• No suspension for Jaguars strong safety Donovin Darius. But the National Football League will fine him $75,000 for his clothesline tackle of Green Bay Packers receiver Robert Ferguson.
• The Twisted Martini operators say they’ll be open for Super Bowl weekend, then will go full-time about two weeks after the big game. They’ve had signs on the Landing space for almost a year.
• The convention bureau brings in visiting travel writers on what they call FAM tours and next month they’ll do the same for the locals. They’ll host six tours for those on the front lines of our hospitality industry to highlight their partner businesses including restaurants and meeting facilities.
• The folks at the Cummer want you to know they’ll be open Christmas Eve and New Year’s Eve from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Closed on the big days, though.
• Springfield will soon have a new restaurant. Taqueria, a casual restaurant serving Mexican style cuisine, should be opening in February, says Symbiosis Investments president Craig Van Horn. Taqueria will be located at 1855 Main Street, right across the street from one of Van Horn’s other restaurant developments, Henrietta’s.
• The American Cancer Society folks say they pulled in $400,000 from the Cowford Ball earlier this month.
• Getting ready for the Gator Bowl parade, the Downtown Jacksonville Business Briefcase Brigade and Semi-Precision Drill Team has its last practice on Dec. 22 between 5:30-6:30 in the Radisson parking lot on the school board side. Might have a few openings if you’re looking for some fun.
• City employees hoping for a log splitter or stump grinder under the tree this Christmas are in luck. Local rental equipment firm Tools for a Time is offering City workers 20 percent off rentals for maintenance and lawn equipment and 10 percent off tune ups and repairs.
• Correction to our story yesterday about candidates running to replace former Supervisor of Elections John Stafford. We mentioned City Council member Gwen Yates. It was actually former Council member Gwen Chandler who was eying the job at one time.
• Mayor John Peyton thinks the City’s improving jobs climate can save the City money on debt payments. He asked City treasurer Mary Arditti to forward a recent T-U article on the City’s dropping unemployment rate to New York City bond rating agencies.