Bears Among Us, Car Seats Below Us, Breitbart's Trump, Golf Club Costs

bears palm coast florida — Living in bear country: a presentation at Palm Coast’s City Hall this evening. See below. (FWC)

Today: Partly cloudy. Chance of showers and slight chance of thunderstorms in the morning…then slight chance of showers and thunderstorms in the afternoon. Highs in the lower 90s. East winds 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 30 percent. Heat index readings 98 to 102. Tonight: Mostly clear. Lows in the mid 70s. Southeast winds 5 to 10 mph shifting to the southwest after midnight. Details here.
Today’s fire danger is moderate. Flagler County’s Drought Index is at 377.
Today’s tides: at the beaches, at the Intracoastal Waterway.
Today’s document from the National Archives.
The OED’s Word of the Day: big whoop, int. and n..
The Live Community Calendar
Today’s jail bookings.

Today’s Briefing: Quick Links

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

“But in Jules as in every man, there lurks something ready to destroy the finest in him as the frosts of earth destroy her flowers.”

–Mari Sandoz, “Old Jules” (1935)

2016 Election Interviews

Supervisor of Elections

Kaiti Lenhart
Kimble Medley
Abra Seay

Sheriff

Jim Manfre (D)
Don Fleming (R)
Larry Jones (D)
John Lamb (R)
Jerry O'Gara(R)
Rick Staly (R)
Mark Whisenant (R)
Chris Yates (R)
Thomas Dougherty (I)

Palm Coast City Council

Robert Cuff (Dist. 1)
Troy DuBose (Dist. 1)
Sims Jones (Dist. 1)
Art McGovern Jr. (Dist. 1)
Nick Klufas (Dist. 3)
Anita Moeder (Dist. 3)
Pam Richardson (Dist. 3)
John Brady (Mayor)
Milissa Holland (Mayor)
Dennis McDonald (Mayor)
Ron Radford (Mayor)

Flagler School Board

Colleen Conklin (Dist. 3)
Jason Sands (Dist. 3)
Paul Anderson (Dist. 5)
Maria Barbosa (Dist. 5)
Sharon Demers (Dist. 5)
Myra Middleton-Valentine (Dist. 5)

Flagler County Commission

Charlie Ericksen (Dist. 1)
Ken Mazzie (Dist. 1)
Daniel Potter (Dist. 1)
Jason France (Dist. 3)
Dave Sullivan (Dist. 3)
Denise Calderwood (Dis. 5)
Donald O'Brien (Dist. 5)

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.

Ongoing Early Voting in Flagler County for a slew of local, state and federal offices leading up to the Aug. 30 primary. Early voting is mandated from Aug. 20 through Aug. 27, but county supervisors of election have the discretion to begin sooner. Flagler’s is among 24 counties choosing to do so. Though it is a primary, numerous races appear on the ballot in which all registered voters are eligible to cast a ballot, regardless of party affiliation, including for Palm Coast City Council (if you’re a Palm Coast resident), for judges, for school board and for Supervisor of Elections. Early voting hours are 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. every day through Saturday, August 27, at the following locations:

1. Flagler County Public Library
At the corner of Belle Terre and Palm Coast Parkway.
2500 Palm Coast Parkway N.W. Palm Coast
View this location on a map

2. Palm Coast Community Center
At the corner of Clubhouse Drive and Palm Coast Parkway.
305 Palm Coast Parkway NE Palm Coast
View this location on a map

3. Supervisor of Elections Office
Located in the Government Services Building.
1769 E. Moody Boulevard, Building 2, Suite 101 Bunnell
View this location on a map

All the information you need is at the Supervisor of Elections’ website.

Navy training schedules indicate live bombing will take place at the Pinecastle Range Complex in the Ocala National Forest using live ordinance, starting at 1:30 p.m. until either 3:30 p.m. or 5:30 p.m. The telephone number for noise complaints is 1-800-874-5059, Fleet Air Control and Surveillance Facility, Jacksonville. For additional information, call (904) 542-2415/5588.

Drug Court: Circuit Judge Matthew Foxman presides, starting at 9 and 10 a.m. in Courtroom 401, Flagler County Courthouse.

Town hall meeting giving the public a chance to weigh in on the Flagler County school district’s strategic plan, the school district’s goals for the next five years, which the district’s Strategic Plan Steering Committee has been working on for the past few months. 5:30 to 7 p.m., at the Buddy Taylor Middle School/Wadsworth Elementary School cafeteria, Palm Coast.

Living in bear country: Natalae Almeter of the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission hosts a presentation on the topic This evening at 6 p.m. at Palm Coast’s City Hall, in the Community Wing. It’s open and free to the public. See the background story.

Free Car Seat Check: 3-5 p.m. at Fire Station #25, 1250 Belle Terre Pkwy. Firefighters who are trained as car seat technicians will check your children’s seats to make sure they are installed properly according to manufacturer’s safety specifications. Please bring your car seat and vehicle manuals with you. Seat checks will be completed through the Station’s drive-through bays.

Moon Rise at the Beach: 7:45 to 8:15 p.m., Gamble Rogers Memorial State Recreational Area at Flagler Beach(3100 S. Oceanshore Blvd., Flagler Beach). Join a ranger for a moon rise at the beach! You will learn fun and interesting facts about the moon and our coastal ecosystem. Bring binoculars for a spectacular view, and a camera for beautiful photo opportunities! We meet at the beachside pavilion, using the boardwalk to stroll the beach and wait for the moon rise. If you prefer, you can view the moon from the overlook. All ages are welcome, minors must be accompanied by an adult. This event is subject to cancellation due to weather conditions. RSVP required at Eventbrite.com.
Program is free with park admission! Park fee is $5.00 per carload of 2-8 people; one person is $4; bicyclist or pedestrian is $2.

Local Media Recap:

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

Flagler Veterans Court Pitch Framed in Crude Attack on Court System by DeSantis Envoy

Florida Population Expected to Reach 20.7M This Year

School District measures gender, race disparities in staffing, student participation

Living in Bear Country: FWC Primer to Palm Coast Residents as Sightings Increase

Residents, council discuss Palm Harbor Golf Club spending

Zika Virus In Flagler: Preparations In Place But Response Limited to Education and Prevention

Sophie Zabas, 1942-2016: Commissioner George Hanns Mourns His Inspiration

In Florida and in State Government:

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

Citizens Insurance rates: The Florida Office of Insurance Regulation will hold a public hearing on proposals that would raise rates for many customers of the state-backed Citizens Property Insurance Corp. The Citizens Board of Governors approved the proposed increases in June, pointing to what the insurer describes as a “crisis” in costly water claims. (9 a.m., 401 Senate Office Building, the Capitol.)

The “Building Florida’s Future” symposium will focus on transportation, infrastructure and economic-development issues. Speakers are expected to include incoming Senate Appropriations Chairman Jack Latvala, R-Clearwater, Senate Transportation Chairman Jeff Brandes, R-St. Petersburg, and Department of Transportation Secretary Jim Boxold. (9 a.m., Port Tampa Bay Cruise Terminal 3, 815 Channelside Dr., Tampa.)

U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., is slated to be the keynote speaker at the Republican Party of Palm Beach County’s annual “Lobsterfest.” (6:30 p.m., Broken Sound Country Club., 2401 Willow Springs Dr., Boca Raton.)

–Compiled by the News Service of Florida and FlaglerLive

In Coming Days in Palm Coast, Flagler and the Occasional Beyond:

♦ Aug. 19: The latest pre-trial hearing in the case of Florida v. Kimberle Weeks, continued from July 22, is scheduled for 3 p.m. before Circuit Judge Margaret Hudson in Courtroom 402 at the Flagler County Courthouse. Weeks now faces nine third-degree felony counts, down from 12, stemming from allegations that she illegally recorded various individuals in her capacity as supervisor of elections and in her private life. Weeks resigned that post in January 2015.
♦ Aug. 19: Visitations for friends and family of Sophie Zabas, who died Aug. 12 at age 74, held from 4 to 5:30 p.m. at Craig-Flagler Palms Funeral Home, 511 Old Kings Road South, Flagler Beach, where a memorial service will be held at 5:30 p.m. Zabas was Flagler County Commissioner George Hanns’s companion of 23 years.
♦ Aug. 20: International Homeless Animals Day.
♦ Aug. 28: Families Faith Fun Festival at St.Thomas Episcopal Church from 1 to 5 p.m. with free food, family-oriented games, lots of prizes, and raffle drawings. All invited, whether members of the church or not. See the website at stthomaspalmcoast.com.
♦ Sept. 7: The Flagler Youth Orchestra holds its open house for all new or prospective students who’d like to join the county’s largest (and free) music program. The open house is at the Indian Trails Middle School cafeteria at 5:30 p.m. Any Flagler student, including homes chooled students, in grades 3-12, are eligible to enroll (must be 8 years old by Sept. 1, 2016.) Students may elect to play violin, viola, cello or doublebass. One-hour classes are held at Indian Trails Middle School Mondays and Wednesdays, from 3 to 6 p.m., with students enrolled in the hour block appropriate to their skill level and schedule. The first class for first-time students is Sept. 19. (Auditions for returning students start on Aug. 22, the first class for returning students is Aug. 31.)
♦ Sept. 8: Second of two town hall meeting giving the public a chance to weigh in on the Flagler County school district’s strategic plan, the school district’s goals for the next five years, which the district’s Strategic Plan Steering Committee has been working on for the past few months. 5:30 to 7 p.m., Third Floor main conference or training room 3, Government Services Building, Bunnell.
♦ Sept. 10: African Art: Ancient Egypt to the Contemporary World, a pair of presentations by Bertrand Green, former chairman of African American studies at Lehman College, City University of New York. The first session is from 10 a.m. to noon, the second session from 2 to 4 p.m., at the Hilton Garden Inn, Palm Coast. $20 for PCAF members, $25 for general admission. Call 386/225-4394 or email [email protected] to reserve your seat.
♦ Sept. 17-18: Staged Reading of Neil Simon’s “Chapter Two,” at the Flagler Auditorium’s Black Box Theatre, directed by Bruce Heighley, a volunteer production to benefit the auditorium’s the Arts in Education Scholarship Fund and Temple Beth Shalom. Performance times are 7 p.m. on Sept. 17, 2 p.m. on Sept. 18. Tickets: $29 for adults, $18 for students. Call the Flagler Auditorium, 437-7547, for tickets, or go to flaglerauditorium.org.
♦ Feb. 6: The great violinist Itzhak Perlman opens the 2017 season of the Amelia Island Chamber Music Festival with a 7:30 p.m. performance at First Baptist Church, 1600 South 8th Street in Fernandina Beach. Tickets here.

The Day’s Best Reads:

The guy Trump just hired to run his campaign? Same man in charge of running this media organization: pic.twitter.com/M3t1rsZcST

— The Briefing (@TheBriefing2016) August 17, 2016

Imagine your only defense against the notorious Florida prosecutor Angela Corey was this guy https://t.co/6gl2BLEBzE pic.twitter.com/GfTswuIDLt

— The Nation (@thenation) August 17, 2016

War to 'Stop' War: Why the #Obama Doctrine is Ravaging the #MiddleEast https://t.co/2R657Ey533 pic.twitter.com/pLZ9BR1Cfn

— Common Dreams (@commondreams) August 17, 2016

Researchers have found a link between controversial pesticides & declining wild bee numbers https://t.co/hEXmJb50IU pic.twitter.com/UQI6XtQmNE

— nature (@Nature) August 17, 2016

The long jumper who overcame his crystal meth addiction to win an Olympic medal https://t.co/JligHzea7A pic.twitter.com/m8cZwVZvoI

— The New Statesman (@NewStatesman) August 17, 2016

How to Spot Bullshit: A Primer by Princeton Philosopher Harry Frankfurt https://t.co/tnsjVMUMCi https://t.co/CfcYT0rkjD

— Open Culture (@openculture) August 17, 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 July 15 (the city administration’s full week in review is here):

Click to access week-in-review-july1.pdf

Road and Interstate Construction: