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:
As a Barker’s View reader, you are obviously someone who thinks deeply about the issues that touch our lives and livelihoods here on Florida’s “Fun Coast” – an informed participant concerned about the direction of local government and those who practice it.
Responsible citizens, who reason critically and view the world around them with an analytical eye, tend to read and evaluate differing points-of-view – including alternative opinions that are counter to the posturing of our elected elite – then form their own take on the motives of policymakers and string-pullers.
In my view, it is this independent thought that separates the sheep – and those partisan navel-gazers who never look beyond the confines of their close-minded camps – from active, informed, and involved citizens from which all political power originates.
It is a fundamental duty of citizenship to remain vigilant – even fiercely skeptical – of outsized political power, government overreach, and those murky insider forces that seem intent on shaping our future based on some mysterious plan which does not need or want our input – only our money and apathetic acquiescence.
Thank you for reading and contemplating my opinions on our shared experience.
As we close out this strange year, I want to take this opportunity to send my sincere appreciation to the loyal Barker’s View tribe – those who follow this alternative opinion forum and perpetuate a larger discussion of the issues in the community.
Thank you for indulging my views and rants. Your curiosity about the news and newsmakers lets our “powers that be” know someone is watching – and oversight is a fundamental element of accountability.
But that pie in the sky notion is for another day…
Now is the time to hoist our glass and celebrate new possibilities!
From the catbird seat of caustic criticism at Barker’s View HQ, here’s wishing all of you a healthy, happy, and prosperous 2024!
Angel West Volusia Chamber of Commerce
Earlier this year, the United States Small Business Administration’s Office of Inspector General reported that of the approximately $1.2 trillion that was rushed through Congress in 2020 and 2021 in COVID bailout cash for businesses in the form of the Economic Injury Disaster Loan Program and the Paycheck Protection Program, some $200 Billion was ultimately lost to theft.
You read that right.
Tens of thousands of grifters across the nation used PPP funds to splurge on exotic cars, vacation homes, jewelry, and luxury vacations by private jet – representing what government watchdogs are calling the worst public fraud in history…
I don’t think the West Volusia Regional Chamber of Commerce – comprised of community business owners who worked hard to build a symbiotic network of area civic leaders and commercial interests – is one of those thieving scumbags who so blatantly abused the system.
Yet, the venerated organization has fallen victim to the same ill-conceived bailout…
According to a disturbing article by Noah Hertz writing in the West Volusia Beacon last week, the regional business network announced it was shutting down on December 19 after determining it was “…unable to move forward after covering the cost of an unforgiven COVID-19 business loan.”
Fortunately, members of the now defunct West Volusia Regional Chamber of Commerce are being welcomed by the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce of Central Florida, who have promised to continue many of the former organization’s popular programs and networking opportunities.
According to the report, “The decision to dissolve the WVRCC came suddenly when the chamber received news that their $17,000 Paycheck Protection Program loan would not be forgiven, DeCrenza said. The chamber filed for the loan in 2020 to cover the payroll of staffers as the COVID-19 pandemic threw a wrench in business as usual.
DeCrenza said the money was all spent correctly, but the paperwork that was initially filed had many discrepancies.
The chamber, she explained, was filed as a corporation, and the then-president of the board of directors was indicated to be its sole owner. The Small Business Administration was never able to come to terms with those errors.
“I tried so many avenues,” DeCrenza said. “It’s very disheartening this is happening.”
Wow…
Look, don’t get me started on all those “movers & shakers” (including elected officials) here and elsewhere who have had dubious PPP loans forgiven like clockwork. I doubt the names and amounts would surprise you any more than they did me…
In my view, the loss of this regional grassroots economic development organization is a blow for all Volusia County – and a grim testament to the pitfalls of showering astronomical amounts of public funds on private entities with little, if any, direct oversight, or accountability.
Damnable shame…
Asshole Flagler County School Board
“Anthony Zaksewicz, a 45-year-old resident of Lema Lane in Palm Coast and a veteran history teacher at Matanzas High School honored last year with a state award, was arrested on felony charges in connection with an alleged thieving scheme at Walmart that stretched over six months and aggregated thefts of nearly $3,200. Zaksewicz has taught in Flagler schools for 17 years.
According to his arrest report, Walmart reported the alleged thefts to the Flagler County Sheriff’s Office in mid-October, by which time the store’s asset protection investigator had concluded that Zaksewicz had chronically used ticket-switching and skip-scanning methods in innumerable transactions involving hundreds of items from May 13 through Oct. 1.”
–FlaglerLive!, “Tony Zaksewicz, Honored Matanzas High Teacher, Arrested over Walmart Theft Scheme Stretching Over 6 Months,” Wednesday, December 6, 2023
That shocking headline greeted Flagler County students, parents, and faculty in early December when FlaglerLive! reported the disappointing story of a veteran teacher charged with his involvement in an organized theft scheme.
Perhaps more shocking was what followed in a FlaglerLive! article a couple of weeks later:
“Anthony Zaksewicz, the Matanzas High School teacher arrested in early December on charges resulting from a long-running shoplifting scheme at Walmart, has been reinstated at Matanzas High School following a plea deal and pre-trial intervention program that, if abided by, may lead to the dropping of all charges in a year. Zaksewicz pleaded before Circuit Judge Terence Perkins on Wednesday.
Zaksewicz over half a year had used different methods to steal merchandise from Walmart, totaling over $3,000. The Flagler County Sheriff’s Office initially charged him with three third-degree felony charges and 10 misdemeanors. When the State Attorney’s Office filed its charging information, it dropped all charges, replacing them with one count of grand theft, a third-degree felony.”
(Please read the rest here: http://tinyurl.com/wafh38th )
According to the report, under the terms of the agreement, “…12 months from now, if Zaksewicz has abided by all the PTI’s conditions, the state will be required to drop the charge, essentially scrubbing Zaksewicz’s record in most ways. Meanwhile, the case is removed from the court’s active docket.”
Whatever.
After thirty-years in law enforcement, Mr. Zaksewicz is certainly not the first person I’ve seen who acted out of character or engaged in abhorrent conduct that destroyed their personal reputation and tarnished their professional credibility.
That goes with the territory when one holds a position of public trust.
And it should.
Regardless, he is entitled to the same considerations under the law as anyone else.
The fact is, I could give two-shits about the trials, tribulations, and plea agreements of Anthony Zaksewicz or his highly publicized fall from grace…
Unlike the Flagler County School Board, my thoughts are with those impressionable students who will be expected to sit attentively before an individual who, at best, exhibited notoriously poor judgement by engaging in an ongoing pattern of criminal conduct.
I also question what message senior administrators are sending to students about personal accountability, the limits of trust, and the importance of character and self-worth to the development of core values, trustworthiness, honor, and personal responsibility.
The fact is classroom teachers are invaluable.
They leave an indelible impression on their students that goes far beyond the ‘Three R’s’ as evidenced by the fact that, at 63, I still vividly remember the important lessons imparted by my wonderful first-grade teacher, Ms. Vaughn – a beloved mentor and educator – and the horrible browbeating I received at the hand of my fourth-grade teacher – an ill-tempered crone whose cruelty and callousness left a lifelong imprint on the way I learn.
In my view, with powerful influence comes an important responsibility to conduct oneself in a manner that comports with the Principles of Professional Conduct for the Education Profession in Florida – behavior that sets a good example, both inside and outside the classroom, of ethical conduct and personal integrity.
That’s something the Flagler County School Board should have considered before sending mixed messages to students who trust senior district officials have their best interests at heart…
Angel Sons of the Beach
Strike another win for the “forces of progress” – that cabal of greed-crazed assholes whose pursuit of more, more, more – has left established residents wondering why our ‘powers that be’ are so quick to sell our dwindling quality of life for a few dollars more?
Recently, the Daytona Beach City Commission voted 5-2 (with Commissioners Ken Strickland and Monica Paris dissenting) to approve a rezoning that will allow another out-of-town developer to build a monstrous “luxury high-rise condo-hotel” on the crumbling shoreline at State Road A1A and Silver Beach Avenue.
To their credit, those intrepid civic activists at Sons of the Beach, Florida’s premiere beach driving and access advocacy, stood strong in the long fight to oppose this wholly inappropriate atrocity – which will stand taller than surrounding properties on a 2.66-acre site – leaving neighbors subject to a daily total eclipse of the sun, as the concrete behemoth obliterates the sunlight and casts nearby residential homes in its shade.
In fact, Sons of the Beach and the group’s intrepid attorney Dennis Bayer, joined with nervous area residents to point out the glaring consequences of building another high-rise on the dune line during this period of historic beach erosion and instability – to include a complete lack of adequate traffic infrastructure while cramming all 265 vertical feet, 270 rooms, and two swimming pools on a site that the SOB’s claim requires at least 27.5 feet of additional buffer both north and south of the building – something Mr. Bayer aptly described to the City Commission as “…trying to put 20-pounds of potatoes in a 10-pound sack.”
The response to these very real concerns from Daytona Beach City Commissioner Paula Reed was frightening, “We have to stop being afraid of change…”
Of course, those who stand to benefit financially from the project (before scurrying back to South Florida) claim the $120 million project will be the Halifax areas latest panacea – the providential answer to our fervent prayers – another glass-and-steel monolith with the supernatural power to transform our horribly neglected beachside into an effervescent hub of tony retail, dining, and upscale tourist entertainment.
Except, that never happens…
Now, civic activist and former Sons of the Beach president Paul Zimmerman is calling bullshit in The Daytona Beach News-Journal, as quoted by reporter Eileen Zaffiro-Kean:
“Longtime beachside resident Paul Zimmerman said he’s heard too many promises for the oceanfront that weren’t kept.
One too many times, he’s heard the refrain, “If we build this monstrosity our lives will be improved,” he said.”
Unfortunately, no one (who should) seems to give a tinker’s damn about the obvious consequences of continuing to populate our fragile shoreline with more high-rise construction, and many are lamenting that the power dynamic is so skewed in favor of deep-pocketed donors in the real estate development industry – who have received carte blanche from their malleable marionettes in state and local government – that their incredible influence is now impossible to reverse.
Well, the one thing I’ve learned is: Nothing is impossible in government…
I still believe there remains one fundamental mechanism which will allow us to prevail over the self-serving insiders and well-heeled influencers that seem intent on shitting in our overcrowded nest and substituting grift and greed for comprehensive planning and strategic vision:
The ultimate power of the ballot box.
To that end, I like to humor myself into believing that We, The Little People still have some fragments of our traditional democratic process remaining amongst the ruins of bitter partisan infighting and our wholly skewed farce of a campaign finance system – like the sacred tradition that permits one person, one vote.
If enough like-minded citizens hold firm to the basic belief that we can control our destiny by electing strong, ethical, and visionary members of our community to high office – true servant/leaders who will tell powerful self-interests that there is some shit we won’t eat, and stand firm in defense of the rights, responsibilities and privileges of taxpaying residents who work hard to carve out a life here – we can once again balance political power and restore transparency, fairness, and the spirit of democracy on Florida’s “Fun Coast.”
Trust me. You won’t find those candidates on partisan “Voter Guides” – or swimming in cash donated from all the right last names with the wherewithal to purchase a very lucrative chip in the game.
This election year, do your homework. Become an informed voter. Become a member of Son’s of the Beach at www.sonsofthebeach.org
Now, more than ever, our livelihoods, environment, and coastal quality of life depend upon it…
Asshole Deltona City Commission
“In a season when peace and goodwill are supposed to be evident, Deltona’s government remains divided and troubled amid harsh words from critics.
Just in time for Christmas and just minutes before its last meeting of 2023 ended, City Attorney Marsha Segal-George survived an attempt to oust her. The City Commission Dec. 11 voted down a call to terminate her as the city’s chief legal officer, according to the motion offered by Mayor Santiago Avila Jr. Avila cited as his reason for wanting Segal-George out “the lack of a contract.”
“We’ve been waiting 12 months,” the mayor said, referring to the lack of an agreement — which she was supposed to draft and submit to the commission for approval.
Avila’s motion set a 60-day transition for Segal-George to wind down her work at City Hall and for the city administration to solicit and receive proposals from other lawyers or law firms interested in handling Deltona’s legal needs.
Avila also said Segal-George was not giving adequate legal advice, often resorting to, “I don’t know.”
–Reporter Al Everson, writing in the West Volusia Beacon, “Deltona city attorney safe for now,” Sunday, December 24, 2023
With all due respect to Mr. Everson’s outstanding reportage, in my jaded view, “divided and troubled” does not adequately describe the raging dumpster fire that is the Lost City of Deltona’s governing body – a shambolic shitshow that continues to defy any measure of logic – a clusterfuck of epic proportion, something often defined as the “…debacles and disasters caused by a heady brew of illusion, impatience, and incompetence that afflicts too many decision-makers, especially those in powerful, confident, and prestigious groups.”
Earlier this month, Deltona Mayor Santiago Avila, Jr. – supported by Commissioner Jody Lee Storozuk – attempted to jettison City Attorney Marsha Segal-George, who, in the view of many, has been the architect of much of the tumult and turmoil that continues to hamper substantive progress in the largest city by population in Volusia County.
That instability – marked by a virtual parade of acting and interim city managers since the horrific five-year regime of Jane Shang nearly destroyed the community from within – has resulted in many of those abrupt exits ending in lawsuits and payouts, all while flummoxed commissioners blundered on without benefit of competent and timely legal advice.
During many City Commission meetings, Deltona residents – who Segal-George billed a whopping $319,164 between April and December 2023 – were stunned as their City Attorney gazed absently into space, frequently mumbling “I don’t know,” seemingly lost in her own world, absently fiddling with her hair, utterly confused by events transpiring around her while the elected officials ran amok on the dais of power.
According to the Beacon, in opposing Segal-George’s rightful termination, Commissioner Dana McCool lamented:
“I did not vote for it because I don’t think that’s the way to go out,” McCool said. “I have asked Marsha to examine herself. It’s no secret that she is dealing with some issues.”
“Segal-George ought “not to be terminated unceremoniously,” McCool said, because of her legacy and knowledge of Deltona’s history and its current state of affairs. McCool added she has asked Segal-George for “an alternative plan” for catching up on mounting legal work for the city.”
My ass.
Look, we’re not talking about cashiering a valued servant/leader here. The fact is, Ms. Segal-George is an unfortunate holdover from the very law firm the dissatisfied City Commission fired in March – an “independent contractor,” only without the “contract” …
Normally, Commissioner McCool exhibits excellent instincts in defending the best interests of those who elected her, and frequently has moments of careful introspection during deliberations on the dais.
This wasn’t one of them…
Frankly, I could care less what unfortunate personal or professional “issues” Ms. Segal-George is dealing with – her foul “legacy” is written on the checks to plaintiffs and the ongoing clamor and confusion that marks what passes for City Commission meetings…
The cold fact is Commissioner McCool’s first responsibility is to protect her constituents (and the imperiled City of Deltona) from further harm at the hands of an absentminded city attorney.
Like a trusted airline pilot, train engineer, or surgeon – as a professional, Ms. Segal-George does not have the luxury of losing focus and mentally disconnecting during the performance of her important services.
In my view, those who pay the bills deserve their attorney’s undivided attention and legal expertise – pursued with a sense of confidence and enthusiasm – because the implications of her disengagement (as history has proven) can result in grim consequences for the community.
This sham has gone on too long – and the good citizens of Deltona deserve stability.
The Deltona City Commission should begin the new year with a clean slate as they begin the important process of selecting a permanent City Manager and establishing a civic vision for the future of their troubled community.
Quote of the Week
“Brown & Brown
300 N. Beach St., Daytona Beach
Dec. 12
Follow-up required: Warning issued.
Twelve total violations, with five high-priority violations:
High Priority – Fish not held frozen before, during and after being packaged onsite using a reduced oxygen packaging method. See stop sale.
–Per manager mahi is frozen after sealing bag **Warning**
High Priority – Fish packaged in the establishment using a reduced oxygen method not bearing a label indicating that it is to be kept frozen until time of use. **Warning**
High Priority – Raw animal food stored in same container as ready-to-eat food. Bag of liquid eggs stored on shell eggs. **Warning**
High Priority – Stop Sale issued due to adulteration of food product. ROP (reduced oxygen packaging) of mahi not frozen prior to sealing in bags. Does not appear to be in 10k bags. **Warning**
High Priority – Time/temperature control for safety food cold held at greater than 41 degrees Fahrenheit. Liquid egg whites 52f less than 4 hours. **Warning**”
(Disclaimer: The Florida Department of Business & Professional Regulation describes an inspection report as “a ‘snapshot’ of conditions present at the time of the inspection.” On any given day, an establishment may have fewer or more violations than noted in its most recent inspection. An inspection conducted on any given day may not represent the establishment’s overall, long-term conditions.)
–The Daytona Beach News-Journal, “Volusia County Restaurant Inspections with High-Priority Violations,” Tuesday, December 19, 2023
As the Swedish Chef likes to say, “Vurt dur Furk?”
The week between Christmas and the New Year is always a time of reflection for me.
So, I thought we would take a leisurely stroll down the Barker’s View Promenade, back to those heady days of December 2017, when it was announced that the much-heralded Brown & Brown Headquarters – billed as the ultimate panacea project that would cure the myriad ills of Downtrodden Downtown Daytona – and bring untold prosperity to Beach Street merchants.
Remember? It was all the rage…
There was gushing adulation from all the right last names as then City Manager Jim “The Chisler” Chisholm said, “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.”
As the News-Journal reported at the time, the lucrative public spiffs and incentives demanded by Brown & Brown (called “government help” at the time) were championed by “some of the city’s heaviest hitters,” to include the formidable former Mayor Glenn Ritchey, past County Chair Frank Bruno, and representatives from Halifax Health, the Regional Chamber of Commerce, Cobb Cole, ad infinitum. . .
“I am just absolutely delighted,” said Mori Hosseini, chairman and CEO of ICI Homes.”
“John Albright, president and CEO of Consolidated-Tomoka Land Co., said the new headquarters would be “an important spark to the redevelopment of downtown.”
After sopping up millions of state and local dollars in “economic incentives” – in my view, good, old fashioned corporate welfare that everyone agreed to ignore on the promise of prosperity – HRH J. Hyatt Brown shocked everyone when he announced a French food service group would open a full-service restaurant and 24-hour food kiosk inside the headquarters building, all but ensuring that employees did not need to leave the campus.
At the time, it was reported that “The Sanctuary” would also provide “fully prepared meals that people can bring home for dinner.”
Yeah. I know.
What about the jampacked local establishments as young, upwardly mobile executives noshed at posh restaurants and bistros?
What about the “bustling downtown experience”?
In my view, that bait-and-switch deal stunk like poorly handled Mahi…
Perhaps this latest news will result in that boon for Beach Street eateries we were promised as the smart crowd at Brown & Brown avoid “The Sanctuary” and venture outside the confines of HQ for something more, ah, appetizing than “…adulterated food product”?
Urrrrrp. Excuse me.
Gross.
And Another Thing!
On Sunday – New Year’s Eve – some communities in Florida could see a threatened exodus from city councils and commissions ahead of the state’s requirement that municipal elected officials fully disclose their financial interests on Form 6 beginning January 1.
Locally, as of Wednesday, Daytona Beach Shores city commissioners Mel Lindauer and Richard Bryan have resigned citing the updated reporting requirements.
In in the interest of complete financial transparency – the little money I have is tied up in what chartered accountants call “crippling liabilities” – and the few shekels that remain go to keeping this cracker box out of receivership and, of course, a few drams of whiskey at my favorite watering hole (not always in that order…)
So, in my cynical view, a mass resignation of those who place personal privacy over public service is not necessarily a terrible thing…
For many years, county and state officials have been required to periodically submit Form 6 – which provides a full and public disclosure of financial interests for both candidates and sitting officials. Prior to the Form 6 mandate, most municipal officials were only obligated to file Form 1 – which provides a simple overview of fiscal interests without a net worth requirement.
Now, some municipal officials are claiming the new requirement goes beyond transparency to invasive overreach, an onerous state edict that forces certain professionals to disclose confidential client information making them ineligible for public service, while others claim the information will be weaponized by their political detractors.
Bullshit.
The fact is you can’t swing a dead cat in most state legislative chambers without hitting a passel of lawyers – all equally governed by attorney/client confidentiality doctrine – each of whom are required to file Form 6.
Of course, the stated purpose of the disclosure is to allow “…the public to evaluate potential conflicts of interest, deters corruption, and increases public confidence in government,” while helping expose prior relationships of candidates that may create the appearance of impropriety.
That public accounting is only effective if an elected official is receiving direct and recorded financial benefit from a person or entity regulated by, or coming before, the elected body with an expectation of a favorable treatment.
But that’s not the way most acts of public corruption occur, and politicians at all levels of government – and those insiders who manipulate them like malleable sock puppets – understand that.
They also understand the gigantic legal loopholes that allow them to get around the – wink-wink – “rules.”
In my view, the real problem is the pernicious effect of a campaign finance system that allows the “Rich & Powerful” (and the industries they control) a direct means of influencing politics and governance by showering hand-picked candidates with massive campaign donations, then anticipating a return on investment from those who are politically dependent on their largesse.
All perfectly legal and publicly available to anyone who cares to review a candidate’s campaign contributions on the Supervisor of Elections website.
A smart friend of mine who participates in local politics calls it “corruption in plain sight” – because it is.
While much stomach acid is expended debating the non-issue of Form 6 and its privacy impacts on a few techy municipal officials, the appearance of quid pro quo corruption – defined as giving something of value in return for a specific action – continues to raise eyebrows.
Although politicians vehemently deny a “this for that” relationship with their largest donors, We, The Little People can’t help but notice that those same contributors (and the commercial interests they represent) invariably enjoy favorable outcomes, direct access to the public tit, and maintain their suckling position by funneling obscene amounts of cash into the campaigns of “likeminded” candidates each election cycle.
Typically, those politicians who receive the nod from Volusia’s “Big Money” donors have remarkably similar personal characteristics: They are extremely loyal to the hand that feeds them and maintain lock-step fealty to our entrenched power structure and the bureaucratic status quo it demands.
Perhaps by design, those selected to “serve” seem physically incapable of independent thought…
In exchange, their powerful puppet masters allow them the trappings of social and political standing commensurate with their high office – all the ego massage and sense of superiority our egomaniacal elected literati require – while they serve as figureheads of a “system” that uses them like dull tools.
In the end, this Faustian bargain extracts a heavy toll on the public’s trust – and the resultant corporate welfare giveaways, “incentives,” and uncontrolled development which permits massive sprawl to outpace infrastructure – leaves the unmistakable impression that this cliquish arrangement benefits a well-heeled few at the expense of many.
I’ve said this repeatedly, but if politics truly is the art of controlling one’s environment – then it appears those who possess the financial wherewithal and an unquenchable thirst for more, more, more – have perfected the cycle of crony capitalism here on this salty piece of dwindling pine scrub we call home.
In my view, it’s called ‘ROI’ – Return on Investment – and our wide-open campaign finance system is tailormade to ensure that the nexus of public funds and private interests remains accessible to those who can pay-to-play.
That’s all for me. Happy New Year, y’all!
Barker's View 