• Mayor John Peyton announced Tuesday that Chief Deputy General Counsel Cindy Laquidara will replace Rick Mullaney as the City’s General Cousel effective July 1. The appointment is subject to City Council approval. Mullaney has filed to run for mayor and previously announced his intention to step down from office.
• Celebrity chef Paula Deen will display her skills June 17 at the Main Library. Her visit begins at 5 p.m. with a book signing, buffet and cooking demonstration. It’s sponsored by the Publix Aprons Cooking School and Smithfield. Tickets are $100 each. For information or reservations, call 262-4187 or visit www.publix.com/cookingschools.
• Jacksonville is the 13th best place to launch a new business in 2010, according to Portfolio.com, up from 25th last year. Rankings were based on a formula that factored into account population, employment and small-business growth among 100 metropolitan areas.
• The Haskell Co. was ranked the No. 1 U.S. health care facility design builder by “Modern Healthcare,” an industry trade publication. In 2009, Haskell reported more than $332 million in total dollar volume, more than 1.5 million square feet of completed construction projects and 711 full-time employees.
• The City’s Military Affairs, Veterans and Disabled Services Division started maintenance on the Veterans Memorial Wall and the Memorial Flame, which was extinguished Thursday to replace the bronze urn. A section of wall is being installed on which the names of fallen troops from Jacksonville will be added. The project will be completed before the City’s Memorial Day observance May 31.
• We Care Jacksonville Executive Director Sue Nussbaum told the Meninak Club this week that the nonprofit provides free medical care to the county’s uninsured, homeless and medically underserved people. The faces might be familiar as the economy struggles. “You have engineers driving taxis get kidney stones and have nowhere to go,” she said.
• JEDC Executive Director Ron Barton talks with the Exchange Club of Jacksonville at noon Thursday at the University Club. For information, call 384-1948.
• Also on Thursday, OneJax will honor architect Jack Diamond, banker Marty Lanahan and small business lender Cleve Warren at its 2010 Humanitarian Awards Dinner. The event starts at 6 p.m. at the Hyatt. For information, visit www.onejax.org or call 354-1529.
• And in another Thursday event, historic re-enactor Leroy Mitchell Jr. will present an evening with James Weldon Johnson at 7 p.m. in the Stage Aurora Performance Hall at 5164 Norwood Ave. Johnson was the first black lawyer in the state and the first black man to serve as secretary of the NAACP. The performance is free and open to the public. For information, call 765-7372.
• If you were hoping to catch a production of “42nd Street” at the Alhambra, you’re out of luck. Time ran out on the show, but “The Foreigner,” a situational comedy, began last week and will run through June 13. It will be followed by performances of “Cinderella” that will fill the schedule for the remainder of summer.
• Speaking of the Alhambra, it will host its first summer theater camp for local children. The camp, slated July 12-30, will feature everything from onstage to behind-the-scenes creative development and will be taught by actors in the community. For more information, visit www.alhambrajax.com.
• Community Hospice of Northeast Florida will dedicate a memorial garden in honor of the late State Sen. Jim King, who served on the organization’s board. The ceremony is 10 a.m. May 11 at the Anne and Donald McGraw Center for Caring at the Mayo Clinic campus.
• Duval County Schools Superintendent Ed Pratt-Dannals is the guest speaker at Jacksonville Community Council Inc.’s “Issues & Answers” event at noon May 12. Pratt-Dannals will talk about the state of public education in Jacksonville.
• The Florida Ballet will host a “Free to Dance Day” from noon to 5:30 p.m. May 16 at its studio at 300 E. State St. Free classes will be offered for dancers ages 6 to 21.
• JTA and the Florida Department of Transportation will hold a joint public hearing to discuss improvements to the intersection of JTB and Philips Highway. The meeting is 4:30 p.m. to 7 p.m. May 20 at the Best Western Southpoint along Salisbury Road.