Flagler Beach Holds Non-Public Meeting to Discuss Marina, Lies of the Past Year

fracking water contamination — Fracking, it turns out, does contaminate water. See below. (Andrew Campbell)

Today: Mostly cloudy with slight chance of showers in the morning…then partly cloudy with chance of showers and slight chance of thunderstorms in the afternoon. Highs in the upper 70s. Southwest winds 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 30 percent. Tonight: Partly cloudy in the evening then becoming mostly cloudy. A 20 percent chance of showers. Lows in the upper 50s. West winds 5 to 10 mph. Details here.
Drought Index is at 387.
Today’s tides: at the beaches, at the Intracoastal Waterway.
Today’s document from the National Archives.
The OED’s Word of the Day: mundowie, n..
The Live Community Calendar
Today’s jail bookings.

Today’s Briefing: Quick Links

First Light
In Flagler and Palm Coast
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
Local Road and Interstate Construction
Cultural Coda

“To the fury and disgust of that prince of intellectuals, Henry Adams, Roosevelt posed as an intellectual. He was, of course, almost a textbook case of the emotional type, but he had not merely been exposed to education at Harvard, he had really taken it. His interests were wide-ranging and, if superficial, were acute. He invited to the White House such odd creatures as the mansion had not sheltered within living memory – philosophers, historians, novelists, poets, dramatists and sociologists. He brought in boxers, wrestlers and pole-vaulters, too, but they startled the politicians much less than did the scholars. Roosevelt did more than any president since the Virginia Dynasty to make it respectable to admit to having read a book; so in his environment he was something of an intellectual and the Waspish comments of Henry Adams do not alter the fact.”

–Gerald W. Johnson, from The Lunatic Fringe (1957).

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.

The Friends of the A1A Scenic Committee meets at 2 p.m. at St. Augustine Beach City Hall.

The Flagler Beach City Commission holds a closed-door meeting to discuss its next step in litigation with Howard Sklar, owner of the Flagler Beach Marina. The commission is allowed, under Florida law, to hold such a meeting as long as it is exclusively focused on legal strategy. Last month a circuit judge ruled mostly in favor of Sklar’s Marina, allowing Sklar to resume its development. But both sides have filed motions to appeal. The meeting will be held at 5:30 p.m. at 320 South Flagler Avenue–the city’s fire department. The commission will not take any action at that closed portion of the meeting: any action must be carried out in an open meeting. But the closed portion will be followed by a public portion of the meeting, where it’s possible that the commission will take action based on what it would have discussed previously. Background here.

Court Ruling Mostly Favoring Developer May End Nearly 2-Decade Wrangle Over Flagler Beach Marina

Rotary Club’s Annual Fantasy Lights Festival: It is open each night in December from 6:30 p.m. to 9. Entry into the park is free but donations are accepted. Proceeds from the event go back into community projects funded by Rotary.

In Florida and in State Government:

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

Education budget: The Senate PreK-12 Education Appropriations Subcommittee will meet and receive an overview of appropriations. (10 a.m., 412 Knott Building, the Capitol.)

The Senate Transportation, Tourism and Economic Development Appropriations Subcommittee will receive agency overviews and hold a brief discussion about agency priorities. (10 a.m., 110 Senate Office Building, the Capitol.)

Lobbyists: The House will hold a training seminar for lobbyists about new House rules. Those rules, for example, place additional disclosure requirements on lobbyists. (4:30 p.m., 404 House Office Building, the Capitol.)

The Florida Commission on Offender Review is scheduled to meet and discuss numerous parole cases related to crimes committed in the 1970s and 1980s. (9 a.m., 4070 Esplanade Way, Tallahassee.)

–Compiled by the News Service of Florida and FlaglerLive

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

What's left of A1A south of 12th Street. It doesn't get better for many blocks. Click on the image for larger view. (c FlaglerLive) — (c FlaglerLive)

♦ Dec. 15: The Florida Department of Transportation hosts a public meeting on the long-term improvement strategies for the reconstruction of State Road A1A in Flagler Beach at the south end of town. The meeting is scheduled from 2:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. at Flagler Beach City Hall, 105 S 2nd St, Flagler Beach. The meeting will be an open house with an ongoing loop presentation. The purpose of the public meeting is to present initial findings related to existing and future conditions and to receive input from interested stakeholders.
♦ Dec. 15: The Flagler County Historical Society is having a Holiday Open House from 5 to 7 p.m. at the Holden House, 204 East Moody Boulevard, Bunnell. Author Sandra Thurlow who has complied a history of the US Life-Saving Service, Florida’s East Coast will be present. Refreshments will be served. The public is invited to attend. For information contact Susan Baird at 437-8414.
♦ Dec. 15: Belle Terre Elementary School Winter Musical, 6:30 p.m. at the school cafeteria.
♦ Dec. 15: Matanzas High School Band and Chorus Holiday Concert, 7 p.m. at the Flagler Auditorium.
♦ Dec. 16: Flagler County Clerk of Court-elect Tom Bexley and his staff will host a farewell celebration for Gail Wadsworth, the long-time court clerk who retired this year, at 3:30 p.m. on the steps of the Kim Hammond Justice Center (the Flagler County Courthouse). All are invited. (Bexley becomes the Clerk of Court on Jan. 3.)
♦ Dec. 16: Holiday Crafts in the Park at Gamble Rogers Memorial State Recreation Area in Flagler Beach: Join us from 1 to 2 p.m. at the Killdeer pavilion, on the west side of the park, where Volunteer Debbie will show you how to make a Snowman holiday ornament. Bring a small hand towel if you have one. Adults and children 13 and older. Class is limited to 15 participants. Please register at Eventbrite.com. This program is free with paid park admission. There will also be a class for a reindeer ornament on Dec. 21st at 1-2 pm. Event Contact: 386-517-2086.
♦ Dec. 16: The ninth annual Christmas With a Deputy, when 100 poorer children get to go on a $150 shopping spree with a cop at Target, starts at 6:30 p.m. from City Centre in Palm Coast’s Town Center, with a long convoy of cop cars, sirens blaring and lights flashing. Details here.
♦ Dec. 17: Annual Holiday Boat Parade at 6 p.m., presented by the Palm Coast Yacht Club. Boats will be lighted and begin departing the Cimmaron Basin, following this route: Cimmaron Basin to Intracoastal Waterway, turn south, passing Tidelands, Canopy Walk, St. Joe’s Walkway, Waterfront Park, Island Estates, then turning at Grand Haven Gazebo before heading back north to Clubhouse Waterway.
♦ Dec. 17: Starlight 5K at 6 p.m., in and around Central Park in Town Center, 975 Central Ave. The run is part of the Run Flagler P.A.L. Running Series. More info: www.triumphraces.com.
♦ Dec. 17: Dance Around Flagler recital at the Flagler Auditorium, 3 p.m.
♦ Dec. 19: The Flagler County Commission holds a 4 p.m. reception–one hour ahead of its regularly scheduled meeting–to honor Barbara Revels, whose eight years of service as one of only two women ever elected to the county commission ended on Nov. 8, when Dave Sullivan defeated her. The reception will be held in board chambers at the Government Services Building, Bunnell.
♦ Dec. 20: Learn about historic and interesting Flagler County sites with local author Bill Ryan as your guide. The bus leaves at 10 a.m. from the Holden House, 206 East Moody Boulevard, Bunnell, and returns at 2:30 p.m. The cost is $20 per person which does not include lunch at Bull Creek Fish Camp. To make reservations or for more information call 386-439-5003.
♦ Dec. 21: Rep. Paul Renner and Sen. Travis Hutson, who form Flagler County’s legislative delegation, will host the annual delegation meeting in board chambers at the Government Services Building in Bunnell to hear concerns and legislative wish-lists from local officials and residents, ahead of the 2017 legislative session. To get on the agenda, call 386/446-7644.
♦ Dec. 22: The All Flagler Democratic Club meets at the Palm Coast Community Center, 7-8:30pm. The first hour is devoted to a presentation featuring three losing Demovcratic candidates for office in the last election, who will speak on the theme of “What I learned Running For Office.” The discussion is moderated by Merrill Shapiro, and features Bill McCullough, who ran for a congressional seat, Doug Courtney, who ran for Clerk of Court, and John Brady, who ran for mayor of Palm Coast. The presentation will be followed by the business portion of the meeting. The public is invited regardless of party registration. Questions: call Sheila Zinkerman, interim president, at 904/451-0301. (See background on the previous meeting here.)
♦ Jan. 7: Daytona State College Enrollment Saturday, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., Wetherell Center (Bldg. 100), 1200 W. International Speedway Blvd., Daytona Beach. Students can take advantage of the one-stop events to complete everything from admission to registration and have a chance to win a $350 scholarship (Dec. 10 only) for a free class from the Daytona State Foundation. Students start by completing a Daytona State application, then meet with an Admissions Advisor and Financial Aid Counselor, take an assessment test (if applicable), meet with an Academic Advisor, and then lock in their schedule.
♦ 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.
♦ March 7: Bunnell and Flagler Beach hold their municipal elections.

The Day’s Best Reads:

The EPA has concluded that fracking has contaminated drinking water in some circumstances https://t.co/wSedXK1YpJ

— The New York Times (@nytimes) December 13, 2016

Remembering Lie of the past Years https://t.co/ImAfI7pigA …

— PolitiFact Florida (@PolitiFactFL) December 14, 2016

The dangers of mystifying Trump https://t.co/3b8uKPzjI5 pic.twitter.com/ouU2IXrC33

— CJR (@CJR) December 13, 2016

"From Jesus to Christ" explores how a sect of Judaism eclipsed the gods of Olympus. Starting tonight on @PBS: https://t.co/MXbAV81fNQ pic.twitter.com/AVNyjSK0oO

— FRONTLINE (@frontlinepbs) December 13, 2016

One of our most engaging pieces of 2016: Which type of exercise is best for the brain? https://t.co/Pvc6HRqvvW pic.twitter.com/cViSHivNNh

— The New York Times (@nytimes) December 14, 2016

A Twitter List by PierreTristam

Palm Coast Construction and Development Progress Reports

The following is an update of ongoing permitting, construction and development projects in Palm Coast, through Dec. 2 (the city administration’s full week in review is here):

Click to access development-palm-coast-dec-2.pdf

Road and Interstate Construction: