• Avondale merchants are concerned about the welfare of the area and they want the City’s help so that improvements can be made. Jennifer Riedeburg, co-President of the Merchants of Avondale, wrote in a letter addressed to Council member Michael Corrigan that graffiti and overgrown plants on public land has gotten out of control.
• The Jacksonville & the Beaches Convention and Visitors Bureau is having their annual meeting next Wednesday at noon at the Omni. It’s $30 unless you are a VIP invitee, then it’s free.
• Clarification to a Monday City Note. The Oct. 7 gathering of the Mayor’s Hispanic American Advisory Board is actually a scholarship luncheon, not a regular meeting.
• The Jacksonville Regional Chamber of Commerce’s Government Affairs Committee will host the City Council and its staff for a special luncheon Tuesday, Oct. 11. Sponsorship opportunities for the event are still available.
• Neptune Beach residents will be able to meet Sen. Bill Nelson and bend his ear at the same time. On Oct. 3, Nelson will be at Neptune Beach City Hall from 5:30-7:30.
• For evidence of how tough the budget-trimming process can be, look no further than Monday’s Finance Committee meeting where an emotional debate over the Jacksonville Children’s Commission’s budget momentarily choked up Council member Suzanne Jenkins. Jenkins is the Council’s liaison to the JCC, making the debate an emotional one for her, she said.
• Due to rising gas, insurance and new vehicle prices, the Internal Revenue Service has raised the optional standard mileage rate to 48.5 cents for the last four months up the year. This is an eight-cent increase from the 40.5-cent rate that was in effect the first eight months of 2005.
• The City’s United Way rally will kick off Thursday, Oct. 6 in Hemming Plaza. Alan Mosley, Public Works director, is the chair of this year’s campaign.
• Miss Florida Mari Wilensky was at City Hall Tuesday. For a photo, see page 5
• Yep, the City is standing firm that the new Main Library will open on Nov. 12.
• The Haydon Burns Library may be closed, but at least the name will live on. The City Council approved legislation last year to rechristen the City Hall Annex after the former mayor and a dedication ceremony Tuesday will make it official. A plaque will be installed on the building’s exterior and Burns’ daughter, Eleanor Burns Watkins will be on hand to donate an oil portrait of him.