Observer YOU. YOUR NEIGHBORS. YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD.
HELPING THE LONELY 3 OCTOBER 2021
VOLUME 8, NO. 3
More homes approved Flagler County Commission approves changes to Plantation Bay and Hunter’s Ridge plans PAGE 6
Expecting holiday visitors?
What Christina would have wanted Ormond Beach resident loses her sister to COVID-19, starts GoFundMe campaign to help raise her niece and nephew. OrmondBeachObserver.com
STEVE CLAIR ACCESS CONTROL MANAGER
As we approach the holiday seasons, I just want to remind everyone to please check their visitors lists for their expected guests. If you are able to enter them in your visitors in CapSure, please do so. If you are unable to put them on your list through CapSure, please call Access Control Main Gate at 437-2496 and someone will gladly assist you in getting them on your visitors list. We want to make sure all your family and guests are granted entry without any delay or inconveniences.
Photo by Jarleene Almenas
Marissa Smith said taking care of her niece and nephew is what her sister would have wanted.
DOGS AND YOUR RESPONSIBILITIES
We have gotten numerous complaints about residents allowing their dogs to run free and not on a leash here in Plantation Bay; some of these have resulted
JONATHAN SIMMONS NEWS EDITOR
SEE CLEAN UP PAGE 4
Local Postal Customer
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Life saver? The roundabouts aren’t necessarily reducing the number of crashes, but they do seem to be reducing their severity, Sheriff Rick Staly said.
I
t’s been about a year since roundabouts were added at two Flagler County intersections on U.S. 1. The change inspired outcry at the time from people who preferred a traditional stoplight and feared that roundabouts would be a nuisance to navigate or lead to more crashes, while Florida Department of Transportation staff reassured locals that roundabouts have a record of reducing fatalities. Sheriff Rick Staly, before the roundabouts were created, had backed an initiative to add a stoplight at the U.S. 1/Old Dixie Highway intersection after a series of serious crashes there. He’d said he’d defer to FDOT’s traffic engineers on whether a roundabout would ultimately be a better solution than a light, but had worried that the roundabout construction process would take too long and leave drivers at risk
in the meantime, while adding a stoplight at the intersection — which then had only flashing lights — could be done quickly and reduce crashes. But now that they’re installed, are Flagler’s roundabouts doing what they’re supposed to do? “They have not necessarily had a significant impact on the number of crashes,” Staly said. “What FDOT had told me back during the discussion phase was that they knew that roundabouts were unlikely to reduce the number of crashes, but they felt their study showed it would reduce the severity of the crashes — and I guess that has come true.” FDOT’s website states that roundabouts have “90% fewer fatalities and 75% fewer injuries” than regular intersections. Since each Flagler County roundabout has only been open about a year — both opened last summer, and COVID-19 may have affected traffic during that SEE LIFE PAGE 5