Flagler County Bed Tax Receipts Up this Year
Bed tax receipts are up 4.18% YTD over last year. Meanwhile, neighboring counties’ receipts are down.
Palm Coast, Florida – November 20, 2008 – There’s more positive news for Flagler County. Flagler County Chamber of Commerce V.P. of Tourism Development, Peggy Heiser reports YTD Bed Tax receipts for the county are up 4.18% over last year’s comparable period. Bed Tax revenues for neighboring counties are down from last year.
A 10% Bed Tax is charged for all short-term (less than 6 months) rentals and overnight stays. Money stays within the county and is used to promote tourism.
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Tourism is Florida’s largest industry.
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Tourism comprises more than 20% of our state’s economy.
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82.4 million travelers visited Florida in 2007.
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Visitors generated more than $65 billion in taxable sales. That amount of spending generated $3.9 billion in tax related revenue to the state of Florida.
The addition of 121 rooms at the new Hilton Garden Inn in Town Center and 109 rooms at a new Fairfield Inn & Suites on Old Kings Road will enhance the Palm Coast/Flagler County lodging inventory for 2009. Both new hotels expect to open before the end of 2008.
Editor’s comment: Remember to say hello to a visitor today. And if they make snide remarks about the way we Floridians count our ballots, tell them to vacation in one of the other 53 states.
Toby, You miscounted!
Toby,
I think you made a mistake. You said ". . . one of the other 53 states."
I know I saw a news film showing our President elect claiming he had campaigned in all 57 of our states.
No exra charge for the bed bugs
Being a "Monkish" type person, I hesitate to check in to any Hotel without checking for the right smell, the right freshness of the sheets and make sure the HVAC and CATV is working. Then I check in. I don’t do this very ofter as we have a Motorhome that gets the Monk treatment, and since we bought it new is hasn’t been occupied by anyone other the us and family. That being said I’m a supporter or the room tax, as it usualy is paid by out of towners. Years ago when I was an advisor for property appraisals in New York State, I happened into Watkins Glen. At that time the property taxes were getting high and the visitors, coming to race car events, were demanding services that cost the local government trousands. They were trying to get more revenue from the local tax base by increasing the Industrial and Commercial base. That was where I came in, to tell them they were over stepping their logic to valuation conclusions. I asked them why they did not use a bed tax. The said, what is that? I said charge a percentage on every room rented and put that in the coffers for general funds. They said "thank you very much", we would have never thought of that, and were sure re elections would go well for us with this new idea for saving the locals a heap of money. It also made everyone in town look differently at those race fans, as now they were not just a problem but a solution.
EVERYONE…look at this ! We’re moving forward !
Hello Everyone, Hello Olde Towne Palm Coast Friends !
Please pardon our posting this off topic here, but, this is just much to much good newzzzz not to share it with everyone. We’re moving forward This will hopefully get the ‘Four Sisters’ soon up and running or close! Hooray..Realtors can show Prospective Buyers Matanzas Properties and others without shame or at fire sale prices!
Its a start…again…pleaes pardon our posting here !
Note: they please ask we do not go onto the Course, so please view their website for regular updates soon! https://www.macCurrachgolf.com. Hooray, Yippee, Yahoo ! we’re not only a Community on the Golf Channel…we’re being highlighted on MacCurrachGolf Webpage and even ‘..key us another Webpage there too…’! This Further completes the circle for possible Local or more Historic Heritage Status for the ‘Four Sisters"! ( Thanks Toby for letting this POST go through..Thank you very much )
Here goes! WATCH also for two more POSTS below of moving forward information!
Here goes!
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Dear Mr. Chuddy,
Thank you for your e-mail. I can tell you that it is very exciting for us to see such excitement within the community for this project. I watched the city council meeting in which our contract was approved live on the internet, and very much enjoyed the rousing round of applause by the “friends of golf” at the end. I presume you are from that same group.
We have just started work at Palm Harbor. We will be constructing the golf course, another contractor is scheduled to install the cart paths, and yet another to plant the grass. We are not designing the golf course. George Clifton, of Clifton, Ezell, & Clifton Design Group is providing the design. They are out of Deland and have done most, if not all of the work at the Villages. We will not have anything to do with the clubhouse.
We will get the project up on the website within a few days. Thanks for the pics, we will use some of them to get going. Once some project pictures are available, we will get them up too. – Since there is such local interest, we will probably key another project pictures page for this project.
On a safety note, please pass the word that although the temptation is there, it’s necessary that passerby’s stay off the construction site, and observe the improvements from the property edges. I’m sure you can all appreciate the need for safety.
As far as Matanzas Woods, I had looked at that course last year, but have not heard anything lately about it.
When we are all done, we can certainly hoist a toast together to the restored course.
Please feel free to contact me with any questions.
Thank,
Jeff Tourangeau
MacCurrach Golf Construction, Inc.
3501 Faye Rd.
Jacksonville, FL 32226
(904) 646-1581
(904) 646-0996 fax
jeff@maccurrachgolf.com
http://www.maccurrachgolf.com
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From: George Edward Chuddy, Jr., M.S., A.B.D. [mailto:chuddy@bestnetpc.com]
Sent: Wednesday, November 19, 2008 8:49 PM
To: allan@maccurrachgolf.com; brian@maccurrachgolf.com; jeff@maccurrachgolf.com; andy@maccurrachgolf.com; chris@maccurrachgolf.com; keith@maccurrachgolf.com; doug@maccurrachgolf.com; nate@maccurrachgolf.com; mary@maccurrachgolf.com; hamish@maccurrachgolf.com
Subject: Palm Coast Golf Course, a.k.a. Palm Harbor Golf Course
Hello All
Such excitement!
Thank you for your efforts at finally restoring our cherished and historic Golf Course back to us. We all eagerly await your posting on your webpage to see all of the many developments.
Last Century it truly was a very nice Course. Historically, it was the first professional Golf Course in Flagler County. ITT Levitt, then ITT ICDC had official ‘Guided Tours’ of Highlights of Palm Coast. Thousands and thousands of prospective buyers were taken in ‘Tour Vans’ on ‘The Companys’ official ‘Guided Tours’ to see it and all that was offered In just about 2 years 36,000 LOTS were $old; so you see why it has a warm spot in all of our Hearts. Most of us took the chance and paid a High Premium to be near it, many paying hundreds and thousands over DOUBLE the price of a standard Lot. Consequently you can see why we all have ‘special interest’ in our full Golf Course and all are overjoyed to see your starting and progress now.
Additionally, the first Palm Coast Open and later the Tournament of Champions was held there and it was the HOME Course for Golfer Nancy Lopez-Melton. As time passed it also helped some families. As they aged and surrendered their car keys, a few kept their Golf Carts. This first Neighborhood Core was allowed to own their own Golf Carts. Some had Golf Cart Garages, you can see one still on Cerrudo Lane.
Consequently a few families, after turning in their keys, would use the Golf Carts to go to a little Neighborhood Store we once had for some fresh milk and bread, or use it to visit for some *social*, and if they could afford it, occasionally stop in the Clubhouse for a warm meal and social there. This way they kept their dignity a while longer and postponed Nursing Home placement. That was a very nice benefit.
Also, thank you very much for cleaning up the First Neighborhood Park; 164 familes enjoyed the Park last Century, hopefully we all will have something nice again. Will you be designing it also? Thank you for keeping it intact. It was the only public meeting place at first for Towne Meetings’, Colonel Lynn and Josephine Wickland would hoist their Flag, ring their Towne Crier Bell and say.."Oyez…Oyez…Oyez…Bring a Lawn Chair…’…Oyez..Oyez..Oyez…Bring a chair. The First Pioneers would bring their turquoise or bright yellow aluminum lawn chairs and walk to the Park for Towne Talk and Towne Meetings. It Colonel Wickland was entertaining prior to the meeting and had one to many straight Scotch he’s say…Oyez..Oyez..Oyez..bring a lawnchair..then under his breath he’d say….we are going to kick some ITT ass to hell and back…( referenging the Shopping Center and I-95 interchange The Company pledged also. He was Military, tall and tanned, cigar chomping, drove a silver Toronado so that emphasized it all even more. ….and we got all what was promised and pledged ! )
We all are eagerly awaiting to be listed in your Current Projects area so we can regularly *see* your efforts and your progress. Once up and running, perhaps, it will hopefully diminish and dissuade the ‘Walkers’ and ‘Exercisers’ and even some Curiouslty seekers getting in your way. Please understand and be patient; so many have waited for so many years. Thank you.
As a ‘Thank You’, we are offering several Jpegs to add , perhaps to begin , your Current Projects Pics Page.
The black and white Polaroid jpeg is from the early 70’s , showing the front of ‘The Companys’ pledged Contemporary Clubhouse. The others are the rear of the Clubhouse showing some early residents, most probably coming from the ‘Golf to Boat’ Dock , having been dropped off, or left their watercraft at the ‘Golf To Boat’ Dock, then onto Play Golf and/or Socialize at the Clubhouse; perhaps Prospective Buyers on one of the Four of The Companys’ Chris-Craft Boat Shuttles of the Guided Tour.
Will you be building our Clubhouse also? Will it to the initial design or another Style and Design? A friend is sad when driving by its location where your *mulch* is stored- that is where it was shown to us all; we console her and say…thats ok, it will be back in time and that very soon she’ll be able to see on your webpage the developments. Please let us know when you plan on putting us in your Webpage? Thank you.
We hope you receive our little history and jpegs as our little Thank You for your efforts.
Will you be taking on the dead Matanzas Woods Course also? It is one of the ‘Four Sisters’ offered in the advertising and promotions of ‘The Company. Iit is very sad for another one of ‘The Four Sisters’ to be derelict when it was once a PGA Qualifying Course and once the Finest Course in Florida. The ‘Four Sisters’ are the Palm Coast Golf Course, a.k.a. Palm Harbor , Pines Lakes Golf Course, Cypress Knoll Golf Course, and the Matanzas Woods Course.
A friend just told us that one of your employees was concerned over your cutting of trees and rightfully so. and the walkers around the construction site. Again, safety a priority. Tho’,pPlease understand, we once had Award Winning Sheratons, one which was designed around a large cluster of MASSIVE Oaks. One day, the chain saws started and children cried, even adults also as we all watched on in disbelief and Horror. One by One by One …the Massive Oaks fell leaving only leaving a lawn of dirt now at the end of Clubhouse Drive. Thats perhaps why so many of us are ‘skiddish’ when we hear the chain saws start up. Please understand and explain to your staff why people here are skiddish.
Thank you .
Thanks again!
Oh, would it be presumptous of us to ask…as you near completion to maybe have a few local clergy – priests, rabbis, ministers, etc., say a little blessing of the clubhouse and course…? and if maybe better times come by then…bring a bottle of Scotch..and we all toast to Colonel Wicland and all the other original Pioneers who gave so much to start Palm Coast… no one ever has bothered to recognizd them..and they gave so much…so…in memory.. "Oyez…Oyez…Oyez….Bring a Lawnchair…and also a bottle of Scotch !
What the hell…even it these black years don’t pass by then ….bring a bottle of Scotch anyway ! Better yet..bring Two!
Thanks
Geo.
..perhaps more MOVING FORWARD
Everyone please look at MacCurrachGolf and look for ‘This Old Course’. We wrote Mr Garrity and asked him is he would do This Old Course #2 here. The exposure, IF he considers this would help FILL up the Hotels! Please, everyone write him and ask him to PLEASE consider doing it for The Four Sisters!
Lets’ hope!
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Hello Mr. Garrity:
Good Afternoon !
We saw your writing about ‘This Old Course’ at the Maccurach Golf Website. Very nice indeed!
Consequently, perhaps you may want to consider doing that again with the Palm Coast Golf Course, now known as the Palm Harbor Golf Course in Palm Coast, Flagler County Florida. It was the first full Golf Course in Flagler County, Florida and is now being rehabbed by Maccurrach Golf.
Palm Coast started as the largest planned community, New Town, in the World at 100,000+ acres, started by ITT Levitt, then ITT ICDC. Promotions for this Community were 6 miles of Beach, 20 miles of Canals, and Four Golf Courses. There was even an article written by CNN Time Warner, on June 28, 1971 titled ‘Development and Decay’ discussing this Gargantuan Community.
https://www.time.com/time/printout/0,8816,905263,00.html
Perhaps you may conside doing the same thing, This Old Couse, at this Golf Course. The Palm Harbor Golf Course early on held the Palm Coast Open, then the Tournament of Champions. Nancy Lopez chose Palm Coast as her official residence and was the touring Pro for the Palm Coast Golf Club. We only had a population of 3,000 at that time. The Nancy Lopez Pro-Am was held in February 1979, followed by the Florida Tournament of Champions. In June, 1979, the Colgate/Palm Coast World Mixed Team Championship was won be Lee Trevino and Nancy Lopez. The Golf Course was known as the ‘Home Port’ for ‘Nancys’ Navy.’ In time, we hope beyond hope to have this Historic Heritage rich Golf Course marked; perhaps your writings can help us. You efforts would help Palm Coast get a ‘sense of History, a ‘sense of Place’. Palm Coast also will turn 40 in 2009 since it was announced in June 1969. Lordy Lordy, Palm Coast is almost Forty!
We certainly would be very much appreciative if you choose to do this and help us.
Should you be interested we have several black and white Polaroid pictures of the Palm Harbor Golf Course being build initially in 1970/1971 which could start off your chronicle if you are interested. The Polaroids were taken from the Tour Vans of the official ‘Guided Tour’ offered by ITT Levitt/ITT ICDC.
Should the Palm Harbor Golf Course not be of interest to you for this ‘This Old Course #2’ perhaps the Matanzas Golf Course would be. In 1988, the PGA tapped Matanzas Woods Golf Course as the National Qualifying Site. It was once the finest Golf Course in Florida; sadly today it is completely ‘Dead’. Perhaps you can chronicle this if this is of interest to you instead. Perhaps a ‘combo’ effort if you prefer that instead. Anything would be appreciated to help us *round out the Circle* for historic Heritage.
Thank you for listening.
Thank you very much,
Warm Regards from Sunny Florida,
George
A n early Holiday Gift for Everyone
Hello:..Every year our Home insurers ask if we have kept this information in our important Homes Insurance File. This year they said, perhaps you may want to share it with others new to Palm Coast, so we typed and typed, and Obviously we hope no one ever floods, but it is an important piece of information that Realtors can share with Prospective Buyers to market properties. Every year we also ask if we get a discount, for us ( Travellers Umbrella ), no, but you may want to ask YOUR Insurer if they will give a discount to you for this. We hope so, something positive during these bleck times –
here goea: ( Thanks again Toby for letting this POST go through )
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Palm Coast has been designed to withstand what is termed ‘the 100 year Flood’.
From: Richard Vaughan, director of environmental affairs for the ITT Community Development Corporation
The PalmCoaster, Volume 11, Number 1, Winter/Spring, 1982, Front Cover Page, p 1., p 13
Hurricane in Palm Coast? Not Likely
Like reports of Mark Twains’ death, reports of Florida hurricanes too have been greatly exaggerated.
Over the years people have become accustomed to thinking of hurricanes as the exclusive property of Florida. One reason might be that the National Hurricane Center is headquartered in Miami. Almost every hurricane news report originates in Miami, regardless of where the storm is located, be it 50 miles or 2,000 miles from Flroida.
What is a hurricane? it’s a large tropical cyclone with winds of at least 74 miles per hour, generally accompanied by heavy rains and high tides. The great spiral clouds of an average hurricane cover an area several hundred miles in diameter, although the area hit by the highest winds- those over 74 miles per hour-may only be 30 to 100 miles in diameter.
Hurricanes form over warm , tropical ocean areas and move to higher lattitudes like great spinning tops. Their movement is quite erratic. They can suddenly change directions, make loops, slow up or stop-and later move at 10 to 20 miles per hour. This forward speed of the hurricane system increases the fury of the circular winds flowing around the hurricane’s eye, or center.
The north American hurricane season runs from June 1 to November 30, with most storms occuring in August, September and October.
The North Florida area isn’t immune to direct hits by hurricanes-no part of the United States’ gulf coast or eastern coastline is. But weather bureau records show that chances of a hurricane striking the Palm Coast region are considerably less than in most other coastal areas of the state and nation. Meteorologist Fred Crosby of the National Weather Service says,"the configuratioin of the coastline and the region’s latitude help explain the area’s relatively hurricane free record, which is based on the tracks of previous storms."
"During the early stages of a tropocal storm," says Crosby, ‘The movement is generally from the east to the west. The direction gradually changes…this movement pattern would reduce the probabiltiy of one of them directly hitting the northeast Florida coast."
Looking at the past 100 years, Flagler and Volusia counties hold an envious distinction neither county ever received a direct hit from a full hurricane moving directly in from the ocean.
Although a total of 19 hurricane’s occuring during the 100-year period have posed serious threats and five have actually passed over the area, in each case those storms had already been over land for a number of hours and were greatly weakened in force and without the beach damage caused by ocean storms.
The last hurricane to afffect Palm Coast was Hurricane David, which brushed the area in early September, 1979. David’s highest wind gust recorded in Palm Coast was 59 miles per hour, and though it did drop 4.16 inches of rain over a 48 -hour period, no flood-related water damage occurred. One of the main reasons damage did not occur is because Palm Coast has been designed to withstand, what is termed, "the 100-year flood." That, says Richard Vaughan, director of environmental affairs for ITT Community Development Corporation, means a flood that statistically could occur once in a hundred years could hit Palm Coast and no flood water would enter the houses.
Here is a probablity table based on National Weather Service data showing the chances of hurricane making landfall at varioius Gulf of Mexico and Eastern Seaboard areas:
Probability of Tropical Cyclone Making Direct Landfall during any given year:
Coastline areas:
Corpus Christi, Texas 1 : 8
Galveston, Texas 1 : 5
New Orleans, Louisiana 1 : 5
Pensacola, Florida 1 : 5
Apalachiocola, Florida 1 : 6
Tampa- St. Petersburg, Florida 1 : 10
Miami, Florida 1 : 6
Palm Coast, Florida 1 : 14
High and Low Temperatures in Palm Coast during December and January.
( As recorded by the Palm Coast Weather Bureau, Office of Environmental Affairs)
Date, High, Low
Dec.
1 84, 61
2 64 59
3 65 43
4 73 38
5 73 41
6 65 36
7 70 46
8 76 38
9 65 37
10 51 32
11 53 26
12 70 28
13 67 34
14 79 47
15 75 62
16 62 39
17 65 31
18 67 50
19 73 26
20 60 34
21 66 38
22 74 40
23 83 64
24 83 57
25 80 59
26 74 56
27 74 60
28 69 61
29 79 61
30 64 58
31 82 62
January
1 69 57
2 71 57
3 80 57
4 77 69
5 60 41
6 75 41
7 83 56
8 69 58
9 65 48
10 59 26
11 42 26
12 49 20
13 70 47
14 70 51
15 53 27
16 69 30
17 55 38
18 72 40
19 77 43
20 79 46
21 80 50
22 76 50
23 81 56
24 70 40
25 62 33
26 58 43
27 61 35
28 60 40
27 61 35
28 60 40
29 71 40
30 75 50
31 85 53
Joke and Bigger Joke
Toby,
I know you were joking but I don’t think our President elect was when he said 57 states!
Reply to Dan
It was meant to be a joke. Count ballots – 53 states. Ha ha. Or not.