• St. John & Partners Advertising & Public Relations has added Kate Hawkins to its creative department. She worked for the agency in a freelance capacity for several months before joining SJ&P’s staff as a full-time studio artist. She will work on the firm’s Smoothie King and Vistakon accounts.
• There’s a sign posted on the front door of the Police & Fire Pension Building on Adams Street informing people who go there looking for the Department of Housing & Neighborhoods that it has been moved to the Ed Ball Building “two blocks down.” Down what?
• At Tuesday’s meeting, the City Council finished its entire agenda and adjourned at 7:08 p.m. When asked Wednesday morning if that was a record, Council President Michael Corrigan replied that while he wasn’t sure about a record, “It’s just our way of making City government more efficient.”
• There’s a much-needed beautification project underway at Hemming Plaza. The statue of the Confederate soldier on top of the tall pedestal and the fountain on the west side of the plaza are being cleaned. The oxidation and other deposits that have covered it are being removed, revealing a bright copper patina. The statue was one of the few things that remained intact after the Great Fire of 1901.
• It’s nice to know some things never change: During Tom Jones’ show Monday night at the Florida Theatre, about a dozen pairs of female undergarments were thrown on stage, including one pair with GPS coordinates written on them. “And some of them were pretty big,” commented one of the stagehands. Jones, who will turn 67 in June, ignored the panties but did pick up some flowers that were tossed his way.
• Want to be a star? Theatre Jacksonville will hold auditions for its June production of “Guys and Dolls” April 22 at 6 p.m. at the playhouse on San Marco Blvd. A variety of roles are available for women and men of all ages. Interested thespians are asked to be prepared to sing 16 bars of a song, dance and read from the script at the audition. Multi-ethnic casting will be considered for all roles. For information, call 396-4425.
• The Jacksonville Regional Chamber of Commerce has scheduled this year’s Washington, D.C. fly-in for May 16-18. The trip costs $1,450 and will present local business leaders with an opportunity to meet with U.S. Sens. Bill Nelson and Mel Martinez, U.S. Reps. Corrine Brown, Ander Crenshaw, John Mica and Cliff Stearns. Tours of museums and monuments are optional.
• The Jacksonville Quarterback Club has a new incentive for members that bring in new members. Each member that brings in six new people will have their 2007 membership dues waived.
“Nobody will ever deprive the American people of the right to vote except the American people themselves—and the only way they could do this is by not voting.”
– Franklin D. Roosevelt