• The Landing, in partnership with FM-96.9, will host a summer concert series beginning Friday. “Friday Night Live! at the Landing” also will bring three well-known acts in classic rock to the riverfront stage, including Grand Funk Railroad on June 25, the Atlanta Rhythm Section on July 23 and the Little River Band on Aug. 20, along with 10 popular North Florida bands. Each concert begins at 8 p.m. and is free and open to the public. For a complete list of all events at the Landing, visit www.JacksonvilleLanding.com.
• The United Negro College Fund and Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Inc. will host the inaugural “Jacksonville’s Celebrity Men Who Cook” 3-5 p.m. June 13 at the Omni. Celebrities will prepare their favorite dishes for sampling. The cost to attend is $25 per person, which will benefit UNCF. For reservations, call 407-896-6940.
• The London Bridge Pub on East Adams Street is getting ready for some futbol. The pub will open its doors and beer taps at 9 a.m. July 9-11 for the FIFA World Cup Soccer matches.
• Members of Cornerstone, Northeast Florida’s regional economic development initiative, will travel June 14-16 to meet with representatives of Ireland’s Atlantic Way, a group similar to Cornerstone. Members of Atlantic Way visited Jacksonville in November. This will be the second trip to Shannon for a Jacksonville delegation.
• The University Club is the exclusive North Florida venue for a live international telecast of the debut of recording artist Jewel’s new album, “Sweet and Wild.” It’s at 8 p.m. June 7 in Riverplace Tower and will be open to members and nonmembers to view the event. Tickets are $50 per person, limited to 100, and you must be 18 or older to attend. For details, call 396-1687.
• Council member Daniel Davis has asked the Mayor’s office to approve $10,000 from his district bond account for new lights at the ADA field at McGirts Park. The Jacksonville Miracle League uses the field. The project total is $32,000.
• Mayor John Peyton and Chief of Staff Adam Hollingsworth have agreed to serve on the host committee of the Jacksonville Speech & Hearing Center’s annual fundraiser, the “Saturday Night Fever Staying Alive Disco Ball.” It’s Sept. 25 at Five Points Theatre, and Florida State College President Steven Wallace is the event chair. No word on what the host committee members will wear.
• The University of North Florida plans an open house for its Aquatic Center from 12:30-2:30 p.m. June 12. You can take a swimming lesson, a water aerobics class and more. For information, call Heather Kite at UNF at 620-2854 or e-mail her at [email protected].
• The exotic-car caravan on Sunday will be Dreams Come True’s “Driving for Dreams” car rally. European, import and American muscle cars will take a police-escorted ride that starts at Enterprise Fleet Management, the event’s presenting sponsor, along Atlantic Boulevard. Check-in is 9 a.m., the rally starts at 10:30 a.m. and the post-rally party is noon at BB’s Restaurant. Proceeds benefit Dreams Come True. Information: www.drivefordreams.com or call 296-3030.
• The bad news is that the June 17 Publix Aprons Cooking School event featuring celebrity Chef Paula Deen at the Downtown Jacksonville Public Library is sold out. The good news is that people who purchased tickets will be able to experience the talents of both Deen and local culinary artist Chef Tom Gray of Bistro Aix. He will take the stage for a demonstration at 7 p.m. and Deen will follow at 7:30 p.m.
• PRI Productions of Jacksonville bought the assets of Apex Rentals and Events LLC in Fernandina Beach. Apex specialized in high-end social event rentals, which provides PRI with china, flatware, glassware and catering supplies. Also provided were new dance floors.
• The new issue of Florida Trend magazine lists the state’s top public and private companies. The top local public companty is CSX, which came in at No. 9 with 2009 revenues of $9 billion. Winn-Dixie is No. 10 ($7.3 billion) while Fidelity National Financial is No. 14 ($5.8 billion). Tops in the state is International Assets Holding in Altamonte Springs with revenues of $43.6 billion. On the private side, Gate Petroleum was the highest-ranked local company at No. 11 with $2.2 billion in revenues. The top private company is Sun Capital Partners of Boca Raton with 2009 revenues of $40 billion.