FLAGLER BEACH MARKET PAGE 2
Observer YOU. YOUR NEIGHBORS. YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD.
APRIL 2022
VOLUME 8, NO. 9
Volusia EMS pushes for more stations Heavy overtime loads are becoming a big concern for EMTs, as well as a lack of permanent stations. PAGE 3
Henry Hotel to open on Old Dixie in a year The hotel will be a ‘boutique hotel’ with a restaurant that will serve as a steakhouse on weekends, according to representatives of the developer. JONATHAN SIMMONS NEWS EDITOR
The new owners of the derelict hotel structure on Old Dixie Highway expect to finish remodeling in about a year and plan to add a 30-by90-foot pool, a 3,500-square-foot banquet center, and a restaurant that will be a steak house on the weekends, representatives told Flagler County commissioners at a March 21 meeting. The renovated structure will be called the Henry Hotel. “We’re anxiously awaiting to get started, and we’re looking at a oneyear construction schedule from when we receive our permit,” said Jim Albano, representing architect Bespoke Group and general contractor Albano Design Studios. The county and the hotel’s ownership have been at odds over the renovation process missing construction deadlines, and the slow pace of the redevelopment process has frustrated some area residents. The development company’s representatives acknowledged that the property still isn’t much to look at. “Listen, the property doesn’t look pretty right now, even though it was cleaned up,” said Greg Kong, a local real estate agent representing owner MG Capital Partners. But, he added, “All of the dirty beds, the bathrooms — all of those things were removed. ... I don’t know how many dumpster loads there were, but there were a lot.” Recent illegal dumping has been a problem, Albano said, that has since been fixed: A breach in the construction fence had allowed trespassers to slip onto the property, but the breach has been mended and the
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Trish Vevera’s “Mystery Sail,” currently on display at Grand Gallery, is a homage to the tragic condominium collapse at Surfside.
Ship graveyards, magical marshes Trish Vevera and Karen Ann Patton share the space at Grand Gallery at Grand Living Realty. BRENT WORONOFF STAFF WRITER
On the morning of the reception for the new art show at Grand Gallery, artist Trish Vevera drove her truck back to Palm Coast from Wekiwa Springs State Park in Apopka where she was among 25 artists who lived
played next to each other. The oil and cold-wax paintings depict graveyards of Navy ships. The many layers of paint and beeswax mixed together hide and reveal outlines of ships under the water. “Oil and cold wax are new to me,” said Vivera, who was the Gargiulo Art Foundation’s Artist of the Year in 2018. “I discovered it during the first summer of COVID.” Another oil and cold-wax work by Vevera in the show is “Mystery Sail,” which pays homage to the tragic condominium collapse in Surfside. With a sailboat in the background, images of people fly-
ing up to heaven are carved out of the layers. “This is more personal,” she said. “Every picture has a story, but some have a deeper meaning.” Patton, who has been painting for about 50 years, is from New York but has lived in Plantation Bay for 20 years. She has studied under famous watercolor artists, including Edgar Whitney. Inspired by natural landscapes and tropical flowers, her paints are filled with vivid colors. The Grand Gallery is open Monday to Saturday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
The Mullers retire after 9 years on Citizen Observer Patrol Mike Muller was Citizen Observer Patrol chief for four years, adding beach, bicycle and marine units during his tenure. BRENT WORONOFF STAFF WRITER
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in cabins for a week and painted feverishly, inspired by the natural surroundings. “I did two paintings a day, one this morning,” she said on March 6, showing off a truckload full of new works. Vevera and Karen Ann Patton are sharing the wall space at Grand Gallery at Grand Living Realty, 2298 Colbert Lane, through April 16 in the show, “Plein Air to Abstract, Pastel and Paint.” Vevera, who is known for her outdoor painting, has a selection of abstract studio art in the show, including Graveyards I and II, dis-
When Mike Muller was promoted to chief of the Citizen Observer Patrol four years ago, about 15 COPs in leadership positions had just retired. “I was the last guy with any kind of rank,” he said. “Just the week before, I was promoted to captain.” Muller and his wife, Pam, are leaving the Flagler County Sheriff Office’s volunteer organization after nine years. Muller retired as chief on March 1. Pam is retiring as a commander on April 6. Under Mike Muller’s leadership,
the COP added three patrols — an ATV unit on the beach to help people who are injured; a bicycle unit with COPs patrolling the trails in pairs, and a marine patrol boat to provide aid to disabled boats. He also expanded the COP’s traffic crash investigations from about 70 to 90 a year to about 80 a month. The COPs who pass a Sheriff’s Office course investigate crashes, give citations for non-criminal violations and go to court if the citation is challenged. “One time I went to a crash scene on Belle Terre, and there was one car flipped over and another in a ditch,” Mike Muller said. “Two women were hugging each other. They said, ‘We’re just lucky to be alive, so we hugged each other.’” Later that day, he went on another call, and two men were fighting, although there was barely a scratch SEE MIKE PAGE 6
Photo by Brent Woronoff
Pam with Mike Muller, who helped expand COP traffic crash investigations from 80 a year to 80 a month.