• Most of Downtown has taken notice of the Hyatt’s overhaul of its lobby. Now the hotel is going to work on its rooms. Food and Beverage manager Dan Busillo said two floors are already done.
• District 11 City Council candidate Tom Harris has not only already filed to run, he’s campaigning on a daily basis. He’s mounted a sign in the back of his pickup truck urging folks to vote for him.
• Awards at fast-food joints are smokin’. Joe Cabezas, general manager of the Lem Turner Checkers, was recently ranked No. 2 among all general managers in the country for company-owned Checkers/Rally’s restaurants.
• McDonald’s will be honoring a whole slew of people at its All American Banquet Tuesday. More than 500 people are expected to attend the award ceremony for 98 McDonald’s restaurants to be held at Alltel Stadium. Employees from stores in the territory (Gainesville, Jacksonville and parts of Georgia) will be honored at a feast — no hamburgers or fries, though — from 5-8 p.m. But you’ll have to know somebody to go; the banquet is by invite only.
• It’s time for the Taste of St. Augustine. The 11th annual event takes place April 27-30 in the nation’s oldest city. Festivities last all four days, but the big event is on April 29 from noon-9 p.m. at Francis Field when more than 30 restaurants will offer samples of their signature dishes. They’ll be competing for the TOSA Awards. There is a $2 admission charge and taste tickets are $1. Each restaurant usually charges 1-5 tickets for their dishes.
• City Council member Lynette Self has called a special meeting of the Jacksonville Waterways Commission Tuesday at 2 p.m. in Council Chambers. The Commission plans to make a recommendation to the Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission regarding local manatee legislation.
• Amelia Island has struck another hole-in-one with the grand opening of Amelia National Golf & Country Club April 21. The 18-hole private golf course will offer a clubhouse in 2007. The opening will start with lunch at 11:45 a.m., the ribbon cutting at 12:45 p.m. and the shotgun start at 1:15 p.m. A 19th hole reception will follow. Amelia National has also asked Mayor John Peyton to attend and be one of their first putters.
• Nobody likes an expensive light bill, but this time, it got Gov. Jeb Bush’s attention. A Jacksonville resident mailed Bush a hand-written letter asking if the light bill of $1,900 made any sense and if there was a high official to investigate it. Bush responded by selecting Mayor John Peyton as the high official and forwarded the letter to the mayor’s office.
• The one millionth acre of state forest land was recently acquired by the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, Division of Forestry. A site dedication will be at the Jacksonville District Office in Bryceville April 26.
• Think online travel sites are saving you money? Think again. A recent hotel booking with Web site Travelocity cost $72 plus about $10 in taxes and fees. Upon arriving at the hotel location, rates for the same room were advertised at just $59 plus tax. The clerk behind the counter said travel Web sites are great for locating places to stay – but when it comes to booking, it’s usually cheaper to contact hotels directly.
• If you were listening carefully to The Masters golf tournament, you heard the voice of former Ponte Vedra resident and longtime golf and football announcer Pat Summeral. These days Summeral is in Dallas and he’s working on a biography with the help of a writer.