PALM COAST
Observer YOU. YOUR NEIGHBORS. YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD.
VOLUME 15, NO. 51
COUNTY FAIR PREVIEW PAGE 1C
FREE ON NEWSSTANDS | THURSDAY, JANUARY 30, 2025
City to golf course: Balance the budget Palm Harbor Golf Course needs to start breaking even, stop undercutting private rates, council says. PAGE 3A
Inside the dismissal of FPC’s coach
BOUQUETS FOR BRANDY AND BRANDE Brandy Anderson is Teacher of the Year, Brande Martz Employee of the Year. PAGE 6B
Days before his removal, football coach told the AD he was considering stepping down. PAGE 3A INSIDE PIER PROGRESS
Flagler Beach City Commission approves $14 million bid to build new pier. PAGE 5A
BOWER AND REGAN AdventHealth Palm Coast physicians named 2024 Humanitarians of the Year. PAGE 7B
HAW CREEK
‘Too much, too fast?’ Bunnell gets public input on Reserve at Haw Creek project. PAGE 4A
MATANZAS OVER FPC Dynamic duo Davis and Perry lead Matanzas to 53-36 boys basketball win over Flagler Palm Coast. PAGE 1B
FPC OVER MATANZAS
Flagler Schools Teacher of the Year Brandy Anderson and Employee of the Year Brande Martz with School Board members Janie Ruddy, Lauren Ramirez, Will Furry, Christy Chong and Derek Barrs. Photo by Brent Woronoff
Unimpressed, council cuts manager pool from 38 to 6 next city manager, the City Council Palm Coast City Council was unimpressed, reaching a consensus to extend the request for wants a ‘rockstar,’ resumes for another month. potentially local, and “We can’t afford to get this decision wrong,” City Councilman doesn’t want to rush, so the Charles Gambaro said at the Jan. deadline for applicants will 28 workshop, “and there’s absolutely no reason to rush to failure. be extended. Our community deserves the right BRIAN MCMILLAN PUBLISHER
Five wins on the mat and six forfeits propel Flagler Palm Coast to a 61-15 wrestling win over Matanzas. PAGE 3B
INDEX
Calendar..................... PAGE 5C Comics ....................... PAGE 4B Cops Corner............... PAGE 4A Letters........................ PAGE 6A Public Notices............ PAGE 6C Sports.......................... PAGE 1B Real Estate................. PAGE 5B
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After a consultant reviewed many of the 38 candidates who have applied to become Palm Coast’s
BRIEFS Pontieri asks AdventHealth to help increase OB-GYN options in county On the campaign trail, Mayor Mike Norris heard a recurring question: Why is there so little maternity care in Flagler County? Denyse Bales-Chubb, president/ CEO for AdventHealth Palm Coast, told the City Council on Jan. 28 that since the fastest growing demographic in the area is the over-65 population, the company has not offered baby delivery facilities in Palm Coast, although it does deliver babies in its Daytona Beach hospital. “We want to make sure we are delivering only exceptional care,” Bales-Cubb said. Due to the low numbers of babies that would be delivered in Palm Coast, Advent Health wouldn’t be able to retain the physicians to provide care, she said. City Councilwoman Theresa
fit for us to move forward.” At the recommendation of the consultant, Doug Thomas of Strategic Government Resources, the council did rank 16 candidates on a scale of 1 to 3, and the top 6 will be interviewed further:
Pontieri, who had a baby recently herself, wasn’t satisfied. “That’s a business response,” she said. She said she hadn’t been able to find a local OB-GYN who was accepting patients. Instead, Flagler residents have to get care in Daytona Beach or St. Augustine. “It’s a struggle,” she said. She challenged AdventHealth to “show a partnership with the community.” “We need a true outreach” to add more OB-GYN services. Bales-Chubb and Wally DeAquino, president and CEO of AdventHealth’s Palm Coast Parkway hospital, visited the City Council workshop on Jan. 28 to provide an update on the company’s work in the community, which includes opening the $30 million Freytag Cancer Center and Health Plaza, which will allow locals to receive specialized cancer treatment services without leaving Flagler. AdventHealth, which is a nonprofit institution, tallied over 63,300 Emergency Department visits in Flagler County last year. About 73% of AdventHealth’s local staff also live in Flagler County.
Paul Trombino Ill, Kara Boyles, Richard Hough, Jerome (Jay) Wilverding, Michael Reese and Robert Hemminger. The top local candidate, attorney and former sheriff Jim Manfre, did not make the next round. City Councilman Ty Miller indicated a desire to try to recruit a “rockstar” who might already be serving as a city manager somewhere else. Mayor Mike Norris indicated that he preferred a local candidate. “I’m really leery of hiring someone from across the country,” he said. Later in the meeting, he made
Flagler Schools mother gets onto school bus and yells at alleged bullies
An incident at a Matanzas High School bus stop in December remains a concern for at least one parent. According to reports, the mother of a student became upset about her son being called names. So she stepped in and threatened to “whoop any kid’s a - -” who wouldn’t stop. The mother then followed some of the students onto the bus itself. A Flagler County Sheriff’s Office deputy later interviewed the bus driver, who said that, at first, she thought the mother was a student. The deputy reported that he contacted the transportation department at Flagler Schools and watched the video of the incident. The video, which is not public record and could not be confirmed by the Observer, showed the mother “getting on the bus and telling everyone to stop bullying her son,” the deputy reported.
a plea for more local, qualified candidates: “For the community at large, apply for the job.” City Councilwoman Theresa Pontieri was concerned that many of the candidates who applied had also applied to other searches conducted by Strategic Government Resources. Will the next round be any better? In the coming weeks, the top six candidate will be interviewed via questionnaires and video clips. “This is a big deal for the city, and we want to do it right,” Norris said. Email brian@observerlocalnews. com.
The mother was then issued a trespass warning for the bus. No threats were made to specific students, only in general, the notes said. Flagler Schools did not respond to specifics about the incident. One parent, who asked to remain anonymous, said she was “angry and concerned” that a mother would get on a bus and have no consequences. The mother who got on the bus later told the Observer that she had contacted the FCSO and Flagler Schools many times to advocate for her son, who had been bullied, and she felt that she had to take more drastic action to stand up for him.
US-6 primary winners: Fine, Weil Florida Republican Sen. Randy Fine and Orlando Democrat Josh Weil prevailed over their opponents in the special primary election for Congressional District 6 on Tuesday, Jan. 28.