• The Jacksonville Economic Development Commission’s overhauled incentive policy has been making headlines for more than a year. In January, it should officially enter the legislative process. The JEDC expects to introduce it to the City Council sometime during that month.
• Plaza III Kansas City Steakhouse owner Bard McLean expects to open his new downtown location in the Hyatt by Dec. 30, in time for Gator Bowl weekend. Renovations to the 8,000- square-foot restaurant have taken a bit longer than expected, but McLean said some of the interior work can be completed after the restaurant opens. McLean said he’s already getting calls for reservations and gift certificates.
• Casa Dora on Forsyth Street will now be open on Saturdays from 3-9 p.m. The restaurant will adjust its hours for weekend events that bring a lot of people downtown.
• There’s new art hanging at Burrito Gallery. It’s by Shaun Thurston, some of it’s three-dimensional and the paintings depict everything from penguins to scenes from downtown.
• Saturday’s Rally Book Drive! event “Driven to Read” at Jacksonville Chrysler-Jeep-Dodge was a big success and one lucky resident — Chad Eriksen — left with a $5,000 Simon Mall gift certificate. Eriksen won the gift certificate when he nearly guessed exactly how many books were inside a 2006 Dodge Magnum. There were 3,642 books and Eriksen guessed 3,658. Rally Book Drive! is a component of Mayor John Peyton’s early literacy initiative, Rally Jacksonville!
• Speaking of Peyton, he sent all 19 City Council members an 18-page memo outlining in detail the reorganization of the City’s Parks and Recreation department. The memo comes with a two-page cover letter, the 13-page ordinance and three pages of questions and answers that address everything from the need for a parks advisory board to proposed new positions within the department.
• Great license plate seen downtown Wednesday; LOSTTAG. And it’s a legitimate tag.
• Usually residents file official complaints against the City. However, the City has filed a complaint against Westside resident David Seibert. According to the complaint, Seibert is involved in a dispute with JEA over water, sewer and electric issues. There may be some irony in the complaint. City Council President Kevin Hyde said Seibert is a regular at Council meetings and his criticism isn’t always the constructive variety.
• The Jacksonville Regional Chamber of Commerce is set to launch “Power of Partnerships II” — an initiative designed to advance the Chamber’s community and economic development agenda. BlueCross BlueShield’s Mike Hightower has agreed to lead the initiative that gets underway March 2 and runs until June 22. The goal is to raise at least $700,000.
• The Ringling Bros. circus will be in town Jan. 19 at the Arena.
• Availity, a provider of e-health services, has signed a partnership agreement with AvMed, Florida’s largest nonprofit health plan, to directly connect for electronic claims. Availity will accept electronic claims from AvMed providers and pass them to the health plan for processing. Experts in the health care industry report that eliminating paper claims from the process saves time and money for providers and health plans alike.
• St. Vincent’s Health System has named Scott A. Whalen Ph.D. as executive vice president and chief operating officer. Whalen has been COO in the Mount Carmel Health System in Columbus, Ohio, since 2000. He will begin his new role at St. Vincent’s Jan. 16.