Blogs

NSBNEWS.net is a mess right now. That's my reality. And I'm actually pleased to be in this position. That's because we are growing at rapid speed to provide comprehensive daily news coverage for greater New Smyrna Beach. I make no apologies for our current state of affairs. My vision for a first-class news organization that truly serves the public's interest is getting closer to reality.

NSBNEWS.net video by Sera Frederick. A biker is OK early Friday after striking the concrete median on North Dixie Freeway directly in front of the home of Henry and Sera Frederick. The song "Ballad of Easy Rider" by the Byrds is added for your enjoyment.

It's never easy to say goodbye to some who is loved, especially when that someone is the North Beach's Grayce K. Barck, who personified New Smyrna Beach's "charm."

A big crowd turned out for her memorial service Friday at the Settler-Wilder Funeral Home with the Rev. Robert A Hann of the First United Methodist Church presiding.

Courtesy photo. Grayce Barck, 82, a North Beach stalwart, died Monday. 

Former students at New Smyrna Beach High School as well as everyone else in New Smyrna Beach are feeling the loss of Grayce Barck or Grayce Kenemer as we knew her in high school before she got married.

How quickly the news shifts. It was just a few weeks ago that Jamie McMurray rocketed across the finish line at Daytona International Speedway to win his first Daytona 500. The next day, former vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin was welcomed to the Ocean Center by a raucous crowd. New Smyrna Beach residents were at both events.

Mayor Adam Barringer's draft Economic Development Plan was presented to the City Commission last week with little fanfare.

Between updating the Web site and the increased volume of hits, NSBNEWS.net "crashed" for nearly six hours. We apologize for the delays.

We hope that you are enjoying the Bike Week coverage as well as the other community happenings that make where we live such a special place. You may notice inside pages in flux. That's because we're continuing to upgrade and adding new features and bloggers.

The web site is divided into 10 inside topical pages, in addition to the Home page. You'll also see rotating headline flashes on each. We're also up to 19 bloggers.

Politicians keep their word, sometimes. When he ran for mayor of New Smyrna Beach, Adam Barringer, elected in November, promised to have an economic development plan drafted within 100 days of office. He delivered on the 97th day.

The general public, though, sees politicians mostly in a negative way. This negative opinion is reflected in the remark by Sara Wells at the Touch of Italy restaurant when she told me: ”The politicians have all the say and we have none.”

NSBNEWS.net photo by Henry Frederick. Police Chief Ronald Pagano's cops have busted a burglary ring and shut down a meth lab.

These are challenging times for New Smyrna Beach Police Chief Ron Pagano. Finances are extremely tight, but he has done a yeoman's job keeping his undermanned police force on the streets and the results have been powerfully strong, especially with a rash of beachside burglaries involving rental properties where electronics such as flat-screen TVs were targeted.

Mayor Adam Barringer's proposed Economic Development Plan for the city of New Smyrna Beach is expected to formally be presented Tuesday to the City Commission. The draft version, posted on NSBNEWS.net, sounds promising, but unless the city can get a better handle on personnel costs, including pensions, then everyone is just spinning their wheels.

NASCAR driver Jamie McMurray is living proof that big boys do cry. And why not? After all, he won the Daytona 500. Yes!

"It's a dream, it really is," said McMurray, in Victory Lane, who was first in the No. 1 Chevrolet across the checkered-flag finish in the Great American Race.

It's perfectly fine to cry during the thrill of victory. McMurray was asking for his wife. That made me think about my wife, Sera, and I cried (inside my head). After all, this is just another assignment, even if it is the Daytona 500.