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flagler county economy

Sea Ray Boats’ Palm Coast Plant Shutting Down in Major Blow to 440 Workers

June 25, 2018 | FlaglerLive | 123 Comments

Sea Ray Boats was one of Flagler County's top private employers. It has been a mainstay of the local manufacturing economy. (© FlaglerLive)

Palm Coast’s Sea Ray Boats plant, one of the top five employers in the county, with some 440 employees, is shutting down as Brunswick corp. abandons the yacht line.

Palm Coast Aldi Draws Hundreds Before Doors Open in Grocery Wars’ First Local Salvo

July 13, 2017 | FlaglerLive | 20 Comments

About 150 people had lined up in a snaking line around the Aldi parking lot before the Palm Coast store's opening this morning, with more coming in every minute. (© FlaglerLive)

The Palm Coast opening of Aldi, the discount grocery store, generated unusual excitement and crowds this morning, signaling a coming disruption in the grocery-chain business.

Sheriff Hires 13 Deputies, Underscoring Turnover of More Than 100 in Three Years

September 22, 2015 | FlaglerLive | 29 Comments

flagler sheriff's office recruits

Well over a third of the Flagler Sheriff’s 285 positions have turned over in Jim Manfre’s three-year tenure, while 85 percent of full-timers have less than 15 years’ service–and a third have less than three years.

County Government Will Take Over Flagler Tourism Office From Chamber in Latest Expansion

August 17, 2015 | FlaglerLive | 17 Comments

tdc flagler chamber

The tourism office’s four employees have been under contract through the Flagler chamber of commerce. By next fall, they’ll be county employees, but their budget will still be underwritten by the 4 percent surtax on short-term rentals.

Getting Past Cheap Praise: Superintendent Challenges Teachers to Adopt More Perceptive Mindsets

August 17, 2015 | FlaglerLive | Leave a Comment

jacob oliva

Speaking to 1,000 faculty members in a packed Flagler Auditorium this morning, Superintendent Jacob Oliva outlined the coming year’s objective the way savvy tech companies roll out new products.

At Sea Ray Boats, a $10,000 Gift Marks Millions of Working Hours Without an Accident

June 3, 2015 | FlaglerLive | 2 Comments

sea ray boats safety

Brunswick Corp. CEO Dustan McCoy marked Sea Ray’s safety record while tracing the Flagler Beach plant’s success through the Great Recession, and linking its safety record to its continuing operations.

Island Grille Restaurant Opens in Flagler Beach, Resurrecting Blue in Silver Mist

May 27, 2015 | FlaglerLive | 7 Comments

island grille restaurant flagler beach

The Island Grille opened May 27 where Blue Restaurant used to be, with chef Gary Maresca back in the kitchen and a team of four co-owners promising gastronomy and success.

In a Boon to Flagler, National Guard Will Bring “Hundreds of Troops” to County Airport in Long-Term Lease Agreement

July 21, 2014 | FlaglerLive | 7 Comments

In the Florida National Guard, the Capt Building at the Flagler County Airport will finally get a tenant it can count on. (© FlaglerLive)

The Army National Guard’s 10-year lease agreement with Flagler, to be revealed to the County Commission Wednesday, fills a 19,000-square-foot building at the airport, for $15,185 a month, after the county saw four tenants in eight years fail to make good on their leases there.

Flagler Seeks, Flagler Wins: Bill Restoring Vacation-Rental Regulation Authority Passes House and Heads for Scott’s Desk

May 1, 2014 | FlaglerLive | 19 Comments

The Flagler County Commission has been leading the fight to overturn a 2011 state law prohibiting the regulation of short-term rentals. Thursday morning, the Florida Senate voted 37-2 to give back some home-rule authority to local governments. The House approved the measure 90-27 on Wednesday, sealing a major victory for Flagler County.

Single-Family Home Permits Up 29% in 1st Quarter as Construction in Palm Coast Churns

April 2, 2014 | FlaglerLive | 9 Comments

Some 126 construction permits were issued for single-family homes in Flagler County in the first three months of the year, 88 of them in Palm Coast and 34 in the unincorporated part of the county.

Unemployment Spike to 9.3% in Flagler Masks Larger Labor Force, More Job Creation and Flurry of Development Ahead

March 17, 2014 | FlaglerLive | 14 Comments

Flagler County’s January unemployment is up sharply from from 8.8 percent in December. but in a brighter sign, the county’s labor force also added some 400 people, there was a net gain of some 200 jobs, and numerous commercial, residential and government construction projects suggest that the county’s economy is brightening.

School Enrollment Stabilizes But Remains Below Last Year’s, With Decreases Projected

December 4, 2013 | FlaglerLive | 3 Comments

As of the end of November, the district had 12,794 students. The good news is that the district saw enrollment rise for the past two months, but the number is still 100 students below last November’s, with projected declines of 1 to 2 percent between January and May, which may have ripple effects on the economy.

Nothing Flagler Can Do About Divisive Vacation Rentals, Attorney General Bondi Confirms

October 24, 2013 | FlaglerLive | 10 Comments

The expedited Attorney General’s opinion cited Flagler County’s own absence of regulation of vacation rentals before 2011 as one reason the county’s hands are tied in controlling what has become a center of conflict for permanent residents of the Hammock. Since 2011, a state law prevents local governments from imposing new regulations.

Homes Sales and Inventory Decline a Bit in Flagler as Interest Rates Continue to Rise

September 19, 2013 | FlaglerLive | 1 Comment

After July’s buoyant home-sale figures in Flagler County, which hit a post-recession high of 243 closed sales for the month, August’s numbers are somewhat less bubbly, but the trend remains solidly positive even as interest rates creep up.

Home Sales in Flagler Hit Post-Recession High as Time On Market Declines and Prices Rise

August 21, 2013 | FlaglerLive | 9 Comments

Homes for sale in Flagler County have spent on average just 55 days on the market, also a post-recession low, while the median sale price of $155,000 in July in Flagler improved an impressive 7 percent on June’s median of $144,500, and 19.7 percent on the median price a year ago,

Flagler’s Tourism Industry Takes Its Pulse, Declares Itself Healthy, and Cheers Its “Heroes”

May 3, 2013 | FlaglerLive | 1 Comment

In Flagler County, 2,600 people work in tourist businesses, which have weathered the recession and are seeing strong, sustained activity. Flagler County’s annual Hospitality Employees Recognition of Excellent Service (or H.E.R.O.E.S.) awards lunch at the Hammock Beach Resort Thursday was an occasion for the county’s tourism industry to cheer its own.

Flagler Schools’ Overall Enrollment Flat For 4th Straight Year as Charters Keep Growing

November 2, 2012 | FlaglerLive | 9 Comments

Flagler County’s three charter schools’ enrollment exceeds 1,000, or 8 percent of the district, which saw its traditional schools’ enrollment fall to the lowest level since the 2005-06 school year.

Flagler’s Unemployment Rate Falls to 11.9%, Its Lowest Level Since December 2008

October 19, 2012 | FlaglerLive | 13 Comments

florida unemployment report september october 2012

Flagler County may have a little something to cheer about: its unemployment rate in September fell to 11.9 percent, from 12.3 percent the month before. That’s the lowest unemployment rate in the county since December 2008, when it was 11.8 percent.

16-Year-Old’s High-Def Eye In the Sky Gives Flagler Free and Spectacular Publicity

September 10, 2012 | FlaglerLive | 12 Comments

Find your Flagler: shot from Lucas Weekley's tricopter earlier this month. (© Lucas Weekley)

Lucas Weekley, a budding engineer from Ocala, builds and flies remote-controlled aircraft that shoot high-definition video, which he edits and launches on YouTube through his BuyBee TV. Flagler Beach and Hammock Dunes were the lucky subjects of his last production.

Florida Tourism Lull Predicted, Slowing Local Growth, as Euro Zone Economies Suffer

July 24, 2012 | FlaglerLive | Leave a Comment

european tourism in florida and flagler county

Economic woes in Europe will trickle across the Atlantic over the next few years as potential international guests stay home or see their native currency buy less once they arrive, a panel of economists estimates.

Flagler’s and Florida’s Economic Development Hoax

March 18, 2012 | Pierre Tristam | 11 Comments

Florida lawmakers and their local replicas seem hypnotized by the buzz of economic development, nattering about it with great stamina. But it’s a hoax, and a costly one. The assault on public and higher education of the last few years proves it.

Perth Amboy’s Van Eckert Accepts Flagler’s Offer To Be Economic Development CEO

January 30, 2012 | FlaglerLive | 8 Comments

Helga Van Eckert has accepted Flagler County’s government’s offer to become its latest economic development CEO. She will start in late February with a salary of close to $110,000 a year. The future of Greg Rawls, the previous CEO still serving through the transition, is unclear.

Jobs Council Interviews 3 Vastly Different Candidates for Top Economic Development Job

January 5, 2012 | FlaglerLive | 13 Comments

None of the three candidates for the $100,000 job lacked in confidence, experience or enthusiasm, and each projecting enough qualities but sharply different temperaments to make a choice between them difficult. That choice may be made Friday.

More Candidates for Jobs Council’s Top Post Drop Out, Citing Expectation of Creating Jobs

December 22, 2011 | FlaglerLive | 26 Comments

Some candidates were worried that they’d be expected to create 200 jobs in their first year, though candidates have also been raising concerns over the checkered political history of economic development in Flagler County.

Flagler Lays Off Sex as Births Fall For First Time in 16 Years; Deaths Also Dip

December 28, 2010 | FlaglerLive | Leave a Comment

Flagler County births and deaths 1989-2009 (© FlaglerLive)

Flagler County’s old norms keep dying. Used to be that property values never fell. And for more than two decades, they didn’t. They only increased. That changed in 2008, when they fell 8.5 percent, and kept falling more steeply the next two years. Values are set to fall again next year, if the last six […]

County Raises Bed Tax to 4%, a Victory for Milissa Holland’s Tourism Marketing Thrust

October 18, 2010 | FlaglerLive | 19 Comments

milissa holland tourism in Flagler county

The higher tax, Milissa Holland argued, will broaden Flagler County’s marketing power, drawing more visitors and creating more jobs for local, small businesses.

Palm Coast Consistently Beating Florida As Taxable Sales Indicators Continue to Improve

September 28, 2010 | FlaglerLive | 3 Comments

palm coast florida sales tax data monthly graph

Tourism and retail sales, and fewer people traveling elsewhere to buy goods, are keeping Palm Coast’s taxable sales among the most-improved in the state, compared with 2009.

Blaming Poor Sales, Sea Ray Lays Off 170 From Palm Coast Plant; Future Uncertain

September 17, 2010 | FlaglerLive | 31 Comments

sea ray palm coast plant flagler county manufacturing

The The Brunswick Corp.-owned boat manufacturer is one of the largest and best-paying private employer in Flagler County, and the beneficiary of generous local government subsidies and incentives.

16.9% Unemployment in Flagler, 11.6% in Fla.

January 23, 2010 | FlaglerLive | Leave a Comment

One in six working-age adult is out of work in Flagler County, the highest proportion in the county’s history.

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