• Two big deals the Jacksonville Economic Development Commission has been working on are closer to completion. The deals with Lender Processing Services Inc. and Digital Risk LLC will both be introduced to City Council tomorrow night.
• John Phillips has joined the Jacksonville office of Morgan & Morgan and works in the firm’s personal injury and sports management division. He was previously with Dore and Phillips.
• Attorney Diidri Wells has been asked by the mayor’s office to serve on the Human Rights Commission. Wells would replace attorney Chris Hazelip on the commission.
• Wilfredo Gonzalez, district director of the U.S. Small Business Administration North Florida District, has accepted Mayor John Peyton’s invitation to join the Jacksonville Sports and Entertainment Board.
• City Council member Michael Corrigan has been named the elected official of the year by the Northeast Florida Unit of the National Association of Social Workers. Corrigan was selected for his 2006 initiative, “1,000 in 1,000,” which sought to bring 1,000 people in the area out of poverty in 1,000 days.
• Supervisor of Elections Jerry Holland is sponsoring a bill that would establish 10 early voting locations for this year’s primary and general elections.
• Jacksonville Area Legal Aid is holding a JALACARE (Credit Abuse Resistance Education) training at Florida Coastal School of Law tomorrow from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. The training is approved by the Florida Bar and is worth 2 CLE hours.
• Girl Scouts of Gateway Council will honor six local women at the 22nd annual Women of Distinction luncheon March 31 at the Hyatt. This year’s honorees are Karen Bowling, co-founder and CEO of Solantic; local philanthropist Sandra Cook; Dr. Shahla Masood, professor and chair of the Department of Pathology at the University of Florida College of Medicine Jacksonville and chief of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine at Shands Jacksonville; Carole Poindexter, president of Baker Distributing Co.; Julia “JuJu” Taylor, director of Boutique and Agenda at Stein Mart; and Norma Solomon White, president of the Duval Retired Educators and vice president of the Educational Advancement Foundation. Tickets are $55 each, tables of 10 start at $500. For information, visit www.girlscouts-gateway.org.
• The League of Women Voters Jacksonville invites the public to a briefing on bills and actions in the State Legislature. Issues of note are the state’s reapportionment process, civic education, elections, ethics in public office, transparency in government and state transportation. The briefing is noon to 1 p.m. Friday at JCCI offices at 2434 Atlantic Blvd. Lunch is available for $10. RSVP to [email protected]
• Gate Petroleum officially opened its new Hendricks Avenue store Friday, but there was more to it. The store was recognized by the St. Johns River Water Management District as the first Florida Water Star-certified facility in Northeast Florida.
• Look for the new Publix in Neptune Beach to open in mid-August. According to a manager at the existing store in Atlantic Beach, there is space for two yet-to-be-determined restaurants.
• Speaking of the new Publix, nothing in the old store will be moved to the new store. It will be stocked entirely with new groceries and other items. Inventory in the old store will be shipped to other existing stores.
• Mary Kay O’Rourke, president and CEO of Habitat for Humanity of Jacksonville, is one of 49 professionals who graduated March 4 from the NeighborWorks Achieving Excellence in Community Development program offered with Harvard University’s John F. Kennedy School of Government. It’s an 18-month educational program for executive directors and senior level staff in community organizations that have a focus on affordable housing, community revitalization or community economic development.
• The 10th Annual Film Industry Reception, organized by the City’s Film and Television Office, is scheduled Oct. 14 at PRI Productions on Kings Avenue. It’s the local motion picture and television community’s annual celebration and draws more than 100 invited guests. The date coincides with the Oct. 13-17 Jacksonville Film Festival.