• Gary Miller, CEO of Cannon Design, the recently deposed design firm for the new Duval County Courthouse, will be in town Wednesday and Dalton Agency public relations director Michael Munz is trying to arrange a meeting at City Hall. Munz said Miller wants to meet with the mayor’s staff for a final debriefing on the
project.
• People keep asking, but it seems unlikely that interim Supervisor of Elections Bill Scheu will run to keep the job permanently. Just ask his wife Peggy. “No plans,” she said. “No plans at all.”
• The awnings outside of the 11E. lofts are back up. They’ve been down ever since a string of hurricanes threatened to hit the city.
• A major housing development will erase one of the city’s sporting venues. A deal has been made for the big Northside tract of land where the local stock car track sits.
• It’s taken much longer than expected, but the streets in Neptune Beach are being resurfaced almost three years after they were torn up for the water/sewer construction project.
• Remember Shari Shuman, who served as finance director for the City under John Delaney and later joined him at the University of North Florida? She’s working her own financial deals these days: she and her husband recently purchased two apartment buildings.
• In an attempt to help area small businesses, the Jacksonville Economic Development Commission is looking for ways to encourage companies receiving City development incentives to do business with them. “We’re still trying to figure out, will it be a carrot or a stick?” said JEDC board chair Ceree Harden.
• Florida Coastal School of Law’s Northeast Florida Environmental Law Summit is scheduled for Nov. 19-20, beginning at 8 a.m. This year’s summit will focus on the environmental impact of the Super Bowl. Jack Groh, the NFL’s environmental program coordinator is one of the speakers.
• Today marks the 100th anniversary of the Clara White Mission’s service to the Jacksonville community.
• City Council member Art Shad has filed legislation that could save Jacksonville’s active military some money on their property tax. City attorneys are checking on its legality, but Shad wants to see if it’s possible for the City to forfeit its portion of a millage tax — it’s approximatly .9 percent per every $1,000 of a home’s value — for local homeowners currently in combat zones. “I think it would be a great way to show that Jacksonville is military-friendly and a place where a military family can grow roots.”
• Martha Leverock may be the new president of the Greater Jacksonville Fair, but that doesn’t mean she enjoys riding rides. “No, they’re not for me,” she said. “I’m a wimp.”