Hi, kids!

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

Editorial Note:

Recently some readers have asked why I publish this blog on Thursday, when traditionally it comes out on Friday, and the unvarnished explanation is – I drink heavily on Thursday evenings (like most other days that end in “Y”) – and as I not-so-gracefully age, it gets harder to haul my slovenly ass out of bed early enough to get Barker’s View out on time.

Truth.

You asked, I answered. And now inquiring minds know the “Rest of the Story.”

Enjoy…a day early.

The Lost City of Deltona – Another Public Embarrassment

In October 2023, during a meeting of Volusia County’s Legislative Delegation – a time when local officials genuflect before state officials and grovel for funds – Rep. Tom Leek, then the powerful House appropriations chair, issued a stern warning for the City of Daytona Beach:

“This pains me because I have such respect for you and I know that the needs of the city of Daytona are so great. But I hear tales that the city is spending some taxpayer dollars on what is thinly veiled political events.”

“I’m the one who these requests come to, so when I say that the request for state dollars must be used for legitimate purposes, I mean that.  And I would hope that the city would not be using tax dollars on thinly veiled political events, which I understand is happening now.”

Last month, when reviewing Daytona’s multimillion dollar request during the delegation’s 2025 meeting, now Senator Tom Leek reiterated his concerns to Daytona’s government relations administrator Hardy Smith. 

According to a report by The Daytona Beach News-Journal:

“Why is your city manager not here?”

Smith said he could not answer.

Leek said he was asking because he said it’s important “the public become acutely aware of what’s going on,” then asked whether the city took COVID relief funds and allotted each city commissioner $500,000 and the mayor $750,000 to spend as they saw fit within their districts.

“There was a mix of how that allocation, if you will, of those funds was done and any expenditures of those funds whether it be from the city or individual commission member initiatives were in accordance to the guidelines, rules and policies of the program,” Smith responded.

“You’re coming to us and asking for money,” Leek said. “When each of the city commissioners, the mayor has control over this pot of money that they’re not using to spend on the very things that you’re asking the state to spend money. So how is it appropriate to ask the state to in essence prop up these, for lack of a better term, slush funds?”

He also called the provision of city dollars to each commissioner to spend “a remarkably bad process.”

A tip ‘o the cap to Sen. Leek for saying the quiet part out loud.  Let’s hope someone listens.

In the same vein, Gov. Ron DeSantis recently rolled out his 2025-26 state budget under the tag “Focus on Fiscal Responsibility” (because everything in politics needs a nickname these days…) Whether or not that sentiment is more than a catchy phrase in Tallahassee remains to be seen.

In my view, Deltona Mayor Santiago Avila, Jr. should have considered Sen. Leek’s admonition to a sister city – and the Governor’s theme of fiduciary responsibility – before embarking on an ill-advised and publicly funded political junket to Washington D.C. last month. 

You read that right.

According to a report by Mark Harper writing in The Daytona Beach News-Journal – along with several Deltona residents who reached out to let me know they are righteously pissed off – last month Mayor Avila and his wife attended events surrounding the presidential inauguration in Washington, D.C.

The problem is Mayor Avila failed to seek Commission approval before being given use of a city owned vehicle and gas reimbursement to get there…

According to receipts, the taxpayers of Deltona also covered Mayor Avila and his wife’s hotel bill at the Hyatt Place hotel for $1,687.30. 

Having spent my life in municipal government, I can attest that official travel is often necessary for local government officials.  In my experience, there are internal policies to ensure trips are made in the public interest – along with proper procedures to account for authorized expenditures.

But in the Lost City of Deltona, it’s nice to be king…    

During their stay in the nation’s capital, the Avilas attended the black tie “Florida Sunshine Ball,” the Latino Inaugural Ball, and an inaugural reception hosted by the U.S. Conference of Mayors, which (of course) provided the opportunity for D List politicians to rub shoulders with B List politicos, and have their picture taken doing it.   

Mayor Avila chronicled the trip on social media, including photos of the couple attending the formal soirées in tuxedo and gown.  Given the enormity of the challenges faced by Mayor Avila and the City of Deltona, the excursion rightfully angered some Deltona residents even before anyone realized they paid for the trip…   

Look, if Mayor Avila and his wife want to trip the light fantastic in Washington, more power to them – just so they go into their own pocket for the privilege – and therein lies the “appearance” problem for Hizzoner.   

Now that the party’s over, many see the trip for what it was, a taxpayer-financed vacation that served the Avilas’ needs rather than those of the longsuffering citizens of Deltona.  

More disturbing, last week, the irrepressible gadfly and resourceful Deltona taxpayer Richard Bellach made his neighbors aware on social media that Mayor Avila is currently the subject a lawsuit filed by a bill collector apparently seeking payment of credit debt in the amount of $1,452.35. 

Unfortunately, this is not the first time Mayor Avila has been dunned for a bad debt through Volusia County courts…  

In a disturbing follow up by Mark Harper in the News-Journal detailing Avila’s “troubled financial history,” we learned Avila’s past includes a 2012 bankruptcy, a misdemeanor worthless check charge, and a near-eviction in 2020.

In October 2023, the Mayor’s personal finances became an issue when he announced to local media outlets that he was struggling to find a rental home in Deltona priced within his means.  At the time, Avila said, “The mayor here of Deltona can’t afford to live in the city he’s the mayor of,” he said, “I have some interviews lined up already so I’m going to get myself another job and work multiple jobs.”

The Mayor used his situation to stress the need for more affordable housing in Deltona.

Three months later, Mayor Avila’s financial situation again raised alarms when then Deltona Vice Mayor Jody Lee Storozuk alleged the Mayor “…got a special deal on a rental home.”  In response, Avila questioned Storozuk’s motivations in the News-Journal, resulting in more bickering and bitchery from the dais.  

Ultimately, nothing came of any of it, except another ugly embarrassment for the beleaguered community…

In last Sunday’s News-Journal article headlined “Residents question Deltona mayor’s attendance at Trump inauguration on city’s dime,” former Commissioner Storozuk (who this week announced his candidacy for mayor) was quoted:

“Jody Lee Storozuk, the city’s former vice mayor who has tangled with Avila previously, said in a text message that while he was in office, until last November, commissioners were allowed one trip outside the state and three trips in the state per year for “city business.”

“If this was a trip that might turn into benefits for the city, then there would be no problem, but I do not believe that is the case,” Storozuk texted.”

Other concerned citizens rightfully questioned how the Avilas’ trip served the City of Deltona.

“Longtime resident Elbert Bryan, a registered Republican who has regularly attended City Commission meetings for about 10 years, said because the Hyatt invoice has Avila’s name and the address of City Hall on it, he believes the mayor has a city credit card. Also, Avila’s use of a city vehicle suggests he’s on the city’s insurance policy.

“If not, that’s one heck of a liability the manager is taking,” Bryan said in a message.

“Does any of that help the city or does it only help his political career? In my personal opinion I believe that the trip was nothing more than a way for him to try and be a part of the political landscape for his own agenda,” Bryan said, adding: “I believe the citizens need a full financial disclosure of this trip and an explanation of what the mayor actually thinks the benefits of the trip was other than political posturing.”

I agree.

In a weak defense this week, Mayor Avila told tall tales in the West Volusia Beacon that would have his constituents believe his trip to Washington was to single-handedly ensure a federal allocation for the City of Deltona: “We were able to secure $44 million in the House. I wanted to make sure that we have the support from Sen. [Rick] Scott to pass the Senate,” Avila told The Beacon.

“When we get the money from Cory Mills, I don’t expect any of those who attacked me to come and take photos of the check.” (Because that’s the most important part of any state/federal allocation, right?)

On Wednesday, Mayor Avila doubled down in a press release written in the third person which explained “Mayor Avila met with U.S. Senator Rick Scott and his staff regarding the crucial $44 million expenditure that passed the U.S. House last year for the benefit of the City of Deltona, in order to ensure his continued support when it arises this year in the U.S. Senate.”

Say what?

If I understand it (and I’m not sure I do), Mayor Avila is taking credit for the Water Resources Development Act of 2024, which includes $31.2 million for expanding wastewater systems in Deltona.  According to reports, the biennial and bipartisan WRDA “…will pave the way for expanding commercial development, especially along busier roads, and promise a brighter future for the city’s overall development.”

I guess Mayor Avila was unaware that the WRDA passed the U.S. Senate on December 18, 2024 – which would account for the strange looks he no doubt received when attempting to lobby Sen. Scott for a vote he had already cast…

Whatever.

To her credit, on Monday, Deltona Commissioner Dori Howington sought reimbursement of all public funds provided to Mayor Avila and his wife for their jaunt to Washington, D.C.  The move came after Howington reviewed the city’s travel policy which requires elected officials receive advance approval for out-of-state travel by majority vote of the City Commission.

Conveniently, Mayor Avila couldn’t be bothered to attend this week’s meeting of the Deltona City Commission as he had bigger fish to fry in Tallahassee – no doubt stopping speeding locomotives and bulldogging the Florida Legislature into submission – as confirmed by his travel agent, City Manager Dale “Doc” Dougherty, who explained “I believe he had a list of meetings today with senior elected officials,” Dougherty told the commission.”

What’s up, Doc?  Seriously, what the hell is going on over there?

According to reports, the City of Deltona already pays a lobbying firm $45,000 annually to influence things in Tallahassee – professionals who know what they are doing. One would think a municipality the size and complexity of Deltona would have representation in Washington as well.

(Here’s an idea!  Maybe Avila should consult with his “colleague” Volusia County Councilman David “No Show” Santiago.  Because No Show knows something about the practice of lobbying after elected service, and it appears Mayor Avila can use all the sources of income he can get…)

Regardless of his intentions, the remainder of the Deltona City Commission opted to clip Mayor Avila’s wings and took the T-Bird away. 

According to an article in the West Volusia Beacon this week, “The City Commission also voted 4-1 in favor of a motion to take away from Avila the use of a city vehicle and to restrict his use of credit cards belonging to the city. Commissioner Emma Santiago dissented (?). Commissioner Nick Lulli was also absent from the meeting.”

A motion to publicly censor Mayor Avila with a vote of “No Confidence” has been moved to a “quasi-judicial” hearing on February 17… 

Perhaps Mayor Santiago Avila, Jr. should consider whether now is the best time to undertake the demands of public service, put his political ambitions on hold, and focus his efforts on establishing a solid financial future for his family.   

In my view, public service should be about building trust with constituents – We, The Little People who pay the bills and are all too frequently silenced by the very system that exists to serve them – and most people can forgive what they see themselves doing. 

This isn’t one of them…  

Publicly funded political junkets are always hard to justify – especially in an environment where the residents of Deltona are facing serious civic and financial issues on numerous fronts – and Mayor Avila is sending the wrong message with this blatant political (and ethical) faux pas.

At best its poor optics. 

At worst, Mayor Avila was indulging his hubris – and underwriting his political aspirations – on the backs of strapped taxpayers…   

The good citizens of the Lost City of Deltona deserve better.

Commonsense Prevails in New Smyrna Beach

Last week, as proof a temporary moratorium on new construction won’t result in a tear in the space-time continuum, the New Smyrna Beach City Commission voted for a second extension of the pause on development in Venetian Bay.  

No apocalyptic plague of toe fungus.  No reversal of the geomagnetic poles.  No cataclysmic collapse of civilization. 

Just a tap of the brakes on the issuance of new building permits until the Venetian Bay Homeowners Association can address recurrent flooding issues. 

Like many areas of Volusia County, last year, Venetian Bay residents had their fill of destructive flooding and began discussing a temporary moratorium to prevent additional development that could further overwhelm the community’s stormwater system. 

The move came last year after field studies by the St. Johns River Water Management District found the stormwater system is not functioning as originally designed and permitted.

Last spring, to prevent additional strain on the system, the New Smyrna Beach City Commission rightfully approved a moratorium on new development in parts of Venetian Bay.  The initial freeze on new building was extended in June 2024 and will now be effective until June 22, 2025.

The pause can be terminated by SJRWM permit compliance or extended by additional legislative action.

Unfortunately, in January, the majority of the Volusia County Council got weak in the knees when Chairman Jeff Brower suggested a workshop to merely discuss a temporary halt on new construction at a time when Volusia is now listed as the most flood prone county in the state and seventh in the nation.

Instead, those compromised cowards in DeLand opted to kick the can down the political trail…

Rather than allow time for solutions, protect their constituents, and mitigate further damage – as the clock ticks and the bulldozers roar – our elected dullards on the Volusia County Council continue to drag their heels; considering simplistic measures that should already be in place like “Stop building on wetlands,” “Discuss retention ponds,” and “Start cleaning canals.”

Inconceivably, his baldfaced procrastination was hailed as a “huge step in the right direction” by the majority of those finger-puppets who long-ago sold their political souls to the real estate development industry…

Now, the fervent hopes and prayers of thousands of inundated residents rest in the hands of Councilman Jake Johannson and his time-wasting “resilience subcommittee” – an arm of that political insulation committee at the Volusia County Elected Officials Roundtable – whose motto should be, “If everyone is thinking in lockstep conformity, who can criticize us!”

Sadly, it has become obvious that no one who accepts public funds to serve in the public interest has a clue about how to solve the problem in our region.

In my view, these same inept administrators, pseudo “experts,” and senior staff who got us into this godforsaken mess should not be allowed to sop up more publicly funded salary and benefits while they stumble and fumble their way through “solutions” to the problems they helped create.

Quote of the Week

“Among the list of legislative proposals that the Hillsborough County Commission is asking their state lawmakers to enact this year is a request from one board member to eliminate sunshine laws for county commissioners.

Donna Cameron Cepeda, a Republican first elected in 2022, says her proposal is not about reducing transparency in local government, but instead is intended to improve the “functionality of the decision-making process for commissioners and specific boards.”

“Discussions under the current Sunshine law can hinder effective communication, particularly [for the] Commission on Human Trafficking where sensitive information needs to be handled cautiously,” Cameron Cepeda told the Phoenix in an email message.

“As a dedicated public servant, I value transparency, accountability, and the public’s trust in government operations. Florida’s Sunshine Law has been instrumental in ensuring openness and preventing corruption. However, certain circumstances call for thoughtful updates to improve efficiency and effectiveness while maintaining the integrity of the public process.”

–Mitch Perry, writing in the Florida Phoenix, “Hillsborough Commissioner wants Legislature to eliminate Sunshine law for county commissioners,” Thursday, January 30, 2025

Bullshit.

If you don’t think there is a determined effort by petty elected officials’ intent on removing the “people’s business” from public view, think again…  

Even though the efficacy of Florida’s Sunshine Law has been eroded by spotty enforcement – which has resulted in some elected scofflaws thumbing their nose at it – the protections, access, and visibility afforded by open meeting and public records statutes has served our state well.   

Increasingly, elected officials in Volusia County and elsewhere are seeking a return to the “bad old days” – when public policy, to include the allocation of our hard-earned tax dollars, was conducted behind closed doors and on midnight telephone calls – with decisions resulting from cloakroom collusions that quietly ensured all the right palms were greased with a choreographed vote…

Why is that?

In this latest attempt to end-run our ability to watch the sausage getting made, Hillsborough County Commissioner Donna Cameron Cepeda seeks to close the curtain on county government transparency across the state so her local human trafficking committee (which meets six times a year) can more “effectively communicate.”

About what? 

A check of the November 2024 meeting agenda found the most pressing issue was discussion of a mural project and membership update – not exactly the in-depth analysis of sources, methods, and actionable intelligence, directing active investigations of human trafficking, or a confidential review of investigative techniques and procedures – all of which are already exempt from Florida’s Sunshine Law…

(Maybe Hillsborough County should consider constructing a SCIF so Cameron Cepeda and her committee can discuss classified bake sale receipts in effective darkness?)

Trust me.  Taking legislative decision-making out of public view isn’t necessary to protect the integrity of human trafficking investigations, but it serves as a plausible excuse for dull tools like Donna Cameron Cepeda as she does the bidding of others who prefer to remain in the background.    

According to the Florida Phoenix, “Ben Wilcox is research director for Integrity Florida, a government watchdog group. He says that, since its inception, there have been attempts to weaken Florida sunshine laws by public officials who would like to operate more in the shadows than in the sunshine.

“More often than not, these public officials try to argue that allowing officials to discuss issues out of public scrutiny would ‘improve the functionality of the decision-making process,’” Wilcox said.

“This is code for actually saying, ‘Making deals would be easier if we didn’t have to do it at a public meeting.’”

If you believe as I do that all governmental power is vested in and derived from the will of the people, then I encourage you to stand against these incessant incursions on the concept of transparency, our right to be informed, and participate in official actions and deliberations that directly impact our lives and livelihoods. 

This one’s important.

And Another Thing!

Admittedly, I’m no David Patrick Columbia.    

I prefer faded jeans and a denim shirt over Armani, and I’m more at home on a barstool in my favorite watering hole than rubbing tuxedoed elbows at some high-society fête.

That said – and I hate to beat a dead horse (that’s not true, I relish it…) – but in an era when many non-profits are ditching the stodgy black tie evening in favor of events that more closely tie donors to the broader mission of the organization while conserving scarce funds for programmatic needs, I question the practice of First Step Shelter’s annual cocktail reception, elegant dinner, and entertainment, all held in a rented Grand Ballroom with “…a human ice sculpture, an aerialist, and a pixel poi performance!”

Whatever the hell that is…

While a formal soiree may be perfect for a state dinner or corporate gala, it may not be appropriate for a community fundraiser supporting a publicly funded “transitional housing” program whose participants are, at the very hour of the party, essentially without a permanent roof over their heads or the ability to feed themselves.  

In my view, gathering in one’s finery to feast on rubber chicken while being entertained by lavish performances and musical interludes reeks of a “let them eat cake” insensitivity to scarce funds and the unresolved issues in our region that contribute to homelessness.

While guests assemble at these “thinly veiled” political events known as “The Mayor’s Gala,” apparently in recognition of Daytona Beach Mayor Derrick Henry’s role as titular head of the horribly challenged First Step Board of Directors, whose lack of oversight and outrageous conduct toward whistleblowers has resulted in massive lawsuits and left many potential donors leery about throwing good money after bad…   

Tomorrow evening, potential benefactors will gather at the Hilton Oceanside for a $125 per plate banquet to help underwrite this enigmatic program – currently listed as a “two star” rated charity (2023) by the online donor advocate Charity Navigator – due to “Accountability & Finance” issues. 

According to the site, the metrics “…provides an assessment of a charity’s financial health (financial efficiency, sustainability, and trustworthiness) and its commitment to governance practices and policies.”

For a breakdown of First Step’s financial position, please review the shelter’s IRS filing for 2021 (the last year available) here: https://tinyurl.com/bdfa68fx

The site noted that First Step failed to list a “conflict of interest” policy or a “whistleblower” policy on the IRS Form 990 (2023) as an “accountability and transparency” measure in keeping with Charity Navigator’s criteria.  

In my view, it appears the First Step’s official “whistleblower” policy consists of deny, attack, reverse blame, and refuse to adequately investigate, while simultaneously destroying the personal and professional reputation of anyone who dares come forward with serious allegations of fraud, fiduciary malfeasance, discrimination, harassment, retaliation, admission policy violations, resident safety violations and allowing abusive residents to remain enrolled in the housing program…

Is there another policy I’m not aware of?

My hope is that the “Mayor’s Gala” is a rousing success, and that Victoria Fahlberg, Ph.D. and her shameless enablers on the First Step Board of Directors are able to maintain the façade just a little longer in order to gain much needed private donations to offset the increasing need for public funds.  

With luck (and private support) in time this mysterious “program” will become reasonably self-sufficient, and the long-suffering taxpayers of Daytona Beach and Volusia County might finally be off the hook…

Hey, stop laughing. Let this feeble old rube have my foolish dreams…

That’s all for me.  Have a great weekend, y’all!