• Lots of locals got their first good look at Florida Lt. Governor Jeff Kottkamp, who was in town Wednesday for meetings. “I know that some people don’t know we even have a lieutenant governor,” he said. “Maybe if I meet enough people, they’ll know.”
• The new name for our community college will be announced on March 3. “It may be controversial,” said Florida Community College at Jacksonville President Steve Wallace, “but I think everyone will like it.” FCCJ is getting a new name because it’s moving into the new state college system, following five others, all with new names. For instance, Okaloosa-Walton Community College is now Northwest Florida State College.
• Marci Larson of the North Florida Transportation Planning Office is Friday morning’s speaker at the Downtown Council breakfast at the Aetna building.
• If you think you have seen former Times-Union food writer Dan McDonald around City Hall, you’re right. He’s a temporary employee in the City’s Public Information Office.
• Good news for those who live in and use the Baymeadows area. The City is seeking bids for improvements to the Baymeadows Road median and landscaping.
• Chamblin’s Uptown on Laura Street has added breakfast to the menu at the bookstore’s coffee bar. Choices include granola, croissants and bagels with cheese and breakfast sandwiches. The doors open at 7:30 a.m.
• Need a passport? The U.S. Postal Service is hosting a one-day Passport Fair with extended hours next week at the General Mail Facility on Kings Road. The Passport Office is usually open 8 a.m.-4 p.m. for walk-in customers, but Tuesday hours are 4-8 p.m. and by appointment only. Passport photos and applications are available onsite. Other than those two things, all you need is proof of American citizenship, one form of photo ID and $115. For more information, visit www.usps.com/passport.
• Community Hospice of Northeast Florida has added four new members to its board of directors: U.S. District Judge for the Middle District of Florida Marcia Morales Howard, Zurich Insurance Services CEO Christopher Evans, Shands Jacksonville Vice President and Chief Nursing Officer Kelly Miles and Paula Ringhaver, interior design consultant for Ring Power Corp. in St. Augustine.
• The Grimes Companies has opened 110,000 square feet of new warehouse space on Bull’s Bay Highway on the Westside. The addition brings the company’s total local warehouse space to more than 650,000 square feet. The new facility will operate within the Grimes Warehousing Services division, integrated with Grimes Trucking Company, Grimes Transportation Brokerage and Grimes Packaging Services. The firm also operates FileSafe, Inc., a document storage service.
• Dianne Pollack and Don Bergman, who race out of the Brooks Adaptive Rowing Program at Jacksonville University, won the Southern Sprints Indoor Rowing Championships in Melbourne, Fla. Pollack took first place in the women’s leg/trunk/arms division and Bergman won the arms category. Through a partnership between Brooks Rehabilitation, JU and the City of Jacksonville, the program allows members of the community with disabilities to row on the St. Johns River. Its headquarters is the 15,000 square-foot Negaard Rowing Center on the JU campus.
• The wild West visits the East this weekend as members of the Cowboy Mounted Shooters Association compete for the titles of CMSA Atlantic Coast Classic Champion Cowboy and Cowgirl at the Equestrian Center on Normandy Boulevard. Competition starts at 8 a.m. today through Sunday and the highlight of the competition is a two-hour showcase from 7-9 Saturday night that features the Colt Eliminator and the Taylor Arms Rifle Showdown. For more information go to www.cowboymountedshooting.com or call 573-4895.