City of Palm Coast Week in Review - Issue 10 - Jan. 20 - 2019

WINTER 2019 ISSUE 10
JAN. 20, 2020
CITY MANAGER’S
Week in Review

PHOTO: TOWN CENTER CELEBRATION BY VICKI PAYNE

PHOTO: OUR ICONIC PALM COAST WATER TOWER BY WILLIAM CLARK

UPCOMING Events
Mayor’s 90/90 challenge - jan. 6 - april 4
City council workshop - jan. 28 - 9 a.m.
Palm Coast open - Feb. 3-9
CPR TRaining - FEB. 22
Click Here for Parks & Rec WINTER Guide 19/20
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NewsROOM
Spotlight Palm Coast: Council Business
Meeting January 21, 2020
Spotlight Palm Coast: Tech Beach
Hackathon Awards $12K In Cash Prizes
Cynthia Schweers Named Director of
Citizen Engagement
City of Palm Coast announces events,
activities for Jan. 2020

Contents
ISSUE 10
8 - around the City
10 - Tech Beach Hackathon
12 - Safety never stops - wwtp#2
14 - mayor’s 90/90 challenge
17 - adopt-a-road program
18 - Palm Coast Connect by the Numbers
CITY OF PALM COAST
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“CONTINUOUS IMPROVEMENT IS THE NAME
OF THE GAME! WHEN WE CRITIQUE OUR
PROCESSES, THEN WE CAN GET BETTER
AND BE SAFER.”
-BEN CAOILI
DID YOU KNOW THAT IF A FIRE STARTS
IN YOUR HOME YOU MAY HAVE AS LITTLE
AS TWO MINUTES TO ESCAPE? DURING A
FIRE, EARLY WARNING FROM A WORKING
SMOKE ALARM PLUS A FIRE ESCAPE PLAN
THAT HAS BEEN PRACTICED REGULARLY
CAN SAVE LIVES. LEARN WHAT ELSE TO
DO TO KEEP YOUR LOVED ONES SAFE!
- PALM COAST FIRE DEPARTMENT

Around the City
SCOTT THOMAS
For fourteen years at his job, Scott Thomas has put his
customers first. Since joining the Palm Coast’s customer
service department in 2006, he’s assisted residents with
varying issues and he’s moved across different departments
to hone his skills. Six years ago, he found a home in the
building division of Community Development as Permit
Technician. And our residents, have found a good friend in
Scott.
Every day offers new challenges for Scott. He issues new
building permits and renews expired ones. He also assists
with code and zoning concerns. He works with residents,
contractors, construction specialists, builders and various
technicians. He listens to each individual situation with
patience and concern and we works alongside many fellow
city specialists to coordinate services.
“I always try to make things better for our citizens by being
fair and objective,” Scott tells us. “It’s my job to listen
carefully to each of them and come up with best possible
solution to serve their needs.”
Scott didn’t have to travel far for his employment. He is
a native of our area, growing up in Bunnell and attending
Flagler Palm Coast High School.
Three Fun Facts about Scott:
1. He loves superhero, action and thriller movies.
2. He loves eating Thai food.
3. He is also a photography enthusiast.
CJ JOHNSTON
When people drive through Palm Coast, CJ Johnston is
extremely proud that they observe a City that is beautiful,
functional and sparkling clean. As the Public Works
Manager, he oversees operations that maintain the integrity
of our streets, fleets and facilities. He also ensures that
processes run efficiently within budget. He’s been employed
by Public Works for eleven years, advancing from Equipment
Operator to Streets Supervisor and now to Manager.
CJ was born and raised on a farm in Flagler County and
he has seen a huge transformation here over the past few
decades. He’s now honored to be part of an organization
that continues to move forward with this transformation. He
plays a vital role on a team that has been responsible for so
many of these improvements to our City. Their department
goal continues to be to maintain essential infrastructure so
that our citizens can remain proud of their City for many
years to come.
Three fun facts about CJ:
1. In his free time, he enjoys deep sea fishing, having been
a United States Coast Guard Licensed Boat Captain since
2015.
2. He was on the football and wrestling teams at Flagler Palm
Coast High School.
3. His family was one of the pioneer families in Flagler
County, dating back to the 1800’s. His great-grandfather was
the first Sherriff and registered voter in the County.
8

TECH BEACH HACKATHON
Palm Coast’s inaugural Tech Beach Hackathon
kicked off on Friday, January 17 with a starstudded
affair dedicated to highlighting the
City’s Innovation District and upcoming
MedNex partnership with University of North
Florida, AdventHealth and others.
Palm Coast Mayor Milissa Holland begun by
welcoming the Hackathon contestants and
guests and talking about how important it
is to bring problem solvers together in Palm
Coast. She was followed by UNF President David
Symanski who talked about his university’s
MedNex concept and the importance of their
partnership with Palm Coast. Dr. Tom LoBasso
of Daytona State College then spoke about the
many challenges of the healthcare industry and
how education is incredibly capable of meeting
those challanges. Jacob Oliva, Chancellor of
the Florida Department of Education talked
about how proud he was of his home of Palm
Coast and creating the alignment between K-12
education and the jobs of tomorrow. Lynette
Shott of Flagler County Schools talked about
creating a culture of innovation as opposed to just
moments of innovation. Jo-Anne King of Coastal
Cloud brought up the many hurdles she saw in her
time working at AdventHealth and how Salesforce
(and its HealthCloud app) looks to clear those
hurdles. Finally, Tim Hale of Coastal Cloud spoke
of the pride he has in Palm Coast and the amazing
growth he’s seen in his city in the years since he
and his wife Sara moved their company here.
The hackathon wrapped up on Sunday by awarding
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$12,000 in cash prizes to the best applications
created over the weekend at City Hall.
The winning application, StressLess, was
created by a group of developers from the
Orlando and Gainesville areas, many with
ties to both the University of Florida and
the University of Central Florida. The app’s
design intended to aggregate data from
wearable devices such as AppleWatch or
Fitbit and quantify not just the raw data
collected by those devices (namely heart rate)
but also run that data through an algorithm
powered by Salesforce’s Einstein AI platform
to measure stress levels and quantifiable
reductions in stress through whole health
initiatives.
In short: StressLess hopes to bring datadriven
clarity to what measures can actually
make you healthier.
During the event, AdventHealth Palm Coast
COO Wally De Aquino said that he was excited
for StressLess’s real world applications
paired with many of AdventHealth’s
initiatives and Palm Coast Mayor Milissa
Holland’s “Mayor’s 90/90 Challenge.” Shortly
after the event, De Aquino said that he was
excited to pair the app’s developers with his
team and see what they could come up with
to continue their relationship after the event
concludes.
In third place, Team Palm Coast developed
an app to revolutionize the way appointment
scheduling is handled. The pair of local
developers--one a Senior at Flagler-Palm
Coast High School and the other a student at
Daytona State College--noted that no-show
appointments cost the healthcare industry
$150 billion a year. Both developers on Team
Palm Coast have interned at Coastal Cloud, a
local Salesforce development company which
served as a sponsor for the event (but did not
serve as judges for the deliberations).
Coastal Cloud’s Sara Hale spoke before the
awards were handed out, and talked of the
innovation that technology can bring to the
Healthcare space, but also to the economy
in general, giving talented individuals to
work from anywhere, whether that’s moving
their company to Palm Coast, Florida, as
Tim and Sara Hale did or simply “hacking”
for a weekend in City Hall as the Tech Beach
contestants chose to do.
Palm Coast Mayor Milissa Holland thanked
all of the competitors, sponsors, City Staff
and everyone else who made the 1st-ever
Tech Beach Hackathon such a successful
event, giving the “smartest people in the
room” a chance to work together and
collaborate and solve real-world problems.
The independant list of judges included
Palm Coast Vice Mayor Nick Klufas as well
as representatives from AdventHealth Palm
Coast, University of North Florida, and
SCORE.

Safety Never Stops
Our City’s Water Treatment Plant #2
may be quietly tucked away on Citation
Boulevard in Southern Palm Coast, but its
operation speaks loudly when it comes to
safety.
Staff just completed a comprehensive
platform modification project to enhance
safety procedures for operators. At the
plant, we utilize a belt press to remove
hard materials and minerals from our
water. It’s a fragile procedure performed
in an outmoded, tight space.
Contractors recently modified this
press area, raising the platform and
adding another entry in order to keep
the operators safe and make process
more efficient. During this alteration,
water purification continued with no
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at our Utility Department
compromise to our techniques or our work
schedules.
“Residents should know that their City takes
safety seriously,” says Fred Greiner, Utility
Chief Operator. “Nothing is more important
to us than improving our facility structures
to boost our productivity and deliver the
finest quality water that our customers
expect and deserve.”

Mayor’s 90/90 Challenge
Get outdoors and get active - join
us for the Mayor’s 90/90 Challenge!
The challenge is to move at least
a mile a day for the 90 days from
Jan. 6 to April 4. You can choose
your own form of exercise. Log in
to Palm Coast Connect and record
your progress throughout the
month. Everyone who completes
the Challenge will receive a prize.
Share your progress along the way
on social media using #Mayors9090
and #connecttofitness.
off Monday, Jan. 6!
“I want to challenge all residents of
Palm Coast to exercise at least 90
miles in 90 days,” said Palm Coast
Mayor Milissa Holland. “That’s
an average of one mile per day.
Whether it’s walking, bicycling,
tennis, running or another exercise,
You’ve resolved to get into shape for
the New Year, but how do you get
started?! Take the first step toward
better health with the Mayor’s
90/90 Challenge, which is kicking
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the important thing is to find an
activity you enjoy and make it a
daily habit.”
“Those small steps, taken day after
day, add up to an active lifestyle,”
Mayor Holland said.
The new Mayor’s 90/90 Challenge
will start Jan. 6 and continue
through April 4. Anyone who lives,
works, shops, plays or exercises in
Palm Coast is welcome to join in
the fun. The Challenge is open to all
ages, and families are encouraged
to participate together!
Participants can choose their
own form of exercise – and will
log their success on Palm Coast
Connect via the website at www.
palmcoastconnect.com or the app
via Google play store or Apple app
store.Progress will be self-reported
throughout the 90 days. It’s free to
sign up and participate!
Participants who want a more
structured program can choose
from any of Palm Coast Parks &
Recreation’s winter/spring fitness
programs – everything from line
dancing and tennis clinics to
Zumba® Gold and yoga.
Everyone who completes the
Mayor’s 90/90 Challenge will
receive a prize during the City
Council Meeting on April 7. Share
your progress on Instagram using
the hashtags #Mayors9090 and
#connecttofitness.
“Join up with a family member or a
friend and use the Mayor’s 90/90 as
motivation toward your New Year’s
goals,” Holland said. “You’ll see your
accomplishments as you log your
progress, and we’ll encourage you
along the way!”
So begin logging your miles
through Palm Coast Connect! For
more information, contact Parks &
Recreation at 386-986-2323.

Mayor’s 90/90 stats - Week 2
5,821
18,099
miles
minutes
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ADOPT-A-ROAD
To adopt a road, please visit
palmcoastgov.com/green/adopt

By the Numbers
Open Cases by Type
No matter your question or concern, Palm Coast Connect has you covered.
Weekly Case Volume by Type & Owner
Palm Coast Connect allows your City to deploy resources where needed—even
during natural disasters.
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Average Resolution Time
(in days)
From Utility questions to swale maintenance, the average time to resolve
an issue is only a day.
Average Resolution Time
by Channel (in days)
Palm Coast Connect streamlines the customer service
process, leading to better service and happier citizens.