• Blue Cross lobbyist Mike Hightower was one of the 500 who got invitations to the presidential debate in Miami last week and among his impressions: “It was exciting to be part of something like that” and “it was the coldest room I’ve ever been in. They were so worried about the candidates sweating that it must have been 45 degrees.”
• Private investigator Sean Mulholland is the Downtown Council’s nominee for the Chamber’s Small Businessperson of the Year award.
• Attorney David L. Gay, a graduate of the University of Florida Levin College of Law, has joined Marks Gray, P.A. as an associate. Fourth Circuit Chief Judge Donald Moran administered the oath of attorney to Gay.
• Kirsten L. Doolittle and Kevin A. Brown have joined the law firm of Brown Terrell Hogan as associates.
• Legislation authorizing newspaper hawking on city streets passed last week. However, after lengthy debate, four City Council members voted against it. Sharon Copeland, Jerry Holland, Art Graham and Lake Ray thought it was a bad idea for various reasons.
• It’s been a long time coming, but restaurateur Robert Humphries finally passed the inspections needed to open Ieyasu on West Adams Street. He may host a small group of friends some time this week as a test run.
• Clarification to our story Friday about Supervisor of Elections John Stafford. Though Stafford was readmitted to the hospital, on this particular visit he was not placed in the Intensive Care Unit.
• Mayor John Peyton and the Parks Task Force will hold a series of public meetings this week to gather information to take Jacksonville’s Parks Systems “from the biggest to the best.” Sessions will be held at First Coast and Wolfson high schools and City Hall.
• Best wishes to Lin White, former aide to City Council member Suzanne Jenkins. White left City Hall last week to take a position with the City’s Public Works Department. Shirley Dasher from Jax Pride is her replacement.
• The Jaguars’ midyear schedule is affected by the fair and the Georgia-Florida game, which means you won’t see much of our boys for a while. There‘s just one home game (Oct. 17) between now and Nov. 14. They lost their first game of the season Sunday, 24-17 to Indianapolis. More, page 4.
• The storms wiped out almost every dock along Ortega Boulevard, including most of the Florida Yacht Club’s main dock.
• The new World Golf Village Hall of Fame construction is underway and the revised exhibit space will be ready by the first of the month. The big debut is doing the Hall of Fame inductions Nov. 15.
• OPUS, the Jacksonville Symphony Orchestra’s young professional organization, will host an after concert party Oct. 16 at the Seminole Club to benefit the St. Johns River Keeper organization. Cost is $5.