Weekend Briefing: New Show at Salvo, Victims’ Rights Sunrise Memorial, Sheriff’s Ethics, Gershwin’s Rhapsody

Weekend: Breesy, mostly sunny dayys with highs in the 70s and only slight chances of storms, nights in the 60s. Details here.
Today’s fire danger is moderate. Flagler County’s Drought Index is at 222.
Today’s tides: at the beaches, at the Intracoastal Waterway.
Today’s document from the National Archives.
The OED’s Word of the Day: parleyvoo, v..
The Live Community Calendar
Today’s jail bookings.

Today’s Briefing: Quick Links

• In Flagler and Palm Coast
• Local News Recap
• Flagler Jail Bookings and Sheriff’s Crime Reports
• In State Government
• In Coming Days in Flagler and Palm Coast
• The Day’s Best Reads
• Fact-Checking the Knaves
• Palm Coast Construction and Development Progress Reports
• Local Road and Interstate Construction
• Cultural Coda

In Flagler and Palm Coast:

Note: all government meetings noticed below are free and open to the public unless otherwise indicated. Many can be heard or seen live through each agency’s website.

Friday: Free For All Fridays on WNZF at 9 a.m.: David Ayres’s guests are Sen. Travis Hutson, County Airport Director Roy Sieger and the Department of Forestry’s Julie Allen.

Friday: Flagler Sheriff Jim Manfre and the Florida Ethics Commission: The Commission takes up an administrative law judge’s recommendation in the ethics case against Manfre. 9 a.m.

Friday: Grace Community Food Pantry is giving a monetary donation to the school district’s Step Up program, devoted to adults with disabilities. The program’s budget was severely cut this year, until lobbying from local officials convinced the Legislature to restore funding at its previous level as of July 1. Grace Community Food Pantry meanwhile raised money for the program through its first “Walk for Food” event in January. The presentation will take place at the Step Up program’s portable buildings behind 1 Corporate Drive in Palm Coast at noon.

See Also:

• Full Funding Restored to Flagler’s Adults With Disabilities Program, a Big Victory for District
• “Somber” Board Severely Cuts Flagler’s Adults With Disabilities Program So It Can Survive
• With 11 Jobs and Life Skills for 85 Disabled Adults at Stake, School Board Scrambles for Lost Money

Saturday: Flagler Beach will hold a victims’ rights memorial at sunrise. The memorial ceremony honors victims and their advocates. It will be held at the end of the iconic pier. Please contact Victim Advocate Donna Kearney with any questions about the memorial at 517-2020.

Saturday: University Women of Flagler breakfast meeting: 9 a.m. at the Hilton garden Inn, Palm Coast.

Saturday: Art in the Park: At Bulow Plantation Ruins Historic State Park, Join the Friends of Tomoka Basin State Parks for the Inaugural “Art in the Park” on Saturday, April 16th from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Ed Beckett of FPC High School will hold a Nature Photography Class from 9 to 11 a.m. Meet author and Bulow historian, Bill Ryan, at 1 p.m. and learn more about the history of Bulow Plantation.

Saturday: Opening of a new show at Slavo Art Project, featuring new works by Terri Reddington, Sara Caldwell, Andy Sovia and Jan Geyer, starting at 6 p.m. with live music by Carolina Drive. There is a $10 cover charge. Salvo is at 313 Old Brick Road in Bunnell. Visit the website.

Survey Request: The River to Sea Transportation Planning Organization (TPO), which includes Palm Coast, is seeking input from residents of Palm Coast as it plans transportation improvements for the Metropolitan Planning Area (MPA) that includes Volusia County and portions of Flagler County. The TPO has launched a “Tell the TPO” campaign to survey people who live or work in Volusia and/or Flagler counties, as well as visitors. The 11-question survey can be accessed here. All responses received by May 31, 2016, will be placed in a drawing for a chance to win a free iPad Mini.

Moody Boat Launch to close April 6 through May 20 for improvements. Click for details.

Local News Recap:

Updated jail bookings and day and night shift incident summary reports are available here.

Nurse Assistants at Grand Oaks Rehab Strike for $15/hr Wage in Echo of National Movement: Starting at 7 this morning, across the street from Grand Oaks Health and Rehabilitation on Palm Coast Parkway, groups of a dozen to two dozen low-wage Grand Oaks workers staged a 24-hour strike protesting low pay and calling for a $15-an-hour minimum wage. The facility itself posted armed guards at its two entrances—privately hired from the sheriff’s office at $1,500 for the day, or the equivalent of 100 man-hours at $15-an-hour—to police all those coming in and keep some people (including reporters) out.

Pot-Possession Decriminalization Could Move Forward in Flagler As Part of Broader Civil Citation Program: Flagler County Sheriff Jim Manfre’s proposal to de-criminalize the possession of small amounts of marijuana moved a step closer to reality this week with the impending creation of a committee that will likely draft an ordinance mirrored after those already in place in other counties in the state. But the process still has many steps to go through.

Palm Coast Man, 23, Accused of Sexually Assaulting Two Teen Girls Off Palm Harbor: Christopher Hollinger, 23, of 43 Forsythe Lane, is at the Flagler County Jail on $270,000 bond on seven charges related to the alleged sexual assaults of two girls, 14 and 15, on March 15. According to his arrest report, the assaults took place near Palm Harbor Parkway, in the area between the Portuguese-American Club and the Kangaroo Express at the corner with Frontier Drive. Hollinger lives a short distance from there.

Public Agencies That Violate Sunshine Law Must Pay Attorney’s Fees, Supreme Court Rules: The 5-2 ruling dealt with cases in which people successfully sue agencies for failing to comply with the records law. Justices rejected arguments that agencies should be shielded from paying plaintiffs’ legal fees if public-records requests are handled in “good faith.”

For 2nd Time in 2 Months, County’s Emergency Communications Falter, and Agencies Chafe: For the second time in two months, Flagler County’s emergency communications system had a problem on Monday evening, though whether it was a serious problem or a glitch in one tower depends on who’s interpreting the issue.

In Florida and in State Government:

Note: Most proceedings below can be followed live on the Florida Channel.

Unemployment: The state’s labor department releases unemployment figures for March at 10 a.m.

–Compiled by the News Service of Florida and FlaglerLive

In Coming Days in Palm Coast and Flagler:

Click on the links for more details:

♦ April 19: Palm Coast Fire Department offers free Car Seat Check : From 9:30 to 11:30 a.m. and 1 to 3 p.m. Tuesday, April 19, at Fire Station 25, 1250 Belle Terre Parkway, Palm Coast. The checks will be done in the Fire Department’s drive-through bays to assure everyone is out of the sun. Firefighters from the Palm Coast Fire Department who have been trained as car seat technicians will check to make sure car seats are installed properly and will also show parents/guardians how to properly install their car seat according to manufacturer and vehicle specifications. Additional information on keeping children safe will also be provided. People who attend the event are asked to bring their car seat manual and the vehicles owner’s manual with them, if possible. For more information, call the Palm Coast Fire Department at 386-986-2300.
♦ April 20: Flagler Department of Juvenile Justice Council meeting, 9 a.m. at the Government Service Building room 3.
♦ April 25: It’s the next edition of “Doughnuts with Doughney,” that is, coffey and doughnuts with Flagler Beach Police Captain Matthew Doughney, from 8:00 a.m. to 10:00 a.m. at the Flagler Beach 7-ELEVEN convenience store, 408 South Oceanshore Boulevard. Questions, please contact Captain Doughney at (386) 517-2024.
♦ April 26: Sentencing of Waldemar Rivera at 1:30 p.m. in Courtroom 401, Flagler County Courthouse, before Judge Matthew Foxman. Rivera was found guilty on March 23 after a two-day trial of raping his then-13-year-old step-daughter two years ago. He faces up to 30 years in prison. He had declined a plea that would have netted him 10 years, and declined a judge’s advice, after the first day of trial, to consider taking a plea.
♦ April 26: ElderSource is holding a public hearing at 10 a.m. at the Flagler County Public Library. The goal is to provide a listening session for anyone interested to share opinions about aging needs that impact you personally as well as your neighbors. Elder Source is a private, not for profit agency designated by the state as the Area Agency on Aging and Aging & Disability Resource Center for Northeast Florida. See the event flier here.

♦ April 30: Prescription Drug Take Back Day: The front lobby of the Flagler Beach Police Department will be open from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at 204 South Flagler Avenue, one block south of SR100 on the east side of the Moody/SR100 Bridge. This one day event will provide residents and visitors with a no cost, anonymous collection of unwanted or expired medicines.
♦ April 30: Fort Matanzas National Monument hosts a special free day event from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Reenactors dressed as Spanish colonial women will describe the life of a typical woman in Saint Augustine during the Spanish colonial era. Reenactors will also be demonstrating how foods from three different cultures combined and created some of the best dishes available in 1740’s colonial Spanish Florida. Produce from three very different cultures – Native American, African, and Spanish – will be on display, with conversations about how each of these influenced the Spanish kitchen. The authenticity of the reenactment will be limited of course: there will be no reenacted massacres, exterminations or enslavement of Native Americans, nor will the Catholic Church’s role in the obliteration of native cultures be part of the celebration. Children welcome. For additional information, call 904-41-0116 or visit www.nps.gov/foma.
♦ May 5: The Palm Coast utility and public works union meets with Palm Coast’s management team in another bargaining session over a contract. The meeting is scheduled for 4 p.m. in the community wing at City Hall. It is open to the public.

The Day’s Best Reads:

What if, in the future, a leaker simply self-publishes something like the Panama Papers? https://t.co/i2KYAi8JqA pic.twitter.com/fnoVv58PdY

— The New Yorker (@NewYorker) April 14, 2016

The Verizon strike signals a major economic battle. https://t.co/Z2DC0uVfa1 pic.twitter.com/OHH0WCm2aC

— The New Republic (@newrepublic) April 15, 2016

The new explosion of solar power is good for almost everyone (oil firms may beg to differ) https://t.co/Mm6D6OB1FQ pic.twitter.com/QZEO1OVE1a

— The Economist (@TheEconomist) April 15, 2016

Supreme Court proposes a compromise for the first time since Brown v. Board of Education: https://t.co/rWyFjh7QjZ pic.twitter.com/zXAXPhQ5Eg

— The Daily Beast (@thedailybeast) April 14, 2016

Underneath Dorothy Parker’s sardonic wit and wickedly funny criticism were constant thoughts of death and suicide https://t.co/KkbyLuyNiD

— The New York Review of Books (@nybooks) April 14, 2016

 

Fact-Checking the Knaves:

Palm Coast Construction and Development Progress Reports

The following is an update of ongoing permitting, construction and development projects in Palm Coast, through March 30:

Click to access developments-april-2015.pdf

Road and Interstate Construction:

Moody Boat Launch to close April 6 through May 20 for improvements: Flagler County’s Moody Boat Launch will be closed April 6 through May 20 for improvements. “The scheduled upgrade will enhance the launch’s usability in a number of ways,” said Heidi Petito, Director of General Services. “The new system provides for ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act) compliance, minimizes docking difficulties caused by fluctuating tides, and new lighting will promote boater safety and security.” The closure includes the Moody Boat Launch– located at 825 Moody Lane in Flagler Beach– the parking area, restroom, and dockage on the Matanzas River. It does not affect Betty Steflik Preserve and boardwalk. The scope of work includes dredging 1,650 yards of silt from the launch basin, thus improving navigability. The adjacent wooden docks will be replaced with an aluminum floating dock and gangway system. Additionally, the existing restroom will be replaced with an ADA compliant facility. Moody Boat Launch provides public access to the Intracoastal on the east shore, just south of SR100. The closest alternative boat launches are located at Herschel King Park on the west side of the river at 1000 Grady Prather Jr. Cove, Palm Coast, and Bing’s Landing on the east shore at 5862 N. Oceanshore Blvd. in Palm Coast.

Forest Grove Drive connection to Palm Harbor Parkway to be closed starting Dec. 18: Effective Friday, Dec. 18, the City of Palm Coast will be closing the Forest Grove Drive connection to Palm Harbor Parkway. This road closure is required as part of construction operations for the Palm Harbor Parkway extension, which is currently under construction. Palm Harbor is being realigned and extended to connect directly with Matanzas Woods Parkway where it intersects with Old Kings Road. Message boards will be placed to advise motorists and other travelers of the upcoming change, and a public meeting has already been held for residents living in that area. Both the Palm Harbor extension and a separate extension of Old Kings Road are being built in preparation for the new Interstate 95 interchange to open next June at Matanzas Woods Parkway. As part of the projects, traffic patterns around Matanzas High School will be changing. One goal is to turn Forest Grove Drive back into a residential street as it was originally intended to be. The upcoming road closure of the Forest Grove Drive connection to Palm Harbor Parkway is part of that project. Forest Grove will be turned into a cul de sac on that end. Once the separate Old Kings Road extension is completed, in June 2016, the Forest Grove Drive access to the high school will be closed because it will no longer be needed. Instead, motorists and other travelers will get to Matanzas High School via the new signalized intersection at Matanzas Woods, Palm Harbor and Old Kings. For more information, please contact Palm Coast Communications Manager Cindi Lane at 386-986-3708 or [email protected].

• Florida Department of Transportation Road Project List

Cultural Coda:

Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue, Leonard Bernstein and the New York Philharmonic (1976)

Previous Codas:

• Jan Dismas Zelenka (1679-1745): Missa Votiva in E minor, Václav Luks, cond.
• Zez Confrey’s Kitten on the Keys
• Adam Jackson, Age 11, Performs Theodor Leschetizky Toccata Op.46 No.5
• Anne Sophie-Mutter Performs Mendelssohn’s Violin Concerto in E minor, Op.64, Kurt Masur, cond.
• Granados: Poetic Waltzes
• Reicha: Woodwind Quintet in Eb major op.88 no.2
• Mozart Concerto No 7 F major K 242 for 3 Pianos, Performed by Solti, Schiff and Barenboim
• Sergey Taneyev: Piano Concerto in E flat major, Mikhail Voskresensky piano
• Beethoven’s Symphony No 1 in C major, Op 21, Christian Thielemann, Cond.
• Tartini’s Trumpet Concerto in D, Markus Wursch, Trumpet
• Handel: Then Entrance of the Queen of Sheba (From Solomon)
• An Excerpt from The End of Joyce’s Ulysses
• Pavel Kolesnikov Performs the Magnificent Scarlatti Sonata in B Minor, L. 447, and the D Major, L. 465
• Alvin Ailey Dance: Wade in the Water from Revelations
• Leonard Bernstein Conducts the Boston Symphony Orchestra: Mozart’s Symphony Nr. 40 in G Minor, K550
• Sheng Cai Performs Triana by Albeniz
• Haydn’s String Quartet in C Major, Op. 76 No. 3, “Emperor,” Performed by the St. Lawrence String Quartet
• Dvorak’s 9th Symphony, “New World,” Performed by the Berlin Philharmonic, Conducted by Sergiu Celibidache (1991)
• The Great Jacques Brel Sings “Amsterdam,” Live, With Subtitles
• Emmanuel Pahud Performs Mozart Flute Concerto No 1 in G Major, K 313
• Wynton Marsalis Performs Haydn’s Trumpet Concerto
• Evgeny Kissin Performs Rachmaninov Piano Concerto No. 2, from Paris
• Liszt’s Hungarian Rhapsody No.6, Performed by Martha Argerich (1966)