• General Motors notified the City in May that it intends to close its local parts distribution center. According to Labor Relation Manager Derrick Campbell, the permanent layoff of 54 hourly and 10 salaried employees will begin March 29. The plant is on Gran Bay Parkway West.
• The Navy Helicopter Association will be in town May 24-27 for its 62nd annual symposium and they’ll stay at the Hyatt. The NHA has over 3,000 members and is the professional organization representing the U.S. Navy, Marines and Coast Guard rotary wing communities.
• According to Oliver Barakat, first vice president of CB Richard Ellis, the last quarter of 2009 was not good for Downtown commercial property owners as vacancy rates climbed to 23.2%, the highest in the 20 years CB Richard Ellis has been tracking those rates. The suburban vacancy rate was 20.3%.
• The Bar Brawl will return Feb. 28. Members of the Downtown and San Marco bar and restaurant business will lace ‘em up to compete in a 7-on-7, coed flag football tournament at the Jaguars practice field next to Jacksonville Municipal Stadium. The Ivy Ultra Bar is the reigning champion. The tournament will start at noon and fans are welcome to attend.
• December’s local housing statistics were recently released by the Northeast Florida Association of Realtors and it’s mostly good news. Closed sales were up nearly 15 percent for the month compared to December 2008, with pending sales up just over 48 percent during the same period.
• Speaking of NEFAR, the organization recently opened up its fifth service center in the area at World Golf Village. The facility includes a classroom that can seat up to 30 for additional educational classes. The location, adjacent to the Publix in the area, joins locations in Southside, Orange Park, Jacksonville Beach and Palatka.
• Martin Luther King Jr. Day was a day off for many, but one group spent some time in their community. Close to 40 volunteers from local associations and businesses joined the Northwest Community Development Corporation for its recent “Take a Day On, Not a Day Off,” cleanup event and ended up collecting 68 bags of trash in its Northwest Jacksonville community.
• The Meninak Club of Jacksonville began its year of programs in earnest Monday, but not before it paid tribute to one of their own. Before beginning its weekly program, the group paid respects to longtime member and Jacksonville architect Clyde Harris, who passed away Jan. 17.