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Daily Record JACKSONVILLE
CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC: YOUR INSIGHT
Jumbo Shrimp Daily Record JACKSONVILLE
owner: ‘What a year it has been’
Daily Record Maxwell House will Daily Record bring back the ‘drip’ JACKSONVILLE
JACKSONVILLE Special to the Daily Record
Maxwell House plans to return the “drip” to its Downtown factory with new LED lighting that can feature more colors than the red and blue used now.
The coffee plant seeks a sign exception from the Downtown Development Review Board. BY MIKE MENDENHALL STAFF WRITER
The Maxwell House coffee plant Downtown plans to update the LED lighting in the facility’s historic sign to restart the sequenced coffee drips and add seasonal colors. The Downtown Development Review Board will consider Maxwell House’s application for a special sign exception at a July 9 meeting. According to a Downtown Investment Authority staff report, Maxwell House plans to change the existing red and blue LED lighting to new LED multicolored programmable lighting on the western facing sign and to introduce lighting to the eastern facade signage. DIA staff recommended approval. The new lighting will allow Maxwell House to change the color of the sign, cup and drips to reflect holidays and special occasions, the report states. DIA staff said Maxwell House is consider-
ing adding teal and gold during Jacksonville Jaguars football games. The plant is at 735 E. Bay St., not far from TIAA Bank Field. Plans filed by General Sign Service Corp. show individual power supplies for each coffee drip in the sign, allowing for the sequencing effect. The proposed LED multicolored lighting will replace the existing LED lighting used in the steel porcelain signage attached to the Maxwell House plant. The plant has been operating since 1924. The Maxwell House sign has been visible on the Downtown skyline since 1955. According to the DIA staff report, the cup and coffee drips were added in 1970. When Maxwell House replaced the sign’s original neon lighting with LEDs, the plant lost the ability to sequence the sign’s drips, the report states. The proposed signage plans would not change the scale or placement of the sign. The plant employs about 200 people. It is owned by Kraft Heinz Corp. and is the last remaining Maxwell House plant in the U.S. The DDRB will meet virtually via Zoom at 2 p.m. July 9. MMENDENHALL@JAXDAILYRECORD.COM (904) 356-2466
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The Maxwell House coffee plant in Downtown Jacksonville at 735 E. Bay Street. The cup and drips were added in 1970, but the drips stopped when Maxwell House changed the neon lighting to LED.
CEO Ken Babby intends to keep swinging at 121 Financial Ballpark now that the Minor League Baseball season is canceled.
BY KAREN BRUNE MATHIS EDITOR
The day before Minor League Baseball canceled the 2020 season because of the coronavirus, Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp owner and CEO Ken Babby signaled a business group that he was preparing for it. “I wish I had better news to share,” Babby told the Meninak Club of Jacksonville in a Zoom meeting June 29. The Jumbo Shrimp confirmed his expectation June 30 after an Babby announcement by Minor League Baseball that the 2020 season was canceled. Babby was disappointed, but not surprised. “As we approach the end of June, that’s really the reality, especially as cases continue to rise throughout the country,” he said. The 2020 cancellation is the first time since 1969 that Jacksonville will not field a professional baseball season. The previous franchise moved from Jacksonville to SEE BABBY, PAGE 2
Apple Store closes again at St. Johns Town Center After reopening its retail stores May 17, Apple is closing its St. Johns Town Center store again in response to a rise in COVID-19 cases. The store closed July 1, and according to Apple’s website, it will remain closed until further notice. The store is at 4835 River City Drive. “We look forward to resuming full operations as soon as it’s safe to do so,” said a statement on the website. The store is open for existing pickup orders.
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