from staff
There was no debating the top stories from 2010.
The Daily Record compiled the 10 most-read online stories at www.jaxdailyrecord.com. The numbers spoke for themselves.
Former Jacksonville Jaguar Mark Brunell’s Chapter 11 bankruptcy reorganization filing took the No. 1 spot as well as the No. 5 spot.
Daily Record question-and-answer features were popular, taking four of the top 10 spots.
Stories about job creation and toxic employees also made the list, as did development of a new entertainment center and a local diner making it big on TV.
Below is a summary of each of the most-read stories.
Thanks for reading during the year and thanks for continuing to read in 2011.
Have a happy and prosperous New Year.
1. Brunell Chapter 11 filed Friday night
2. UNF President John Delaney: Politics, education and hanging a shingle
3. Family entertainment center to open by summer
4. Meet St. Vincent’s HealthCare President and CEO Moody Chisholm
5. Brunell addresses creditors
6. Bank of America, Merrill Lynch to add 1,000 jobs
7. CSX’s Michael Ward: ‘Moving in the right direction’
8. Jaguars’ Wayne Weaver: ‘It starts with me’
9. Toxic employees ‘They’ll suck the life out of you’
10. Metro Diner one of many filmed by Food Network
1. Brunell Chapter 11 filed Friday night
June 28, 2010
5. Brunell addresses creditors
Sept. 2, 2010
Mark Brunell, a Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback for the team’s first nine seasons and one of the NFL franchise’s most recognized and accomplished players, filed Friday night, June 25, to reorganize his debts under Chapter 11 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code.
“Deciding to do it is the hardest part,” his bankruptcy attorney, Robert Wilcox, said after the filing, which was made electronically to the U.S. Bankruptcy Court Middle District of Florida.
The 63-page petition document shows that Brunell, who most recently had been with New Orleans Saints 2010 Super Bowl champs, filed as an individual and stated that his debts are primarily business debts. Chapter 11 is typically used by corporations, although individuals with higher levels of assets and liabilities have filed under the chapter.
Brunell listed assets of $5.5 million and liabilities of $24.7 million.
The majority of the liabilities were related to real estate and business investments and Brunell’s personal guaranty on real estate debt, including debt incurred with partnerships that involved former Jaguars teammates Joel Smeenge and Todd Fordham.
Brunell issued a statement through his attorney, Michael Freed of Brennan, Manna & Diamond, about the debts and his decision to seek Chapter 11 protection.
“After much deliberation and many years of shouldering an enormous amount of debt resulting from passive real estate investments, it has become clear that this is the only viable course of action,” said Brunell.
On Sept. 1, Brunell told creditors in his bankruptcy reorganization case that his contract with the New York Jets this season would be worth $1.5 million, if he made the team, which he did.
Brunell spoke by phone at a Section 341 creditors’ meeting at U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Jacksonville, about two weeks before he turned 40.
The U.S. trustee conducts the Section 341 meeting of creditors in which the trustee and creditors may question the debtor under oath concerning the debtor’s acts, conduct, property and the administration of the case.
2. UNF’s John Delaney: Politics, education and hanging a shingle
April 22, 2010
University of North Florida President John Delaney became UNF’s fifth president after serving two terms as Jacksonville mayor, from 1995 to 2003. During his second term, voters approved a half-cent local sales tax to support the Better Jacksonville Plan of capital improvements. Delaney also served with State Attorney and then Mayor Ed Austin as Chief Assistant State Attorney, City General Counsel and the mayor’s office Chief of Staff. He earned his undergraduate and law degrees from the University of Florida. He met with the Daily Record editorial staff for a question-and-answer session. Here were the first three questions.
What are your political aspirations?
(Laughs) I plan on retiring from UNF in eight or 10 years or so. I say that, recognizing that’s not entirely my call because the board and the faculty tend to fire presidents, but so far, relations in both cases have been really good.
I can see this being a last stop but at that time – I’ll be in my early 60s – maybe getting back into politics a little bit then. My field of vision is much smaller. Washington is pretty much off my list. I can’t see running for mayor again because that’s a particularly hard job that you don’t need to do twice. Maybe something in Tallahassee.
As Ed Austin used to say, politics is about luck and timing. The luck and the timing would have to be right eight or 10 years from now.
Any plans for the House or Senate?
Not federal. The idea of moving to Washington, D.C., and campaigning across the state, I mean the federal House you have to be there forever to really be able to do anything. It’s just tough. The state level is a little more intriguing to me. And I don’t know why, but there’s a little different psychology about either one of those. I think on paper, I’ve spent a lot of time in Tallahassee back when I was a prosecutor and back when I was mayor. I kind of know my way around over there. I think voters could look at that and say there’s an area where there is a proficiency, even though I wasn’t an elected official.
The governor’s office?
You never know. Luck and timing.
3. Family entertainment center to open by summer
February 16, 2010
Slowly but surely all of the elements of Latitude 30 — Jacksonville’s first all-inclusive family entertainment center — were coming together.
Workers were in the process of tearing out the front windows of the 45,000-square-foot Philips Highway building across from The Avenues Mall. At the same time, the project’s developers, The Brownstone Group, added Greg Garson as a partner and Renee Shields as director of sales and marketing.
Brownstone co-founder Brent Brown plans to open the doors to a facility unlike any other in Northeast Florida. When complete, Latitude 30 will include a sports bar, a gaming room, a theater for live performances, an intimate movie theater, 20 bowling lanes, a bar called Axis for the 10 p.m.-2 a.m. crowd and more.
The project, which includes an option to purchase the building and the land, will cost $10 million to become operational. The center will open to the public Jan. 6.
4. Meet St. Vincent’s HealthCare President and CEO Moody Chisholm
April 22, 2010
It was a busy month for Moody Chisholm Jr., the new president and CEO of St. Vincent’s HealthCare. The day after Easter, April 5, he started the position and he’s been working marathon days since.
In addition to overseeing the entire St. Vincent’s system, which includes St. Vincent’s Hospital, St. Luke’s Hospital, St. Catherine Laboure Manor and a handful of area primary care facilities, Moody has been shaking as many hands as possible and looking for a house to buy.
Chisholm was born in Winter Haven and grew up in Lakeland. He has two bachelor’s degrees from Appalachian State University: a bachelor of administration in health care management and a bachelor of science in economics. Chisholm also has an MBA from Nova Southeastern University.
Before joining St. Vincent’s, Chisholm was with Universal Health Systems for 24 years. St. Vincent’s is a member of Ascension Health, America’s largest Catholic and largest nonprofit health system.
Moody talked about the job, the mission of St. Vincent’s, his start in health care and his plans for the health care system. Here are the first two questions.
What is your goal or mission?
We have all kinds of backgrounds and faiths and I love that this an inclusive community. I am proud to be a part of such a long-standing tradition. The ministry is strong. We are working to expand the ministry and other parts of the system. We are committed to serving all who are in need of spiritual and holistic care.
What is your role?
I’m going to be a very hard worker for this ministry. Today is my ninth day and in those nine days I am sure I have put in 25 days of work. That’s what I enjoy doing. We will expand through our wonderful associates and clinicians.
The most important thing is that at St. Vincent’s HealthCare, we will set ourselves apart through competent and friendly associates. We have over 4,000 associates and 1,000 physicians. I want this to be an all-encompassing location for those who want to touch the lives of others.
6. Bank of America, Merrill Lynch to add 1,000 jobs
December 3, 2010
Mayor John Peyton announced that Bank of America and Merrill Lynch would add 1,000 “high-wage” jobs to the Jacksonville market over the next several years at their Southside campuses.
The announcement came during the Dec. 2 fourth-quarter Cornerstone luncheon focusing on international business. Cornerstone is the economic development arm of the Jacksonville Regional Chamber of Commerce.
The hires will come from both within and outside the region, said Peyton. Campus renovations were under way for the additional hires.
With the new jobs, Bank of America and Merrill Lynch will employ about 8,000 people, according to the chamber. Bank of America owns Merrill Lynch.
With the economic downturn heavily hitting the financial market sector, Peyton said the additional jobs make the city a “net winner” in the field.
The deal has been in the works for about a year, said Ron Barton, Jacksonville Economic Development Commission executive director. While the move qualified for potential incentives, the company didn’t request any.
“That’s a big deal,” said Barton.
Cornerstone President Jerry Mallot said the jobs would pay “in excess” of an average $45,000 to $50,000.
Mallot said hiring was beginning and employees would be added over the next two to three yeas. He said the jobs would be in the mortgage and technical financial services areas.
“It’s a shot in the arm when we need it,” he said.
Mallot was not sure how many would be hired at the Merrill Lynch Deerwood Park campus and how many would be employed at the Bank of America campus along Southside Boulevard near The Avenues Mall.
7. CSX’s Michael Ward: ‘Moving in the right direction’
September 16, 2010
Michael Ward is chair, president and CEO of CSX Corp., the largest Fortune 500 company based in Jacksonville. The railroad’s transportation network stretches 21,000 miles to 23 Eastern states, connects to more than 70 ocean, river and lake ports and operates an average of 1,200 trains a day. The company employs 30,000 people, including 3,500 in Jacksonville. With annual revenues of $9 billion, CSX ranked No. 259 on the 2010 list of Fortune magazine’s 500 largest companies.
Ward has an MBA from Harvard Business School. He met with the Daily Record editorial staff at his Downtown office in the CSX headquarters building. Here are the first two questions.
How did you get started in the railroad business?
When I was growing up (in Baltimore), my dad owned a pool hall, and I was the oldest of eight kids. He drilled it into my head, ‘you have to get a college education and you have to figure out how to pay for it.’ I went to the University of Maryland, and I worked at an asphalt factory in the summers and earned enough to do that.
I liked school. I thought it was kind of easy and interesting. I thought I might as well get my master’s degree. I applied to Maryland and Wharton, and my dad gave me $25 and said, ‘here, apply to Harvard and see what they say.’ I applied and they accepted me, and I borrowed the money to do that. I had no idea in the world what I wanted to do. I said, ‘I’m going back to Baltimore, and any big company that’ll hire me in Baltimore, that’s where I want to work’ because I knew there were people that wore white shirts and ties and went into offices and did something. And it just so happened that the railroad was hiring at that time, and here I am, 33 years later.
It is funny that my grandfather spent his whole career on the old B&O railroad, which is part of our legacy and my dad spent about two years, but he was down on the coal piers. So there happens to be railroading in my family, but it’s just a coincidence. I’ve been here 33 years and I’m still learning new things, because it’s complicated.
When I joined the railroad, an old guy told me, ‘if you stay here five years, you’ll stay here forever, ‘cause it gets in your blood.’
The company’s doing very well. What do you see with the economy?
We’re not seeing what’s being said in the press. Actually, the second quarter of last year with our earnings release, we said we thought it had bottomed. We were down 21 percent in the second quarter of last year, which is the biggest dip we’ve seen. Ever since that second quarter, we’ve seen it gradually increasing. Each quarter continues to get just a little bit stronger, nothing dramatic. We’re seeing everything moving in the right direction.
8. Jaguars’ Wayne Weaver: ‘It starts with me’
August 24, 2010
Wayne Weaver is chair, CEO and principal owner of the Jacksonville Jaguars. He and his partners won the NFL expansion franchise on Nov. 30, 1993. The team’s inaugural season was in 1995. Weaver, 75, is a 54-year veteran of business, also serving as chair of Shoe Carnival Inc. and chair and CEO of Liz Claiborne Shoes. He previously was co-owner, president and CEO of Nine West Group Inc., which designs and markets women’s footwear, and before that rose through the ranks of St. Louis-based Brown Shoe Group. He and his wife, Delores Barr Weaver, have been married 55 years and have two children and two grandchildren. Weaver met with the Daily Record editorial staff at his offices at EverBank Field. Here is one of the questions.
How’s the team going to do this year? You’re going to want to renew all those tickets next year.
I’m not one that’s going to predict how many games we’re going to win this year. I will say this. When you have an organization that buys into the goals that you’ve set, and everybody’s working hard toward those goals, usually it’s pretty successful, and I’m very optimistic that this team is going to do well.
(After last year) I talked to everybody in the organization in a constructive way, of how do we do things better, both on the football side and the administrative side, and obviously on the business side. I met with at least a dozen of our chief players, how can we do things better here, to hear from them. I interviewed everybody from the equipment room to our strength and conditioning (staff), saying how do we get better? What are the things we need to do to get better? And the same thing on the football side, with (coach) Jack (del Rio) and his people.
We decided that there were certain things that we needed to do differently, and everybody bought into it.
It starts here. It starts with me. If things are not going right, it’s my fault. I don’t blame anybody else. So I think that we all bought in. You know what? We’re on the right track here, but there are things that we can do better. If we do these things, and get everybody to buy in, good things are going to happen. I have to say that I’m really proud of the way everybody bought into our goals this year. And the chemistry of this football team, we’ve purged some people off the team that we felt hadn’t bought in, and on the football side, I think everybody has worked hard toward those goals.
You look at the pundits out there, I think that they picked us last in our division. But that’s good. Let people evaluate us. But I can tell you that everybody in this building believes that if we continue to work hard, we’re going to have success, and it may not all come this one season, but we’re doing the right things, and when you do that on an accumulative basis, then good things happen.
9. Toxic employees ‘They’ll suck the life out of you’
October 8, 2010
Chances are, you know one.
You’ve either worked with a difficult employee or managed one. Perhaps it’s more accurate to say you tried because some employees, the especially “toxic” ones, can be a challenge at best and a disaster at worst.
In recent weeks, two Jacksonville CEOs alluded to the damage from such workers.
“One of the most critical things is what I call getting the right people on the bus,” CSX Corp. Chair Michael Ward told the Daily Record in a wide-ranging interview.
“There’s good ambition and bad ambition. If you have good ambition, you want the organization to do better, you want to do a good job, and eventually you’ll be rewarded by that with more responsibility, and eventually, more pay,” he said.
“But then you have people that want to climb the ladder, and will do it over people’s backs. That’s the bad ambition. If you see the bad ambition, you have to kill it immediately. It’s a cancer on your organization.”
RS&H Chair and CEO Leerie Jenkins Jr. told business owners at the Jacksonville Regional Chamber of Commerce’s CEO Nexus Forum that they need to hire great, not mediocre, people and to deal with difficult people rapidly.
“They’ll suck the life out of you,” he warned.
Jacksonville human resources consultant Bob McKenzie said he advises companies to aggressively use the 90-day introductory employment period for new hires because toxic employees usually reveal their nature sooner than that.
“The toxic employee creates a huge disruption in the workplace and their disruptive behavior should be pointed out to them as soon as it is recognized,” he said.
Some experts contend that toxic employees can be rehabilitated and restored to good behavior and full performance, but McKenzie isn’t so sure, which is why appropriate actions are necessary.
10. Metro Diner one of many filmed by Food Network
February 25, 2010
It was 8 a.m. Wednesday morning and the normal sizzle of the grill during breakfast at Jacksonville’s Metro Diner was replaced by the clunk and shuffle of making room to film a television show.
Guy Fieri, host of The Food Network’s “Diners, Drive-ins and Dives” television show, and a film crew were the only people besides staff allowed in the building during normal breakfast hours.
“Sorry, no cheese grits today. We’re filming today,” said Mark Davoli to a customer looking for a hot breakfast. “We’ll have them tomorrow, though.”
For one of the few times in the diner’s history, it was easy to find a seat , but, ironically, it was the restaurant’s popularity that caused it to be empty.
“(The Food Network) told us that people had sent them e-mails recommending that ‘Diners, Drive-ins and Dives’ should stop here,” said John Davoli Jr. “We’re just glad people think enough about our food to recommend us that way.”
The segment aired in September.
Metro Diner features items like “Yo Hala on the Square,” a thick slice of Challah bread stuffed with bananas that have been sautéed in Frangelica and blended with cream cheese. It is prepared like French toast and topped with blueberry and strawberry compote. There’s also Crab Cake Benedict and Cinnamon Raisin Pecan French Toast.