• The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Jacksonville District, met with senior leadership of the Jacksonville Port Authority to discuss the Mile Point project Wednesday. Current tidal conditions at the Mile Point section of the shipping lanes that serve Jacksonville ports only allow cargo ships to call on the ports for about eight hours a day. Reconfiguring the section of the shipping lanes would increase that time and draft plans met with favorable review from the Army Corps. “We believe that we have developed a plan that has both a favorable cost benefit analysis and favorable environmental assessment,” said Steve Ross, senior project manager for the local Army Corps. A public workshop will be scheduled shortly after the document is released to the public, slated to be within two months.
• Typically done during a regular full City Council meeting, incumbent and recently elected council members will instead vote on their leadership for the 2011-12 fiscal year at 11:30 a.m. Tuesday at City Hall. Both Council president and vice president will be determined.
• A collective bargaining agreement meeting involving all current City Council members is scheduled for 1 p.m. June 8, but you won’t see any media coverage. It’s a shade meeting, which means it’s not open to the public under attorney/client privileges.
• Nominations for the Robert O. Johnson Good Government Award are due by 5 p.m. Friday. The award was established by council in 2003 in honor of former Council Auditor Robert O. Johnson and is given annually to a person who has demonstrated significant contribution to increased efficiency of the City or its independent agencies. Nomination forms can be found at www.coj.net.
• Correction: EverBank spokeswoman Justine Navaja’s name was spelled incorrectly in Wednesday’s Daily Record.
• Thanks, but no thanks: Unless Gov. Rick Scott planned on line-item vetoing the measure, Jacksonville-based Wounded Warrior projected was set to receive $3.2 million in funding from the Legislature. Yet, before any signatures or vetoes could take place, officials of the nonprofit that assists injured servicemen and servicewomen declined the funding Wednesday. According to a release by the organization, it’s policy is to not accept government funding of any kind.
• The Museum of Science & History on the Southbank Downtown is offering free admission Saturday-Monday for active and retired military personnel who present a valid military identification card. The “Universe of Science” exhibit will close at 5 p.m. Monday to make way for the museum’s next feature exhibit, “Savage Ancient Seas: Dinosaurs of the Deep,” which opens June 11.
• The Duval County Property Appraiser’s Office now provides an online Homestead Exemption application. The homestead exemption is a benefit for Florida homeowners which can provide up to $50,000 off the assessed value of a home, therefore lowering property taxes. Once in place, the homestead exemption triggers a state law that limits the increase in the property’s assessed value to 3 percent or less per year. Qualifying homeowners who moved into their home after Jan. 1, 2011 are eligible for a 2012 exemption and may begin filing now. The deadline to file is March 1, 2012. The exemption application is available at www.duvalpa.com.