffering universe.
Go get em Kim and Matt.
Ding
Round 2
🤙
Burn it says
Get those private schools to pay for the beach they got millions in tax dollars! Almost like a whole political party wants to decline to accept truth and reality of our climate predicament. End FEMA and wait for the storm! Remember homeless go to jail in this corrupt junction.
Corrupt much says
Ask the sheriffs office to pay for it , they have an endless budget that keeps on growing!!
Truth hurts says
Breaking news ! life in America is unaffordable for all but the oligarchs. Raise taxes and add tariffs to accelerate the collapse ! Haha over 50% of homeless have jobs and our national leader is a convict and global pedophile!
Demand better!
Endless dark money says
The cons have no problem funneling millions to their donors for overnight concentration camps but no money for the beach? Sounds like a republican budget! It’s like staying late to rob 20 million of benefits then going home early to avoid voting on releasing the proof of the Cheeto pedo! I call it terrorism and republicans call it leadership! Starve a kid save a dollar says the republicans! Enjoy a shorter life so Elon can have more money magatards!
Geeze! says
@Commissioner Carney,
You do not mention a “continuing” funding source, which is needed for continuing maintenance, so that we don’t have to cut services here year after year. The 1/2 sales tax would do that. Do a moratorium. You represent us all, why are you refusing to listen to others?? How is a town as tiny as Beverly Beach expected to pay for this without a sales tax? You are determined to stick it to the taxpayers here and cut our services in order to pay for this. WHY?
Are you not aware that we have had hearings and discussions on this for years? YEARS of hearings and discussion. Exactly how many more do we need? And why is it your way or the highway? What happened to leadership and consensus on that commission??? There sure isn’t any at the moment.