• Calex Reality Group, the management company for 11 E., says they are very close to securing a tenant for the large commercial space on the first floor of the apartment building. They won’t say who it is until it’s official, but would confirm the prospective renter is an “upscale restaurant.”
• Closed: the Maxx Pizza Factory on Main Street next to Confederate Park. Location, location, location — it’s at least the third eatery in that spot to fail.
• The new arena seems to be a success well before it opens. All 1,100 club seats are sold with a waiting list of several hundreds.
• Because of potential stormy weather conditions, FridayFest was canceled. The next FridayFest — Yee Haw! In the Plaza — is scheduled for Oct. 3. The country/western celebration will feature a performance by The Cowboy Orchestra and hayrides around Hemming Plaza.
• To make up for the lack of air conditioning at 11 E. last week, the property managers organized an ice cream social for the tenants in an attempt to “beat the heat.”
• New at the Landing: La Vento Italian Ice, on the second floor next to the food court.
• On the mend: Maggie Bulin, formerly Mayor John Peyton’s campaign manager and now a communications point person for the Fire and Rescue Department. Following knee surgery last week, Bulin will be off her feet for a little while.
• Charles W. McBurney Jr. of Fishette, Owen, Held and McBurney law firm submitted his resignation last week from the International Development Commission. McBurney wrote to Mayor John Peyton that 10 years on the commission was long enough and that he wanted to step aside for new leadership. McBurney was originally appointed to the IDC’s predecessor commission by former mayor Ed Austin.
• The Friends of the Jacksonville Public Library, Inc. is looking for a facility to store and sort donated books after plans to use the University Park Library Building have apparently fallen through. Friends president Jeanine Peterson told Mayor Peyton that if a suitable building isn’t found soon, the organization’s annual book sale may have to be postponed or canceled. The sale typically returns about $100,000 to the City’s libraries.