Holland Park Closed Until May, Bunnell's Transparency Policies, Jarhead

Holland Park will remain closed until April or May, according to city officials, a more-than year-long delay in the park's reconstruction. The city appears to have an erroneous idea of what constitutes private property: the park is still very much public property, and is being rebuilt with public dollars. (© FlaglerLive) — Holland Park will remain closed until April or May, according to city officials, a more-than year-long delay in the park’s reconstruction. But someone might educate Palm Coast government about the difference between public and private property. The park is still very much public property, and is being rebuilt with public dollars. (© FlaglerLive)

Today: Partly cloudy. Slight chance of showers in the morning, then chance of showers in the afternoon. Highs in the upper 70s. East winds 10 to 15 mph. Chance of rain 30 percent. Tonight: Partly cloudy. Lows in the mid 60s. Southeast winds 5 to 10 mph. Details here.
Drought Index is at 337.
Today’s tides: at the beaches, at the Intracoastal Waterway.
Today’s document from the National Archives.
The OED’s Word of the Day: panic, adj. and n.2.
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

“If wars were fought only by the men on the ground, the men facing one another in real battle, most wars would end quickly and sensibly. Men are smart and men are animals, in that they don’t want to die so simply for so little.”.

–Anthony Swofford, in Jarhead: A Marine’s Chronicle of the Gulf War and Other Battles

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 Sheriff’s daily incident reports and jail bookings are posted here.

Take the Flagler County School Superintendent Survey: The school district is inviting residents, including students and faculty, to fill out this survey, letting school board members know what kind of superintendent you want to replace Jacob Oliva, who is leaving in June. This survey will be live until early March. It takes about 10 minutes. It’s anonymous. Fill it out here.

The Bunnell City Commission meets at 7 p.m. at City Hall, 201 West Moody Boulevard. The commission will consider approving updates to the city’s public records, social media and public information policies. The commission will also consider re-appointing Kathryn Davis as a regular board member to the Code Enforcement Board for another three year term, and Pete Young, the Florida Highway Patrol trooper, to the Volunteer Firefighters’ Retirement System. The full agenda, which includes the city manager’s newsletter, is available here.

Flagler County Stamp and Coin Club holds its monthly meeting at the VFW Post 8696 47 N. Old Kings Road. Doors open at 4:30 p.m., the meeting starts at 6. The 90 minutes before the meeting is for anyone wishing to buy, sell or trade stamps and coins. The club’s meeting is from 6 to 7:30 p.m. There is a live auction of coins and stamps at the end of the meeting. The club is open for members and the general public who are interested in stamp and coin collecting and investing. Free stamp and coin evaluations at all our meetings. For more information visit the web site here.

Mostly useless information: It was on this date in 1991 that the 100-hour, American-led war to “liberate” Kuwait from Saddam Hussein’s Iraqi occupation ended. American casualties were low, but it was not a pretty war. “Bodies litter the desert as though the men were in a great crowd, chanting with fists raised as they waited for their death,” the Marine Anthony Swofford, who was part of the campaign, wrote in “Jarhead” (2003). And the “liberation” only restored Kuwait’s undemocratic playboy caliphate to power, after its leaders had escaped the war by scurrying off to shop, gamble and whoremonger in Paris and London while George Bush’s coalition fought their war. Kuwait remains as undemocratic today as it was then. Human Rights Watch sums up the current situation this way: “Kuwait’s government aggressively cracks down on free speech, using provisions in the constitution, the national security law, and other legislation to stifle political dissent, as well as passing new legislation criminalizing or increasing penalties for various forms and means of expression. In an effort to curb local terrorism, according to authorities, Kuwait became the first country to pass a law requiring that all Kuwaiti citizens and residents provide DNA samples, in violation of the right to privacy. The government has yet to address the citizenship concerns of minority groups such as the Bidun, who are stateless in Kuwait.” In lesser developments, Ralph Nader, who got George W. Bush elected in 2000, was born on this day in 1974.

In Florida and in State Government:

Note: Some proceedings below can be followed live on the Florida Channel. Most legislative proceedings can be followed through the Senate or House websites.

House Speaker Richard Corcoran, R-Land O’ Lakes, and Senate Appropriations Chairman Jack Latvala, R-Clearwater, will appear at the Forum Club of the Palm Beaches to discuss the upcoming legislative session. (Noon, Raymond F. Kravis Center for the Performing Arts Cohen Pavilion, 701 Okeechobee Blvd., West Palm Beach.)

Medicaid: The Social Services Estimating Conference will discuss a formula, known as FMAP, that helps determine how much federal matching money Florida receives for the Medicaid program. (10 a.m., 117 Knott Building, the Capitol.)

–Compiled by the News Service of Florida and FlaglerLive

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

♦ Feb. 28: Join the Flagler County Education Foundation’s 14th annual Mardi Gras gala at Halifax Plantation, 3400 Clubhouse Drive, Ormond Beach, at 6 p.m. This is one of the foundation’s annual fundraisers. Tickets are $100 per person. Click here to register or call today at 386/437.7526 for event details. Get a chance to talk to Joe Rizzo, the new executive director, and learn more about Flagler county schools.
♦ March 3: It’s the kick-off of the annual Flagler Reads Together, the Friends of the Library’s annual communal reading event that focuses on a single book and encourages everyone in the county to read it. This time it’s as local as it gets: the book is the late Jack Clegg’s “The History of Flagler County,” in conjunction with Flagler County’s centennial celebrations. The month-long Flagler Reads Together kicks off on March 3 at 2 p.m. at the Flagler County Public Library’s main meeting room with a presentation by the Flagler County Historical Society’s Sisco Deen. It’s free.
♦ March 3: Fourth annual Flagler County Job Fair, from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Palm Coast Campus of Daytona State College, 3000 Palm Coast Pkwy SE, Building 3. There are more than 40 businesses registered, with more signing up daily, offering over 360 jobs. Last year over 400 job seekers attended the event, which was hosted by the Flagler County Department of Economic Opportunity, CareerSourceFV, Daytona State College and the Flagler County Chamber of Commerce. A full listing of companies is available at www.flaglercountyjobfair.com or by accessing the mobile app by searching the app store for Flagler Volusia Job Fair Plus.
♦ March 3: Flagler Beach’s 10th Annual Pinewood Derby Race, as part of Flagler Beach’s First Friday. Awards will be presented for the fastest and most creative designed cars in the adult and children’s categories. Get your kit and then… Design it, build it, race it. Rules are here, and your registration form is here.
♦ March 4: 13th Annual Stamp and Coin Show and Chinese Auction, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., Elk’s Lodge #2709 53 N. Old Kings Road, Palm Coast. Flagler County Stamp and Coin Club, Inc. will hold its 13th Annual Stamp and Coin show This show is open to the general public and everyone interested in stamps and coins. There will be dealers to give free evaluations of your stamp collections and silver and gold coins. Come early and bring your friends. Door prizes every 30 minutes, beginning at 10:30 a.,m. and ending at 2:30 p.m. All proceeds from the Chinese Auction support the FCS&CC youth programs. Hugh variety of items to submit bids. The club is a 501(c)(3) non profit and is the only non profit stamp and coin club in Flagler County. Free parking and admission. Visit the web site for more information and contact.
♦ March 4: First of two kayaking trips organized by Flagler County’s Centennial Committee, this one, the Haw Creek paddle, is scheduled for launch at 9 a.m. from Russell Landing County Park. Registrations are needed in advance and registrations for the trip close on February 20th. The registration is $15 and each person registering will get a competition style tee shirt commemorating the County’s Centennial. When kayakers arrive at Bull Creek Park a special lunch will be offered for participants who opt for the $11 lunch. Registration for both trips, instructions and detailed directions can be found on the www.flaglercounty.org website or on facebook at www.facebook.com/FlaglerCountyCentennial. Interested kayakers can contact the committee at [email protected]. The second trip is planned for a 9 a.m. launch Saturday April 22 from Longs Landing City Park.
♦ March 7: Bunnell and Flagler Beach hold their municipal elections.
♦ March 10: Flagler Reads Together event (the Friends of the Library’s annual communal reading event that focuses on a single book and encourages everyone in the county to read it: the late Jack Clegg’s “The History of Flagler County,” in conjunction with Flagler County’s centennial celebrations). The March 10 event, at 2 p.m. in the Doug Cisney Room at the Flagler County Public Library on Palm Coast Parkway, is a presentation by Bob Stone addressing the Cattle industry in Florida. Folklorist and media producer Bob Stone’s multi-media presentation explores and celebrates the history and culture of the nation’s oldest cattle ranching state from the colonial period to the 21st century. You will see and hear all aspects of Florida cattle ranching traditions including material culture such as Cracker cow-whips and unique ranch gate designs, swamp cabbage and other foodways, cowboy church and Cracker cowboy funerals, Seminole ranching past and present, occupational skills such as roping and branding, our vibrant rodeo culture, side-splitting cowboy poetry, feisty cow-dogs, and much more.

chess tournaments jacksonville — (Liz West)

♦ March 10-12: 2017 Florida State Scholastic Chess Championship, at the Wyndham Hotel on International Drive in Orlando. This is also the qualifier for the Denker, Barber and National Girls Tournament Champions. This year each of these 3 events are awarding a $5,000 scholarship good for any university or college in the Country to the top finisher in each event. The top finishers will also get qualifying spots in the World Youth Tournament. Online entry and more information are available at www.floridachess.org.
♦ March 22: The boy Scouts Council holds its Golden Eagle Dinner at 6 p.m. at Hammock Beach Resort, honoring Bob Cuff, now a Palm coast City council member.
♦ March 28: The Flagler Forum, the discussion group organized by Ed Fuller, hosts a panel discussion featuring Flagler County’s local media, including Palm Coast Observer Editor Brian McMillan and FlaglerLive Editor Pierre Tristam, at the Hilton Garden Inn, Palm Coast, at 6:30 p.m.

The Day’s Best Reads:

Crime has been falling dramatically but year after year, most Americans say crime is increasinghttps://t.co/ZPiSQDzB56 pic.twitter.com/xR2VzhXNQR

— Conrad Hackett (@conradhackett) February 26, 2017

Tillerson has given no public interviews and has suspended his dept's daily press briefings. https://t.co/TPio3P1lmR pic.twitter.com/RHaIA8i369

— New York Times Opinion (@nytopinion) February 26, 2017

Before there was "fake news," there was the Tea Party. https://t.co/e2nqcml8lj

— Crooks and Liars (@crooksandliars) February 26, 2017

Column: Trump needs to stop terrifying immigrant families and consider the real cost of mass deportations https://t.co/FascxKTSxx pic.twitter.com/nXR39locNP

— Los Angeles Times (@latimes) February 26, 2017

People lie for many reasons, and not all of them are for personal gain. https://t.co/AWewL6eef2

— Psychology Today (@PsychToday) February 26, 2017

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 Feb. 24 (the city administration’s full week in review is here):

Click to access development-february-22-2017.pdf

Road and Interstate Construction: