• Rumor has it that Marsha Oliver of the School Board will be serving as Mayor-elect John Peyton’s press secretary. But, said Oliver, who is serving as the chair of the transition team’s Community Service committee, the rumor is wrong. “I haven’t been offered a job,” she says.
• A defamation and libel suit filed by Daniel Wilensky against County Court Judge David Gooding has been voluntarily dismissed. Wilensky was reportedly unable to prove that Gooding acted with actual malice while the two were running for the judicial seat last year. An invasion of privacy case is still pending and Gooding is seeking to recoup court costs.
• The W.A. Knight Building lofts on West Adams Street are close to full occupancy. According to representatives from the building, nine of the 12 residential lofts have been reserved. In fact, the furniture in the Library Suite — the original model apartment — had to be moved across the hall into another unit because it, too, has been leased. You’ll remember that one of the two first floor commercial spaces was officially reserved a few weeks ago.
• After several weeks of renovations, Bay Street Cafe in the Blackstone Building reopened this morning.
• The HUD application sent in by The Salvation Army last week was more competitive than representatives originally thought. Seeking an estimated $5 million to fund a senior assisted living project downtown, Development Director Tania Yount learned the future site of the proposed project was right in the middle of a federal enterprise zone.
• The preseason football magazines are already on the newsstands and most have the Jags finishing no better than third place in the AFC South behind Indianapolis and Tennessee.
• 20/15 Vision at the Landing is hosting a private showing of new designer eyeware for optometrists and ophthalmologists. It’s scheduled for 4-8 p.m. June 30. For details, call 358-3933.
• Beachgoers accustomed to watching planes towing advertising banners saw a different message Saturday. A plane circled Atlantic Beach with a marriage proposal for a woman named Ann.
• Neptune Beach residents are growing restless over torn-up streets because of the water/sewer renovation project. The streets were scheduled to be paved in April, but residents can’t get a firm date from City officials on when the streets will be fixed.
• The Davis Productivity Awards are a legacy of the Winn-Dixie family and this year’s included another haul for the folks at the state hospital in Macclenny. They’ve won 140 in the past decade for programs helping those who may never be able to help themselves. And you gotta like the name of the Department of Agriculture winner for his work in preventing forest fires: Timber Weller.
• Invites for the Chamber’s Leadership trip to Dallas go out this week. The three-day October excursion is expected to included the city’s top elected officials.