• Mayor Alvin Brown and Jacksonville Jaguars President Mark Lamping are scheduled to speak at the Urban Land Institute North Florida breakfast meeting May 3 at The Haskell Co. at 111 Riverside Ave. Registration starts at 7:30 a.m. followed by the program from 8-9 a.m. The cost is $35 and the event is open to ULI members only. Space is limited. Information: 486-8256.
• Mayor Alvin Brown announced his support of a 12-month pilot project to provide a daytime center for Jacksonville’s homeless population. The City plans to commit one staff person to launch the center. Other needs will be covered through public-private partnerships and charitable donations. A news release from the mayor’s office said the center would provide programs and services to help the homeless regain stability, employment and personal shelter. It also would provide temporary shelter from inclement weather. The location will be determined. The mayor is working with the Emergency Services and Homeless Coalition of Jacksonville Inc., Jacksonville Sheriff John Rutherford and ICARE.
• St. John & Partners added Ryan Huffman and Coe Douglas to the agency’s creative team. Huffman joins as senior art director and Douglas is a senior copywriter. Huffman joins after stints with agencies in Atlanta and Bend, Ore. Douglas has worked at multiple agencies across the country over the past 13 years. Both will play integral roles on St. John & Partners’ Florida Lottery and Zaxby’s accounts.
• Cushman & Wakefield of Florida Inc. reported that the first-quarter office vacancy rate in Jacksonville was 21 percent, with the central business district Downtown, comprising the Northbank and Southbank, posting a 23.1 percent vacancy rate and the suburbs posting a 20.1 percent rate. The rate in the Downtown Northbank was 27.7 percent. The largest suburban market, Butler/Baymeadows, ended the quarter with a vacancy rate of 18.3 percent.
• Cushman & Wakefield reported an overall vacancy rate among industrial buildings at 11.1 percent at the end of the first quarter. The largest market, Westside, was 8 percent vacant, while the highest vacancy rate, 20.8 percent, was in the Northside.
• Gov. Rick Scott appointed Christopher Cobb, a shareholder of Jimerson & Cobb, to the Construction Industry Licensing Board. His term began Wednesday and ends Oct. 31, 2013. The appointment is subject to confirmation by the Florida Senate.
• Checker Cab Co. signed an agreement to become the preferred taxi company of St. Johns Town Center. The first location is on the north end of the property at River City Drive near the AT&T store and Ted’s Montana Grill. The second location will be the on the south end of the property near parking area for Cantina Laredo and The Capital Grille.