Hi, kids!

It’s time once again to turn a jaundiced eye toward the newsmakers of the day – the winners and losers – who, in my cynical opinion, either contributed to our quality of life, or detracted from it, in some significant way.

Let’s look at who tried to screw us – and who tried to save us – during the week that was:

Angel               Former Director of Volusia Beach Safety Andy Ethridge

The Coconut Telegraph here at Barker’s View HQ was smoking this week as rumors continue to fly over the ‘abrupt resignation’ of Volusia County Beach Safety Director Andy Ethridge, a well-respected servant/leader who worked his way from lifeguard to specialist, sergeant, captain, and deputy chief, then spent less than three-years at the helm after being promoted to Chief in June 2021.

During his tenure, former Director Ethridge oversaw the transition of law enforcement services from Beach Safety to the Volusia County Sheriff’s Office, short-handedly protected 47-miles of shoreline amid the challenges of recruiting and retaining qualified lifeguards, and successfully navigated a shambolic “beach management” apparatus and that ossified bureaucracy in DeLand.   

Look, I have no way of confirming or discrediting any of the disturbing claims surrounding Ethridge’s unexpected departure – let alone answering the darker questions, like “why” he would suddenly leave 28-years into a successful career marked by promotions to positions of increasing responsibility?

All we know is what slowly oozes from the cloistered Inner Sanctum at the Thomas C. Kelly Administration Building – usually in the form of a canned “press release” posted on the county’s webpage…   

In my view, of the myriad challenges facing Volusia County, the most troubling aspect is that County Manager George “The Wreck” Recktenwald and his close coterie of deputies, lackies, and senior administrators control the flow of information with an Orwellian understanding that information = power.

They know the ultimate political protection is the ability to channel and restrict information through a single power source.  As a result, even our elected policymakers are often kept in the dark about pressing issues facing their constituents – resulting in a near-constant roil of conjecture and assumptions leading to paranoia and speculation…

That’s the danger of rumors.

I know our ‘powers that be’ hate it when I point out the obvious (I hate me too) but the fact remains, We, The Little People who pay the bills and suffer the inefficiencies of our increasingly expensive essential services have a right to know the truth. 

Like why the senior director of our Beach Safety Department left during one of the most demanding weekends of the year – and more important – who (if anyone) is performing this vital role as Spring Breakers begin to arrive? 

The “word on the street” this week is that Director Ethridge was forced to resign his position by Director of Public Protection Mark Swanson for reasons that remain murky…  

Is that true?  Hellifiknow…

What I do know is that since his appointment in 2022, Swanson has had a tumultuous run, including the ham-handed fiasco surrounding the termination of former Corrections Director Mark Flowers – and now the clumsy departure of the highly respected Andy Ethridge – even as Beach Safety struggles to attract and retain personnel. 

Now, with Swanson assuming command (?) – it appears Beach Safety will revert to yet another destabilizing period of “acting” and “interim” leadership at the beginning of a busy tourist season…

Earlier this week, I obtained a copy of Director Ethridge’s letter of resignation submitted Saturday, March 9, offering a two-week notice. 

I also received the subsequent notification to Volusia County Council members by Director of Community Misinformation Michael Ryan – a bullshit missive which sugarcoated things by thanking Ethridge for his “approximately 25-years” service (he had nearly 29-years with Volusia County) claiming the former director was “returning to his roots in law enforcement…” – except, Mr. Ethridge’s “roots” are in a lifeguard tower on Daytona Beach…

What gives?  

In the view of many, Ryan’s shockingly specious report to our elected officials disparaged Director Ethridge’s service with fabrications and inaccuracies.

More disturbing, in my view, it represents a baldfaced lie to the Volusia County Council. 

Now there are more questions than answers…

Why was last Friday Director Ethridge’s final day on the beach?

Why was there no orderly transition – or immediate notice to citizens, visitors, and our elected representatives explaining who is responsible for beach safety following Mr. Ethridge’s departure? 

If Director Ethridge was in fact forced out – why did Mr. Ryan blatantly lie to the Volusia County Council about the nature of his exit – forever destroying the trust of the elected officials and their constituents?    

And who authorized Mark Swanson to scalp a veteran senior administrator and proven asset who was described during his 2021 promotion ceremony as “revered” within the ranks of Beach Safety? 

Perhaps most important – with Andy Ethridge out, how many more dedicated public servants will flee that sinking ship at what remains of Beach Safety?  

Nearly a week later, the questions continue to swirl, and Volusia County taxpayers want to know the truth…

Last week, a veteran government watcher and civic activist summed up what many long-suffering residents have come to believe:

“They keep firing the monkeys and giving the organ grinder a pay raise.” 

How terribly sad… 

Thank you for your dedicated service, Director Ethridge. 

The nature of your departure does not define the quality of your contributions – or your many acts of courage in service to our grateful visitors and the citizens of Volusia County. 

Asshole           Volusia County School Board

The unfortunate saga continues… 

The Volusia County School Board is embroiled in various outrages, humiliations, and bruhahas spanning multiple fronts – a constant churn excruciatingly played out in the news media – leaving elected board members staring at their shoes and stammering for answers to growing questions of gross mismanagement from taxpayers, even as Superintendent Carmen Balgobin’s administration continues to operate in virtual silence.

Now, anxious stakeholders are questioning what our dullards on the dais are trying to hide?

In January, the School Board’s contract labor attorney sent formal notice to Florida’s Public Employees Relations Commission suggesting that Volusia United Educators – the union representing the district’s teachers and paraprofessionals – falsified membership records making it appear the bargaining unit had the 60% membership required by state law.

The union’s leadership vehemently denied the allegation.

Inexplicably, in February, School Board Chair Jamie Haynes arrogantly attempted to distance the board from the district’s pernicious attempt to decertify the collective bargaining unit – and denied any involvement with either the PERC correspondence or engaging the labor attorney – a cheap alibi that quickly unraveled when Volusia County School’s General Counsel Kevin Pendley admitted that each member of the board individually authorized the action…   

Yeah.  I know.  But as the Dude said, “New shit has come to light, man…”

After being caught either openly lying to their constituents – or pitifully ignorant of events unfolding in Superintendent Balgobin’s Ivory Tower of Power – on February 29, PERC gave the Volusia County School Board until last week to file a formal response “…as to whether it is challenging the Union’s registration” under applicable Florida statutes.  

Instead, the district confused everyone by asking PERC for an extension…   

Rather than exhibit the character and courage to stand before their constituents and explain themselves to those who pay the bills – or clear the air and alleviate the fears of anxious teachers and staff – our elected officials, with Chairman Haynes on the gavel, slithered out of sight into a secret closed session – apparently to discuss their pending response to PERC.

Or was it a strategy session to determine how these vainglorious phonies can best restore their soiled reputations now that they have been individually exposed as prevaricating hypocrites by the district’s General Counsel? 

Although Chairwoman Haynes went through the clearly well-coached legal maneuverings required to meet the statutory requirements of a “shade meeting” – many believed the mysterious “closed attorney/client session” stretched the limits of legislative exceptions to Florida’s Sunshine Law.

Let’s face it – either the Volusia County School Board wants to decertify the union representing its teachers and paraprofessionals and upend the collective bargaining process – or it doesn’t; but that decision should not be made in some shadowy behind-closed-doors conclave.      

In my experience, when an embarrassed elected body starts covering its tracks, things get messy. 

Once those holding high office are caught in a lie – their constituents will never trust them again – and that’s not a positive for politically vulnerable members like the wholly ineffectual Carl “Namby-Pamby” Persis who must stand for reelection later this year…

Regardless, the board’s surreptitious session was the worst political optics imaginable – sending a clear message to everyone watching that the Volusia County School Board is keeping secrets from those of us who pay the bills.

There are several takeaways from last week’s awkward executive session – the most glaring that our elected officials are either incapable or unwilling to control Superintendent Carmen Balgobin as she crashes about like a bull in a china shop – clearly unconcerned by the political realities of her elected bosses – wholly ignoring the concerns of Volusia County residents who are time-and-again surprised by her administration’s edicts and decrees formed in a bureaucratic bubble.    

Asshole           St. Johns River Water Management District

“No one can stop it. It’s on its way. We are building homes. People are moving in. Kids are playing outside,” he said.”

— Mori Hosseini, the all-powerful chairman and CEO of ICI Homes, as quoted by reporter Mark Harper in The Daytona Beach News-Journal, “How David beat Goliath: Spruce Creek conservationists block I-95 interchange – for now,” February 6, 2024

As usual, Boss Hosseini was right all along.    

He “won” this week when the historically compromised St. Johns River Water Management District – the regulatory agency charged with protecting our natural resources, water quality, and natural systems – ignored the recommendation of an administrative law judge to deny a permit for the controversial Pioneer Trail Interchange and strategically allowed the permit to be issued anyway.

Just like Mr. Hosseini promised it would.   

And the unique flora and fauna of the environmentally sensitive Spruce Creek watershed lost… 

Screw ‘em.  Fish and wildlife don’t contribute to political campaigns – and they damn sure don’t purchase three-bedroom, two-bath cracker boxes “…starting in the $400’s.”

In October 2023, a small group of intrepid environmentalists and concerned residents successfully defended the sensitive Doris Leeper Spruce Creek Preserve and environs from the threat of the proposed interchange at I-95 and Pioneer Trail by challenging a controversial stormwater permit issued by the St. Johns River Water Management District.

To say it was a ‘David & Goliath’ tale is an understatement…

In January, Administrative Law Judge E. Gary Early rightfully recommended that the SJRWMD’s stormwater permit be revoked after determining its issuance was “not in the public interest,” citing that an area of Spruce Creek has been designated an Outstanding Florida Waterway which requires special protections because of its exceptional natural attributes.

To show just how far some will stoop to see the will of powerful special interests come to fruition, during the hearing, we learned that SJRWMD engineers made the idiotic claim that the massive 74-acre paving project would somehow “…reduce phosphorus, nitrogen and other harmful elements being diverted to Spruce Creek.” 

My God.

According to a report this week by Jim Saunders of the News Service of Florida, “…the district’s proposed final order backing the permit concluded that the project “is clearly in the public interest.” It said Early improperly ruled that an “extra” environmental benefit needed to be shown to find the project was in the public interest.

“In aggregate, the district determines that the applicant (the Department of Transportation) clearly demonstrated compliance with all of the regulatory criteria, including the public interest factors addressed herein, and these factors are enough to render this project ‘clearly in’ the public interest,” the proposed final order said.”

I learned this week from a local environmentalist who attended the SJRWMD meeting on Tuesday that several opponents of the interchange met outside the boardroom with officials from the Florida Department of Transportation and the district to discuss “potential changes to the project.”

Look, I’m not sure hashing out the future health and sustainability of the Spruce Creek watershed in a Palatka hallway is the proper way forward.  But sometimes that’s the best those concerned about our threatened environment can hope for here in the biggest whorehouse in the world… 

In a follow-up piece in The Daytona Beach News-Journal by reporter Mark Harper, Katrina Shadix, founder and director of Bear Warriors United spoke of possible plans for a federal appeal of the permit:

“Shadix said her coalition has “such a great federal case now,” after the district granted the permit despite the judge’s finding.

“We don’t want to be too negative and call it a banana republic and a kangaroo court,” Shadix said. “… It’s ridiculous they used this vehicle, this tool, to permit the damage to wetlands and the environmental wildlife. I just didn’t think it was a fair process.”

Anyone who cares about the future of our threatened state should applaud the courage and perseverance of these intrepid conservationists.

This one is important…

Ultimately, a heavy price will be paid by our children and grandchildren – after those influential special interests in the real estate development community have slashed, burned, and paved over every square inch of greenspace – and squeezed the last dollar out of what remains of this place we call home. 

Asshole           Volusia County Councilman Don Dempsey

“It’s been proposed and we put it on the meeting agenda about two or three months ago when each councilman talked about what they think would be their priority if they had a wish list.  My priority was a motocross facility, because we have been needing it. We are 30 years past due for one.”

–Volusia County Councilman Don Dempsey, October 2023

“We need to just let the market play itself out and quit letting government pretend that we’re the cure-all for all the issues, so I’m a hard no on this,” Dempsey said. “I think whenever we have an opportunity to stay out of people’s lives in a free economy, we need to.”

–Volusia County Councilman Don Dempsey, March 2024

Like a recalcitrant child with skewed priorities, last week, Volusia County Councilman Don Dempsey was a “hard no” in a 5-1 vote to allow more flexibility for the development of affordable housing as the chasm between the “haves” and “have nots” continues to widen here on the “Fun Coast.” 

Because I’m pathologically skeptical of the motivations of land use attorneys, real estate developers, and the sutlers and shills who make a handsome living manipulating malleable politicians while taking advantage of increasingly lax permitting, eviscerated environmental regulations, and asinine legislation such as Florida’s “Live Local Act” – I worry how these “incentives” will be abused by greed-crazed developers with a profit motive. 

Among other things, the proposed changes to the county’s Comprehensive Plan will allow expedited permitting for affordable housing projects, deferral of impact fees, and inducements such as waivers for permit and inspection fees, density bonuses, and donations of county-owned land to encourage workforce housing. 

I found it interesting that heavy-hitters – such as Cobb Cole land use and real estate lawyers Mark Watts, Jessica Gow, and Nika Hosseini – worked with county staff to formulate the changes that many hope will incentivize affordable housing in Volusia County.

During the discussion, Councilman Danny Robins voiced his concerns – stating that he wanted the same permissive rules to apply across the spectrum of development (apparently not realizing that influential real estate developers have already been given carte blanche to blanket the width and breath of Florida with “luxury” cookie cutter subdivisions) – but that didn’t stop Mr. Robins from championing the cause of his campaign benefactors…

Whatever. 

But it was the obstinate opposition of Councilman Dempsey that seemed most misplaced.

Apparently, the hypocritical Mr. Dempsey would have us believe he gives two-shits about these relaxed regulations facilitating more, more, more development amidst rising concerns of increased traffic, environmental impacts, sardine-like density, and widespread flooding – because his ludicrous argument about keeping government out of the marketplace rings hollow as he actively lobbies to blow $10.2 million in public funds on a state-of-the-art commercial motocross facility. 

(Excuse me.  I just choked on my Tullamore Dew…)

According to an excellent report by the News-Journal’s Sheldon Gardner:

“Dempsey, a lawyer, is “heavily involved in the real estate market,” he said. A financial disclosure form showed that he was worth over $4.5 million as of June 1, 2023, with a large chunk coming from real estate. Among his assets listed were three rental properties in DeLand that bring in $3,750 a month.

He said he’s seen the real estate market fluctuate.

“We need to just let the market play itself out and quit letting government pretend that we’re the cure-all for all the issues, so I’m a hard no on this,” Dempsey said. “I think whenever we have an opportunity to stay out of people’s lives in a free economy, we need to.”

I don’t make this shit up, folks…

Look, I don’t think anyone who has experienced this willy-nilly explosive growth in Volusia County supports allowing quick-buck artists to swoop in and exploit these permitting and financial incentives for more sticks-and-glue “projects” – or infilling established neighborhoods with substandard housing done ‘on-the-cheap’ – and I found it chillingly telling when powerful land use attorneys stood before the Volusia County Council and vigorously patted our Growth and Resource Management Director Clay Ervin on the head (Goo-boy, Clay!  Good Boy!).   

Disturbing…

But with an increasing number of Volusia County families considered asset limited/income constrained – watching the dream of homeownership (or reasonable rentals) evaporate in an environment where the median sale price of a single-family home is now $361,667 – it is time our ‘powers that be’ focus on safe and affordable workforce housing.

I’m not talking about the same laissez-faire approach to general development we have seen from state, county, and municipal governments – but a visionary strategy focusing on infill, renewal, and rehabilitation in challenged neighborhoods.    

According to the News-Journal, during the meeting, Attorney Nika Hosseini explained to our dullards on the dais the importance of supporting these affordable housing initiatives – while taking a clear swipe at Councilman Dempsey’s faux-concern of government skewing the marketplace:

“The nurse that helps you at the hospital, where is she or he supposed to live when they’re just getting started? To say that this is about development or that the market will simply handle itself is, frankly, pretty appalling in my opinion,” she said. “We are supposed to be a community of individuals that help each other.”

While I appreciate Ms. Hosseini’s passion for those less fortunate – I would argue that many of the developers who are actively paving over Volusia County and beyond have been less than receptive to incorporating affordable housing into their many projects… 

In my view, like any other government “incentive,” affordable housing enticements require strict oversight from those charged with regulating what passes for growth and resource management. 

In my experience, good things rarely result when the fox is given unfettered access to the henhouse in the name of “incentivizing” development.    

Unfortunately, supervision and accountability has never been a strong suit in Volusia County government, and time will tell if last week’s measure will be a blessing, or a curse…

Quote of the Week  

“Bouaziz said he is “far more than unimpressed” with how the school and school district has handled this incident thus far.

“(I’m) disturbed,” he said. “The problem is, where’s the line? What if, instead of yelling ‘retarded’ at them or calling them all ‘retarded,’ she had put her hands on somebody? Right? Or she had, you know, called a kid the n-word? Right? Like, where’s the line that, that causes the school system to take this … seriously?”

Bouaziz said he is also concerned by the lack of transparency from the school and district.

“It makes me feel like the school system as a public entity doesn’t respect or care about the parents who fund it, right?” he said. “The complete lack of communication and just trying to sweep it under the rug until DCF stepped in was just a pretty bad play.”

— Cypress Creek Elementary parent Karim Bouaziz, as quoted by reporter Mary Ellen Ritter writing in The Daytona Beach News-Journal, “Cypress Creek Elementary teacher under investigation for using derogatory term for students,” Monday, March 11, 2024

(Please find the rest of this disturbing story here: https://tinyurl.com/25hurw76 )

Not much surprises me when it comes to the faults and foibles of human nature.  

As a horribly jaded cynic, I rarely expect the “best” from people – that’s a recipe for disappointment…

During my career in public service, I made my share of embarrassing gaffes and missteps – an experiential education that can teach valuable lessons to those willing to humble themselves and learn from their mistakes.

We all have bad days, and most people can forgive what they see themselves doing. 

I’ve said things I regret in a pique of anger or stress. 

How about you?

In my experience, it sounds like this unfortunate incident could be resolved with a sincere apology, refocusing, and stress management techniques.  It is how Volusia County District Schools left a parent feeling their complaint was “swept under the rug” due to a “complete lack of communication” that I find disturbing.    

Unfortunately, this is not an isolated incident in Superintendent Carmen Balgobin’s cloistered Ivory Tower of Power in DeLand…

Sometimes those in high profile positions attempt to protect themselves by circling the wagons, going mute, and protecting the status quo at all costs.  That’s when perception becomes reality for those of us peering through the greasy pane in the portcullis that separates citizens from their government.

Without exception, it is how an organization – especially one funded by tax dollars – communicates with those it exists to serve that either builds a reputation for transparency and trust – or one of confusion, chaos, and suspicion.

Sound familiar Osceola Elementary parents and Ormond Beachside residents?   

I understand that details of pending personnel matters cannot – as a matter of policy and collective bargaining agreements – be disseminated to the public; but when the media or concerned residents call, organizations can take the opportunity to explain the process to those looking on, address the concerns of stakeholders, and maintain an open and inviting path for those seeking to provide input on necessary policy revisions. 

In my view, that avoids quotes in the newspaper like, “It makes me feel like the school system as a public entity doesn’t respect or care about the parents who fund it…”

It also helps if those at the top actually care about those they serve – rather than covering their own ass.

Trust me.  I know better than most how easy it is to sit in the cheap seats and snipe and sneer at those ‘actually in the arena’ who stumble doing work worth doing.  It’s kind of a hobby of mine…

I also know the importance of shining a bright light on the pervasive mismanagement, misinformation, and inefficiencies that erode trust in government and those institutions we rely on.

Establishing a culture of doing the right thing, for the right reasons, costs nothing. 

And it means everything…

In my view, it is time our elected representatives begin to examine how Superintendent Balgobin and her senior staff can get it so wrong, so often?  

And Another Thing!

Earlier this week, we learned a few lessons about what works – and what doesn’t – when it comes to the “revitalization” of Downtrodden Downtown Daytona.

We also learned how much that renaissance can cost…

In the fall of 2017, insurance magnate King J. Hyatt Brown, gathered his loyal subjects before him at an “invitation only” event – and announced bold plans to construct his Grand Headquarters on Beach Street – something HRH J. Hyatt’s handmaidens in government and industry hailed as the ultimate panacea for Daytona Beach’s perpetually struggling downtown.

It was the very answer to our collective prayers – a catalyst for transformative success.

At the time, then City Manager Jim “The Chisler” Chisholm gushed, “It’s a game changer for the downtown area,” and Dr. Kent Sharples of that mysterious camera stellata over at the CEO Business Alliance swooned, “It’s the biggest and best thing that’s happened since General Electric in terms of the number of jobs created, salary, and impact on our community.”

Just weeks later, both the City of Daytona Beach and the County of Volusia ponied up millions-of-dollars in public infrastructure improvements, financial incentives, and property tax abatement – which, we were told, would assist Brown & Brown in obtaining even more tax credits from the State of Florida for the promised six hundred “new high-paying jobs” the HQ would bring to Daytona Beach.

The town was abuzz with exciting words like “rejuvenation,” “recovery,” and “revitalization” – as our ‘powers that be’ assured skeptical taxpayers that downtown restaurants, boutiques, and bars would be brimming with free spending insurance executives – something that gave strapped area merchants reason to hang on by their splintered fingernails just a little while longer…

To prepare for the second coming of the once vibrant Downtown Daytona, taxpayers acquiesced to a plan that gifted the riverfront park to HRH J. Hyatt for his lavish “esplanade” – with the Brown’s generously donating $35+ million and the citizens of Daytona Beach agreeing to pony up some $800,000 annually for upkeep. 

In addition, a bizarre plan was hatched to replace a perfectly serviceable streetscape, a project that further disrupted Beach Street…

Remember?

And who can forget the continuing boondoggle that became the publicly subsidized (and horribly misnamed) First Step Shelter – a $6 million magic potion born of a shambolic process that began with a 2014 ($135,000) “study” which recommended a 250 bed come-as-you-are homeless shelter – before morphing into an insanely expensive social program that takes homeless people who submit themselves to a mysterious process and, we hope, magically ends in sustainable permanent housing…   

But what about those who don’t want to participate in First Step’s convoluted “get your shit together” program? 

Well, according to an informative article by Eileen Zaffiro-Kean writing in The Daytona Beach News-Journal this week – a story that read like a Steinbeck novel – at least some of those ambulatory drunks, lunatics, vagrants, and malevolent vagabonds (who apparently didn’t get an invitation to HRH J. Hyatt’s Grand Plan) have once again turned Downtown Daytona into an unsafe and unsanitary “battleground.”

According to the disturbing report:

“For nearly 14 years, Sweet Marlays’ Coffee has been serving up freshly brewed java, delectable desserts and a sun-filled retreat overlooking the Halifax River across the street.

At times it’s also been a battleground between shop owner Tammy Kozinski and the vagrants who wander inside the Beach Street café to lobby for free food, rant for no particular reason, urinate on the floor and steal. One angry man recently cursed at Kozinski and threw his cup of hot coffee at her.”

Whoa. 

I guess publicly subsidized glass and steel office buildings and elaborate “transitional programs” aren’t the cure-all we were promised, eh?

Please find the rest of the News-Journal’s interesting exposé here: https://tinyurl.com/2fhzr8zt

Now, the City of Daytona Beach has formulated a plan that will bring the same private security service that patrols the squeaky-clean Brown Esplanade to the mean streets of downtown to take on these marauding miscreants head-to-head… 

According to the News-Journal, “The city is getting ready to launch a (60-day) pilot program that will provide security officers six days a week along Beach Street between Orange Avenue and International Speedway Boulevard, where the city’s redevelopment director said “most of the issues have been.”

“Two unarmed officers will cover foot patrol shifts from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. every day except Sunday, and when they see problems they’ll use their radios to summon police for help.”

After meeting with downtown merchants to discuss their concerns, Daytona Beach Mayor Derrick Henry announced the plan during a public meeting last week.

I agree with Mayor Henry.  This idea has legs.

Literally, four of them, walking a beat on Beach Street… 

(I hear you, “Who is behind that keyboard and what have you done with our beloved Barker the Bitcher?”)   

Listen – rather than put the cost on the backs of already tax-strapped Beach Street residents and merchants, the program – estimated at $2,400 per week for two officers – will be underwritten from the reinvestment of Downtown Redevelopment Area funds under City Manager Deric Feacher’s discretionary spending authorization.   

According to the report, “If the city wants to make the guards permanent, it will have to put out a request for proposals. City staff would choose the bidder with the lowest cost who met all the city requirements. City commissioners would then make the final decision.”

In my view, with the City of Daytona Beach preparing to invest $30 million on needed upgrades to Jackie Robinson Ballpark – and $12 million on more streetscaping at the north end of Beach Street – using redevelopment funds to better secure the core downtown commercial area without further burden on struggling business owners is a sound idea. 

But the $1.5 million-per-year question remains – with the First Step Shelter continuing to pick and choose who they will accept into the “shelter program” and who will be turned away – where will those aggressive “vagrants” go when they are once again displaced from Downtown Daytona? 

That’s all for me.  Have a great St. Patrick’s Day, y’all!