• August’s ArtWalk, called “Summer Shakespeare,” is sure to leave your shrew tamed and give you a midsummer night’s dream. Wednesday’s special events include a 6 p.m. Shakespeare performance by Theatre Jacksonville at the Landing, a 7 p.m. multi-weapon fencing demonstration at the BellSouth Tower, and the Little Black Book After Party at the Twisted Martini at The Landing, 8 p.m.-10 p.m. The first after-party drink is on the house with an Art Walk map.
• Someone at the Florida Bar is pretty confident in Florida State University’s football team this year. Along with the calendar of legal events on the Florida Bar’s Web site is a schedule of the 2005 football season. Though the schedules for Florida A&M, University of Florida and University of Miami appear to be unbiased, the schedule for Florida State includes a Dec. 3 entry for the ACC Championship game in Jacksonville.
• The Otis Smith Kids Foundation has promoted Bonnie Upright to executive director and you’ll remember her as the guiding force behind the manatees that popped up around town. She replaces Tim Murphy, who’s opening an insurance agency in St. Augustine.
• Can it be political season already? Sheriff John Rutherford starts his campaign Thursday with an organizational meeting. John Falconetti of The Drummond Press will direct things.
• Correction. The Arena parking garage is owned by Metropolitan Parking Solutions and is being developed by Signet Development, Ltd. In a cutline Monday we misidentified the garage’s owner and developer.
• County Courthouse project manager Joel Reitzer will begin reporting directly to Public Works Director Alan Mosley as of Monday. Chief Administrative Officer Dan Kleman said Reitzer has done an “outstanding job” of taking the project from “the ashes of last October through a Phoenix-style rebirth” to one Mayor John Peyton has recommended to City Council.
• The mayor’s office is still pushing hard for First Lady Laura Bush to come to town for the grand opening of the new main library Nov. 12. Letters are being drafted and there’s talk of asking big time Washington, D.C. lobbyist Mike Hightower to get involved.
• Council President Kevin Hyde has canceled the final meeting of the Special Committee on Courthouse Construction. Instead, he’s called a joint meeting of the Council’s Finance and Government Operations, Oversight and Human Services committees for Tuesday from 9-11 a.m. in Council chambers to discuss the proposed $250 million courthouse.