A South Florida lawmaker filed legislation Friday to repeal the law allowing the use of red light cameras, following a report earlier this week that says intersections where they’re used have seen drops in crashes in most places.
palm coast city council
City Thuggery: Florida Supreme Court Should Ban Red-Light Spy-and-Snap Traffic Cameras
Florida’s new law legalizing red-light cameras ensures that state coffers are on the take. But it does not address the fundamental problems with spy-and-snap cameras. There are innumerable reasons to ban them. There’s only one reason to keep them, and it’s a slimy one: money.
Palm Coast Approves Surtax Tool as It Looks To Recoup Old Kings Road Widening Costs
The Palm Coast City Council, still looking to repay the $6.2 million it cost to widen Old Kings Road, laid out plans to create a special taxing district next year that would levy a property surtax on property owners long the southern portion of Old Kings.
Palm Coast Approves 46% Stormwater Fee Increase, But Permanent Solution Still Elusive
The Palm Coast City Council is looking for ways to pay for a $7.5 million a year stormwater infrastructure. Residents’ stormwater fee will go up from $8 to $11.65 a month, while the council has until February to find a permanent solution that may push some fees even higher.
Palm Coast’s Plan to Install Red-Light Spy Cameras on SR100 Faces New Obstacle
Flagler County runs the lights’ infrastructure, and must give its permission to Palm Coast to plug in its spy-camera system. The county, which opposes cameras on SR100, won’t grant permission.
Palm Coast City Council’s Bill Lewis: Two Minutes, Six Errors, Countless Sneers
When Palm Coast City Councilman Bill Lewis took to the floor of a council meeting to correct a fact in a FlaglerLive column, which had already been corrected, he committed more than six errors of his own, including about his own personal history. Lewis’s errors bear correcting as publicly as he committed them.
In a Day of Inaugurals, 3 Governments Swear In New Members and 2 Elect New Chairmen
The Flagler County Commission, the school board and the Palm Coast City Council all either welcomed new members or shuffled their chairmanships in an annual ritual with a mixture of ceremony and consequences.
Gus Ajram, Embattled Bulldog Drive Business Owner, Collapses in Outburst Before Council
Ajram and City Manager Jim Landon have battled over Ajram’s property on Bulldog Drive for several years, in what became a personal showdown. Rather than acquire the property, the city is now diverting Bulldog Drive, at a cost significantly greater than the difference it was unwilling to pay Ajram in negotiations.
The Palm Coast City Council’s Arrogance Problem
The secret, undemocratic way the Palm Coast City Council went about picking its latest unelected member is the latest disturbing example of a council’s contempt for the public, and of the maneuverings of a manager with a Donald Trump complex.
Awarding Just $20,000 in Arts Grants Again, Palm Coast Agrees to Rethink Its Stinginess
Palm Coast is willing to subsidize its money-losing tennis center to the tune of $240,000 in the last two years, but is awarding just $20,000 to support just nine arts and culture organizations. Some council members (calling the small amount “a joke”) want to change that.
David Ferguson, a Conservative Business Consultant, is Appointed to Palm Coast Council
David Ferguson, a 60-year-old business consultant, will fill out the two years remaining in Frank Meeker’s term, ensuring that the panel will remain an all-male fraternity until at least 2014, when the seat is one of two up for election. That of Bill Lewis, also an appointee, is the other.
16 Applicants for Palm Coast Council Short-Listed to 4; Closed-Door Interviews Next
The Palm Coast City Council will appoint one of four remaining applicants to fill out Frank Meeker’s term, which ends in 2014. The appointment will follow council members’ closed-door interviews with each candidate next Tuesday, then a vote. Meeker won an election to the county commission.
Palm Coast Water and Sewer Rates Set to Rise Up to 22% Over the Next Three Years
The Palm Coast City Council prides itself on keeping property taxes low, but its array of fees continue to increase steeply, as will utility rates if the council approves a debt refinancing plan that would let the city borrow another $15 million for utility improvements, even though growth in the city has slowed to a drip.
In Startling Confrontations, DeLorenzo Takes On Palm Coast’s Jim Landon–and Impact Fees
Palm Coast City Council member Jason DeLorenzo on Tuesday questioned the veracity of City Manager Jim Landon’s numbers and his “backroom” style while making the case for a two-year moratorium for impact fees on new construction in the city in a rare, direct and sustained public challenge to the assuming city manager.
After Ridiculing County’s Sales Tax Revenue Compromise, Palm Coast Now Wants to Deal
In a turn-around stunning for its audacity, the Palm Coast City Council Tuesday agreed to ask the county commission to revive a compromise the commission had proposed on sharing sales tax revenue–a proposal Palm Coast rejected derisively over the summer.
In Palm Coast, the End of a 90% Building Permit Discount Will Affect Thousands
The 90 percent discount on all permits–from replacing AC units to replacing roofs or water heaters to installing pools and fences–began in 2009, because the city was collecting too much money. The discount ends Oct. 31, resulting in much steeper fees for more than 5,000 such permits a year.
How a Stumble Saddled Palm Coast Water Rate Payers With $500,000 in Additional Costs
Overeager to get going on a $2.6 million wellfield project during the boom years, Palm Coast never secured an agreement between a land company and FPL to power the wells. When talks broke down between the companies, Palm Coast decided to pay an extra $500,000 to power the wells with a different contractor, a cost it will pass down to rate-payers, even though the need for the water is non-existent.
As Expected, Flagler County Suspends $1,707-a-Home Building Tax for 2 Years
The county’s moratorium is relatively small, but Flagler’s chamber of commerce and its home builders association hope to get the school board to approve a moratorium next, then move to Palm Coast, where impact fees add up to $15,270.
As Flagler Governments Consider Impact Fee Cut, Evidence of Economic Benefit Is Slim
Builders and developers want the Flagler school board and Flagler County to cut impact fees–the one-time tax on construction–saying it’ll help the economy grow. But plenty of evidence says it won’t, while Flagler residents still reel from low values and empty houses that more new houses won’t help.
Impact Fees: What They Are, Who Pays Them, How Much They Pay
Whether you call them impact fees, taxes or hidden taxes, they’re a Florida and Flagler County reality. An explanation and definition of impact fees with a local rate schedule by city and county.
The Palm Coast City Council’s Disturbing Synthetic Marijuana High
On synthetic pot, the Palm Coast City Council and other local governments are being had, as governments trample due process to enforce a legal shortcut against a ghost epidemic–the latest hysteria in the derelict war on drugs.
How Two Council Members, Out of View, Got WNZF to Back-Pedal on Synthetic Marijuana
What was behind what sounded like a retraction on synthetic marijuana by WNZF’s David Ayres on his Free For All Friday show last week? Private discussions between Palm Coast Council member Bill McGuire with Mayor Jon Netts, and a letter Netts wrote Ayres, that the council never discussed openly–even as the council has yet to vote finally on the matter.
Using Straw Man, Palm Coast Ridicules County’s Opposition to Red-Light Cameras
Rather than address questions raised by County Commission Chairman Barbara Revels, the Palm Coast Council invented a claim that the county wanted to enable law-breaking, unsafe drivers, and dismissed Revels’s request to reconsider installing spy cameras on State Road 100.
Palm Coast Mayor Netts Says Amendment 4 Takes Taxes From “Screwy” to “Screwier”
Other Flagler government leaders joined Jon Netts in criticism of of proposed Constitutional Amendment 4, which would limit the tax liability of commercial, rental and vacant properties while lowering the tax liability of first-time home-buyers, but at the expense of local government revenue, which has been battered since 2007.
County Sends Protest Letter to Palm Coast Over Red-Light Spy Cameras on SR100
The Flagler County Commission is asking the Palm Coast City Council to reconsider installing some of its 52 spy-and-snap traffic cameras on SR100 because the county claims it will inhibit shopping and tourism, and leave a bad taste in visitors’ mouths just as the county is advertising itself as a welcoming beachside destination.
Former Palm Coast Councilman William Venne Is Hurt Along With Flagler Deputy in a Crash
William Venne, 80, a member of the Palm Coast City Council from 2000 to 2007, crashed into a Flagler County Sheriff’s deputy’s cruiser driven by Darrell Butler, 26, at Palm Coast Parkway and Belle Terre Parkway Thursday evening.
Adopting Legally Blurry Policing Role, Palm Coast Takes On Synthetic Pot Sellers
The Palm Coast City Council would impose a $300-a-day fine on convenience stores that persist in selling legal products known as synthetic marijuana, and would use its code enforcement as its policing arm, with assistance from the sheriff’s office.
Despite County’s Spike, Most Flagler and City Homeowners’ Tax Bills Will Fall in 2013
It’s been a familiar and recurring complaint, but also an inaccurate one: that property taxes keep going up. They don’t. For most people, property taxes fell this year. And for most people, property taxes will either stay flat or fall again in 2013. Here are the city-by-city details.
Woodlands Residents Hear More Promises Than Certainties About Looming Development
The Palm Coast City Council unanimously approved land-use changes that would open the way to a vast assisted living facility and commercial complex adjacent to the Woodlands, the old, rustic neighborhood, worrying residents that their subdivision’s character is in jeopardy.
On Garage Sales, Palm Coast Rejects $5 Fee But Preserves Registration Requirement
Facing almost unanimous public opposition, the Palm Coast City Council reversed plans to impose a $5 fee for garage sales but will still require a computerized permit and registration system to enforce a 2-sale limit per year.
Only 5 Candidates, Including 4 Incumbents, Apply for 4 Palm Coast Planning Board Seats
Appointments to the influential Palm Coast planning board by the city council can turn into perpetual re-appointments despite the city’s two-term limit, which the council can override with a super-majority vote.
Palm Coast Stormwater Fees Going Up 46%, Taxes Stay Level, Most Infrastructure Neglected
With the Palm Coast City Council’s refusal to raise property taxes , the city’s infrastructure will continue to deteriorate, Mayor Jon Netts and the city administration warned. But a majority of council members, led by Frank Meeker–who’s running for a county commission seat–refused to budge.
Palm Coast Will Require Garage Sales to Be Registered and Pay $5 Fee to Ensure Tracking
Palm Coast will impose a new permitting and fee requirement on garage sales to ensure that residents hold no more than two sales per lot per year, and to provide treasure hunters with a government-based database of garage sales by address and date.
Without Evidence But Plenty of Cash, Palm Coast Approves 52 Spy Cameras, Up from 10
The Palm Coast City Council’s agreement to increase the city’s traffic spy cameras to up to 52 is backed by no crash data and no scientific evidence that the 10 existing cameras improve safety, but Palm Coast stands to make up to $437,000 a year from the new scheme.
Skirting Landon’s Flogging of Cline Construction, Palm Coast Awards New Contract
The Palm Coast City Council awarded S.E. Cline Construction a $208,000 contract to build a water-control structure a week after City Manager Jim Landon argued to the council, harshly and publicly, that Cline was falling down on the job.
Planning Board Unanimously Backs Big Senior Complex Near Woodlands, Upsetting Many
The recommendation now goes before the Palm Coast City Council, which is expected to approve land use changes to enable the 216-unit assisted and independent living facility despite the conversion of conservation land and traffic issues that concern Woodlands residents.
Woodlands Residents Fear Radical Changes as Grand Haven Proposes New Developments
The Grand Haven developer is looking to plant a 200-bed assisted living facility at the southeast edge of the Woodlands, near their midst, potentially—and radically—changing the complexion of the old neighborhood. The proposal goes before the Palm Coast Planning Board Wednesday evening, at 5:30.
Fearing Rejection at the Ballot Box, County Opts to Renew Sales Tax Unilaterally
The Flagler County Commission decided not to put out a half-cent sales tax renewal to voters this year, choosing instead to renew the tax by a vote of the commission by November. The decision ensures that the tax will stay on the books, generating $4 million for the county and the cities.
Palm Coast Takes a Deeper Drag
At Synthetic Marijuana Regulation
Palm Coast Mayor Jon Netts and council member Frank Meeker want Palm Coast and other local governments to jointly tackle the legality of synthetic marijuana even as states are gradually adopting bans on fake-pot sales across the country.
GoToby’s Don Tobin Joins 8 Others Vying to Replace Frank Meeker on Palm Coast Council
Don Tobin, better known as Toby, is the most recognizable name among those declaring interest in a position four Palm Coast City Council members will fill by their appointment come November. Tobin’s focus is real estate, economic development and city-county relations.
County Concedes What Palm Coast Has Been Saying for Months: Sales Tax Plan a No-Go
The Flagler County Commission agreed to drop its current plan for a half-cent sales tax renewal and again seek out a compromise with the cities that may win their backing should the measure appear before voters on the November ballot.
Palm Coast’s Pre-2010 Red-Light Camera Fines in Question Following Latest Court Decision
The 5th District Court of Appeal in Daytona Beach on Friday found Orlando’s red-light traffic cameras illegal before they were standardized by a state law in 2010. Palm Coast’s set up was similar to Orlando’s. But the decision does not affect the current camera set up or the fine structure.
Divided Palm Coast Council Buries
Home-Based Baking Start-Ups For Good
For a Palm Coast City Council that has been preaching the virtues of entrepreneurship and small business, the 3-2 vote reasserted council members’ priority for residential neighborhoods and freedom from the risks of new business.
In a Snub to Cities, a Split County Commission Agrees to 15-Year Sales Tax for Jail Expansion
A 3-2 split of Flagler County commissioners agreed to place a continuation of a half-cent sales tax on the November ballot, but substantially increase the county’s share of the revenue at the expense of cities–a move Palm Coast and Flagler Beach oppose, and may jeopardize the levy’s success when voters have their say on Nov. 6.
Red-Light Camera Ticket Revenue:
Palm Coast, 14%, Private Company, 86%
American Traffic Solutions, which runs Palm Coast’s red-light traffic cameras, will make up to $4,250 per camera per month, while Palm Coast makes just $700. Still, the Palm Coast City Council is ready to sign a seven-year deal.
Replacing Meeker: Palm Coast Council Will Appoint Successor Rather than Hold Election
Frank Meeker’s decision to serve until November as he runs for the county commission means the Palm Coast City Council cannot hold an election to fill out the two years of his term, but will instead appoint a replacement in November.
Citing Legal Limitations, Ethics Commission Dismisses Complaint Against Jim Landon
The Florida Ethics Commission said complaints against City Manager Jim Landon and Human Resources Director Wendy Cullen, didn’t involve corruption, but it has yet to rule on a complaint against Public Works Superintendent Tony Capela, in allegations of favoritism, bullying, intimidation and a hostile work environment.
Surprise: Palm Coast Hints at Building Its Own Natural Gas Fueling Facility in the Future
One of the reasons Palm Coast renewed its contract with Waste Pro was the garbage hauler’s pledge to build a natural gas refueling facility for itself and the city by next year. Now the city administration is suggesting that a city refueling facility may be more feasible, once the city is ready to move ahead with conversion.
In a Stunning Reversal, Palm Coast Council Bows to Acid Opposition and Kills Utility Tax
The campaign to force the council to reverse course was brutally effective against a council that appeared willing to ignore its own history and a year and a half of its administration’s work on the matter.
Hearing Echo of Broken Promise, Palm Coast Council Girds For Opposition to New Utility Fee
Vince Liguori, a member of the local tea party’s executive committee and an influential behind-the-scenes broker on local issues, is mountain an offensive against the city council’s utility-fee proposal that will culminate Tuesday evening.