• Gator Bowl Association President and CEO Rick Catlett said Tuesday that Dale Earnhardt Jr. will attend the Jan. 2 TaxSlayer.com Gator Bowl at EverBank Field as a featured guest. TaxSlayer.com is a sponsor of the JR Motorsports racing team, which competes in NASCAR’s Nationwide Series. “He will ride a TaxSlayer.com car onto the field prior to the game,” said Catlett. Earnhardt is familiar with Jacksonville. He opened a Whisky River nightclub and restaurant last year at the St. Johns Town Center.
• Abel Harding, former communications director for Mayor Alvin Brown and columnist at The Florida Times-Union, tweeted Tuesday that he will rejoin First Citizens Bank as a vice president.
• Correction: According to the Securities and Exchange Commission, the latest filings by Stakool Inc. stated “to our best knowledge and belief, the issuer is not now, and never has been, a shell company.” A story in Monday’s Daily Record indicated otherwise.
• The City issued a certificate of completion for the Kirkland’s store at St. Johns Town Center. JMJ Builders LLC handled the $196,815 renovations at 4870 Big Island Drive, Unit 6.
• Jacksonville Fraternal Order of Police President Nelson Cuba was nominated to serve a record fifth term in the position. Nominations were presented during the Tuesday membership meeting. Nominations include Robbie Frietas, first vice president for a third term; Steve Amos, second vice president, replacing Lonnie Miller Jr., who did not seek re-election; Lynette Clinch, secretary, replacing Steve Amos; Clarence James, treasurer; David Harvey, conductor; David Meacham, inner guard; Ed Hernandez, outer guard; Clarence Jarrell, chaplain; and David Stevens, immediate past president. Each elected member serves a two-year term.
• Mayo Clinic researchers will present a study Monday about additional evidence that secondhand smoke kills and smoke-free workplace laws save lives. The study will be presented to the American Heart Association’s Scientific Sessions in Orlando. “This study adds to the observation that smoke-free workplace laws help reduce the chances of having a heart attack, but for the first time we report these laws also reduce the chances of sudden cardiac death,” says Richard Hurt, M.D., director of Mayo Clinic’s Nicotine Dependence Center.
• The City issued a permit for Poimboeuf Homes Inc. to build a new amenity center and clubhouse at Silver Springs, at 3737 St. Johns Bluff Road S., at a project cost of $309,267; Hanson Roofing Inc. has the re-roofing project for Arroyo Process Equipment at 1105 Lane Ave. N. at a cost of $15,783.
• The Tim Tebow Foundation and CURE International announced plans to build a children’s hospital in the Philippines, where Tebow, the starting quarterback for the Denver Broncos and a Heisman Trophy winner at the University of Florida, was born. The Tebow CURE Hospital in Davao City will be a 30-bed surgical facility focusing primarily on orthopedics. The groundbreaking will be in January and the hospital is expected to open in mid-2013.
• Jet’s Pizza opened in the Harbour Village shopping plaza at 13475 Atlantic Blvd., Suite 12, west of San Pablo Road South. The official JAX Chamber ribbon-cutting ceremony will be 3:30 p.m. Thursday. Plans call for five Jet’s Pizza locations in Jacksonville over the next five years.
• Bennett Nussbaum, CFO and senior vice president of Winn-Dixie Stores Inc., along with Matthew Gutermuth, a group vice president, are scheduled to make a presentation at 9:25 a.m. today at the the Citi 8th Annual US Small/Mid Cap Conference in Las Vegas.
• City Council Vice President Bill Bishop is on the calendar to speak at the JAX Chamber Downtown Council Friday morning at The University Club Downtown. For information, visit www.downtowncouncil.org.