Observer YOU. YOUR NEIGHBORS. YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD.
Auditorium’s gritty leader 6 JANUARY 2022
VOLUME 8, NO. 6
WHO’S THE BOSS? Local residents share why they’ve become business owners as COVID-19 shifts the economy. PAGE 4
Flagler Health+ buys local property
Photos by Jarleene Almenas
Lowell and Nancy Lohman stand outside the new planetarium sign at their dedication ceremony on Dec. 9.
The $2.1 million, 70-acre property is part of a broad expansion in Palm Coast. GINA MANGUS FLAGLER HEALTH+
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Flagler Health+ purchased approximately 70 acres in the city of Palm Coast from Florida Landmark Communities LLC for $2.1 million on Dec. 13. The property, on the west side of U.S. 1 where Palm Coast Parkway and U.S. 1 meet, will be used to develop a comprehensive health complex, including an inpatient hospital. The health enterprise also recently announced a clinical agreement with University of Florida Health, which will include expansion of graduate medical education programs and an array of clinical services across Northeast Florida, including new primary care sites in St. Johns and Flagler counties. Details regarding new primary care in Flagler County are currently under discussion. Meanwhile, Flagler Health+ is working on a seven-acre health village at the southwest corner of Matanzas Woods Parkway and Belle Terre Parkway. The health village will incorporate family practice with embedded behavioral health services, orthopedics, specialty care, imaging and laboratory services, all within a community-centric setting. Flagler Health+ has already expanded its footprint of Flagler County-based care options, with the addition of a large orthopedics practice in the Palm Coast Town Center, a primary care office on Old Kings Road and a virtual walk-in clinic inside Publix. In February, Care Connect+ also opened an office inside Flagler Health+ Specialty Care at 50 Cypress Point Parkway. One of its first major initiatives was to award four Innovators Micro Grants to Flagler County nonprofit organizations to support programs that impact people experiencing homelessness, hunger, or lack of access to transportation, medication or health care in Flagler County.
MOAS names planetarium after Lohman family
Stellar contributions JARLEENE ALMENAS ASSOCIATE EDITOR
For seven years, the planetarium at the Museum of Arts and Sciences in Daytona Beach remained nameless. But as far as museum staff was con-
cerned, its future was written in the stars. On Thursday, Dec. 9, MOAS celebrated the official dedication of the Lowell and Nancy Lohman Family Planetarium, a moment that marked the completion of a nine-year proj-
ect to renovate the museum’s entrance courtyard, according to a press release. Now, when visitors arrive, they’ll be welcomed by a new blue illuminated sign on the exterior of the Root Auditorium, just a few steps away from the plan-
etarium’s dome. Nancy Lohman said at the dedication ceremony that her husband has often repeated a phrase throughout their marriage: “Adventure and life SEE STELLAR PAGE 2
A long-awaited health care resource Ribboncutting on Jan. 11 for long awaited behavioral health care center: Flagler Access Center. All Flagler County residents are eligible to receive services.
JULIE MURPHY FLAGLER COUNTY PIO
Flagler County and its partners SMA Healthcare and Flagler Health+ are hosting a ribbon-cutting ceremony to celebrate the opening of the Flagler Access Center, which will provide an open door for education, screening, and connection to behavioral healthcare services in the area. The event will be held at 10 a.m. Jan. 11, at the center located at 103 E. Moody Blvd., Bunnell. “We are thrilled to be a partner in this initiative that will provide a connection for behavioral health care services for the citizens of Flagler County,” said SMA Healthcare CEO Ivan Cosimi. “We have been looking for ways to expand our scope of services in the county, and we are confident this partnership will allow us to do just that.” Flagler County officials were notified in June that the state would fund its top legislative priority: $245,000 to create a mental health access point. The Board of Fla-
gler County Commissioners pledged to bolster the funding by $300,000 with money made available by the federal government through the American Rescue Plan. “Addressing behavioral health issues — including drug abuse and the suicide rate — have been a priority,” said County Administrator Heidi Petito. “This initial funding is allowing us and our privateprovider partners to operate this new center without immediate concerns about grant writing or fundraising. This is a big first step to meeting our goals for the community.” All Flagler County residents are eligible to receive services from the Flagler Access Center. Individuals who come to the center will be screened and connected to appropriate services. “Flagler County has been advocating for a project of this nature, and has stepped up to provide a convenient location for access to these much-needed services,” Cosimi said, noting that SMA Healthcare will provide walk-
Flagler Access Center, 103 E. Moody Blvd., Bunnell
in screenings, crisis response, care coordination, and linkage to the federal housing effort known as PATH (Projects for Assistance in Transition from Homelessness) immediately at this new location. “Flagler Health+ will provide services for its ‘Be Resilient and Voice Emotions’ program, which encourages youth to engage with mental health services early on in their life.” The center will also utilize other social service providers within the county to provide a continuum of care. A second phase of services will eventually be offered at the Flagler Access Center once licensure for the new
Courtesy photo
facility has been obtained. Those services – currently being provided at the SMA Healthcare facility on Justice Lane – include mental health therapy and substance use disorder therapy. Services for both are provided through individual therapy, group therapy, family therapy, individualized treatment plans, and treatment plan reviews. “This is an important milestone for Flagler County,” Petito said. “This will allow us to better serve everyone in the community.” The public is invited to attend the ribbon cutting. Light refreshments will be served.